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Chrome 90 is rolling out, and you can download it here right now
Looks like there are only a few user-facing changes on board
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Google has released the latest version of Chrome, 90, to the stable channel. It's starting to roll out via the Play Store and via your desktop browser's built-in update tool right now, but if you're particularly impatient to get your hands on the newest release as soon as possible, we've got you covered. You can download Chrome 90 from our sister site APK Mirror (and don't forget to install the corresponding Trichrome library if you have a phone running Android 10 or higher).
WhatsApp's new privacy policy is so bad it might be illegal
A German data protection agency has opened proceedings
WhatsApp has been facing one hell of a backlash ever since it shared that it wanted to update its privacy policy with changes that would allow Facebook to aggregate all of its users' data across all of its services. And now, the company might be in for some regulatory issues, as well. A German privacy regulator (via Bloomberg) has opened proceedings to stop the company from moving forward with the privacy policy update.
Google tests dynamic backgrounds and scrubbing for Chrome's new media controls
A little Android-like trickle-down
Last year, Google introduced new media playback controls for Chrome and Chrome OS, helping you control music or videos playing in the background without opening the respective window or tab. While the feature is already incredibly useful in its current form, Google is looking to make it even better by adding a scrubbing bar and a background matching the album cover or thumbnail.
Powerful new Google Photos video editor starts to roll out
A small video editing suite for your clips
Google is in the process of aggressively monetizing its Photos service, asking users to pay for storage starting in June and hiding a few editing tools behind a paywall right now already. But there are also some free perks everyone gets to enjoy, like a revamped video editor Google teased back in February that's now finally starting to roll out to everyone using a recent version of Photos.
The best ways to sign, edit, and annotate PDF files on Chromebooks
There's not one tool to rule them all, but there's a solution for everything
I've been using a Chromebook as my sole productivity machine for about a month now after introducing Chrome OS to my workflow over a year ago. While I've been surprisingly happy with the experience, it took me ages to find the perfect PDF reader to replace the excellent PDF Expert app on macOS. I ended up testing quite a few tools and created a fine selection of solutions that might help you find your preferred workflow for your PDF needs, too.
Xiaomi and Oppo plan to take on Qualcomm with their own smartphone chips
Creating independent supply chains before they become the next Huawei?
We only recently reported that Google was working on its own smartphone chip, but it looks like the company isn't the only one in the Android world wanting to go independent. A new report from DigiTimes (via Android Authority) claims that Xiaomi and Oppo are working on their own 5G-compatible chips.
Amazon looks set to move its Prime Day sales yet again this year
Looks like the event will take place in June this time around
Amazon had to move back Prime Day by a few months last year due to some unforeseen circumstances in the form of a global pandemic, but it looks like the company is on track to kick off its annual Prime Day on a more regular date again. According to sources talking to Vox, the shopping giant is set to target a date in June for the event.
When LG shut down its mobile division last week, a few details remained unclear about its existing products. We initially speculated that the latest flagships should be in for at least another big upgrade to Android 12, but now LG has shed some light on its plans going forward. It pledges to update most of its flagships for up to three years.
If you've ever wanted to automate your spreadsheets, there's now an app for that
The new Google Sheets Tasker plugin will allow for simpler budgeting, better home automation, and more
Tasker is an incredible service that allows you to automate almost anything you could think of on your phone. The app only recently gained support for Google's new sleep tracking tools and learned to read JSON data and web pages this year, and now, Tasker can also automate Google Sheets with its latest plugin: AutoSheets.
WhatsApp has supported stickers for a long time, but it has always been tedious to add a new pack if your friends didn't happen to send you a sticker from the desired collection via the chat app. The latest version of WhatsApp makes that easier with support for deep links, allowing you to add stickers to WhatsApp by simply tapping an address on your phone. For example, you can add the recently announced "Vaccines for All" pack via this link: https://wa.me/stickerpack/VaccinesForAll.
Signal wants to replace your Venmo and Cash apps with private crypto payments
Privacy and security first thanks to crypto, but it's not a well-known coin
Signal was being really secretive about its open-source server code over the last year, and now we know why: the nonprofit has been working on a payments feature and didn't want to spill the beans ahead of the announcement. Starting now, people living in the United Kingdom can send and receive a cryptocurrency using Signal beta builds.
