Stephen is Growth Director at 9to5. You can find his current work at 9to5Mac, 9to5Google 9to5Toys, Electrek, and more. If you want to get in touch, follow me on Twitter. Or, email at stephen (at) 9to5mac (dot) com, or an encrypted email at hallstephenj (at) protonmail (dot) com.
Ah, the Pixel Watch. While I wouldn’t declare Google’s ambitions of ever launching a smartwatch completely dead, I would argue that if there’s a spectrum between one coming soon and the ship having sailed entirely, things are leaning in the latter direction. That’s because I believe there was not one, but two cancelled smartwatch projects that neared bearing the Pixel name.
Google is planning to launch a refreshed version of its ‘Google Wifi’ router at its hardware showcase next month, according to sources familiar with the matter. In a setup that differs from the first generation, the newly-named ‘Nest Wifi’ router itself will be accompanied by Eero-esque beacons that double as Assistant speakers…
Google sent out invitations for its October 15th special event today, but the company only just recently updated the Google Store homepage to tease the forthcoming announcements. The copy for the teaser is oddly specific about what to expect next month… and perhaps what not to expect.
Exactly a week ago, I wrote that the Pixel 4 leak cycle had been noticeably tamer than last year. I prefaced this with saying “I don’t want to speak too soon…”:
Last year’s Pixel 3 brought with it unequivocally one of the wildest phone leak seasons ever, but this year has been different. I don’t want to speak too soon, given that we still have a month or more before its launch, but the Pixel 4 has unarguably leaked less. That means less hype at large, and more noticeably, in the smartphone and gadget media bubble. Is that bad news for Google?
TL;DR: I spoke too soon.
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This week we talk about the flood of Pixel 4 weeks that came in over the weekend and throughout this week, Apple’s announcements from Tuesday, and Nest Mini.
Alphabet Scoop is available on Google Play, Google Podcasts, iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, and through our dedicated RSS feed for Pocket Casts and other podcast players.
This week, Apple unveiled the Apple Watch Series 5. It’s the perhaps the most modest year-over-year upgrade for the Apple Watch yet, adding little more than an always-on display. But that’s the thing: Apple doesn’t need to make major strides with its smartwatch offering — they’re far enough ahead that it doesn’t matter. And they could leverage that lead to destroy Wear OS if they wanted to…
More than every other major Android flagship, the Google Pixel has targeted iPhone buyers. In comparison to the rest of the Android space, the company has focused heavily on user experience over gimmicks, aesthetics over spec sheets. Its success in actually converting people away from Apple’s walled garden has been limited at best, but Pixel 4 year might pose a unique opportunity…
It’s definitely not going to be the most exciting or interesting Apple news of the day (for that you should follow along with our colleagues over at 9to5Mac!), but I think it’s notable nonetheless: Apple is finally streaming its annual iPhone event on Google-owned YouTube.
Every year, the most popular smartphone leaks are all about the hardware. Our own traffic numbers show that people are most interested in looks at the physical form — even if they’re blurry images of phones in anti-leak cases that show essentially nothing. Pixel is more about software advances than most other Android phones, and that’s shaping up to be true about Pixel 4 as much as ever…
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According to a reliable source familiar with the company’s plans, Google Assistant on Pixel 4 will be able to step in for you while you’re on hold during a phone call. It’s the latest feature Google is adding to make the day-to-day phone experience better on the Pixel using supplemental Assistant smarts…
According to a reliable source, ‘Motion Mode,’ which allows users to take high quality action shots, will be one of the Google Pixel 4’s headline camera features. The new smartphone from Google will also tout improvements to the renowned Night Sight mode…
Last year’s Pixel 3 brought with it unequivocally one of the wildest phone leak seasons ever, but this year has been different. I don’t want to speak too soon, given that we still have a month or more before its launch, but the Pixel 4 has unarguably leaked less. That means less hype at large, and more noticeably, in the smartphone and gadget media bubble. Is that bad news for Google?
This week we talk about the release of Android 10, some more Google Pixel 4 leaks, and a weird new backpack from YSL that brings Google ATAP’s Jacquard tech.
Alphabet Scoop is available on Google Play, Google Podcasts, iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, and through our dedicated RSS feed for Pocket Casts and other podcast players.
Google and Yves Saint Laurent just announced the second entry in the Google ATAP Jacquard lineup, and this time it’s a backpack. I have mixed feelings about the Cit-E, but I think they can be summed up this way: The form factor is far more practical despite the product being less accessible…
The extreme to which Google takes the ‘fail forward’ mentality has earned it a reputation of being the world’s best product killer, and one of the more recent of those was the Android Auto phone screen experience. In a rare move, it looks like Google is backtracking on that and offering consolation for those perturbed by the move to the new Assistant driving mode…
Google is shutting down Hire, its G Suite-integrated tool to help small businesses organize and document the recruitment process. The app tied closely with G Suite-based apps like Gmail and Google Calendar, and while Google says it has been “successful,” it was apparently not successful enough to keep around…
This week we talk about the forthcoming second-generation ‘Nest Mini’, a completely rebranded Android, and some updates on Google Stadia.
Alphabet Scoop is available on Google Play, Google Podcasts, iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, and through our dedicated RSS feed for Pocket Casts and other podcast players.
Google plans to launch a followup to 2017’s Google Home Mini with a second-generation ‘Nest Mini,’ a reliable source tells 9to5Google. It’s a departure from the previous model in name, but also a substantial upgrade in features. This year’s Nest Mini will pack a wall mount, better sound, and more.
This week we talk about all the questions we’ve received from listeners this week. Topics include: Google Pixel 4, Pixel Watch, Pixelbook 2, and much more.
Alphabet Scoop is available on Google Play, Google Podcasts, iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, and through our dedicated RSS feed for Pocket Casts and other podcast players.
This week we talk about our exclusive full leak of the Google Pixel 4 specs, the latest additions and changes with Android Q Beta 4, the launch of the Note10, and a lot more.
Alphabet Scoop is available on Google Play, Google Podcasts, iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, and through our dedicated RSS feed for Pocket Casts and other podcast players.
The physical appearance and some headlining features of the Google Pixel 4 and 4 XL have already been confirmed by Google itself, but there are still plenty of specs that Google still hasn’t said anything about. A reliable source has now provided us with detailed specifications for the forthcoming devices, including mention of some features not reported until now…
You’ve probably never heard of it, but Google announced that it is shutting down another app today. This one was called “Follow Your World”, and it launched many years ago to allow you to track new satellite imagery in Maps.
We dropped the news that Pixel 4 would sport the long-in-development Project Soli chip from Google a couple of months ago, and, well, we know how that went. In line with Google’s recent habit of just throwing in the towel on secrets, the company just went ahead and confirmed it. It’s intriguing to say the least, but I’d argue that a second-gen Google Home would make even more sense for Soli…
We’ve seen renders and more renders of the Pixel 4, and we’ve also gotten to feast our eyes on real-life images of the back. Now, one person is claiming to have the first real-life image of the front of the Google Pixel 4. The only problem is that it’s not real.
