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 Meta Quest is the product that’s gone the longest way to bring VR to the masses, in part because it has a sizable library of apps and games available. But, at one point, Meta asked Google to bring the Play Store to Quest to further expand that library, but Google declined.
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Samsung’s work in foldables has gone a long way in pushing the technology into the mainstream, but Samsung also hasn’t done much to make those devices more affordable. Now, Samsung says that it doesn’t have plans for a “mid-range” foldable after all.
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iMessage for Android is a dream for many, but Nothing is trying to make it a reality with the Nothing Phone (2) and “Nothing Chats.”
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The update to Android 14 is becoming available to more and more smartphones as of late, but for Android Auto users, the update has broken some music apps.
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Huawei’s relationship with Android has been a tough one ever since the 2019 trade ban that cut the company off from Google apps. Now, it’s looking like Huawei is preparing to further give up on Android with a new version of HarmonyOS.
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Google’s password manager integrates wonderfully with Chrome on Android, but that becomes a pain if you choose to use any other password manager. Soon, though, you’ll be given the control to stop that.
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The Google One VPN is an easy, fast way to protect your web traffic, but it was also breaking Android Auto for a little while. That’s since been fixed, however. Here’s what you should know.
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The OnePlus Open is a stellar Android foldable, with OxygenOS really being its only sticking point with random bugs and quirks that really just drag the experience down. And, as if to pile on, it’s now been revealed that the OnePlus Open revives the Facebook/Meta bloatware that we thought the brand’s phones were rid of.
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New updates to Google Photos appear to be preparing a new reminders functionality that integrates with Google Calendar.
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Google has announced that it will pursue legal action against scammers attempting to mislead customers into trying to “download” Bard and other AI tools, with a lawsuit already underway.
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When foldable smartphones first hit the scene, OnePlus was pretty hesitant to adopt the technology, but four years later, it was worth the wait. The OnePlus Open is, without a doubt, the best foldable on the market today, as long as you can ignore its one big flaw.
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I love the Pixel 8 Pro, but there’s one element of the phone I just haven’t been using, and that’s the temperature sensor.
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The OnePlus Watch was a product that, at its start, was not just a disappointment but a failure. It got better over time, but ultimately, it couldn’t get past the point of being a glorified fitness tracker. But, with the upcoming OnePlus Watch 2, which leaked earlier today, the company will apparently be using Wear OS.
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Arlo, one of the best competitors of Google Nest, has announced a new lineup of security subscriptions that include the cost of the hardware, cameras, and more in a simple monthly fee with “Arlo Total Security.”
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Foldable phones are quite expensive, and even a few generations in, those prices haven’t come down significantly from established brands. But, apparently, Samsung could debut a “mid-range” foldable sometime in 2024 to drop prices.
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In a surprising move, Qualcomm and its partner Iridium have announced that Snapdragon Satellite is abruptly coming to an end of sorts, as the two companies have ended a deal that would have brought satellite connectivity to Android phones.
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Google TV is a really solid platform for streaming, but one criticism that many share is how the platform’s homescreen minimizes app icons, with apps being smaller than most other elements of the homescreen. Soon, though, Google has confirmed a change that will make them even smaller as well as switching to a circular design.
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The Nothing Phone 2 is a great smartphone with some neat but not very useful lights on the back. As Android 14 testing is underway, though, the Nothing Phone 2 is adding Google Calendar integration to its “Glyph” interface.
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YouTube TV is rolling out a new, minor update for Roku devices which adds a clock to the live guide.
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Amazon has been using “forked” versions of Android to power its products for years now, but the company is apparently planning to swap that out with a new web-forward “Vega” OS starting with new Fire TV devices.
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Launching today, Spotify’s TV app is getting a major overhaul with support for more features and a much more familiar interface.
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Whether you’re playing games locally or from a cloud service, Valve’s Steam Deck has really shaped the market in terms of gaming handhelds and, now, it’s getting a refresh with an OLED display and more.
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Samsung is preparing a big AI push ahead of the launch of Galaxy S24, and in a new blog post, the company has confirmed plans to give Galaxy phones the ability to translate phone calls in real-time using AI.
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One of the trademark features of book-style foldables like the Pixel Fold is that there are screens both inside and out but, for the most part, only one screen can be used at once. Soon, though, that may change, with expanded support for dual display mode for foldables in Android 14.
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