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.
Best Buy has sold Google Fi SIM cards since 2019, and a monthlong promo sees new in-store or online activations come with a $100 bill credit.
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After the main release and two patches, Google is now asking for feedback on Android 13 Beta 3 in a survey that’s slightly different from past versions by focusing on the search experience.
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The technology industry (Apple, Google, Microsoft) ultimately wants to get rid of passwords with passkeys. Until then, the Google Password Manager is starting to offer on-device encryption so that “only you can see your passwords.”
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Next to Keep, Google Workspace offers its own to-do app that’s integrated with first-party services like Gmail and Chat. Google Tasks is now adding the ability to star especially important reminders on the Android, iOS, and web apps.
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Software updates to Google and Nest Wifi happen pretty irregularly and occur in the background when they do, with no end user interaction required. The last Google/Nest Wifi update — 22Q1 (M94) — from March went relatively under the radar, and here are the release notes.
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At the start of this month, it emerged that Google Assistant is losing the ability to set both location-based and assigned reminders. A bigger change looks to be underway as that old Assistant Reminders system in Google Calendar is being replaced by Google Tasks.
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In recent months, Google has been publicly pressuring Apple to adopt RCS on the iPhone, and its latest volley involves an “unofficial lyric explainer video” for “Texts Go Green” from Drake’s new album.
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In addition to releasing a Pixel update that enables VoLTE roaming this month, Google Fi — as an MVNO — is explaining “how the T-Mobile 3G shutdown affects your service.”
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Google last updated the Recorder app in March with Material You tweaks and a Quick Settings tile, as well as a curious landscape UI that looks awfully good on tablets. The Recorder website that lets you play audio from your Pixel also recently added the ability to control playback speed.
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In addition to a new “Add to playlist” UI for mobile, YouTube Music is testing “Recommended radios.” Compared to radio stations generated from a single song, this new offering looks to be compiled from multiple influences.
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For a patch, Android 13 Beta 3.2 contains many more changes than expected and we’re diving into everything new as a result.
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As previewed in March, Google Meet is updating its desktop experience in Chrome with picture-in-picture (PiP) and the ability to pin multiple video feeds.
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Google is rolling out Android 13 Beta 3.2 this afternoon, and it brings more user-facing changes, especially to the Pixel Launcher, than usual for a patch.
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Following a patch last Friday, Google is back with Android 13 Beta 3.2 today to fix more issues on Pixel phones.
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The Pixel Watch was officially teased at I/O 2022, and we’ve since published details on the processor and battery in recent weeks. 9to5Google can now report on Google’s plans for a rather extensive collection of Pixel Watch bands.
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Following the first release in late April, Google is now rolling out Privacy Sandbox Developer Preview 3 with APIs for conversion measurement, custom audiences, and ad selection.
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Google plans to update many of its smart home devices with the Matter standard in the near future. Ahead of that support, the Nest Hub Max is going to lose its ability to be used as a range extender or bridge.
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Google officially announced that At a Glance on Pixel phones would be getting Nest Doorbell integration at the start of this month and it’s now widely rolling out.
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YouTube Music finally began offering an extensive year-in-review summary at the end of 2021, and now looks to be rolling out Spring Recap ’22.
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Somewhat amusingly, Google Store Williamsburg is the announcement from I/O 2022 by the hardware division that is launching — so to speak — first, and here’s a virtual tour of it.
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For quite some time, the Google Weather app could only be found on Android phones, but it’s now coming to tablets.
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Google launched its Android, iOS, and web note-taking app in March of 2013. Now, over nine years later, Google Keep is about to add text formatting that will let you bold, italicize, and underline text.
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The Google Workspace Marketplace is a directory of third-party applications that integrate with Gmail, Calendar, Drive, Docs/Sheets/Slides, and Forms. Its “Recommended for Google Workspace” apps program is a “distinct way for third-party developers to better reach” customers and the 2022 edition is out today.
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At the end of June 2021, Google Pay gained the ability to save and display COVID-19 vaccination cards on Android. More countries and states are letting people add this “COVID Card” to their Android phones.
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