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Android 15 leaves Snapdragon Pixels behind, and I'm sad
The era of Tensor-powered Pixel phones is officially in full swing
Android 15 doesn’t seem like a release that will fundamentally change the way Android works and looks like Android 12 and 5 before it. In one way, Android 15 is still the beginning of a new era, though. Now that Google has announced the first Android 15 developer preview, DP1, we know which of its Pixels will be officially compatible with. For the first time since the launch of the Pixel 6, Google’s lineup is all in on the custom Tensor chip, leaving behind the Pixel Snapdragon era.
Google's inconsistent Pixel experience makes its phones impossible to recommend
Three generations into the Tensor experiment, the time has come to stop making excuses for Google's buggy software
Last week, I got my hands on Google's new mint-colored Pixel 8 Pro, a rare mid-cycle refresh for the company that seemed perfectly timed to pull focus from its best frenemy's lineup of flagship smartphones. I was pretty excited to get my hands on this unit, and not just because mint's one of my favorite colors. It's been a few months since I had time to use the Pixel 8 Pro as a daily driver, and this launch presented the perfect opportunity to see how a couple of key Feature Drops might've improved a device I already quite liked.
Handheld consoles are leaving gaming phones in the dust
I can purchase a Steam Deck and a mid-range Android for less than a gaming phone
It is currently the best time ever to be gaming on your smartphone. Streaming apps like Xbox Game Pass let you play the latest AAA titles with only your phone, controller, and internet connection. At the same time, console/PC games like Civilization VI and Alien: Isolation are much cheaper on the Google Play Store without any loss in content. Things are even better on iOS, where Apple has signed exclusive deals to bring titles like Resident Evil 4 to the App Store.
Apple Vision Pro brings into focus Google's failure with AR
But Google might be cooking something in the wake of Apple’s efforts in VR
As with everything else it makes, Apple has drawn a lot of attention towards its new VR headset, the Vision Pro, which is being portrayed as the next big thing to happen since the iPhone. The hype is so much that it feels like Apple has invented an all-new category of devices from scratch — which couldn’t be further from reality. Other companies including Meta and HTC already make highly sophisticated VR headsets while Google once famously had and then abandoned its AR glasses.
Google Assistant needs personality, and 'Gemini' is the solution
Renaming Assistant to Gemini can prove to be a momentous change for Google’s voice bot
Google is laser-focused on its AI efforts right now. It already has a large language model (LLM) called Gemini with multimodal capabilities and a user-facing chatbot in the form of Bard to compete with OpenAI’s ChatGPT. And Bard is consistently getting better by the day, as it recently got support for image generation as well. With Google's changing priorities, Assistant took a back seat, leading to a fantastic voice bot, unfortunately, slowly losing both its features and reliability.
OxygenOS 14 is the least interesting thing about the OnePlus 12
Nailing the fundamentals is crucial, but you can't forget to offer eye-popping features
There is no doubt that OnePlus has a winner on its hands with the OnePlus 12. Unlike previous years, this is a true-blue flagship, with the company also addressing the few grievances from previous generations like the exclusion of wireless charging and a proper IP rating (albeit not IP68). Our review gave the OnePlus 12 a 9/10, a reflection of all the improvements that make it an easy recommendation for Android users sick of Samsung or Google.
Google's new mint Pixel 8 Pro looks even better in person
Please, phone companies, give us all the colors
Hey, did you hear the news? While everyone might be keeping their eyes on Samsung's Galaxy S24 lineup, Google isn't letting the winter go to waste. While we'll have to keep waiting for the Pixel 8a and Pixel 9 series for fresh hardware, the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro remain some of the best phones you can buy today, and as of last week, a new color choice has joined the lineup. Unsurprising to anyone who kept an eye on the case colors for Google's latest smartphones, a Mint colorway for the Pixel 8 series is now available, and I finally have my hands on the company's new addition.
The Android ecosystem is fracturing, losing a key strength against Apple
When there is a rift within the family, solidarity takes a critical hit
In the long-standing debate of Android vs. iOS, Google’s operating system has time and again earned the name of being the more open choice. While Apple is known for its closed garden whose walls are only going up by the day, Google has been the ‘nicer’ alternative. But in the name of creating an interoperable ecosystem, Android is gradually turning into a closed-off system that keeps others out — including other Android brands. It’s almost like multiple versions of Android have come to exist simultaneously instead of one cohesive system, which is not only worse than Apple’s approach but is breaking a lot of things for the users.
2023's biggest Android news is also its most boring
The Pixel 8 getting 7 years of software support might not be sexy, but it's a huge step forward
Phone manufacturers attempt to wow us every year with flashy new hardware, software tricks, and the inevitable camera improvements. But when Android enthusiasts like ourselves get together to pick apart the improvements made in the latest chipsets or camera features, it's easy to forget the announcement that was potentially more impactful than any flashy AI tool.
What even is a smartwatch? We'll try to define the category
You can’t call your Fitbit tracker a smartwatch — or can you?
There was a time when it felt like Android smartwatches didn’t have a bright future, but the category got a new lease on life with the refreshed Wear OS on the Galaxy Watch 4 series. More than two years later, it’s now certain that smartwatches are far from an existential crisis. But considering how many designs and types these wristwatches come in sure indicates an identity crisis of sorts. You can tie a simple fitness band to your wrist that does a couple of things well, or you can spend big on a top-of-the-line Galaxy Watch 6 Classic. But does that mean one is less of a smartwatch than the other? We will find out.
