With the December 2024 Feature Drop, Pixel Camera 9.7 is rolling out “Quick access controls.”

Like other first-party apps this year, a small Google News redesign on Android simplifies the bottom bar.

Branded like the Workspace suite of productivity apps, Google Agentspace combines “Gemini’s advanced reasoning, Google-quality search, and enterprise data.”

After dropping the experimental status in October, Google is rolling out a big update to NotebookLM that includes a redesign, while the Plus tier is beginning to go live.

Days after misleadingly calling a price hike an error, YouTube TV informed customers that it would be raising prices to $82.99/month. As many try to cancel, though, YouTube TV is handing out a 6-month price lock of the current rate for some subscribers.

Samsung is rumored to be finally adopting the Qi2 standard in its upcoming Galaxy S25 series, but a new leak revealing a “magnet case” from Samsung is causing some to believe it might not happen. Let’s talk about it.

Google TV isn’t exactly light on homescreen ads to the point where Google has been surveying users regarding the number of ads shown, but now a new ad format is bringing even more.

In addition to the bigger Pixel Recorder, Screenshots, and Studio updates, Google has updated the Thermometer icon with a new-ish icon.

One UI 7 introduced an odd change for Galaxy phones. Instead of the app drawer pages we’ve been so accustomed to on Galaxy phones, Samsung actually switched back to an endlessly scrolling grid of apps. If you don’t like this adjustment, here’s how you can change it back.

Google is rolling out a new update for the Quick Share app on Windows which improves how you can change visibility settings among other changes and fixes.

In addition to Pixel Screenshots and Studio, Google is rolling out Clear voice in Recorder and the Phone app’s Call Screen AI replies as part of the December 2024 Feature Drop.

YouTube Music is rolling out a new “Pin to Speed dial” option that lets you customize the new grid introduced in October. 

Google Wallet is running a curious promotion that complements the existing Google Store sales on the Pixel 9, 9 Pro, and 9 Pro XL with a $100 Prepaid Mastercard gift card.

Following the rest of Nothing’s lineup, the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus is now getting its first taste of Android 15 via a new beta program.

Mixed reality headsets are not new. My personal novelty with them ended upon buying Apple’s Vision Pro earlier this year. In using Samsung’s Android XR-powered Project Moohan for about 30 minutes last week, Google has got all the basics down. However, Android XR has a true differentiator with Gemini, while bringing together almost a decade’s worth of Google efforts in a seamless, integrated manner. 

As a child, my first vision for the future of technology was shaped by an aspect of Star Trek that’s different from most people’s: the absolute ubiquity of touchscreens and tablets (PADDs). I was enamored with the idea of interacting with information via touch and being able to do so anywhere instead of in a fixed place. All that became reality with the iPhone and Android, and I live it every day. 

My next vision of the future came with a 2:30 minute concept video. It ingrained in me that what comes after the smartphone is information overlaid with your line of sight as it’s contextually needed.

Besides phones and tablets, Android is available on smartwatches, TVs, and even cars. Google today announced Android XR as the next form factor the operating system is coming to.