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.
If your Pixel phone on Android 14 has been repeatedly rebooting (in a bootloop), Google has a “specialized” fix that involves manually installing an update via the Pixel Repair Tool.
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Last month, Google opened its third retail location in Mountain View, following Chelsea and Williamsburg. The next Google Store will be in Boston.
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Google is redesigning Drive’s homepage on Android and iOS with a more compact UI to “help you more easily find the right file much faster.”
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While I think the “Laser Ink Display” projector on the Humane Ai Pin is pretty cool and makes for a very interesting user experience, I do not think this product is anywhere close to replacing the smartphone.
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Given the tall aspect ratios of today’s phones, Gboard in landscape orientation often takes up most of the display (and leaves only a few lines of text visible), but Google now has a floating alternative.
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Back in September, Google announced a Material You redesign of desktop Chrome that’s now more widely rolling out.
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As we spotted over the weekend, Google Chat is getting a new icon, as well as redesigned navigation on the web app with dedicated views for “Home” and “Mentions.”
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Google yesterday recapped recent Home app launches while teasing the ability to “see more data from sensors” that might already be rolling out.
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After years of teasing, Humane today fully unveiled its Ai Pin, a wearable camera with laser projector, for $699 and a $24 per month subscription to access cellular connectivity and other services.
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Google Play’s work to boost app quality on Android continues today with a requirement for wider testing before release.
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For the past several months, Google Messages has been working on a Profiles feature, and we now have a better idea of what it’s for.
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Ahead of tomorrow’s announcement, many details about the Humane Ai Pin have leaked out, including the price.
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According to leaked internal numbers, YouTube TV grew 48% in the past year and is Google’s fastest-growing product.
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Google is simplifying the process of setting up its browser on iOS by getting rid of Chrome Sync.
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Google Messages has seen a flurry of new features start rolling out this week, but the app appears to have lost Magic Compose.
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The Google Search Generative Experience (SGE) is getting a huge international expansion in over 120 new countries and territories and a handful of new generative AI-powered features.
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The European Commission is currently investigating whether iMessage should fall under the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and therefore be subject to interoperability rules. Google and local carriers have sent a letter to regulators in Europe arguing that iMessage should be considered a “core” service.
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After adding a Memory Saver earlier this year, Chrome on desktop platforms (Mac, Windows, ChromeOS, etc.) will now report “Memory usage” when you hover over a tab.
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Google announced Bard as an “early experiment” in February and still prominently refers to it as such. I thought that qualifier applied to both the generative AI nature and its name, which would change when the product graduated.
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As an app store, Google Play has to accommodate watches, phones, tablets, Chromebooks, TVs, and even cars (Android Automotive). The Play Store is now giving you a better way to view screenshots in app listings by form factor/device.
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Google is rolling out the first Wear OS 4 update to the Pixel Watch series with the November 2023 security patch, but it’s only for the Pixel Watch 2 LTE variant today.
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Google announced Core Web Vitals in 2020 to better capture and quantify how people “perceive the experience of interacting with a web page,” especially on mobile. A few years later, Google is detailing how much Core Web Vitals (CWV) has improved page speed for the entire industry.
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The generative AI-powered “Help me script” feature for the Google Home Script Editor is now beginning to roll out for those enrolled in the Preview Program.
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Google Assistant’s legacy note and list system, including the Shopping List, is being replaced by Google Keep with a migration path that should be fairly straightforward.
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