All I want for Christmas is iPhone's new theft protection on Android
Apple’s Stolen Device Protection can potentially save the day if your iPhone is stolen
Smartphones are a bigger and more crucial part of our digital lives than we realize. Your phone enables your social life, stores your financial details, and even acts as a trusted device for authenticating your online accounts. And all that is secured behind a combination of your fingerprint (or your face scan on iPhones) and a 4/6-digit passcode. While it’s fairly tough to forge your biometric data without professional tools, your device PIN is far easier to crack with simple tricks like shoulder surfing or tracing your light fingertip marks on the screen.
Faster charging is the only thing I want from 2024 flagship phones
Can we please get over those dog slow 25W chargers already?
In racing, drivers always aim to cut down on their pit stop time (despite sometimes lasting no more than a couple of seconds), as even that short span spent stationary can prove to be game-changing. While the consequences in most cases may not be as dire for our modern, sports car-like ultrafast phones, their own pit stops haven’t gotten that short in all these years.
Android needs to copy these 2 iOS notification features
Apple’s notification system is a lot less in your face than Android’s, and that’s sometimes nice
Before I even dive into this editorial, let me make one thing clear: I like Android’s notification system a lot better than Apple’s. By default, notifications are easier to access and much more granularly tweakable on Google’s platform than they ever were on iOS. After more than a year and a half of using an iPhone on and off, I’ve started to appreciate certain aspects of the way it handles notifications, though.
The first thing to buy for your new phone is not a case
Screen protectors may be a pain to put on, but don't you dare leave the house without one
Congratulations on your awesome new phone! Black Friday and Cyber Monday brought some drop-dead amazing deals, and you finally pulled the trigger. Before you finish your setup, before you head out into the world, before you even stick your phone in a case, there’s one thing you need to buy and apply to that shiny new screen: a screen protector.
Google removed this long-press shortcut in Android 14, and nobody even noticed
You can no longer see app notifications right alongside their icons on your home screen
With every new Android update, Google adds a ton of new features. But the company also has a tendency to remove a function or two. Just a few years ago, Google took away a handy shortcut to the Clock app from the notification shade in Android 12 only to re-add it with Android 14 again. Well, you win some, you lose some: the new Android release removes another quick action, in a change that has somehow gone largely unnoticed until more than a month after the stable launch.
My smartwatch keeps me off my phone, and I'm not complaining
Who said having a second screen has to be bad for your well-being?
Smartphone addiction is a harsh phrase for describing how we interact with a tool that we all rely on for getting our everyday stuff done. But it becomes a problem when you start finding it hard to put your phone down and lose yourself in an endless feed of reels, which mimics a slot machine, promising imminent gratification. A lot of phone makers these days have built-in solutions like Digital Wellbeing and Zen Mode to keep this behavior in check and help you live in the moment instead of staring at a slab of glass. Some users even resort to switching to a dumbphone entirely, which is far too extreme a solution. I found myself on the other end of the spectrum, as strapping another device to my wrist helped cut down my screen time, and I’m not complaining.
You won’t find a better Plex NAS than this budget Synology model this Black Friday
The brand-new Synology DiskStation DS224+ is already down to its best price ever
Nobody wants to use those old-fashioned disks to watch movies at home when you can simply stream them online. But replicating that seamless experience with your own collection of 4K videos isn’t possible without a Plex server to store, organize, and stream your media on the living room TV. Setting up your own Plex server shouldn’t be expensive, and the Synology DiskStation DS224+ makes it possible at an affordable price. However, for this Black Friday, you can save even more cash on this already value-for-money Synology NAS, which is perfect for home use.
The only foldable I’d pick this Black Friday is also one of the week's best deals
Get yourself the brand-new OnePlus Open for its lowest price ever
The first OnePlus phone was an iconic handset that got the entire tech community excited about what a niche startup could do. OnePlus has now entered its second decade, which it marked with its first foldable phone — the OnePlus Open.
Why Apple finally decided to adopt RCS on iPhone
Google's #GetTheMessage campaign failed to persuade Apple. It doesn't matter
You can't say Apple doesn't know how to surprise its audience. Seemingly out of nowhere, the company confirmed it plans to add RCS support to iOS next year, a complete reversal on its previous policies (which, no joke, included buying your mom an iPhone for a better messaging experience). In the wake of this surprise announcement, which will see better interoperability between Android and iPhone users than ever before, we saw a rush to try and explain exactly why Apple is making this move at this time. There's an easy explanation, but that doesn't mean some of the company's rivals can't claim victory anyway.
The OnePlus Open schools Samsung and Google in foldable multitasking
OnePlus has found the best way to make the most of that big display so far
If you’re in the market for a foldable phone today, there is a good chance that you’ll end up getting a Samsung phone — the manufacturer makes most of our favorite foldable phones, after all. However, OnePlus wants to tip the scale in its favor with its first foldable phone, the OnePlus Open, which gets the better of the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and the Pixel Fold in more ways than one. While its physical enhancements are part of the story, the OnePlus Open quite literally teaches other foldable phones how multitasking should look on that big inner screen.