Google Pixel

Back in October, Google updated its excellent Recorder app with a redesign. Version 3.5 of Google Recorder is rolling out today with a handful of Material You tweaks and a Quick Settings tile on Pixel.

Google is starting to roll out a new feature to its Pixel lineup, with a “Fast Emergency Dialer” that puts local contact information for police, fire, and medical services at your fingertips.

With the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, Google introduced a “Grammar check” capability in Gboard that “works entirely on-device to preserve privacy, detecting and suggesting corrections for grammatical errors while the user is typing.” It’s now appearing on other Pixel phones.

Google has been preparing a way to stream apps and notifications from your Pixel phone to your Chromebook or PC, and 9to5Google has enabled this feature to provide an exclusive first look at it.

Google’s increased advertising for the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro will continue at the Super Bowl with a focus on the camera’s Real Tone capability. It will feature musician Lizzo and is Google’s first phone ad at the Big Game.

Similar to last year, February’s drop of “Curated Culture” wallpapers for Pixel phones celebrate Black History Month. Their availability coincides with the February security patch and marks one year of monthly wallpapers from Google.

In a return to form, the Android 12 February security patch is simultaneously rolling out for the Pixel 3a, Pixel 4, Pixel 4a, Pixel 4a 5G, Pixel 5, Pixel 5a, Pixel 6, and Pixel 6 Pro today.

Google today updated the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro alongside all other phones. The February update fixes Pixel 6 issues related to Bluetooth audio and the camera.

The Security Hub was first introduced on the Pixel 6 and later rolled out to other Google phones. In recent days, Security Hub hit 10 million installs on the Play Store — a possible indication of how many modern Pixel phones are in use.

Back in November, we previewed a big “At a Glance” upgrade that started rolling out on Pixel phones last month. Before this take, Google reportedly planned a fuller At a Glance experience that would reside on the lockscreen.

Google this afternoon reported its Q4 2021 and fiscal year earnings. Right off the bat, CEO Sundar Pichai touted a “quarterly sales record for [its] Pixel phones, despite supply constraints.”

The Pixel 4a will certainly go down as a beloved Google phone. With stock running low for months, the writing has been on the wall for this affordable Pixel from 2020. The Google Store today delisted the Pixel 4a. 

QR codes have been around for years, but they were underused in the time when they required a separate app to be installed in order to use them. Now, just about every phone, including Google’s Pixel lineup, has a QR scanner built-in, but according to a recent report, Google’s phones have been misreading some codes.

With the launch of the Pixel 6 and Android 12, At a Glance saw a big redesign. In November, we detailed how the visual revamp was a prelude to Google adding even more capabilities. That At a Glance upgrade, with interesting changes to the backend, is now beginning to roll out. 

Made by Google is continuing its monthly drop of new “Curated Culture” Pixel wallpapers in 2022, though January’s additions do not coincide with a specific event/month/day.

Last week, Google unintentionally showed a storm warning meant for the Philippines worldwide. Following that incident, severe weather alerts in the Pixel Launcher’s At a Glance widget appear to have been disabled entirely.

The January 2022 update for Pixel phones fixes Android 12’s inability to use your phone’s volume rocker to adjust Chromecast volume, at least for most apps.