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
Google will shut down Stadia on January 18, less than a week from today, but the company is today sharing one last update – the Stadia Controller is getting Bluetooth support.
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Android 13 has been available for a few months at this point, but it’s still in beta testing for Carl Pei’s Nothing Phone (1), with a second beta release now available.
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Following a batch of images of the Galaxy S23 showing up online earlier this week, official images of Samsung’s Galaxy S23 Ultra and the Galaxy S23+ have arrived.
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The past several weeks since Elon Musk’s takeover have seen Twitter in turmoil as rapid changes hit the platform, and tonight it appears something is going on with the Twitter API as Tweetbot and many third-party Twitter clients are down.
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If you have a Pixel phone and have been unable to use a hotspot in recent months, it seems you’re not alone, as a long-standing issue has prevented users on select carriers from starting up a hotspot successfully.
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Buying an older smartphone or tablet has always been a great way to save some money, but is it really better than buying something new? That depends, but here are a few things to look out for if you’re trying to buy a used Android phone or tablet.
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As Google TV starts a new year with upcoming releases from TCL, Hisense, and others, a new remote option is also on the horizon with a self-charging battery.
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Skagen Falster Gen 6 was one of the last great smartwatches to launch with Wear OS 2, but it’s now eligible for Wear OS 3 as the upgrade is rolling out to owners.
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The January 2023 security update for Google Pixel phones was released on schedule during the first week of this month, but as of January 12, it still hasn’t arrived for Pixel 7 owners on T-Mobile, and it’s not the only Pixel update that’s been delayed on the carrier as of late.
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Announced earlier this month at CES 2023, Samsung has officially opened up sales of the Galaxy A14 5G in the United States.
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Samsung is introducing a new trick with its Galaxy smartphones and Galaxy Buds. Starting today, Galaxy Buds can capture binaural audio to be paired with a video from a Samsung Galaxy smartphone.
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In hunting for the best case for the Pixel 6 series last year, I was quickly enamored with the compostable cases from Pela. For the Pixel 7 series in 2023, Pela is still one of the best case makers, and now that includes many more design choices.
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Nvidia’s GeForce Now cloud gaming service continues to make improvements, and it seems that more is in store going forward as the company has teased the desire to improve support for more controllers as well as Valve’s Steam Deck.
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Samsung confirmed the launch date of the Galaxy S23 series yesterday, with the trio set to launch on February 1. Ahead of that launch, more and more leaks are showing off the design and colors of Samsung’s upcoming flagships, along with some accessories.
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For the first time, Google Pixel smartphones are set to add support for 5G networks in India thanks to an upcoming update.
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Google Stadia is shutting down in a week, but in all of its time, Google never offered up any information on the player count its cloud gaming platform had managed to gather. If Destiny 2 is any indication, it wasn’t great.
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As eSIM starts to take over, Google seems to be working on better support for the technology within Android, with the ability to transfer eSIMs being developed behind the scenes in Android 13.
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It’s been almost a decade since Google first launched Android Auto, a way of maintaining control over music, maps, and messages while behind the wheel. Over that time, Android Auto has undergone three major versions with the latest, “Coolwalk,” bringing a dashboard that delivers on some welcome upgrades.
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The Galaxy S20 was Samsung’s last big launch before the COVID-19 pandemic, and as the company approaches the launch of the Galaxy S23 series in the coming weeks, it’s also testing out the last major update for its 2020 flagships.
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Stadia’s first major game, Destiny 2, has just shut down support for the platform a week ahead of Google’s closure, leaving players with a ticking clock to save their characters and progress.
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After a previous teaser, the Nothing Phone (1) is now officially on its way to the United States, but the only way to get it is to spend $299 for a weird “beta membership.”
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The hit RPG Stardew Valley recently released its 1.5 update on Android and iOS, with the highly-anticipated update bringing new characters, a new farm layout, and more, but it requires a bit of extra work on Android.
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Samsung is just a few weeks out from the launch of its Galaxy S23 series, and a fresh leak of the Galaxy S23 Ultra teases the 200MP camera for low-light shots.
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If you’ve visited an app listing on the Google Play Store through the web recently, you might have noticed that update changelogs have been missing, but thankfully it’s just a bug and they’ll be returning soon.
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