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
Every video you watch on a smartphone, tablet, or other device has to be run through some decoder, and AV1 has long been touted as the “next big thing.” To get around AV1 hardware requirements, though, Google has quietly added a software-based AV1 decoder to the vast majority of Android devices.
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Google is finally rolling out the Find My Device network on Android, and with it comes the AirTag-like trackers we’ve been waiting on for almost a year now. Pebblebee, after initially revealing a May launch date, has now officially confirmed when its Android trackers will start shipping.
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While it’s not live just yet, it appears that Google Messages is adding support for powerful parental controls that can stop a user from sending a message until they’re granted approval.
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YouTube videos streamed through Meta Quest may start looking sharper, as the app now supports streaming at 8K resolution.
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In an update shared recently, Roku has announced that all customer accounts will be forced to use two-factor authentication following a couple of massive security breaches.
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Google Keep is super useful as a notes app, but it also features the ability to create reminders too. Soon, it appears that Google Tasks and Calendar will be able to show reminders from Keep.
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The original OnePlus Pad is a stellar Android tablet, but it sounds like the sequel will pack a bigger punch with the addition of Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.
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Google has announced a major internal reorganization which forms the “Platform and Devices” team that, under Rick Osterloh, will oversee Pixel, Nest, Android, Chrome, and more.
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With Samsung’s latest updates for Galaxy devices, more than a few users are noting that their phones are developing a persistent green line on the display that mimics a broken panel.
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Earbuds are a very personal form of technology because there are a million factors to consider and where one might be crucial to one buyer, it might not matter at all to another. But with its latest earbuds, Nothing has landed on something special, and they’ve already become my favorite earbuds.
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After debuting internationally earlier this year, Samsung is now bringing the Galaxy A35 to the United States for a price of $399.
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Nothing is today launching its third generation of earbuds in the Nothing Ear and Ear (a), and they seem like pretty great options.
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Ahead of its likely soon launch, the Google Pixel 8a has just surfaced in four color variants including very vibrant blue and green hues.
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While Google’s Pixel family has had its ups and downs over the years, the bright spot has always been the camera. In a new interview, Google’s Isaac Reynolds, the head of Pixel Camera, reflects on the Google Camera app over the years, and how AI is changing photos.
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One of the best parts of Android Auto is the ability to send and reply to messages from apps on your phone, but for many, that’s broken with WhatsApp as of late.
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Satellite connectivity still hasn’t really made its debut on Android yet, but it’s clear Google is making an effort with it on Pixel phones and, apparently, also in Google Maps.
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Google Maps reviews are a valuable resource, but the service is losing the ability to store drafts of a review in progress.
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Android’s app drawer is one of the platform’s key features, and it’s changed a bit over the years. For a while now, a vertically scrolling list has become the popular way to implement the Android app drawer, and it seems that Samsung might finally be making the switch.
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We first reported that Google will be debuting a sequel to Pixel Buds Pro this year, and now a supposed regulatory listing has surfaced that maybe reveals the battery capacity of the case, but that doesn’t give any useful information.
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A partial outage on YouTube is causing the subscriptions feed, YouTube TV’s library, and other functions to be unavailable tonight.
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Google AdSense is debuting a new format for websites that converts existing text on a site into a shortcut for Google Search.
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The latest Google Maps update for Android makes a minor tweak which allows the phone’s toggle for 3D buildings during navigation to sync with the setting on Android Auto.
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Nothing is set to launch its new Ear and Ear (a) later this week and, ahead of that, a sound analysis of the new earbuds is revealing that, yes, the audio quality is getting better.
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Google Wallet is apparently set to expand to India, with an early Play Store listing revealing local integrations and more.
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