Gear News of the Week: Android Gets Emergency Live Video, and the Pixel Watch 4 Supports Gestures

Forget just calling 911; if you have an Android phone, you can now share live video directly with the dispatcher. It's a new feature Google announced this week called Android Emergency Live Video, and it's rolling out to folks in the US, along with select regions in Germany and Mexico, for phones running Android 8 and newer with Google Play Services.

This capability becomes available during an emergency call or text, as a dispatcher can send a request to your phone to share live video. You need to tap to accept the request, and your phone's camera will start streaming footage, whether that's to assess a fallen tree on the road or to guide you through CPR until an ambulance arrives. Google says the feature is encrypted, and you can stop sharing the live video feed at any time. There's nothing you need to do ...