Google Pixel

The second Pixel Feature Drop is here and it brings a ton of new features with it, including one for Google Pay. Alongside the new “Cards and Passes” power menu option, Google Pay on select Pixel devices can add flight boarding passes using nothing more than a screenshot.

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Last December, Google introduced the inaugural “Feature Drop” to make its phones “more helpful.” The second Pixel Feature Drop — which we’ve been expecting — coincides with the March security patch, and sees some hotly-awaited features like Cards & Passes, more Motion Sense gestures, and a slew of other fixes.

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Late last year, Google decided to take a new approach with updates to their Google Pixel phones. In addition to the monthly security updates, every three months Pixel phones will get a larger “feature drop,” with the first drop bringing helpful features like automatic call screening. Pixel Tips got an update today, which lays outs the new features coming in the March 2020 feature drop, including dark mode scheduling and the long-anticipated “Cards & Passes.”

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For quite some time, Android has been teasing trigger-based settings by the name of “Rules.” We thought that’d be available widely in Android 10, but Google never launched the feature. Now, Android’s “Rules” are starting to show up on a lot of Google Pixel devices, hinting they might be included in the next “Feature Drop.”

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At the start of this week, the highly-awaited power button shortcut for quick access to Google Pay began appearing on some Google devices. “Cards & Passes” now looks to be widely rolling out to Pixel phones running the Android 11 Developer Preview.

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One feature we spotted and even briefly enabled in Android 10’s beta releases is a new “Cards and Passes” feature for the power menu. This Google Pay shortcut in the power menu, though, never debuted in the final release, but now a Pixel owner has unexpectedly gotten it early.

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Until the Pixel 3a, Google exclusively partnered with Verizon to sell phones in the US. That close relationship wound down further when the Pixel 4 launched on all four major carriers last year. A new report this evening alleges that Verizon will stop selling Google phones going forward, including the Pixel 4a and Pixel 5.

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Thanks to some questionable leaks, we’ve already begun thinking beyond the upcoming Pixel 4a and onto Google’s next flagship Android, the Pixel 5. Google’s Pixel phones have been competing as “flagships” since 2016, but buying a “flagship” in 2020 can now set you back well over $1,000. What would happen if Google stopped chasing “flagship” specs with this year’s Pixel 5 and made something entirely different?

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Without a doubt, the biggest complaint shared by reviewers of the base Google Pixel 4 was its subpar battery life. Those looking to radically cut back on their Pixel’s battery usage may have reason to celebrate, as new evidence hints at a new “Ultra Low power mode” coming to Pixel phones and possibly Android devices in general.

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Every month, Google releases a new Android security patch, resolving any and all security issues that have been uncovered in Android and their own Pixel phones. These updates — sometimes called an “OTA” as they’re supposed to arrive “over the air” — typically arrive on your phone automatically over time, but you can also manually install or “sideload” the update which has now become easier than ever, thanks to the Google Pixel Repair Tool.

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Google this morning is rolling out the second update of the year for the Pixel 2, Pixel 3, Pixel 3a, and Pixel 4 family of devices. The February security patch contains the usual set of bug fixes.

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For over a year now, Google has made the Android Open Source Project’s automatic build process public through a continuous integration (CI) dashboard. Today, the company has unveiled the Android Flash Tool as a simple way to try any AOSP build on your Google Pixel phone, right from your browser!

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Google’s next mid-range Pixel entry is right around the corner, and plenty of rumors and leaks have already made their way out. We have a pretty good idea of what it looks like, we can assume some of the specifications using trends from last year, and we think we might know what it will cost. Here’s everything that’s been rumored so far about the forthcoming Google Pixel 4a.

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One long-requested feature for Android finally popped up in Android 10’s beta releases, but it didn’t end up in the final release, unfortunately. However, there is a trick to bring it back. Here’s how to enable Android’s built-in screen recorder on Google Pixel devices.

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This week on Alphabet Scoop, we revealed our first minor leak regarding the Pixel 4a, the expected mid-year follow-up to the Google Pixel 4. With less than 6 months until the presumed release date of the Pixel 4a, let’s look at some of the features we’d most like to see on Google’s second mid-range phone.

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One of the biggest benefits of a Google Pixel phone is that you’ll get updates and security patches in a timely manner, but for the past couple of months, Google has been lagging behind. The question begs to be asked, has your Pixel got the December update yet?

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Strange bugs are all too common on Google’s Pixel devices and right now, an issue with the dialer app is popping up. Some Pixel owners are reporting an issue with the dialer app which won’t bring up the number pad while in phone calls.

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In a sea of Android smartphones, Google’s Pixel has been trying for four generations to be the consumer-friendly, “easy” option. However, random bugs, limited buying options, and other restraints haven’t helped that cause. Now, though, Google is making a very good move with its new “Pixel Feature Drops” which, unfortunately, are still stifled.

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Google’s Pixel smartphones usually feel faster and smoother than a lot of other Android phones, but they’re not all that great at memory management. Whether that’s a hardware or software flaw, Google plans to improve memory management on Pixel with a coming update, and apparently, it will come to other Android phones in the future.

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Google kicked off its new “Feature Drops” for the Pixel series just yesterday, and included in that first batch is a new way to combat spam calls. Apparently, that won’t remain Pixel 4-exclusive for long, as Google plans to add Automatic Call screen to all Pixels in the not-too-distant future.

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One of the biggest perks of owning a Google Pixel smartphone of any generation is how quickly it gets updates. Today, Google is introducing a new monthly “Feature Drop” for Pixel smartphones and in its first release, automatic Call Screen, better memory management, Portrait Blur, and more are on the table.

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