What you need to know The fifth One UI 7 beta just landed in the U.S., pushing the Galaxy S24 Ultra one step closer to its stable Android 15 release in April. This update smooths out issues like glitchy lock screen notifications, a wonky Nowbar controller, and those tiny, hard-to-see widget icons. Samsung patched up … Read more
Wear OS Weekly My weekly column focuses on the state of Wear OS, from new developments and updates to the latest apps and features we want to highlight. Smartwatches have tracked sleep for years, but as we see more sleep coaching, energy scores, sleep apnea detection, and general AI analysis, it’s fair to question how … Read more
What you need to know Google is rolling out an Android 16 Beta 3.1 update that includes no new features and instead focuses on bug fixes. The minor beta patch features a fix for a problem that caused the Settings app to crash and brightness levels to fluctuate. Additionally, Android 16 Beta 3.1 includes performance … Read more
What you need to know Google was spotted rolling out its Wear OS 5.1 update for its LTE Pixel Watches. The update is two weeks late for the LTE variants, but it brings a wealth of features like Loss of Pulse, Menstrual Cycle tracking, new media controls, and more. Google’s Wear OS 5.1 update seemingly … Read more
Ryan Haines / Android Authority We reported on one of the hottest smartphone deals we’ve seen in a while, exactly a week ago. The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra dropped by $300, down to just $999.99. Fast-forward to today, and we’re surprised to see that offer is still around! Your options are reducing, though. Last week, … Read more
Robert Triggs / Android Authority TL;DR A new leak claims the Snapdragon 8s Elite will launch soon. The leak claims the first phones with the chip will be released in April. The chip is designed to be a sub-flagship SoC. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite chip is found in some of the best Android phones currently … Read more
The Pixel 9a is here, and now it’s time to see how it stacks up against its predecessor. It’s a fantastic phone overall, but if you have the Pixel 8a, should you upgrade to Google’s latest mid-range device? I personally don’t recommend it, at least for most people. There are exceptions, of course, which I’ll … Read more
TL;DR The Pixel 9a features a 5,100mAh battery, the largest in any Pixel phone so far. Google claims over 30 hours of battery life and over 100 hours in Extreme Battery Saver mode. Wired charging speeds have also increased to 23W, while wireless charging remains the same at 7.5W. Google has just launched the hotly … Read more
TL;DR Google has revealed that the Pixel 9a has the Exynos Modem 5300 rather than the newer Exynos Modem 5400 seen in the Pixel 9 series. This is despite the fact that the Pixel 9a uses a Tensor G4 processor much like the Pixel 9 range. Previous Pixels with the old modem were criticized for … Read more
Ryan Haines / Android Authority TL;DR The European Commission has mandated that Apple make nine key interoperability features available on iOS to comply with the Digital Markets Act (DMA). These include enabling third-party connected devices to access notifications, allow background app execution, NFC communication, Wi-Fi file transfers, and media casting similar to AirPlay. These regulations … Read more