Send tips/talk to abner@9to5mac.com or @technacity (open DMs).
Abner Li has worked at 9to5Google since 2015 and in late 2020 took on the role of editor-in-chief. He is keenly focused on tracking what happens at Google, and is often the first to spot new features in Google’s ever-growing family of applications that are updated on a daily basis, including Search, Assistant, Maps, Workspace, Android, Chrome/OS, Wear OS, and YouTube Music.
To him, what Google does greatly impacts the technology space and modern life. Inside the company, he is particularly interested in the key products mentioned above, as well as services like Google Podcasts and Google Lens. Each are massive platforms that can be unwieldy to grasp, with Abner keenly bent on understanding their philosophy and future direction. He is most excited about Google’s plans for augmented reality glasses.
Abner spearheads the APK Insight program at 9to5Google to chronicle all changes in the company’s Android apps, often finding new features before they are officially announced. This includes redesigns and revamps, launches, and new products.
A big area of interest is Google’s hardware division, including Pixel, Fitbit, and Nest. He detailed all of the Pixel 3’s camera features before launch and scooped the 2nd-generation Nest Hub’s Soli-powered Sleep Sensing capability, including how it would integrate with Google Fit.
Recently, Abner detailed the Pixel Watch’s specs in full before launch, including bands and pricing. He also got wind of the Pixel Tablet’s ultimate form factor.
It remains to be seen whether Google plans to bring Gemini to Smart Displays and speakers. At the same time, stock for the Nest Hub and speaker family of products is not as plentiful as it once was.
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At I/O 2022, Google announced that it will update over 20 of its first-party apps for large screens in a show of its commitment to the form factor. This will undoubtedly improve the experience for existing owners and is meant to encourage other developers to do the same. Here’s every Google app on Android that has a tablet update and what’s still to come.
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Apple unexpectedly announced a few months ago that iOS would support the Rich Communications Services (RCS) Universal Profile in 2024. While this will improve the Android-iOS messaging experience, the driving force behind RCS on the iPhone might be new rules that regulators in China are implementing.
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Instead of just a toolbar, Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides now offers a sidebar for accessing the various formatting options on Android tablets.
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Last year, Google hosted additional “I/O Connect” events around the world after the main developer conference in Mountain View. I/O Connect “save the date” invites for 2024 are now starting to go out.
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The first developer preview of Android 15 is available today, and we are looking at DP1 to find what new features have been introduced.
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With the release of Android 15 DP1 today, Google detailed the release schedule for the Developer Preview and upcoming Beta.
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Google is rolling out Android 15 Developer Preview 1 today. This is the ninth year of Google providing an early look at the direction Android is going ahead of the stable launch later this year.
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The Pixel Watch launched in October of 2022 with better specs over the competition in some key areas. A prototype has now emerged that shows how Google started the Pixel Watch development process with something less capable.
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The Nest Aware price increase that Google announced last year for the US is now rolling out abroad, including in Canada and Japan.
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Google Docs, along with Sheets and Slides, on the web is getting a redesign of the comments view that aims to “help you find and take action on comments easier than ever before.”
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While we wait for a slew of existing features to roll out, Google Messages is working on the ability to edit what you’ve recently sent.
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Google Search Labs is testing a “Talk to a Live Representative” feature where it will “help you place the call, wait on hold, and then give you a call once a live representative is available.”
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Following the 1.0 launch in December, Google today announced Gemini 1.5 as its next-generation model with “dramatically enhanced performance.”
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Back in October, we saw the Home app tease an “All-in-one subscription from Google” that included Nest Aware and Google One. New strings today provide more details about this upcoming addition.
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As previewed at launch, the Gemini app on Android and iOS is now rolling out Japanese and Korean support.
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The Duet AI side panel that Google first showed off at I/O 2023 in May is now entering wider testing via the Workspace Labs program for free accounts.
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Following testing last month, YouTube TV is now rolling out its “Build a Multiview” capability.
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Screen Effects that briefly take over the Google Messages app are slowly rolling out with only a subset of triggers available.
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For Valentine’s Day 2024, Google has an interactive Doodle called “Chemistry CuPd” that is equal parts cute and educational.
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We spotted that Google was adding charging sounds to ChromeOS at the end of 2022, and they’re now live on Chromebooks.
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The Gemini launch continues this week with availability for more countries (in English) and iOS.
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According to the Wall Street Journal, Walmart is in talks to buy Vizio to help its advertising business and better compete against Amazon.
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Google is in the process of removing the “app launcher” from Assistant Driving Mode following the announcement last month. That change rolled out to one of our Android devices, and here’s how Driving Mode now works.
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