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Signal has always been heralded as the security-aware alternative to WhatsApp and Co. due to its open-source nature, but the nonprofit behind the chat app hasn't always stuck to its original open-source promises. While it regularly publishes the code of its client apps, Signal failed to update the Github repository for its server for almost a year, as reported by German publication Golem — though earlier today, the company pushed out an update with a more recent release.
Should you buy the OnePlus 9 or the Samsung Galaxy S21?
Which high-end phone is better suited for you?
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We just gave the Samsung Galaxy S21 our "Most Wanted" award, but OnePlus started selling a worthy competitor this week: The OnePlus 9. Both phones are pretty similar in size, hardware, and price, with their own advantages and disadvantages, so deciding between the two might be a bit difficult. But we're here to help and will guide you through the nuances and differences in this post.
Chromebooks are about to get a prettier video player
Complete with scrubbing, skip forward/backward, and more
Chromebooks have an incredibly barebones video player interface that hasn't changed much over the years. It looks like Google finally wants to change that. The company is testing a much prettier video player in Canary, complete with enhanced, floating controls.
Out with the old, in with the new: LineageOS cut support for Android 9 Pie earlier this year, and to make up for the loss, the open-source project has just released version 18.1 based on Android 11. It comes with official support for about 60 phones and tablets.
OnePlus wanted to go back to flagship killing with the Nord, but now that the company launched the OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro, we need to ask ourselves if it's really willing to eat into its own high-end offers. How does the sub-£400/€400 phone compare to its much more expensive brother, the OnePlus 9, and which should you buy?
Xiaomi's first foldable could be the Galaxy Fold competitor we've been waiting for
The company also unveiled a retouched brand identity
Following Samsung, Huawei, Motorola, and Co., Xiaomi has finally joined the foldable club. During the second part of its annual mega event, the company introduced the Mi Mix Fold, its very first folding phone. The manufacturer went with a more traditional design (if you can call it that already) first established by the Galaxy Fold, with a big 4:3 screen on the inside and a smaller 27:9 display on the outside for use like a regular smartphone.
The Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 6 ups the budget fitness tracking game once again
Say hello to an all-screen front and SpO2 tracking
Xiaomi's Mi Bands are known and loved for their incredible value, and today, the company is raising the bar yet again. It has just launched the Mi Smart Band 6 during its Mi 11 Ultra launch event, and it's quite the upgrade over its predecessor, sporting a 50% bigger display stretching across the whole front and SpO2 tracking.
The Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra has a rear display and charges at unprecedented speeds
Pushing the boundaries of what's possible
Xiaomi is on a roll this month: The company just launched a true successor to the Poco F1 last week, and before that, it raised the value-for-money bar yet again with the new Redmi Note 10 series. Now the manufacturer is wrapping up March 2021 with a new addition to its flagship series, the Mi 11 Ultra — an absolute beast of a phone with incredible charging speeds and a camera combination that's unheard of. There's also the Mi 11 Lite for those who are more budget-minded, an new Mi Band, and a new projector with Android TV and Google Assistant.
Going Google-less: How to install a custom Android ROM with no Google apps or services
microG is almost a perfect Play Services replacement
If you're an Android user, Google has a scary amount of information on you, and matters get worse if you're deeply embedded in the company's app ecosystem — getting locked out of your Google account can have serious consequences then. Thankfully, Android is open source, so it's possible to evade Google without having to leave the platform altogether — just look at Amazon's tablets or Huawei's Google-less phones. But if you'd rather be completely independent from big corporations, going for a free and open-source custom ROM built on top of Android's core might be the best solution.I personally accept that there's always going to be some inherent privacy trade-off when you're using an always-connected mobile device that you carry with you everywhere you go, but I'm curious if there's a way to remove the ad company from the equation. It's probably still not feasible to use nothing but open-source apps, but you might be delighted to learn that it's possible to reduce your dependency on a single data aggregator like Google.