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
Samsung’s Android 14 is finally picking up some steam, as the company is now pushing the update to the Galaxy A54 as well as Galaxy S22 users in the US market.
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NFL Sunday Ticket is one of the best ways to catch NFL games, and on YouTube and YouTube TV it’s easier than ever to access. Now, for a limited time, you can get NFL Sunday Ticket in a Thanksgiving sale that’s almost half off the current price.
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Sunbird, the pretty sketchy iMessage app for Android, has been exposed as having major privacy concerns, and has now opted to shut down the app for the time being.
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The OnePlus 12 is right around the corner, with the flagship set for launch on December 4 as a part of the brand’s 10th anniversary celebration.
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Google’s work on “Actua” displays for Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro is one of the biggest upgrades we’ve seen on the company’s smartphone hardware in quite a while, but on the smaller Pixel 8, that upgrade is even bigger than it was thought to be.
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The Chrome Web Store is a great place to find extensions, but it’s also an element of the world’s most popular browser that’s easy to forget about. Now, though, Google has launched a completely redesigned Chrome Web Store.
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The custom ROM scene for Android devices isn’t nearly what it once was, but down to today, 1.5 million devices are currently running on LineageOS.
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Samsung is rolling out the second update to its Galaxy Watch 6 series, which brings a new November 2023 security patch and one notable tweak.
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It’s still almost impossible to believe, but Apple is adopting RCS on the iPhone next year. While there’s a ton we don’t know, it’s a big deal that very much opens the door to big changes in the Android vs iPhone debate. However, my big question is if it will be enough to change the ongoing Android vs iPhone peer pressure that often turns into actual bullying.
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Sunbird has been promising iMessage support on Android for about a year now, but the company has always seemed rather sketchy. Now, as Nothing Chats, built on Sunbird, has launched, the privacy nightmare is coming true – not only is the app not end-to-end encrypted as promised, but image files from other users are pretty easy to access in plain text.
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After announcing it earlier this week, Nothing has launched its “Nothing Chats” app that brings Apple iMessage to the Android-based Nothing Phone (2).
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One of the best party games is back on Google TV and Android TV, as Jackbox Party Pack 10 has quietly debuted on the platform.
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Samsung is apparently working with Instagram to add lock screen access to the social media app on the Galaxy S24 series.
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Pixel Watch 2 is a stellar smartwatch, but Google isn’t giving it a discount for Black Friday. Here are the few deals you can get, and also how to get a steal on the original model.
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If you’re anything like me, your inbox is probably overflowing with random marketing emails. Gmail, soon, will be adding an option to help you quickly end promo emails with a prominent “Unsubscribe” button.
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The hit roguelike series Risk of Rain is making its way to mobile, with “Hostile Worlds” coming soon to Android and iOS.
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Apple finally did the thing, with the company announcing today that RCS is coming to the iPhone in 2024. The announcement comes just two days after Android smartphone maker Nothing announced an iMessage app for its phone.
Coincidence? Yes, and it would be foolish to pretend otherwise.
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The Fitbit app is currently undergoing an outage that is breaking device sync and leaving users unable to load data.
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Microsoft is launching the “Windows app,” a new service that will stream the company’s full desktop OS to other devices from the cloud, including Chromebooks. However, regular users cannot try it out yet.
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Samsung first launched Android 14 for the Galaxy S23 series in late October, but the update is finally expanding more widely as users in the US can easily get it, and it’s also now live in Korea.
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Android 14 is expanding its rollout to more devices, as the OnePlus 11 is now getting its stable update and Oppo is launching ColorOS 14.
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Seamless updates have been supported on Google’s smartphones since the Nexus days, but if there’s one complaint to be had about the background install on Pixel phones, it’s that they’re often maddeningly slow. But, with the latest updates, Google seems to be working on just that.
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After adding support for Xbox Game Pass earlier this year in a huge deal with Microsoft, Nvidia is making the experience even better with the addition of Xbox account sync on GeForce Now as well as a bundle with Game Pass, and it comes as the partnership reaches a big milestone.
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Google’s Pixel experience has long included the “At a Glance” widget that sits at the top of the primary homescreen. Soon, though, the Pixel Launcher will finally let you turn off At a Glance.
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