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Google Docs is an essential part of the Google Workspace experience and one of the most widely used solutions for reading and writing documents online. And of course, it lets you add tables to your document in order to present information in an easily digestible manner. That doesn't mean Google can't make them even better, though. Now, the company is introducing further enhancements specifically related to table positioning for documents in the pages format.
New Play Store filters help you find tablet apps from your phone
Find and install apps for your Chromebook or tablet as you look for new phone apps
Google has implemented a series of changes to the Google Play Store meant to enhance the experience for those who own some of the finest Chromebooks and/or tablets, with big-screen optimizations and multi-device installation. One section Google is now turning its attention to is the browsing and discovery experience for these devices. Because of this, the Google Play Store is adding dedicated sections (or filters) for Chromebook and tablet apps.
Google Clock is getting a new 'Swipe to stop' function on Android 14
By the way, you can also swipe away persistent notifications now
Google has quietly put a lot of work into notifications with Android 14. Nothing major, but the smaller things add up: ringtones and notification sounds are getting separate volume sliders, you can hide notifications in screen recordings now, and there's even an accessibility setting that uses your camera flash for alerts. But the single biggest change is the fact that all notifications — even the persistent and ongoing ones — can now be swiped away. As it turns out, this has some implications for alarms, too.
Google Messages kills its navigation drawer, just a year after debut
The redesigned app sure looks a little too branded now
Google Messages has gone through several iterations as Google attempts to settle into a functional design that fits in its current Material You guidelines. So when Google introduced a navigation drawer to Google Messages after removing it from many apps to accommodate according to its own best practices, some were frankly pretty confused. Nonetheless, that's the design we've had for over a year at this point. Now, Google is once again getting rid of the navigation drawer, and moved its contents to what's probably a more familiar place at this point.
There used to be a time when OnePlus was known for its "flagship killer" smartphones with powerful specs and low pricing. It's crazy to think about, but the company introduced its first phone, the OnePlus One, a whopping nine years ago. Since then, it has branched out — you could argue it betrayed its principles by switching from those flagship killers and making proper flagships, but it has not left the cheap device market unattended, as it now makes budget and midrange phones as well. Its latest entry in this segment comes in the form of the OnePlus Nord 3 — and thanks to new leaks, we know pretty much everything there is to know about that phone now.
More advanced Google Photos editing tools come to your browser
The tools are exclusive for Google One members with computers that have more than 4GB of RAM
The latest update to the web version of Google Photos allows Google One members to take advantage of an array of extra editing features directly in their browser, as announced by Google. Users can now enjoy a more comprehensive set of editing tools to fine-tune their photos, including advanced filters and some of Google's signature editing features. You could already do pretty comprehensive editing to photos using Google Photos from your phone, so really, what's changing here is that some of those features are becoming available on your computer as well.
It's time to upgrade your operating system if you have a Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 PC. Microsoft has been trying to tell you this for some time, but Windows 8.1 officially reached end-of-life earlier this year, on January 10th, 2023. Windows 8 and its slightly-better sibling were never really considered "beloved" Windows entries, with many having problems with its surprisingly mouse-hostile UI, which was prepared for a touchscreen future but completely forgot about mice users in the process. Now, it's the time when app makers and developers start dropping support for the deprecated OS family — and Google is one of them.
Bing briefly faked an AI response when searching for Google Chrome
This doesn't look generative, Microsoft
Despite Microsoft's best efforts to make Edge the best web browser, it's still used by many as a means to download their actual browser of choice, Google Chrome. Over the years, we've seen and cringed at, Microsoft's best efforts to keep users from using its competitor's products, which has been going on for years. The browser, the search engine, and even the actual operating system will practically beg you to please keep using Microsoft's products. Now, using Bing's new AI-fueled experience to look up a download link for Google Chrome has yielded a new result.
Google is mercy killing YouTube Stories
Reels, Stories… whatever you want to call them, they’re finally being put out of their misery
The 24-hour "story" social media post format was first popularized by Snapchat, before Meta's Instagram copied the feature and actually became more popular than Snapchat's original interpretation. From there, everyone began doing it. And by everyone, we really mean everyone. Almost all social media platforms out there have, or used to have, some sort of temporary post feature similar, if not identical, to stories. YouTube was one of the first to hop on this bandwagon, and now they're hopping off. But I don't imagine most people reading this remembered YouTube Stories existed, anyway.
This $15 hacking device could be your fingerprint scanner's worst nightmare
You probably shouldn't rush to disable fingerprint unlocking, though
Your fingerprint is probably one of the safest methods to unlock your phone without inputting a password. It's quick, as you only need to touch the device, and no one can really access it unless their fingerprint is also enrolled. They've been commonplace in our smartphones for several years, and besides a few hardware makers trying out other biometric methods occasionally, it's by far the most used. But, of course, it's not completely bulletproof. And a hacker who really wants to get into your phone can now just brute-force the fingerprint scanner, just as if it were a password. All they need is $15 of equipment and a little bit of elbow grease.
