What was once known as “Google Talk” has slowly transformed into Google Hangouts and now it’s changing again.
The update, which is rolling out now, will finally re-add a way for you to actually see who’s online and available to talk (which has been a personal annoyance of mine for quite some time now). A green icon means that they’re available.
Other improvements include the ability to browse your contacts when starting a new Hangout, an easier-to-navigate GUI and you can now hide people from the “New Hangout” screen if you want to ignore them. Just press their name for a few seconds and hit “Hide contact”.
The update of Hangouts for Android is rolling out on Google Play over the next few days. Look out for version 1.2 and do let us know what your thoughts are.