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Nanoleaf shapes review: Hexagons are the bestagons, but the app needs work
Much like the number of corners on these tiles, the app is a 6 at best
At this point, Nanoleaf is pretty well known — if not by name, at least from the geometric shapes in the background of countless YouTube videos and Twitch streams. We've all seen them, curiously Googled them up, and been shocked at the price tag. But these aren't some cheap Assistant-compatible smart bulb; they're wall-mounted art pieces with smart home functionality. So, are they worth it? If you can stomach the cost and the bad app, we think so.
Pixel-exclusive photo editing features are coming to other phones as a Google One membership perk
Plus a new video editor for everyone
Google is rolling out some previously Pixel-exclusive photo perks to Google One subscribers. Folks that cough up the dough for that extra account storage will also enjoy the ability to add Portrait Blur and Color Pop to existing photos lacking depth data (like scans or photos from older devices) and even modify lighting courtesy of Portrait Light. On top of that, we can all look forward to a new video editor in Google Photos that offers more than 30 controls, including the ability to trim, stabilize, apply filters, brighten, rotate, crop, and straighten the frame.
Unofficial project brings the Google Assistant to your desktop
It has some limits, and it won't beat a smart display, but it's better than what Google doesn't give you
We don't really think about it, but it's kind of odd that Google hasn't made a standalone version of the Assistant for PCs, isn't it? Or at least built one into Chrome. After all, Chrome OS has it now, and the Assistant is a big part of the Android experience, too (Bixby be damned). We even buy smart speakers and displays for around the house, headphones can talk to Google, and yet our desktop and laptops are ignored. But if you want to plug that gap on your own, it turns out, you can. There's an unofficial Google Assistant desktop client that's a pain in the ass to set up but way nicer than it has any right to be.
Gmail aliases might seem like something only big businesses would use as part of Google Workspace, but even folks that just happen to have more than one email account can take advantage of them. But sometimes, aliases can also make things confusing when you're searching for something in Gmail. Thankfully, Google Workspace is rolling out a change that allows searches for email addresses in Gmail to return related aliases it's associated with.
Qualcomm's upcoming modems will bring 5G out of the early adopter phase
They won't just be fast, they'll support the best upcoming 5G features
Qualcomm has just announced two new 5G modems that promise ridiculous speeds and support for emerging frequencies. The new X65 and X62 modems won't be available until later this year, which probably means they won't be in Android flagships until the next generation of chips hits in 2022. When they do land, though, they'll support a few key features. In addition to the expected speed improvements (the X65 can hit a theoretical 10-gig speed), the new modems have an upgradeable architecture that will roll out new 5G features from a new set of standards over time — no hardware upgrade required.
We may have just caught our first glimpse of Android 12. A handful of images purported to be screenshots that illustrate features in the next release have been published by XDA Developers, originating from what is reportedly an early draft of an internal Google document. They indicate bigger visual changes than we might have expected, plus a long-awaited privacy feature that's been under development since Android 10 Q, and which iOS got just last year.
gReader gets its first update in four years, but maybe it shouldn't have
Customers complain of obnoxious ads, and the paid Pro version is still missing
Once-popular RSS aggregator gReader just got its first update in almost four years. The new v5 release claims improved support for video and podcast playback, dark mode support in article view, and some miscellaneous bug fixes. We've also spotted Inoreader support. But unfortunately, reports also claim the app's ads are especially obnoxious now, and the ad-free "Pro" version of the app many customers purchased years ago is still missing from the Play Store.
Last week, Google remotely disabled a pretty popular Chrome extension, which was found to contain malware. The lead up to that point was complicated, but the ultimate cause can be tied back to a change in ownership in June 2020. It's a common refrain at this point: Developers cash out (as they're allowed to do), but the new unscrupulous owners are only interested in a quick buck. Sometimes these acquisitions come with a tweet or a blog post; in the best cases, the app or extension will even tell you outright that it's under new ownership. But you can't always rely on that. So, should customers be notified when an extension or app changes hands?
