Google Ditches Legacy Gemini Models, Embraces New 2.0 Flash for Everyday Tasks

Summary

Google has removed the 1.5 family of models from the Gemini app, including 1.5 Flash and 1.5 Pro, following the launch of 2.0 Flash. This change affects both web and mobile platforms.

• 1.5 Models: Previously, 1.5 Pro was designed for complex tasks, while 1.5 Flash provided everyday help.
• 2.0 Flash: Now available for all free and paid users, it is described as suitable for everyday tasks and outperforms 1.5 Pro in various benchmarks, including code, factuality, math, and reasoning, at twice the speed.
• Gemini Advanced Subscribers: Have access to additional features such as a 1 million token context window for file uploads, custom Gems, Saved Info, Recall, and Deep Research (still using 1.5 Pro).
• 2.0 Experimental Models: Currently in experimental stages, including '2.0 Flash Thinking' and '2.0 Pro,' which offer enhanced capabilities for reasoning and complex tasks.

The removal of 1.5 models is seen as a precursor to the eventual launch of 2.0 Pro, which is still in preview and lacks some real-time information access and features like file upload.