Ben Schoon is a Senior Editor at 9to5Google, working for the publication as one of its primary news writers since 2016.
In 2013, Ben helped start an independent tech publication where he learned the skills used at 9to5Google including writing, product photography, and videography. He is located in the city of Winston-Salem in North Carolina where he lives with his wife Melissa. Ben is an avid disc golf player.
He primarily covers Android products, including Google Pixel devices, Samsung Galaxy smartphones, as well as devices from OnePlus, Oppo, Motorola, and more. Beyond just covering news about these products, Ben also spends time using these products himself, speaking from experience with the articles he writes. Some of Ben’s most recent hands-on reviews include; Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel Watch 2, Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5, Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, Motorola Razr+, HP Dragonfly Pro Chromebook, and more.
Ben is also a leading source for information about Google’s Android TV, diving deeply into important parts of the platform including its powerful Operator Tier, explaining future changes to the platform, and reviewing its products such as Chromecast with Google TV, Nvidia Shield TV, and more.
In 2019, Ben leaked one of the first in-person photos of the Pixel 4 before later revealing the Recorder and Pixel Themes apps months ahead of launch. In 2020, Ben also reported on multiple upcoming Pixel devices including Pixel 5a and the first report of Google working on a foldable Pixel smartphone. That same month, he was also the first to correctly report the $49 price point of what became the Chromecast with Google TV.
Ben Schoon is active on Twitter, @nexusben, but can also be found on Instagram and LinkedIn. For questions or tips, you can email him directly, and his portfolio is also available online.
Email: schoon@9to5mac.com | Encrypted Email: benschoon@protonmail.com
Google’s Circle to Search feature, which first debuted on Samsung Galaxy and Google Pixel devices in early 2024, is now coming to the Nothing Phone series with the new Android 15 update that launched this month.
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Samsung is widely expected to host a launch event for the Galaxy S25 series on January 22, with the company reportedly also showing off the Galaxy Ring 2 and its smart glasses at the same event.
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HDR content looks amazing, until it burns your retinas at 11pm in a dark room. Annoyingly, the ability to turn off HDR content on Android devices has been missing, but Samsung is finally providing an option with its One UI 7 update for Galaxy devices.
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Samsung is set to unveil the Galaxy S25 series in just a few weeks and while we’ve seen a lot of leaks so far, new renders posted by dbrand offer the best look yet at the design of the company’s upcoming trio.
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Ahead of its launch in January, OnePlus has detailed a few more points around the hardware of the OnePlus 13, including a new type of vegan leather and how its flat display isn’t really flat.
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Following its monthly update cadence, Samsung is now rolling out its final update of 2024 on Galaxy devices. Here’s the full list of devices with the update available.
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According to a report out of Korea, Samsung is cutting down significantly on its plans for 2025 Galaxy foldables as it reflects on the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Flip 6, which ultimately failed to meet expectations.
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A new report claims that Meta’s next Ray-Ban smart glasses will be adopting a display of some sort, right as Google and Samsung are pushing for Android XR to do the same.
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Apple finally brought RCS support to the iPhone this year, but the company has to manually approve each carrier that supports it. In the latest iOS update, Apple is expanding RCS support to more carriers, but iPhone users on Google Fi are still left waiting.
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According to the latest report out of Korea, Samsung’s Galaxy S25 series will see a release date of February 7.
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There were a lot of good smartphones released in 2024, and it’s actually not easy to settle on “the best.” But, for me at least, I struggle to put the Galaxy S24 Ultra at the top of that list.
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A new OnePlus Watch is expected to arrive in the coming months, and according to a new leak, the “OnePlus Watch 3” will bring the rotating crown the last one didn’t. Maybe.
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After crossing 150 free channels available to users earlier this year, Google TV is closing out the year with another handful of additions, many of which are right in time for the holidays.
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Google is investigating ongoing issues between the Pixel 9 series and Android Auto, as well as confirming a fix for 5GHz Wi-Fi issues that’s been ongoing for a while.
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Google announced nearly two years ago that weather apps would be coming to Android Auto and Android Automotive, but one of the biggest examples, The Weather Channel, is still missing.
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The Samsung Galaxy Ring is getting a couple of larger sizes in the near future, as rumors and, now, some listings have confirmed that’s the case.
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The Qi2 standard is slowly coming, and the big appeal has always been that is brings magnets that work the same as Apple’s MagSafe to other products, including Android phones. And yes, magnets are indeed required to have something say that is has “Qi2.”
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EU regulation has led to Apple being forced to open up iOS in ways that many never expected, but it’s not done just yet. In an effort to ensure “effective interoperability” with other platforms, the EU wants Apple to make native features of iOS being compatible with Android, including the likes of AirDrop and more.
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As some users have been running into issues, Ford is saying that its “Phone as a Key” feature is running into some compatibility issues on Android devices.
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Google appears to be adding Material You accent colors to Android Auto, with some colorful accents showing up in the latest updates.
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A new means of using ChatGPT has just opened up, with the ability to talk to the AI chatbot via WhatsApp using “1-800-ChatGPT.”
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A new option coming to Pixel phones in Android 16 is the ability to use the fingerprint sensor when the screen is turned off.
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Months later than expected, Samsung has officially unveiled its Android 15 update, One UI 7, and the company has pinpointed everything that’s new in a meticulously detailed changelog.
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A new software update is now rolling out to Rivian electric vehicles with support for Google Cast and a new YouTube app.
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