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 aspect of Google TV, and recent updates to Android TV, that fans haven’t been happy about is the addition of ads in the home screen. These ads on Google TV have now taken another intrusive step as they begin to autoplay a video right on your home screen.
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Samsung began the process of rolling out its June 2021 update to the Galaxy S21 and more before the month of June had even arrived; here’s every device updated so far.
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Since the launch of the Chromecast with Google TV back in October, it’s been downright bizarre that Stadia, Google’s premier game streaming service, was not available on the company’s newest streaming hardware. Instead, to (officially) play on TV, players were forced to purchase a Chromecast Ultra and Stadia Controller.
Google has now launched a proper “Stadia for Android TV” app into the Play Store, and we’ve spent a few hours playing with it and learning its ins and outs.
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You can now download and install the Stadia for Android TV app from the Google Play Store, but we still have some waiting to do.
Update: As of this morning, the app has fully launched, allowing you to get your game on from any Android TV or Google TV device.
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Google has shared official instructions on how to know if your Nest Hub has been updated to run on Fuchsia OS.
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Yesterday, Google launched a new app in preparation for Stadia to be available on Android TV and Google TV devices. We’ve found that the new Android TV app is designed completely differently from how Stadia for Android works.
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Google Phone is making it easier than ever to message a business instead of calling them with a new “Chat” button.
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Google is set to officially launch the Stadia for Android TV/Google TV experience on Wednesday, but a trick has been discovered to get playing today.
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MWC 2021 is happening next week, and Samsung has announced they’ll be taking part with a virtual event to unveil their vision for smartwatches.
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In honor of Juneteenth, Google is celebrating Black history with a homepage Doodle, a new way to learn history with the Google Assistant, and more.
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Google Stadia is preparing a new way to sign in to your profile when playing games on the same screen as someone else, aka “couch co-op.”
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Google’s affordable true wireless earbuds, the $99 Pixel Buds A-Series, are now available for proper purchase at various retailers in the United States.
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Google Stadia is gaining a new way to play from Android. Instead of using the native Flutter-based app, you can play Stadia from a lightweight Progressive Web App.
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Stadia’s Android app is rolling out an experimental “Filter Search” to let you more easily find items in the store.
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At the end of last year, Google launched a revamped Google Pay experience in the US, based on what was once the Tez app in India. Google is now warning that the older Google Pay apps on Android, iOS, and web will no longer be able to send and receive money.
Update: One month after losing access to sending/receiving money, the old Google Pay app is now entirely non-functional in the US, losing the ability to claim money and view transaction history.
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Gboard’s Emoji Kitchen, which mixes together emojis to fantastic effect, is getting smarter, suggesting the perfect sticker for the conversation at hand.
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From the leaks we’ve seen so far, the Pixel 6 series will look unlike any Pixel phone before it. To match the premium Pixel 6, Google appears to be readying a second-generation Pixel Stand, equipped with fans, which hints at faster charging speeds.
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The 2021 Doodle for Google competition, which lets K-12 students design an inspirational “Doodle,” has come to a close, and the winner will be shown on the Google homepage tomorrow.
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Last month, Google officially released their from-scratch operating system, Fuchsia, starting with select first-generation Nest Hubs. Here are a few different ways to know whether or not your Google Nest Hub has been updated to Fuchsia OS.
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Microsoft has announced that their Xbox Game Pass Ultimate streaming is set to gain Series X upgrades and full support for Chrome and more in the coming weeks.
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With Android 12 Beta 2, the Google Assistant has learned how to open the power menu on your phone, in return for taking over the power button.
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Android 12 Beta 2 has tweaked the media controls design, giving it a streamlined design that takes up less space on screen vertically and uses Material You colors.
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One of the many aspects of Android being revamped with Android 12 is the Quick Settings area. With Android 12 Beta 2, the Quick Settings area gains quick access to Google Pay, Google Home shortcuts, as well as a power button.
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Today’s animated Google Doodle is in honor of 1930s child star, and later American diplomat, Shirley Temple.
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