Google Pixel

Last week, a sketchy rumor surfaced on the web suggesting that Google had collaborated with Samsung to build its own silicon — presumably for future Pixel devices. Now, a report from Axios corroborates some of those details, adding that the chip, codenamed ‘whitechapel’, could appear in Google’s flagship smartphones as soon as next year and, eventually, Chromebooks.

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With the year well underway, the next update for the Pixel 2, Pixel 3, Pixel 3a, and Pixel 4 family of devices is rolling out. The April security patch contains the usual big and security fixes after last month’s feature drop.

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The Android 11 Developer Preview, as the name implies, is primarily intended to be an early preview of Android 11’s changes so developers can make their apps compatible long before it launches. However, sometimes upcoming Pixel-exclusive features leak through, as is the case with “Columbus” which lets you do things like invoking the Google Assistant with a double-tap on the back.

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Due to the open nature of Android, updates are generally a fairly big issue when looking at the ecosystem as a whole. As Android 11 starts preparations for release later this year, a report card for Android 10 shows how companies like OnePlus and Samsung are leaving the competition behind.

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Thanks to the Android 11 DP1 and the recent Google Pixel Feature Drop, there was room for an automatic dark theme for Pixel owners. While it has been welcomed, it appears that this automatic dark theme doesn’t play nicely with every app.

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The latest Android 10 update for the Pixel 2, Pixel 3, Pixel 3a, and Pixel 4 is rolling out today, but somewhat overshadowed by the Android 11 Developer Preview. The March security patch contains the second Pixel Feature Drop.

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Google’s Pixel smartphones are very smart and, as Google likes to call them, helpful. Now, the device is picking up another handy trick. With the latest Pixel Launcher update, folder names will automatically be suggested based on apps.

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For what feels like an eternity we’ve been tracking an upcoming feature for Android called “Rules.” Now, it’s finally gone official with the second Pixel Feature Drop. It’s limited right now, but has a lot of potential for the future. What do you want Android Rules to do?

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Android’s sharing menu is pretty solid, but one update we’ve been pretty excited about in Android 11 is the ability to pin apps to the share menu to ensure they always show at the top. If you have a Google Pixel smartphone, though, you won’t have to wait until Android 11 to pin apps to the share menu.

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It’s here! Three months after the first, Google has just released another Feature Drop for its Pixel smartphones, once again delivering a bunch of awesome new features. Every feature is going to be more useful for one person than another, though, so we’re curious — what’s your favorite?

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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.”

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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