Gmail is the latest app to get the lightweight “Go” treatment
Feb 14th - Currently, Google has Go apps for YouTube, Gboard, and Google Assistant. The latest to get this treatment is Gmail.
Joe Fedewa
Features Editor
Xiaomi announces the Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro
Feb 14th - The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro have been officially launched. The event was held in India, which is where these phones will be available.
Google sold 3.9 million Pixel and Pixel 2 phones in 2017
Feb 13th - Research firm IDC’s Francisco Jeronimo reports that Google shipped 3.9 million Pixel and Pixel 2 phones in 2017. We don’t know exactly how the sales break down by device.
HTC 10 Oreo update is rolling out to the Sprint model
Feb 13th - According to Mo Versi from HTC, the phone is now receiving Android 8.0 Oreo via an over-the-air update, but only the Sprint model. Those with other carrier models will still need to wait.
Essential only sold 88,000 phones in the first six months
Feb 12th - We don’t have any official sales numbers, but research firm IDC is reporting that Essential sold 88,000 phones in the first six months. Obviously, those numbers are less than ideal, but it’s easy to forget that Essential is a brand new company.
Nest is officially joining Google’s hardware team
Feb 12th - Nest devices are already closely integrated with Google’s Home system, but this new relationship would bring them closer together
Essential Phone camera update brings Auto HDR Mode and more
Feb 9th - To Essential’s credit, they have been working hard on improving the camera through software updates. The latest update brings Auto HDR Mode to the phone.
Google is working on a web interface for Android Messages
Feb 9th - Most of the popular services, such as Facebook Messenger and iMessage, have some sort of method for people to use them on desktop PCs. Allo recently received this feature and now Android Messages could follow.
New leaks reveals fabric and kickstand cases for the Galaxy S9
Feb 8th - The interesting thing about these cases is they appear to be styles that Samsung has never offered. One of the cases is a woven fabric called “Hyperknit.” The second style includes ridges and a kickstand, which always comes in handy on larger phones.
Emoji 11.0 will add 157 new emoji, including superheroes, curly hair, and cupcake
Feb 8th - Some of the most notable emoji include redheads, superhero and supervillain, a roll of toilet paper, cupcake, teddy bear, skateboard, and many more.
Google is rumored to be working on a game streaming service
Feb 7th - Google is a massive company that has eggs in many different baskets. Hardware, software, music, books, movies, and of course, search. The next basket could be a streaming game service like PlayStation Now or NVIDIA GeForce Now.
Dead Zebra reveals Android Mini for Year of the Dog, goes on sale today
Feb 7th - This year’s zodiac symbol for the Chinese calendar is the Dog, and you can bet Dead Zebra has made a fine stylized Android robot to commemorate the sign.
Moto Z2 Force owners report ShatterShield screen peeling issue
Feb 6th - The top layer of the ShatterShield display is essentially a built-in permanent screen protector. “Permanent” is the key word here. It’s not mean to be removed, but some users have noticed it coming up around the edges.
Oreo finally passes 1% in latest Android Distribution numbers
Feb 6th - Oreo has finally pushed past 1%. Last month, Oreo was at 0.7%. This month it’s a whopping 1.1%. Only Ice Cream Sandwich and Gingerbread have lower distribution.
Google finally fixes Android Wear lag caused by “Ok Google” detection
Feb 5th - Users discovered that disabling the “Ok Google” voice detection drastically improved performance. Obviously, “Ok Google” is one of the main ways to interact with Android Wear devices. Disabling the feature is not something you should have to do.