Google Assistant becomes more useful with five new features

With the latest update, Google Assistant makes it easier to order food online by helping you complete your purchase in only a few steps using the company's Duplex on the web technology.

Google has introduced five new features such as sunrise-sunset routine and suggested actions etc. to make its assistant more useful for users.

The latest Google Assistant update will help you tackle small things around the house (and from the car), the search giant said on Wednesday.

Among the five newly-introduced features, one is the ability to use your Nest smart speaker or smart display to find your misplaced or lost devices, including iPhones, just by saying "Hey Google, find my phone". Once iPhone users opt-in to receiving notifications and critical alerts from the Google Home app, they'll get a notification and hear a custom ringing sound, even when the phone is on silent or if Do Not Disturb (DND) is turned on.

With the latest update, Google Assistant makes it easier to order food online by helping you complete your purchase in only a few steps using the company's Duplex on the web technology. Here's how the Assistant will help you get your takeout faster:

• In the first step, you'll need to search for a restaurant near you from the Google App on Android and select Order Online or Order Pickup
• When you finish your online takeout order from a restaurant, Google Assistant will automatically navigate the site and fill out your contact and payment details saved in Google Pay and synced to Chrome Autofill.

For the feature to work, Google, at launch, is partnering with select restaurant chains with more to be added across the U.S. later this year.

Thirdly, location-based sunrise or sunset Routines are now available globally for smart home devices. For example, you can automatically turn on your living room lights when the sun goes down.

To set up these Routines:

• go to the Google Home app or Assistant settings
• select the New routine tab
• add 'starter' under 'how to start'
• An option for Sunrise/sunset will appear
• you can customize the time and specific actions you want

With this update, Google has also included a dedicated section in Ready-Made Routines to highlight popular suggested actions such as "Tell me if my battery is low". Users also have the option to add a shortcut icon for their favourite Routines to their Android home screen.

Lastly, users can use Google Assistant to get the inside scoop on the Oscars. For example, if you ask "Hey Google, when are the Oscars?" or "Hey Google, who's nominated for Animated Feature Film at the Oscars?" you will hear the list of nominees.