Google Pixel

Instead of a swipe up to answer screen, Android Authority reports that an alternate screen found in a recent APK features a decline button on the left and an answer button on the right, resembling Apple’s iPhone setup.

Some Android OEMs like Samsung use a similar screen (with the answer button on the left), but so far, not Google.

The official Pixel Buds web app is now available for Windows (version 11) and macOS (running Sonoma 14 or newer) allowing more desktop users to manage firmware updates, battery levels, and specific controls like ANC and multipoint connectivity.

Prior to this update, Pixel Buds users needed a Chromebook or Android phone to access advanced features.

I forced the update after it came out yesterday but rebooted into a mostly blank screen saying “add tile,” which also happened to a few other people who posted about problems on Google’s support forum and Reddit.

After a fastboot reset (video walkthrough here), I was up and running, but you may want to hold off on this one.

At a Climate Week NYC panel, Google policy manager Nicole Azores said the company is considering how to change its watch design, which currently has to be replaced entirely if damaged.

Here’s a snippet from Wired’s reporting which notes that Apple’s and Samsung’s watches are repairable:

Watches and wearables are still fairly nascent, and we are thinking through how to make this repairable,” Azores said on the panel. “We’re thinking about repairability on a broader scale, not just on phones and tablets, and we want to make sure that all of our products eventually become repairable.

This repair-friendly design lets you remove the device’s display for screen replacements, or just the backing if you need to change the battery. But it seems Google hasn’t perfected this yet, as the display broke when iFixit carefully removed it.

And just like the Pixel 8, its successor comes with pull tabs that can make the battery a pain to remove.

Android Authority spotted a change to the Android Beta Exit release notes that reveals Google won’t be rolling out the update next month.

Android updates typically come in October, but so do new Pixel devices — Google released its Pixel 9 lineup two months earlier than usual, so many people were expecting a September drop for Android 15.

New Pixel 9 owners might notice some device setup and transfer changes, as highlighted in this thread by Google’s Paul Dunlop.

Now transfers can be done at any time, you can move over only media Google Photos hasn’t already backed up in original quality, and you can plug in a USB cable to combine its speed with Wi-Fi while moving data.

As Google promised last week, some Pixel 9 owners are now seeing the satellite connectivity feature arriving on their devices. Availability is currently limited to the US (with the exception of Hawaii and Alaska) and there’s no word on when the rollout will expand to other regions.

I got Pixel Studio, Google’s AI image generation tool on the Pixel 9, to come up with some questionable things. But they’re nothing like what the folks over at Digital Trends got out of it, which feature popular cartoon characters firing AK47s, drunk driving, and donning Nazi uniforms. Google seems to have clamped down on some of these, but oof, not a good look.

While previous Pixel devices only allowed you to move over your existing data during the initial setup process, Google’s new Pixel 9 series has no such restrictions. Android Authority spotted a new “Back up or copy data” option in the device settings, with a “copy data” page that lets users “bring data from another device” at any time.

In the latest public beta for Google Maps, the app will automatically download maps, apparently for your local area, and you’ll have the option to delete them, according to 9to5Google.

Without the update, you’d need an LTE version of wearables like the Pixel Watch 2 for turn-by-turn directions without a paired phone nearby. (The Pixel Watch 3 already supports offline maps.)

9to5Google and Android Central point out that after Google announced its new Pixel 9 lineup with the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, its store listing for the original foldable Pixel phone went away.

However, Android Central has heard from Google that it will return after the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s launch, which is scheduled for September 4th.

Michael Fisher’s latest video has a great interview with Google devices boss Rick Osterloh. When asked whether Google has interest in creating a more affordable flip-style Pixel, Osterloh suggests that Samsung and Motorola have that foldables category pretty well handled for now.

As for adopting Qi2 wireless charging, he says it’s “a matter of time.” Maybe the Pixel X?