YouTube Music’s Android application is introducing a significant update that enhances user interaction by incorporating a “Hum to Search” feature, enabling users to find songs by humming, singing, or playing a snippet of the melody. This new functionality is accessible via a waveform icon located next to the microphone icon within the app’s search bar, evident after tapping the magnifying glass in the top-right corner.
This integration is not entirely new to Google’s ecosystem, as the capability first appeared on Google Search in 2020 and was integrated into the YouTube app in October of the previous year. This feature builds on the existing Now Playing technology developed for Pixel devices, using advanced AI algorithms to compare the hummed or sung melody to original recordings.
In practical terms, the feature performs swiftly, presenting results on a fullscreen page that displays cover art, the song’s name, artist, album, release year, and availability for download or offline playback. Additional actions, such as saving to a library or accessing other options, are facilitated via the standard overflow menu.
This update is currently rolling out as a server-side change with version 7.02 of the YouTube Music app for Android. Notably, this feature has yet to appear on the iOS version of the app. Interestingly, this isn’t Google’s first venture into music recognition technology; Google Play Music previously offered a similar feature before its discontinuation.
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