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 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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In a post, Google is reminding Photos users how the act of deleting a photo or video works across your various devices.
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As promised by Google earlier this year, a GPU driver update has arrived for the Pixel 10 series in Android 16 QPR3.
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As a part of the Android 16 QPR3 beta update that rolled out to Google Pixel phones yesterday, Google has also updated its emoji set to include a few refreshed designs ahead of a larger update to come.
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Meta has confirmed that its plans to bring Horizon OS, the software on Quest headsets, to third-party devices have been paused, which is probably great news for Android XR.
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The Google Home app is adding support for transferring all of your old Nest gear to the new app with a single tap, instead of repeating the process over and over again.
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Google is adding a new notifying dot in Android 16 QPR3 which tells you when an app is accessing your location.
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Google Pixel phones are adding support for the three-button layout used in navigation by Samsung Galaxy smartphones, but only in the latest beta for now.
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Android 16 is widely available on Pixel devices, but Google continues to run beta programs for the latest updates. Here’s the newest Android 16 Beta available for Google Pixel, and how you can install it.
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Hisense has launched its new “DécoTV” series with the S5, a 32-inch TV that gives off some artsy vibes in a versatile form factor – it’s just running the wrong software.
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Nothing introduced “Lock Glimpse” earlier this year on its new budget-focused Phone (3a) Lite, and the sort of lockscreen “ads” appear to drain your battery from beyond the grave.
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While the focus has very much shifted to Google TV, the older Android TV experience is still getting updates from time to time, with the latest addition being a “Free” content tab that replaces the current design’s namesake.
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Google’s official Pixelsnap Charger with Qi2 25W support is suddenly on sale, but you can do better.
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Over the past couple of years, Google TV has been heavily investing in free-to-watch channels that provide 24/7 content with no charge and no accounts. Now, Google TV Freeplay has over 250 channels available following the addition of quite a lot of new channels in recent months, including several more new local news channels.
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Meta has today announced that Instagram is getting a TV app designed to let you watch Reels on the big screen, but it’s only on Amazon’s Fire TV platform to start.
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OnePlus has been betting pretty heavily on mobile gaming in the past few years, but a new “Turbo” lineup is apparently on its way and OnePlus says it is “frighteningly strong” – whatever that’s supposed to mean.
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According to a new report, the smartphone market as a whole is expected to shrink in 2026 due to the rising costs of components.
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Launching in early January, the Moto G Power (2026) is another variation on the familiar mid-range formula Motorola has been toying around with as of late.
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Samsung is now rolling out One UI 8 Watch, its Wear OS 6 update, to the Galaxy Watch 4 series in what is probably the smartwatch’s last major software update.
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Google Search is full of hidden Easter eggs, with the latest additions recognizing John Cena’s retirement from wrestling as well as the “6-7” trend.
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