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
Digital photo frames offer a quick and easy way to display your family photos, and more in your home, and Google Photos integration is a no-brainer. However, changes from Google Photos last year resulted in Aura photo frames losing integration, but that’s now coming back.
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According to a new leak, Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy Z Flip 8 will be bringing back Snapdragon chips amid higher costs on the Exynos 2600.
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New findings suggest that the first wave of Googlebook machines could include somewhere around eight new laptops with a variety of chipsets from Intel, MediaTek, and Snapdragon all on display.
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The ability to take an ECG through Pixel Watch is a handy tool for keeping an eye on your health, and that app is now getting a slight revamp with a new icon and, well, the ability to actually work again.
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Following an early unveiling three months ago, the Honor Magic V6 is finally rolling out to global markets this month.
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In its latest “Privacy on iPhone” ad, Apple goes pretty heavy-handed in its attempt to make Android phones look ancient and ugly.
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Amazon Music is an underrated Prime perk, offering ad-free music streaming as an alternative to Spotify and other paid services. Or, at least it was, as Amazon is now updating Amazon Prime Music to include ads unless users pay extra.
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Movies Anywhere is getting a boost with the addition of Lionsgate titles including some popular franchises such as John Wick, The Hunger Games, Knives Out, and more.
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AI can be useful in a lot of places, but there are many scenarios where it doesn’t make sense. Amazon, having been stuffing its app full of AI lately, is now going to use AI to generate images of fake products as you type in search terms.
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There’s been a lot of pushback in recent months around the impact of AI data centers on local communities, with the use of water being a key issue for many. Google, in an expension of its “water stewardship” programs, is making commitments that include replenishing more water than it uses at its data center sites.
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The new Lenovo Legion Tab (Gen 5) is a hard sell at $849, but a discount to $699 makes it a lot more palatable.
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A new leak reveals Microsoft’s next-gen Surface Pro that’s powered by the Snapdragon X2 Elite and due to be released very soon.
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Following some previous appearances, the entire library of Pixel 11 wallpapers have now made their way online, but they’re pretty subdued and, frankly, a little boring.
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Google cracked the code on making Android’s Quick Share feature work with Apple’s AirDrop, and the list of compatible devices continues to grow. Here’s every Android device currently compatible with AirDrop.
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With coding having emerged as one of the best use cases for LLMs, Google is reportedly looking to train its AI models with code from actual Android app developers, but is at least paying them to do so.
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Yet another Google Home update is now rolling out, bringing a Gemini-powered “Pet Memory” to Nest Cam owners, while also expanding on “Ask Home.”
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Motorola is gearing up to launch its new Edge (2026) mid-range device with a US release coming later this month for $599, a higher price for a device with a refreshingly smaller display.
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Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 8, the wider one, continues to shape up to be a great addition to the lineup, with a new leak revealing that it fixes another problem with foldables – weight.
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As rumored, Walmart has quietly debuted a collection of Onn-branded TV sets that are all powered by Google TV, with prices starting as low as $248.
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Google Photos is an excellent backup service for photos and videos, but it’s not necessarily the only thing you might want to use. Whether it’s mirroring your library on a local drive or anything else, Google Photos is adding a helpful new option to schedule exports, including only the exports of newly-added content.
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According to a new report, Meta has plans to release several new smart glasses over the rest of 2026.
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If there’s one app I’ve always been jealous of from the iPhone, it’s Flighty, a super-useful flight tracker that not only logs your flight history, but puts all of the information you might need in a single place alongside a UI that’s far better than anything your airline is offering up. But it’s never come to Android. The launch of “Aviate,” though, is as close to “Flighty for Android” as I’ve seen.
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Microsoft, Nvidia, and MediaTek are working together on “RTX Spark,” a new chip for Windows PCs that’s all about AI, but if you look beyond that, it sounds like it might still be a good chip in general.
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Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 8 is debuting a wider form factor we’ve not seen on Android in a few years and, ahead of its launch, the device has been spotted in the wild.
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