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
The Galaxy S24 series has arrived and, with that, Samsung’s usual pre-order perks and bonuses. Trade-ins have become an ever-more-important way to save on a new phone, and if you’re still holding on to a Galaxy Note, the time may have arrived to make the switch, as Samsung’s Galaxy S24 offers are actually pretty compelling for those devices.
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AI is the big selling point of Samsung’s new Galaxy S24 series, but the new, rather good suite of Galaxy AI features may eventually come with a cost, the company has confirmed.
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Apple took ages to adopt the always-on display on iPhone, but when it did the company adopted a new idea in showing your wallpaper in color. Now, Samsung is doing the same thing with the always-on display on the Galaxy S24 series.
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Qi2 was announced over a year ago now as the next big thing in wireless charging, bringing the same array of magnets used for Apple’s wildly popular MagSafe to any other device as an industry standard. But we haven’t see it debut in any hardware yet, and Samsung’s new Galaxy S24 series isn’t changing that as all three devices lack support for Qi2.
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Google and Samsung announced at CES last week that Nearby Share and Quick Share will merge, and that new version is already live out of the box on the Galaxy S24 series.
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In an unexpected twist, Samsung’s Unpacked event today for the Galaxy S24 series has revealed the “Galaxy Ring,” a new fitness tracker.
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After years of customer complaints about its Exynos chips, Samsung went all-in on Qualcomm Snapdragon with last year’s Galaxy S23 series globally. But, just a year later, Exynos is back in the Galaxy S24 series.
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Samsung has just announced its new, more expensive Galaxy S24 Ultra. What’s new? At a glance, not much, but there are a few key points we took away from our hands-on time.
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In case you hadn’t heard, AI is the big selling point Samsung is betting on for its new Galaxy S24 series. “Galaxy AI” is a suite of features powered by Samsung and Google, and they seem to be integrated quite well based on our hands-on time. Here’s a full list of Samsung’s new Galaxy AI features.
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Long-term updates have been a struggle on Android phones for a while, but Google broke new ground last year with the Pixel 8 series getting an industry-leading 7 years of major updates – that beats even the iPhone. Now, Samsung is matching that with 7 years of updates on the Galaxy S24 series.
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Samsung has just announced the Galaxy S24 Ultra, its latest flagship phone, which gets new specs, a slight redesign, and a higher starting price. Here’s what you need to know.
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While Google’s switch to Tensor chips in Pixels has brought a lot of good, Samsung’s manufacturing process has certainly held Pixel phones back when it comes to efficiency. It’s been previously reported that Google Tensor will move over to TSMC in the future, and new details show progress on that effort.
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Tap-to-pay support was once relatively rare among banks, but over a decade on the scene has expanded support for Google Wallet to virtually every bank. Recently, though, Google Wallet has expanded to around 40 more banks, as well as adding support for Venmo cards.
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Google TV is currently rolling out a new option for “Call notifications,” which lets select apps send calls to your TV.
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Apple’s war on Beeper, an app that tried to bring iMessage to Android, is now seemingly causing some users to see their Macs blocked from using iMessage entirely.
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For the past few years a lawsuit has been hanging over Google’s head regarding Chrome’s Incognito mode. Recently, it was revealed that Google will settle the lawsuit, and now the Chrome browser is preparing a revised disclaimer as a result.
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Samsung has long been the biggest smartphone maker in the world, but it’s officially lost that title as, in 2023, Samsung shipped fewer phones than Apple did.
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YouTube’s crackdown on ad blockers has had a lot of effects for users, but according to YouTube, the latest wave of browser slowdowns aren’t actually a result of the company’s actions after all.
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We’re in the final few hours before Samsung Unpacked where the company will launch its Galaxy S24 series, and these last few hours are also your final chance to score a $50 credit to go along with your pre-order, totally for free.
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After teasing the announcement recently, Google has today announced a new partnership with SoulCycle that will give Fitbit and Pixel Watch owners two free SoulCycle classes and more.
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AI is dominating the conversation going into 2024, and there’s potentially no better example of that than the Galaxy S24 series. Samsung’s new phones are apparently filled to the brim with AI features, and that’s the entire marketing campaign around them too. But, apparently, you might have to pay for them.
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Samsung is preparing its next big update, One UI 6.1, which will debut on the Galaxy S24 series. But, ahead of that launch, new leaks showcase some features of One UI 6.1 as we’re also getting an initial list of devices that will get the update.
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GPS makes it possible to navigate the globe with relative ease, but tunnels have long been a sore spot for apps like Google Maps. But, widely available now, Google Maps now supports Bluetooth beacons to fill in the gap left by tunnels.
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OnePlus has confirmed that it will launch the OnePlus 12 and OnePlus 12R globally later this month, and we’ve been able to use them both for about a week so far. We can’t really tell you anything yet, but if you’ve got questions, we’ll answer them in the upcoming reviews.
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