Google is dealing an emotional blow to the forgetful as it will soon remove location-based reminders.
The company hasn't made a public announcement, but some eagle-eyed users noticed the change to the Google Assistant help page (opens in a new tab). For those who don't know or don't remember, you were able to create reminders for yourself based on a location. For example, you can set a reminder to buy a gallon of milk at the grocery store, and if the Google Assistant on your phone (opens in a new tab) detects that you walk past one, it will let you know.
It's not clear why Google is doing this or when this feature will be removed. We reached out to Google and asked if they could explain the decision to remove the Google Assistant feature and when people should expect this feature to be removed. Unfortunately, Google never contacted us. The only thing Google said on its help page about this is that you can still create time-based reminders or create a routine for these locations.
9to5 Google speculates that this could be related to a new "Memory" feature for the Assistant that would allow the service to save files, locations, movies, and more. They claim it's part of "spring cleaning" and that Google is getting rid of old and unwanted features so they can add something new. Users on the Android subreddit (opens in a new tab) claim that Google sends notifications informing users of its upcoming change.
Speaking of users, their reaction has been a mix of negativity and confusion. Judging by this Reddit post, some people are bummed that location-based reminders are being phased out, while others have completely forgotten it was even a thing.
A few are happy location-based reminders are being removed because they claim the feature just didn't work.
Analysis: Gone is the old
The claim that Google is doing "spring cleaning" might contain some truth. At I/O 2022, Google announced that it's revamping Google Assistant's AI so it can understand more casual conversations. It may be a matter of removing some old, and perhaps underused, technology to make room for the new.
Google Snapshot, for example, was removed from its services in mid-April. It used to be a feature that gave you a quick snapshot of how your day was going to go, but now it's gone without any tracking. If this memory feature comes to fruition, perhaps underused location-based reminders are better off gone forever, to make way for something better.
If you're looking for an app other than Google's offerings to set reminders, TechRadar has a list of the best calendar apps for 2022.