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Google Play Points rolling out to 5 more countries, including Israel and Portugal
Bringing the total to 27 countries
Google's Play Points rewards program, which offers about 1% in rewards points for your Play Store purchases, is now available in 13 more countries, ten of which are in Europe. Last we'd heard about Play Points, there were 9 countries on the list, so the support has more than doubled with these latest additions.
Google Meet will now tell you when your call quality is poor, as ifF Y□U d.dn.t kno###
It'll also help you fix it
Video calls have no doubt become more popular in the past year or so. Those who deal with not-so-great Wi-Fi or just own less powerful devices have likely had to deal with poor call quality, but Google Meet will now tell you when your call quality is being affected and offer recommendations on how to fix the issue.
New Facebook and Instagram setting claws your happiness back from the approval-based dopamine popularity machine
You can now disable like counts
After well over a year of testing, Facebook and Instagram have finally decided to officially allow users to hide like counts. If you've been feeling the heat about not getting enough likes or views on your posts, this is something you'll want to look into.
Pixel 6 looks to have true flagship-level GPU
The GPU in question is also used in the Exynos Galaxy S21
The Pixel 5 was somewhat of a disappointment in the performance department. At $700, it was $100 cheaper than the Pixel 4, but its performance really seemed more reminiscent of $300-400 mid-range phones than other $700 phones with more upmarket CPUs and GPUs. Thankfully, Google seems to be addressing that shortcoming with the Pixel 6, using a high-end Mali-G78 GPU.
Google Search on desktop experiments with reading snippets out loud
It looks like those in India are seeing it first
By now, all of you have undoubtedly seen Google's "featured snippets," which are those little paragraphs of text that show up first when you're looking for answers. Google is now testing a "Hear this out loud" button that will read said snippets to you out loud.
Android Auto is rolling out a selection of wallpapers to fancy up your dash
It's not quite the full wallpaper support people want, but these aren't bad either
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Just a couple months ago, Android Auto added six preset images hidden away in the code that could be used as future backgrounds. We had been hoping that this meant that full custom wallpaper support would be coming soon, but instead, Google has removed most of the previous images in favor of 12 new, more car-oriented backgrounds that suit Android Auto a lot better. When they were first discovered by 9to5Google, they weren't selectable by users, but that appears to be changing: Many people report that wallpapers are now rolling out to their cars.
Bullitt Group is licensing the Motorola name to use for rugged phones
It's the same company that produces CAT phones
Most of you have probably heard of those ultra-chunky, utilitarian-looking CAT phones, but CAT is a construction equipment company, not a phone manufacturer. Bullitt Group produces those phones for CAT, and it is now licensing the Motorola name for rugged phones as well.
T-Mobile US Galaxy Note10 models are now receiving Android 11
About a month after rolling out to Verizon units
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Verizon used to be among the slowest carriers to update their phones, but that may not be true anymore. Big Red became the first US carrier to send out the Android 11 update to the Galaxy Note10 mid-January, only a couple of weeks after it debuted on the Exynos-powered international Note10 models. And now, a month later, T-Mobile is jumping on the bandwagon and has started rolling out Android 11 to its Note10 and 10+ units.
Split-screen Street View finally arrives on Google Maps for Android (APK Download)
You can actually see where you're going now
In the past, if I needed to use Street View, I usually tried to hop on my desktop. While the Street View function in Android's Google Maps did work, it would often be confusing to use, simply because I couldn't see where I was going. Google has finally added a split-view mode for Street View on Android, making the feature a lot easier to use.
Hashtags are prevalent on many social media platforms these days. With regards to Google's own services, Google+ had hashtag support before it was killed off, and YouTube has had them for nearly three years at this point. Discover is the latest Google service to experiment with hashtags, though it does seem a little unnecessary.
Chrome now mutes web notifications while screen sharing
A handy feature given how often we're sharing our screens now
If you've ever had an annoying (and perhaps private) Chrome notification pop up while sharing your screen, you're in luck — Chrome will now mute notifications by default when it detects you're sharing your screen. It should be hitting all accounts soon, but you can manually enable it now if you'd like.
Spotify is kicking its new audiobook section off with nine classics
They're free to listen to for all Spotify users
Spotify has decided to step into the world of audiobooks, and it's starting things off with nine books you may have heard of narrated by some names you may recognize. If you've been running out of music and podcasts to listen to, it might not be a bad idea to get a better grasp of some literary classics.
You can now view photorealistic 3D car models from Porsche, Volvo, and more on your Android phone
If you're in the US, that is
About a month ago, Google published highly realistic 3D models of 250+ cars that could be viewed with an Android phone in the Search app. Today, Google has added models from Porsche, Volvo, and FCA (well, it's Stellantis now) to the mix, making it even easier to daydream.
Fossil Gen 5 LTE smartwatch now available at Verizon for $349
It's Fossil's first LTE Wear OS watch and a Big Red exclusive
The Fossil Gen 5 LTE, announced earlier this month, is now for sale at Verizon for $349. There aren't many LTE smartwatches on the market, likely because most people have their phones nearby if they're wearing a smartwatch. But if you're a Verizon subscriber who's been on the lookout for an LTE Wear OS watch, this is worth checking out.
Google Calendar adds offline support for the web
Chrome users will be able to take advantage of this very soon
Unreliable Internet connections are all too common. If you've ever tried to check your Google Calendar while your Wi-Fi was down, only to find that nothing would load, you're in luck — Google Calendar now has offline support for Chrome.
Google is still selling its $30 Pixel USB-C earphones
Another set of wired earbuds bites the dust... not
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- A reader has pointed out that the Google Store listing has returned, and you can once again buy the Pixel USB-C earphones for $29.99. We're not sure why the link went down in the first place, but it's back now. Meanwhile, commenters have pointed out that Verizon is now out of stock, which is pretty funny.
After a little over two years on the market, Google's aptly named Pixel USB-C earbuds are no longer for sale. These buds are no longer available for sale at the Google Store and most retailers, which is a shame since they were decent for what they were.
Here's our first look at the Sony Xperia 10 III
This mid-ranger is apparently set to land in the next few weeks
Sony is reportedly preparing to release its third Xperia 10-branded phone, appropriately named Xperia 10 III, in the next few weeks. Steve Hemmerstoffer, who also goes by OnLeaks, has shared a few renderings of this upcoming Sony mid-ranger, along with a brief spec overview.
Android 12 could bring improved game controller rumble
It's pretty terrible for external controllers right now
The few of you who use physical controllers to game with your Android devices might have noticed that haptic feedback is kind of terrible at the moment. At the moment, Android doesn't have proper rumble support for external controllers, meaning that games either have no rumble or very primitive rumble. According to some commits spotted recently, that's about to change.
Get Lenovo's Smart Clock Essential and four C by GE smart bulbs for just $30 ($65 off)
A cheap way to make your home a little smarter
Looking to start your smart home project, but working on a tight budget? Best Buy has you covered with a pretty incredible bundle deal it has going right now: a Lenovo Smart Clock Essential, plus four C by GE smart bulbs, for just .99 — that's a savings of a whopping $65 off MSRP.
Refurbished Galaxy Buds Live true wireless earbuds are just $70 at Best Buy
Get some Galaxy Beans on the cheap
The Galaxy Buds Live, affectionately known as the Galaxy Beans, are now discounted at Best Buy in refurbished form. For only .99, $100 less than MSRP new, you can have yourself a pair of true wireless buds that will (hopefully) nestle comfortably in your ears and let you listen to your music in peace.