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
Not long after it started rolling out, Samsung seems to have paused the rollout of its latest – and possibly final – Galaxy Watch 4 update due to some issues.
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OnePlus has officially shown off its new “Turbo 6” series of gaming phones while confirming monstrous 9,000 mAh batteries being used in the devices.
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As the three-year anniversary of Stadia’s death approaches, the final “active” part of Google’s short-lived venture into cloud gaming appears to be going away, as the controller conversion tool appears to actually be going offline this week.
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According to a new report, fluctuating costs have left Samsung struggling to finalize pricing for the upcoming Galaxy S26 series, all while the company is losing money every time it sells a Galaxy Z TriFold.
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Samsung has announced plans to bring Google Photos support to its TVs, and it sounds a lot like what we already see on Google TV.
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As crucial as Android Auto and CarPlay have become to daily driving, the core problem remains. Wired connections charge your phone slowly, and wireless drains your battery quickly. That’s where the “PDFriender” steps in as a clever little solution.
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If you just got a new Google Pixel smartphone, there are a few key accessories you should get right away. Here are our recommendations.
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Just got a new Android smartphone for the holidays? If it’s your first one, it could be a little intimidating, so to get you started, here are a few apps you should immediately install or set up on a new Android device. Alternatively, if you’re not already using these apps, it might be time to give them a shot!
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On a Google support page, the company says it is rolling out a new option to let users change their email address even if it is an “@gmail.com” address.
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OnePlus has already confirmed its plans to launch a new “Turbo” series of devices, and a leak offers up a first look at the new design that’s… not really what we expected.
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Samsung’s brand new Galaxy Z TriFold form factor has arrived and, of course, one of the big questions around it is whether or not it’s actually durable. One YouTube channel put that to the test, finding that the device sort of gave up quite a bit shy of Samsung’s promise.
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Nvidia is implementing a somewhat tight limit on cloud gaming via its GeForce Now service starting on January 1, 2026, where almost all of its users will be restricted to playing 100 hours per month before additional fees kick in.
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As Google Assistant was crumbling, the arrival of Gemini in Android Auto felt like a needed step forward. But, as the feature rolls out, it seems a bit divisive. What do you think of it?
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Verizon has a nice discount available for its customers who are looking to try out Google’s YouTube TV, with a $20 discount on each of the first six months of service.
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Years after its debut in other parts of the globe, Google has today announced that Android’s Emergency Location Service (ELS) is finally available in India.
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Face grouping and search is perhaps one of the best parts of Google Photos, but the pivot to focus more heavily on AI-powered search did take away one of the easy shortcuts that could help you find images of a person or a pet. Now, though, Google is bringing it back.
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Google just released a really cool new Android figure on its merch store that has a built-in 3D maze game.
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The popular PayPal-owned extension Honey has been under fire for the past year regarding sketchy tactics against online creators as well as its customers, and as millions have already ditched the app, a new video breaks down how Honey has probably done some sketchy things with your user data while also harming businesses.
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Samsung has released a second beta update for its upcoming One UI 8.5 release, but there’s not much added this time around.
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Google appears to be working on more Android Auto updates, including potential support for Cast and a redesign of the music player to go with Material 3 Expressive.
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Quite literally at the last minute as far as the Christmas holiday is concerned, Google’s Pixel 10 series is starting at $450 right now thanks to a discount that cuts $100 off of even Black Friday pricing.
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After Google pivoted away from its stout book-like foldable form factor found in the original Pixel Fold, Apple’s coming iPhone Fold and a future Samsung foldable may just end up copying the same idea.
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As 2025 comes to a close, I’ve been looking back on some of my favorite products of the year, with two standouts in particular. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 and the Pixel Watch 4 are far and away my favorite products of the year. What were yours?
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There are literally countless Qi2 charging docks available for the Pixel 10 series, each one with a different type of use case. One that I’ve been testing out lately is from UGreen, with the company’s Qi2 25W 3-in-1 “Magflow” dock being a perfect portable Qi2 dock for Pixel 10.
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