Allo was announced in May but is now available for download with many of the fun features people are accustomed to using in other apps.
There are group chatting, stickers and the option to let messages expire. The big thing that’s missing is the ability to make video and audio calls, which was intentional. For those functions, Google wants users to get on Duo, its dedicated video calling app launched in August.
Both are free, available for Android and iOS and designed to simplify mobile messaging. Google is calling Allo a “smart messaging app” because it learns from your conversations and suggests things for you to say.
Over time, Allo will learn if you prefer to say “haha” or “lol,” so the more you use the predictive feature, the better it will get at mimicking your speech style.
Using Google inside a chat is one of Allo’s best features. To do so, mention Google by typing “@Google” and words to search for e.g. things to do or places to eat.
