9to5Google Weekender

The Find My Device network had huge promise, but it’s quickly become an absolute mess. Google, though, is defending the Find My Device network for its approach to privacy, the same approach that appears to be completely ruining its functionality.

Samsung will launch its new foldables, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Flip 6, alongside a plethora of other new devices at an event next week. Here’s everything you need to know.

Earlier this week Google made a big, unexpected announcement. The Pixel 9 series is launching in August, almost two months ahead of the usual schedule. Why?

Android foldables continue to grow and, for the second year in a row, we’re entering a Summer full of new releases. Here’s what’s around the corner for 2024’s ‘Foldable Summer’ and beyond.

Not all that long ago, cameras on a phone were still a crazy idea and the ones that did exist were bad. But, nowadays, nearly every phone has a camera, and nearly every single one is at least pretty decent. So what does it take to make one that’s great?

Item trackers for your smartphone are not a new concept, but Apple changed the game with its AirTag by making all of its devices work as a network for finding the tracker. Android finally has that same functionality and the hardware to use with it, but I can’t help but feel that the Find My Device network is being held back.

As Google pivots to a heavier and heavier focus on Gemini, the experience of using Google Assistant just continues to degrade.

AI Overviews have barely been out for a week and things are already going off the rails. And, the painful part of it all is that Google has already shown that it knows how to make AI in Search truly helpful, it’s just not doing that with AI Overviews.

Google Search is effectively a bridge between users and content on the web nowadays, but volatility in Search has led to many smaller websites seeing steep dropoffs. As Google I/O approaches, will anything at the event provide a ray of hope?

AI hardware is finally shipping and with big promises, but given how the experience seems to be with the first high-profile launches, it really seems like even the worst smartphone would probably be better.

A new Chromecast is coming. If you look around at what folks want from it, it’s all about performance and speed. Basically, a lot of folks want a high-end Chromecast, but it doesn’t seem like Google is planning for that, and it seems unlikely they ever will.

7 years of updates. It’s something that’s still borderline unbelievable, but Google set as the new standard for software updates with its latest Pixel releases. But months later, some still seem to not understand what this update promise means…

The past year has seen an explosion of AI tools and software, but over the next couple of months, we’re also going to be seeing a lot more AI hardware. Personally, though, I’m just wondering if any of it will become anything more than novelty.

I feel like a broken record at this point, but amid new leaks of the Pixel 9 this week, there are many still asking Google for a “Mini” device, forgetting that small phones are dead.

This week the United States Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Apple, alleging that the company has built and maintains an illegal monopoly. Whether or not Apple actually has a monopoly over Android in the smartphone market is up for the courts to decide, but what’s clear is that Apple really wants one.

Smartphone glass has gotten much better over the years, but Corning’s new Gorilla Armor feels like the first truly big upgrade we’ve seen in a while. I want it on everything.

Biometrics have made it way more conveinent to unlock our smartphones, but there’s a debate on if face, or fingerprint unlock is the better solution. Many Android brands have taken the approach of “why not both,” adding both face and fingerprint unlock to their devices, but Google’s Pixel is the only one that’s done it correctly.

Using a navigation app when out on the road is what just about everyone does nowadays, but these apps are useful for more than just getting directions from point A to point B. Google Maps has supported incident reporting for quite some time, but as we keep moving forward, the feature is becoming essentially useless due to neglect.

The latest redesign of Android Auto brings a useful new “dashboard” view that can show multiple pieces of information at once, but I wish it was better at supporting multiple apps at once.

Over the years, Samsung has made huge improvements to its Android skin, but there’s one thing that’s still pretty awful. Samsung Keyboard is very bad, and it’s honestly a bit impressive just how bad it is in the year 2024.

The era of AI continues, as the technology continues to form the basis of a ton of new features across virtually every piece of new tech. But, as impressive as it all is, the term “AI” already feels wildly overused.