Support our independent tech coverage. Chrome Unboxed is written by real people, for real people—not search algorithms. Join Chrome Unboxed Plus for just $2 a month to get an ad-free experience, access to our private Discord, and more. Learn more about membership here.
START FREE TRIAL (MONTHLY)START FREE TRIAL (ANNUAL)
When the NotebookLM mobile app first launched, it was a great companion piece to the web experience. It was primarily focused on letting you access your sources and listen to Audio Overviews while on the go. The “real” work of interacting, creating, and studying was largely left to the desktop.
Well, a big update rolling out this week is completely changing that, transforming the mobile app from a passive listener into a full-on, interactive study partner. The NotebookLM app for Android and iOS is now getting two of the web’s best features: Flashcards and Quizzes.
Create study tools on the fly
Just like the web version, these new tools are accessible in the “Studio” tab. This update gives you the power to instantly turn your source materials into active study aids, right from your phone:
- Flashcards: Helps you memorize key terms, important dates, and core concepts from your notes.
- Quizzes: Lets you test your comprehension and challenge yourself on the material you’ve uploaded.
You’re not just getting a default set, either. You can customize the tools by setting the difficulty level (Easy, Medium, Hard), the number of cards or questions, and even add your own prompt to focus the topic. The interface is a clean, fullscreen portrait mode where you tap to reveal answers or see explanations for both right and wrong quiz answers.
Big upgrades to Chat and Source selection, too
This update isn’t just about the new study tools; it’s also bringing some of the web’s most powerful back-end features to mobile.
First, you can now temporarily select and unselect sources when chatting or using the Studio. This is a critical, highly-requested feature. It means you can focus Gemini’s response only on the one or two documents you care about right now, without having to remove all the other sources from your notebook.
Second, the massive chat improvements that rolled out to the web last week are now coming to the mobile app. This includes:
- 50% better quality in responses
- A 4x larger context window
- 6x longer conversation memory
These upgrades, all powered by the latest Gemini models, mean you can have longer, more coherent, and more powerful conversations with your sources without the app losing track of what you’re discussing.
This is a fantastic set of upgrades that makes the NotebookLM app an indispensable tool for students and researchers, not just at their desks, but anywhere. The new features are rolling out via server-side updates starting this week.
VIA: 9to5 Google
SUBSCRIBE TO UPSTREAM
Get Chrome Unboxed delivered straight to your inbox
Upstream is our flagship, curated newsletter with the top stories, most click-worthy deals, giveaways, and trending articles from Chrome Unboxed sent directly to your inbox a few times a week. Join 31,000+ subscribers.