Opera wants to be like Microsoft Edge and adds its own AI
Every product needs generative language AI on board
It's hard to deny how big AI has become, seemingly overnight. While it has really been around us for a long time, generative AI suddenly blew up as products like ChatGPT (for text) and Stable Diffusion/DALL-E (for images) exploded in popularity. And as with every shiny new thing, of course, everyone wants to be in on it. Opera, one of the biggest browsers out there, is also hopping on the bandwagon, but we can't help but wonder how inspired this is from another browser that also recently made AI its biggest feature.
Google shoves more ads into the Play Store, to no one’s surprise
Prepare for two rows of ads after you install an app
Google has been getting pretty aggressive about ads on the Google Play Store, to the point where a news post like this could very well pop up once a month or even multiple times a month. The Google Play Store is viewed daily by millions of people, so for a company thriving on the ad business, it would be unwise to not take advantage of it to show a couple of ads here and there. Except there are not just a couple now, but actually a lot of them. The latest modification to the Play Store's constantly-expanding ads is a rather minor change, but still one that gives ads much more prominence after you install a new app.
Venmo is giving teenagers their very first debit card
Keep tabs on their spending, and your credit card in your wallet
Having a credit or debit card is essential for, well, a lot of things. As we move forward to a digital world, online payments keep becoming more and more common. Cash is really just useful if you're buying something in person. Anything else? Fill in those 16 digits on the back of your card and hit that pay button. As such, if you're a teenager, you're probably excited about getting your very first debit card. It could come from a bank, or it could come from an online wallet, which are actually very similar to banks in functionality these days. Venmo wants to have the honor of being the first to issue you a debit card with your name on it.
Google will pay you for finding bugs in its first-party Android apps
Hunt those vulnerabilities, get that bag
An argument could be made that Google's own set of apps has become just as important as Android itself is. Sure, you could use Android without Google apps by checking out a custom ROM without them, but Google apps are necessary for essential functionality, and are the core of a large number of features in our smartphones. As such, just like a vulnerability on Android could ruin your day, so can a vulnerability in one of the apps belonging to Google's core package of apps and services. Now, Google is introducing a bounty program for those who want to take a stab at finding issues and reporting them to the company — and the amounts are pretty juicy.
Your next MediaTek-powered smartphone could have an Nvidia GPU
A nice GPU on your phone? It's more likely than you think
When it comes to GPUs, we don't really have a huge variety of them on the best Android smartphones out there. Despite multiple vendors such as Qualcomm and MediaTek making Arm-based chips for Android phones, only Qualcomm creates custom GPUs. For other non-Snapdragon chips, chances are that they use the default Arm-made Mali GPU designs. That doesn't mean that other vendors aren't looking at alternatives. MediaTek, in particular, might be about to score a huge win for its chips, as it's reportedly working with none other than Nvidia for supercharging its mobile chips with custom GPUs.
Samsung just launched a 'Tactical Edition' Galaxy S23
A very serious phone for very serious military ordeals
The Samsung Galaxy S23 series has some of the best Android phones in it, but this isn't enough for everyone. Specifically, the military and other organizations concerned with security, extra features, and rugged exteriors may not be happy with the standard edition. That's where Samsung's new "Tactical Edition" Samsung Galaxy S23 comes in. And no, it doesn't come with a camouflaged or extremely rugged exterior.
Nova Launcher 8.0.5 beta pays attention to the small details
Polishing things up before going stable
Nova continues to be one of the best Android launchers out there, even after being purchased by mobile analytics company Branch. The app hasn't seen many stable version bumps since that acquisition, but developer Kevin Barry has been hard at work on the beta channel, releasing six test versions now in less than a year. The latest update doesn't really bring any new features, but it does polish up things a bit.
The Google Pixel 7a's system images are live
A clean install is now possible if you manage to brick your brand-new phone
The Pixel 7 series is now complete. As expected, Google took to its I/O 2023 main keynote to announce its latest budget smartphone, the Pixel 7a. It comes with most of the specs that make both the Google Pixel 7 and 7 Pro so beloved while cutting next to no corners other than display size and premium build materials. It definitely makes for one of the best budget phones around. If you're planning on buying one, you'll be glad to know that system images are now available for you to install, just in case things go south.
Microsoft wants Firefox to make Bing its default search engine
Not even by switching browsers will you be able to escape Bing
Historically, Microsoft's Bing has always played second fiddle to Google. Chances are that if you used it, it was because you fired up a Microsoft-made browser (Internet Explorer back in the day or Edge now) and either quickly replaced it or changed its default search engine to Google. With Microsoft diving right into the AI craze with its ChatGPT partnership, though, Bing experienced a small renaissance, and the company is riding that wave to make sure people actually start using Bing. One strategy? Microsoft might go after Firefox in an attempt to make Bing the browser's default search engine.
Samsung's One UI 6 is already being internally tested on Galaxy S23 Ultra
The Korean giant is prepping its next big software update
It's no secret to anyone by this point that Google is cooking up Android 14. But while Pixel users might be able to play around with the unfinished OS by now, many other smartphone owners are left wondering when, and how early, will they get Android 14. To Samsung's credit, it has become one of the best OEMs in this regard, not only offering users up to 4 years of updates on its latest smartphones but also delivering those updates promptly. Now, though, there's evidence that Samsung is already hard at work bringing up what will end up being its take on Android 14 — One UI 6.