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.
Google this evening updated a privacy setting in Stadia that lets you “control what information is visible to others through newly added features.” The change in question suggests that you’ll soon be able to send Stadia friend requests if you know a person’s email address or phone number.
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With Tokyo 2020 well underway, there’s just a barrage of news about various events, results, and medal standings. Google Discover is highlighting a hub of sorts that’s quite a nice way to keep track of all things Olympics.
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Over the past weeks, we’ve been tracking how stock of Made by Google’s 2020 lineup has been running low at both the Google Store and various retailers. After being sold out for the most of this month, the first-party Google Fi store today delisted the Pixel 5 and 4a 5G.
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During Alphabet’s Q2 2021 earnings, Sundar Pichai talked quite a bit more about Google’s consumer hardware efforts than usual. The CEO teased the upcoming fall Pixel lineup, some highlights, and long-term strategy.
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Alphabet today announced Q2 2021 earnings with $61.88 billion in revenue. These numbers range from April to June, and reflect an increasing return to normal in some industries.
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In 2010, Google launched Vulnerability Rewards Programs where security researchers could submit direct bug reports. With the Google Bug Hunters platform, the company is now setting the stage for the next decade of VRPs.Â
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Given that we’re nearing the end of the 2020/21 Pixel lineup, Google ads for its phones are in an odd spot and have to be generic to not raise awareness about hardware that will soon be out of stock. The latest Google ad rather interestingly talks about the health features of the Pixel with brief Fitbit appearances interspersed throughout.
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The Fitbit wearable lineup remains split between smartwatches and trackers. The Versa 3 and Sense from 2020 are the latest devices in the former category, while the latter has seen Ace 3 and Luxe this year. Fitbit’s next tracker is codenamed “Morgan” and looks to be the Charge 5.
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Google Chat conversations let you quickly schedule a Calendar event, add a file from Drive, or start a Meet call. The secondary file and image-sharing options in Google Chat can now be disabled by Workspace admins.
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The next version of Google’s mobile OS just saw its latest patch today and is scheduled for one more beta before the release candidate and consumer launch. One of those releases will see the Android 12 Easter egg, but here’s a preview of it right now.
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To increase its enterprise standing and encourage adoption, Google Cloud today announced “Google Enterprise APIs” that will be governed by a stricter policy in regards to when the company changes or deprecates them.
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Almost two weeks after the last major release in the preview program, Android 12 Beta 3.1 is rolling out with key bug fixes on Pixel phones.
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Various background services and applications that don’t show up in the launcher comprise Google’s mobile OS. The Data Restore Tool that lets you restore information when setting up a new Android phone now appears in the Play Store.
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Apple’s mobile web browser is the main lightning rod of this year’s iOS 15 beta period and it remains to be seen whether it will actually launch in the fall. Chrome for Android tried a similar Safari on iOS 15 redesign years ago, and a designer on that project provided some interesting insight into why Google abandoned it.
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Last month, Google rolled out the Android Earthquake Alerts System to seven more countries ahead of a global launch over the next year. The Philippines is one of those places with earthquake warnings enabled, and Android users yesterday benefited from such a heads-up.
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Last year, Google gave its Groups discussion and mailing list service a complete revamp. Google Groups has now quietly gained a new, more modern logo.
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Back in March, Google made Assistant generally available for all enterprise accounts on Android. Workspace users will soon be able to use Google Assistant on the Nest Hub Max and other dedicated devices.
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Following a “more streamlined” redesign for Android 12 that has since rolled out to older OS versions, Google Discover is testing showing an article’s related keywords.
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As of last month, all personal Google Accounts can enable the new Gmail that supports Chat and Rooms. The latter aspect, which will soon be renamed to “Spaces,” allows for large-scale productivity. Gmail now supports opening a Google Slides presentation directly to allow for multitasking with Chat.
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Last month, Google announced that it would delay Chrome’s plan to phase out support for third-party cookies. As part of that, the company provided more details about the Privacy Sandbox and has today released a rollout timeline.
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When Stadia was first announced, Google (and many others) talked about the potential crossover with its video service. One of those YouTube integrations is now opening up more widely with the ability to sign-up for a beta of Stadia Crowd Play.
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Alphabet, and Google before it, has a long history of exploring robots. The latest effort is in the form of a new company called Intrinsic that is entirely focused on making software tools for training industrial robotics.
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At the start of this week, Google made the Material You redesign of the Wear OS Play Store official. Alongside that, Google Play on Android phones was also updated with easier install and search filters. Thanks to the Play Store, along with the latest app update, we get a very quick and minor peek at YouTube Music for Wear OS.
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Alongside WWDC 2021, Apple rolled out a bunch of features for its Music streaming service. The Lossless and Spatial Audio update, as well as other enhancements, are now available for Apple Music on Android.
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