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
It’s been a couple of years since Eufy, one of the brands under Anker’s umbrella, first announced it would be making trackers for Android’s Find Hub network, and CES 2026 is the time we’re finally seeing it launch.
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At CES 2026, TCL is launching its new X11 series of TVs with SQD-Mini LED display tech that offers more accurate color and up to 20,000 dimming zones.
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Google TV is finally getting support for Xbox Game Pass, at least on TCL TVs.
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At CES 2026, Withings is announcing its new Body Scan 2 scale, which the company claims is the first at-home scale able to detect certain heart conditions, including your risk for hypertension.
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Proper Qi2 support on Android has been rather elusive thus far, with only Google’s Pixel 10 series bringing the feature to a mass audience. While there are rumblings of support from Samsung in 2026, another Qi2 Android phone has been confirmed for next year, it’s just not one anyone expected.
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Motorola is seemingly about to unveil a new flagship-tier smartphone called “Signature,” and its specs look pretty compelling.
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Ahead of launching its first Android XR product, “Project Aura,” the new XREAL 1S glasses deliver some impressive new display upgrades, and for a lower price than its predecessor too.
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After a somewhat underwhelming release last year, privacy-focused brand Punkt is back with the new MC03 smartphone, which is based on Android and ships with “AphyOS,” and coming to the US this year.
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The Pebble smartwatch is back, and now that includes the thin and stylish Pebble Round 2.
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Coming from the same company that revived a physical keyboard for your smartphone, the “Clicks Communicator” is a dedicated piece of hardware that acts as a phone for your phone and is all about managing your messages.
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Asus has seemingly confirmed that it is mostly done with Android phones, with no plans to release new devices in the Zenfone or ROG lineups in 2026.
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The Clicks Keyboard case that revived the experience of using a physical keyboard for modern smartphones is now coming to, well, everything, with the new magnetic “Click Power” launching in 2026 with support for any device you want to use it with.
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Google quietly revealed last week that it is adding an option for users to change their Gmail address and it seems a lot of people are excited, but will you change yours?
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The Nothing Phone series has delivered some of my favorite phones of the past few years, with a refreshing but familiar take on Android and smartphone hardware in general, and it’s all culminated in the Nothing Phone (3). I think it’s safe to say this was one of the most polarizing phones of 2025, and it’s also one that I think will serve as a bit of a make-or-break moment for Nothing.
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Over the holidays, dbrand has introduced a neat new skin design called “Sketch 2D” that turns your Pixel 10 – and a bunch of other devices – into a real-life cartoon.
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The PayPal-owned extension Honey has been revealed for various shady practices over the past year, and in a new video, it’s detailed that the extension knowingly broke affiliate rules, effectively frauding networks, all while the extension continues to lose users.
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Ahead of CES 2026, LG has announced its new “Gallery TV” which is designed to take on Samsung’s popular “The Frame.”
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After being announced a few months ago, Qualcomm’s next-gen Snapdragon X2 Elite chips for Windows are set to launch in new Windows laptops launching at CES 2026 next week.
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As a part of the December 2025 update, Nothing Phone (3) is picking up a bunch of fixes, including a couple of improvements to its rear-display “Glyph Toys.”
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The Galaxy Tab A11+ just went official and it actually seems like a pretty decent Android tablet for its $250 price tag.
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Samsung just announced its latest budget Android phone, the Galaxy A17, with a mere $199 price tag and a whopping 6 years of Android updates.
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Oppo appears to be building out another new foldable for 2026, with the Find N6 set to deliver a camera upgrade while also addressing some other key specs.
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While the launch date is a fair bit later this year, leaks continue to detail Samsung’s plans for the upcoming Galaxy S26 series. In the latest leak, we’re getting a better look at the hardware and how the Galaxy S26 design is changing.
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Samsung hasn’t been particularly quiet about its coming Perplexity partnership, and now we’re getting a first look at the Bixby reboot powered by the AI service.
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