Now, what exactly these widgets will do when completed is still something of a mystery. Not least of all, up until widespread release and like all apps, Google could always change how they look and what interactions are available. For now, they aren’t enabled by default in the Google Translate app. And they tend to disappear quickly and entirely once added to the home screen. There’s also some confusion in the comments on the tweet as to whether they come back after going away, once enabled. However, some of that mystery is removed by the screenshots and the titles Google has currently given the widgets.
What do these new Google Translate widgets do?
Saved Translations is the more straightforward of the two in the screenshots of the Google Translate widgets. The widget showcases a list of saved translations across all languages used for those translations. The widget first shows the native language version and then the translated version. There appears to be an option to copy the translation or to play an AI rendition of the translation. And, of course, there’s a star-shaped icon as well. That presumably lets users remove the translation from the list if needed. Quick Actions is a little more complicated and takes a different route. It doesn’t show saved translations but it does show an option to change the translation language, a mic icon — presumably for speech renditions — and a camera icon that presumably works to translate via Google Lens. The widget also shows a contacts-like icon. That most likely allows the Google Translate Widget to be used to have a conversation translated in real-time, just as in the Translate app.
H/T to @pulkit_bbk who briefly saw them and informed me about this. pic.twitter.com/kJKKyYRmR1 — Mishaal Rahman (@MishaalRahman) February 7, 2022
