Skip to main content

Google’s new search feature makes picking the perfect movie simple

Over the past few years, programs like MoviePass have revived the once dying movie-going experience.  While films like Black Panther are guaranteed to draw huge crowds, even smaller movies are gaining larger in-theater audiences. In fact, in 2016 more than two-thirds of all Americans went to the movies at least once.

Since the majority of people use the internet to search for movie times and reviews online, Google decided to make the entire process more streamlined when you search through Google on a mobile browser or use the Google app on Android devices. Starting Tuesday, April 3, users can have access to a bevy of information about movies playing in their local theaters.

Recommended Videos

Google now provides you with a listing of movies by showtime at theaters in your area. Once you find a title that piques your interest, simply tap on it to learn more. Google will provide a synopsis of the film, review scores from IMDb, Metacritic, and Rotten Tomatoes, as well as showtimes for other local theaters. Once you have found the movie of your choice, simply tap on the showtime to purchase your tickets.

The feature is the latest in a series of updates for the tech giant that’s focused on entertainment. Last week, the company announced an update to its Google Play Movies and TV app for Android that allows users to quickly determine where a certain show or movie is streaming. The feature, similar to Apple’s TV app, aggregates information from most of the major streaming services (excluding Netflix) so you don’t need to hunt through a dozen different apps to binge watch your favorite series.

Right now, the feature is only available in the United States and India, although we expect to see it roll out to other regions eventually. To use the feature, simply search for a movie via a mobile browser or in the Google app for Android.  If you’re using an iPhone, you either need to search through your browser or wait a bit longer: Google says it will roll out the feature for the Google app on iOS in the near future.

Steven Winkelman
Former Staff Writer, Mobile
Steven writes about technology, social practice, and books. At Digital Trends, he focuses primarily on mobile and wearables…
Google demos its smartglasses and makes us hanker for the future
A screenshot from Google's TED Talk on its smartglasses.

At a recent TED talk, Google’s exciting XR smartglasses were demonstrated to the public for the very first time. While we’ve seen the smartglasses before, it has always been in highly polished videos showcasing Project Astra, where we never get a true feel for the features and functionality in the real world. All that has now changed, and our first glimpse of the future is very exciting. However, future is very much the operative word. 

https://www.ted.com/talks/shahram_izadi_the_next_computer_your_glasses?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare

Read more
Android phones get new security feature that iPhone owners already have
The Google Pixel 9a on a table showing the screen.

Google is taking a page out of Apple's playbook by launching a new security feature that makes Android phones automatically restart after a few days of inactivity.

The new auto-restart feature (or auto-reboot, if you want to call it that) was patched into the latest Google Play services update, which was released on Monday. The release notes say that the update forces your Google Pixel 9, Samsung Galaxy S25, or other Android phone to restart itself "if locked for [three] consecutive days," which means you need to enter your PIN code if you want to unlock it after not using it for that period of time. It resembles the Inactivity Reboot feature on iOS 18.1, only iPhones would restart themselves after four days.

Read more
WhatsApp is testing a new chat feature that ensures better privacy
WhatsApp app icon appearing on a phone.

Do you have that one friend in your group chat who can't keep a secret to save their life? WhatsApp is giving you a solution to that problem with "advanced chat privacy," a new feature currently being tested that allows you to block other people from exporting chats or automatically saving photos and other media you send them without your consent.

WABetaInfo reported on Monday that the toggle for the new chat privacy feature was spotted in the latest app beta for Android and iOS over the weekend. The idea of "advanced chat privacy," which works for both individual and group chats, is to give its users better control over the information they share with anyone they're chatting with to reduce the risk of accidental leaks, unauthorized data sharing, and archiving messages outside of the chat without their knowledge.

Read more