Kyle Bradshaw joined 9to5Google in 2018 with a special interest in Google’s Fuchsia OS, rooted in his experience of being the first to offer a visual preview of the revolutionary design of the in-development operating system. Since then, his attention has broadened to include the secrets hidden within other areas of Google’s public codebases.
By reading the public Fuchsia code, Kyle was able to prove the existence of the Nest Mini and the Nest Hub Max months ahead of their respective announcements. With evidence from Chromium, he reported on Google’s since-canceled efforts to create an offshoot of Android designed for “touchless” feature phones.
In 2018, Kyle reported on three distinct Made by Google Chromebooks in development, the Pixel Slate, the Pixelbook Go — a full year before its release — and “Meowth,” the original version of the Pixel Slate that was canceled due to Intel’s delays that year. For ChromeOS itself, Kyle was the first to demonstrate the upcoming light theme redesign in action.
Looking at the early evidence of the Pixel 5’s specs, Kyle accurately predicted in February 2020 that the Pixel 5 might not be a traditional “flagship” phone. In 2021, he reported that Google’s next headset would be the “Pixel Buds A.”
Kyle was the first to report that the Pixel 6 would mark the debut of Google’s in-house processors, later revealed to be the Tensor chips.
Kyle contributes to the APK Insight column at 9to5Google, discovering the hidden changes in Google’s apps. These efforts have revealed hotly anticipated features, details about upcoming devices, and unexpected connections between companies.
He can be reached for tips or just friendly chat by Threads, Mastodon, Bluesky, or email. If you’re looking for his other works or side projects, head over to Kyle’s personal portfolio.
One of the more practical new features introduced with this week’s Android 15 preview, Notification Cooldown, helps prevent your phone from incessantly alerting at full volume when a group text gets into a lively conversation.
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Following Google’s significant drive to introduce AI features to ChromeOS via Chromebook Plus, it seems that Samsung is looking to release a new Chromebook that features an Assistant key.
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According to a public-facing comment, Google is set to launch its first preview of Android 15 later this week.
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Google has begun teasing that its sign-in page is about to receive a redesign.
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After being officially announced last month, a newly leaked “official” render of the Nothing Phone (2a) shows a completely different design that entirely removes the signature Glyph lighting. Meanwhile, a hands-on image seems to confirm the originally leaked design.
Update: The leaked render of the Nothing Phone (2a) has been found to be outright false.
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Two new codenames have surfaced in the latest Android beta release, both of which suggest that a next-generation Pixel Tablet 2 is in development.
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Following leaked renders of the Pixel 9 series, it seems the Pixel Fold 2 is joining the “prominent camera bump” crew, based on newly leaked images of an early prototype of Google’s next foldable.
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Last week, we reported that Wear OS (at least on the Pixel Watch) was preparing a new grid-style app drawer to replace the scrolling list. Now, instructions have surfaced to show off the feature early and even enable it on your own watch.
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In a somewhat surprising move, it seems that Google is ditching the “Bard” branding altogether across the web app and the upcoming phone experience, switching entirely to “Gemini.”
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Ahead of this year’s expected arrival of Wear OS 5, Google is finally preparing to launch Material You color theming alongside a hint at a redesign for the app launcher.
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Without any warning or prior notice, Google appears to have shut down the website for its “Earth View” collection of satellite-captured wallpapers and Chromecast backgrounds.
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In my years of playing video games on my phone, I’ve been waiting for a controller that allows me to carry over my full gaming skillset wherever I go. Without a doubt, the GameSir G8 Galileo is exactly the controller I’ve hoped for.
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Project IDX, Google’s all-in-one web-based, AI-enhanced app development suite, is delivering on some of its early promises. Among other improvements, developers can now access a full iOS simulator and Android emulator directly from the browser, enabling iOS development without a Mac.
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The next generation of Wear OS is coming possibly as soon as this year, with Samsung and Google preparing a Wear OS 5 update based on Android 14.
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The Google Store has begun teasing something “Minty Fresh” for the Pixel 8 to be released next week.
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According to a recent update, Google is shutting down the dedicated Tile that provided Google News headlines on Wear OS 2 watches.
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Google has begun experimenting with bringing the equivalent of the Super Res Zoom feature of Pixel phones to Chromebooks.
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Ahead of a potential new model, the Google Wifi and Nest Wifi routers have been delisted from the Google Store.
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Google has formally discontinued its efforts to bring the full Chrome browser experience to its Fuchsia operating system.
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We’re not even two weeks into 2024, and Google has initiated a wave of layoffs across multiple teams throughout the company. In addition to cuts to the hardware division reported on Wednesday, further position removals have reportedly impacted other teams, including core engineering and Assistant.
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Physical SIM cards from cell carriers are on their way out, being replaced by digital eSIMs, as led by the iPhone 15 series altogether removing the SIM card slot for US models. To help encourage the move to eSIM, Google is preparing a built-in eSIM conversion tool for Pixel phones.
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In a move that should help make it easier to connect or disconnect your favorite devices, the latest Android 14 QPR2 beta makes the Quick Settings tile for Bluetooth expandable.
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An issue prevented people from using many of the features of the “Automations” tab in the Google Home app.
Update: This particular issue has now been resolved, but you’ll need to sign in to your Google Account again.
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Ahead of CES 2024, Samsung is taking the wraps off of a new officially licensed accessory program for the cloud “Gaming Hub” available on its line of Smart TVs, including a new controller from PDP.
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