My wife texted me on Friday asking what the name of the app was that she used to call me every day because she couldn’t find it. The app she needed to find was Google Duo, which was discontinued by Google in August, only to be brought back in icon form a few weeks later because people (like my wife) were still trying to figure it out.
As it turns out, an update sent this weekend has once again removed the Google Duo icon from the app drawer (and apparently on some home screens).
For me, the Duo icon I had on my home screen at the end of August has been replaced by Meet. I’m running a Pixel 7, though I’m not sure that matters much. My phone seemed to automatically switch back to Meet, while his phone was there something Funny that threw him. He said he was wondering what the sudden missing space on his home screen was and this change must have happened.
So Google is apparently trying it again, hoping that you and your friends and family (and my wife) will all remember that Duo is gone and Meet is here to replace it.
The strange thing about removing Duo and then bringing it back to remove it again is that Google seems to have done it without any other warning. Remember that when Duo was first rolling out, they filled the app with warnings about the Meet rebranding. This time it’s just – BOOM! All rights reserved.
So long again, dear friend, Duo.