That Slack email you just got asking to reset your password is legit, not a scam
The Android app was logging credentials in plain text for some
If you just got an email from Slack explaining that you need to reset your password with a big, phishy-looking link, it's legit. The company's Android app was accidentally logging credentials in plain text, and affected customers are being notified via email to reset their passwords. We've reached out to Slack to be triply sure, and company representatives tell us that it's not a scam, they're sending these emails themselves.
Yesterday, Chrome was patched to fix a major vulnerability discovered by researchers, which was actively exploited in the wild. Precise details aren't known right now, but an update rolled out for Chrome yesterday, and you'd be wise to install it as soon as you can.
The official IMDb app is picking up a new design in its latest v8.3 update that switches to the now popular bottom navigation bar. Content in the app otherwise looks about the same, but finding the things you need more quickly should be a little bit easier.
Gmail for desktop testing subtly tweaked icons that match the app
The outlinification of all Google icons continues
Gmail for desktop is testing a subtle tweak to its icons in a handful of spots, replacing the old filled-in icons with higher-contrast outlines. It's a minor tweak, and it's not live for everyone yet, but it finally brings the desktop web version of Gmail the icons that the Android app's been using for years.
The first Android 12 Developer Preview could land sometime soon if a recent app update is any indicator. The Android Beta Feedback app, which has been bundled with the Android preview and beta releases since Android 10 Q, just got an update at the Play Store. With last year's Beta program long over, there's probably only one reason Google would be pushing an update for the app: Android 12 is coming soon.
Google will pay some Australian publishers after threat to leave market boomerangs
New Aussie names are joining the News Showcase program
Google is starting to back down on its threat to leave the Australian market. In a blog post today, the company extended an olive branch, highlighting Australian publishers that would be joining the News Showcase program, which pays publishers as part of a licensing program to refer traffic to their stories.
The Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 3 is still the only Wear OS watch with Qualcomm's 4100 chip, and it just picked up a new update. Rolling out now, the new firmware delivers a handful of improvements to things like touch screen response, better pairing speed, and faster tilt-to-wake, plus a handful of new features for the watch's unique power-saving "essential" mode.
Google remotely deletes The Great Suspender Chrome extension after malware accusations
And it's gone from the Chrome Web Store, too
The popular Chrome extension The Great Suspender has been itself suspended from Google's Chrome Web Store. The extension is also being remotely disabled on customer's devices, with a warning that it is "dangerous" and "may contain malware." Reportedly, this is because of some sketchy changes that happened when the extension traded hands last year, including tracking code discovered in the extension.
Google paid independent researchers $6.7 million last year to make its products more secure
Just barely up from $6.5 million last year
Google, like many big tech companies, runs a bug bounty program that allows independent researchers (and anyone, really) to spot issues, submit details, and get some money for their trouble. Google even publishes its numbers yearly as proof for the cash being doled out, and the company just published its 2020 numbers.
Google Fit's bringing heart-rate monitoring to Pixel phones without the need for any extra hardware
Plus a respiratory rate monitor — both coming to other phones later
Google Fit already has plenty of ways to tell you that you're out of shape — a common issue during the ongoing pandemic. But it's picking up a new way to measure both your heart rate and respiratory rate, using just your smartphone's camera. The feature is expected to land next month, and though it's a Pixel-exclusive to start, it should be coming to other Android phones later.
Changing the profile picture associated with your Google Account has never been difficult, but it's even easier to do now. A change to the latest version of the Google Contacts makes the process a two-tap affair, accessible quickly and easily from right inside the app.
Google's Pixel Buds may soon support manual updates
No more just waiting for it to happen on its own
Google's latest Pixel Buds were pretty polarizing when they landed last year, months after their announcement. Like them or hate them, one feature has been almost universally resented: The fact that updates are an automatic process with no user control. They just kind of happen while the buds are connected, and you can't do much to speed up the process. But according to a recent teardown, manual updates may soon be possible.