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
OnePlus has, for years, largely positioned itself as a more affordable alternative to other flagship smartphones without sacrificing specs. With the upcoming OnePlus 12, the company will apparently see a slight price increase, but with the OnePlus 12R seemingly being a killer value.
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Google’s YouTube TV is the fastest-growing product from the company, and it continues to rack up more and more subscribers. After hitting 6 million subscribers a few months ago, YouTube TV is now estimated to have hit 6.5 million subscribers.
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Acer is rolling out new laptops based on Intel Core Ultra including the Acer Swift X 14, a powerhouse PC with Intel Core Ultra, RTX 4070, a 120Hz OLED display, and more.
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As Android TV fades away, Google TV is taking over on more form factors, including an upcoming “range” of projector products from Xgimi and MediaTek.
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As CES 2024 kicks off this week, we’re reminded of one of last year’s biggest announcements. The new Qi2 standard was announced last January with support for MagSafe as a universal standard, but we haven’t heard much about support for Qi2 in new Android phones. What will be the first one?
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Screen protectors can often be a little clunky or annoying, but they’re still a great way to keep your device safe. Google Pixel phones have had a special mode for a while to boost touch sensitivity while using a screen protector, and on the Pixel 8 series, that setting can actually apply itself automatically.
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Last year Google abruptly announced that it had sold its domain registrar business to Squarespace, and it seems things aren’t exactly going great, as new data from the months following the takeover shows that new registrations are dropping.
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The Galaxy S24 Ultra is expected to bring upgrades such as a flat display and a whole bunch of AI, but it’s also getting rid of the 10x optical zoom lens. Despite that, though, one reliable leaker claims that zoom photos will be better without it.
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Some YouTube TV customers are being prompted to subscribe to Max when trying to watch recordings from select channels, but it appears to just be an error.
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Samsung announced its new Galaxy Tab A9 series back in October, but it’s never made its way to the US market. It seems that may change soon, though, as a listing for the Tab A9+ briefly surfaced this week.
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Microsoft has revealed that it is about to launch support for Teams, its workplace chat app, on Google’s Android Auto in February 2024.
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Samsung SmartThings is announcing some new tricks to kick off the new year, with integration with Tesla, Hyundai, and Kia coming soon.
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While AMOLED displays have come a long way since the days of bad burn-in, protections are still needed. That’s why it was confusing that Samsung’s One UI 6 update broke burn-in protection for many devices, but a coming update will apparently fix that on the Galaxy S23 series.
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Google Assistant takes up the role of being your default assistant app across Android smartphones, but the platform has long supported using other apps for that functionality. Now, as LLMs take over, the ChatGPT app seems to be working on support for being an Android assistant app.
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The OnePlus 12R is confirmed to come to the US and other markets as a more affordable option, and now the reveal of the Chinese version of the device has revealed one cost-cutting measure will be the use of Snapdragon 8 Gen 2.
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X, the platform better known as Twitter, removed headlines from posts with links a few months ago, but is now bringing them back in a new format.
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An issue with Samsung’s Galaxy Wearable app has broken Galaxy Watch support for many Google Pixel owners as well as some Samsung owners too.
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Google Bard is preparing a huge suite of new features going into 2024, with custom bots, tasks, shared queries, “Power Ups,” and a paid “Advanced” tier on the way.
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Microsoft is all-in on AI, and that’s now spearheaded by Copilot. Starting this year, Microsoft is adding a new key to Windows keyboards, with a dedicated key for launching Copilot.
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Google’s Pixel Watch 2 is making its first regional expansion since launch, with the smartwatch now officially available in Singapore.
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Google Maps has supported showing buildings in 3D for quite a while, but now the app is testing out the ability to show those 3D buildings while in navigation on the mobile app as well as on Android Auto.
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When buying a new car, it’s become almost a requirement to support Android Auto and CarPlay among buyers. So, it equally makes sense that a smartphone without that support would also be a relatively tough sell. That’s why it’s great news that GrapheneOS, a privacy-focused version of Android, is adding support for Android Auto.
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Roku has just announced, ahead of CES 2024, that it will launch a new series of self-branded “Roku Pro” TV sets over the coming months.
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Cell phones have gone through several distinct eras over the years, and Samsung has played a big role in shaping what we all carry today. Now, ahead of its Unpacked event, Samsung is teasing that AI on the Galaxy S24 will usher in a “new era of mobile” and compares it to the arrival of groundbreaking devices such as Galaxy Note and foldables.
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