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.
As part of the September 2023 Google System Updates, Android is set to gain better support for using a PIN with the FIDO2 security standard, among other improvements.
Update: Ahead of the expected October launch of Android 14, Google is now discussing the addition of stylus and trackpad gestures for Android’s built-in web browser.
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Ahead of the Pixel Watch 2’s expected October launch, 9to5Google has learned that Google’s second smartwatch will feature a thermometer and bring improvements to the wearable versions of Fitbit and Personal Safety.
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At the start of 2022, Google announced that Wear OS would be able to unlock your Android phone. It seems Watch Unlock is very nearly ready to launch, as our APK Insight team managed to fully enable the feature for an early hands-on.
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Ahead of the (delayed) launch of Google’s Find My Device network, the company is preparing location-based settings for helping find your (and others’) lost phones and other gadgets.
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Just hours after Google shared the date for its fall Pixel hardware event, two of the devices we’re expecting to see, the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, have been filed for approval by the FCC.
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With the launch of the Pixel 8 series just around the corner, 9to5Google can now confirm the three color options for the Pixel 8 Pro have a lot in common with the Pixel Fold.
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With just a few weeks to go until the launch of the Pixel 8 series, Google has discontinued the Pixel Pass subscription, closing it to new subscribers.
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While Chromebook X devices have yet to reach store shelves, you may already own one. Here are the current and future ChromeOS devices that will be upgraded to Chromebook X or “Chromebook Plus.”
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A new preview update is rolling out to Google’s Nest Hub series, and the Fuchsia patch notes reveal what’s new in the version 12 update.
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Building on the company’s ongoing momentum on generative AI tools, it seems Google is readying an AI writing and editing feature for Chromebooks.
Update: We can now all but confirm that Google is preparing to launch its “Help me write” AI onto Chromebooks.
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Among other changes in Android’s Google System Updates for August, the Play Store is changing all of its ads to now read as “Sponsored.”
Update: The latest patch notes point to improvements in emergency situations and an expansion of Google Wallet.
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Google Search results are about to become a bit more social, as the company’s next Labs experiment is an Instagram Stories clone to add public “Notes” about particular webpages.
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A new update for “Google Partner Setup,” a required internal Android app, is rolling out now via the Play Store.
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A new Google device has appeared before the FCC for approval, and it seems to be a low-end Fitbit tracker, possibly the Luxe 2 or Ace 4.
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Earlier this year, we exclusively reported that Google was working to support gaming Chromebooks that would be backed by Nvidia graphics cards; however, it seems those planned devices have now been canceled.
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It’s been just over a year since Google released the Pixel Buds Pro, and in that time, hopefully, you’ve remembered to clean them on multiple occasions. If not, Google will soon remind you to clean your Pixel Buds so on a regular basis.
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Ahead of the launch of the Pixel Tablet, one of the key selling points was that it would effectively be a detachable Nest Hub with much better hardware. However, after using it for a few weeks, I don’t think the Pixel Tablet is actually a better Nest Hub, despite everything that it does well.
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Google is preparing a new way to quickly interact with Assistant on your smartwatch, using a new Wear OS Tile with customizable shortcuts, and we have your first look.
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Google has redesigned the account switcher used across Google Search, Gmail, Docs, and more, introducing a larger UI with Material You styling.
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Did you know Verizon acquired a video conferencing app back in 2020? It’s fine if you haven’t because Verizon has announced that its “BlueJeans” video app will be shutting down.
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Google has taken the wraps off of “Project IDX,” which will provide everything you need for development – including Android and iOS emulators – enhance it with AI, and deliver it to your web browser.
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It’s been just over a year since the Pixel Buds Pro were released, but have Google’s earbuds improved enough to stay ahead of the competition?
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The latest version of the Google Home app includes evidence of a new Nest Wifi router in development.
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Once a miniature playground for the public to test Google’s blossoming AI-powered tools, the AI Test Kitchen app has been delisted for both Android and iOS, moving solely to the web.
Update: Google has shared additional details about the shutdown of these mobile apps.
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