News and Updates about Android

A new rumor claims the Galaxy S27 Pro and Galaxy S27 Ultra could introduce DC dimming, a technology no Samsung flagship has used before, according to Android Central. If the claim holds up, Samsung Galaxy S27 Ultra DC dimming would make the phone the first Samsung smartphone to ship with the technology, according to GSMArena, which reported on the same rumor two days ago.

Samsung representatives confirmed the Galaxy S26 series runs a 480Hz PWM dimming rate, with no higher-frequency mode, no DC dimming option, and no reported flicker-reduction setting, Android Authority reported earlier this year. That confirmed rate is the entire backdrop for any discussion of Galaxy S27 Ultra PWM dimming, since Samsung's next flagship hasn't had its display detailed yet.

Google's search bar has a new look on Pixel phones, and it's a narrow one. 9to5Google reported earlier this year that Google rolled out a slightly taller pill-shaped search bar in the Pixel Launcher, along with larger Lens, voice search, and AI Mode icons, in Google app version 17.32 on the stable channel. The screenshots came from Android 16, so this Google Search bar new look is tied to the app itself, not a system update or an Android 17 requirement.

Google's new Android sideloading restrictions took effect on September 30, 2026, bringing developer verification requirements to four countries. But Android users can still install apps outside Google Play, and the first round of enforcement is more limited than the broader policy might suggest.

Google Pixel Connected Camera support is rolling out to 11 new apps, including Google Meet, Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Slack, through a Play Store update to Pixel Camera Services spotted by Android Authority yesterday. The outlet's count puts the feature's total supported-app list at 16, up from five. Google has not published a support page or changelog confirming this specific list, so the expansion should be treated as reported, not officially confirmed, until Google documents it directly.

The Google Pixel 10a price increase is already showing up at checkout. The phone's U.S. price jumped from $499 to $599 at the Google Store, and that new figure has spread to Amazon and Best Buy too.

Some Pixel owners have been stuck in a bootloop since installing the March Android 16 QPR3 update, with phones hanging on the Google logo or failing to boot at all, according to a report from XDA Developers earlier this year. The reports span models from the Pixel 6 through the Pixel 10 and have surfaced across several Reddit threads, per the same report.

A single leaker claims Samsung has reworked how the Galaxy S27 Ultra manages power during a charge, producing a reported 2-3% improvement in Galaxy S27 Ultra charging speed over the Galaxy S26 Ultra. The phone is also rumored to pack a notably larger 5,700mAh battery, a pairing that puts the 2-3% figure to a real test: does it keep pace with more battery to fill, or does it just take the edge off a charging-time penalty, according to SamMobile (yesterday) and Android Headlines (yesterday)?

In a poll run by Android Authority yesterday, 93% of respondents said they would consider buying the OnePlus 16 if it were available in their market. But US buyers may not get that chance. OnePlus has already said it is pulling out of the US market, putting that apparent demand at odds with the phone's expected availability.

Google began pushing its October 2026 Pixel update yesterday, and for anyone still carrying a Pixel 6 or Pixel 6 Pro, this is likely the final update those phones will ever receive, according to Notebookcheck. The Pixel 6 and 6 Pro launched in October 2021, and Google's extended five-year support window for the pair closes this month.

No verified Google Pixel 11 Pro deal at $849 turned up in the sources reviewed for this article. The claimed Google Pixel 11 Pro for $849 remains unverified here, treated as an unconfirmed number rather than an active discount until a retailer page or price-tracking source backs it up. This is a deal-verification report, not a list of the best Google Pixel 11 Pro deals.

Google confirmed on Monday, the same day its five new Googlebook laptops went on sale, that a small handful of complex apps and games may not perform at their best on three of the five models. That statement is the first official acknowledgment of Intel Googlebook Android app performance issues, with Google telling Android Authority that the vast majority of Android apps still run smoothly on both Intel and Qualcomm Googlebooks right out of the box, according to reports from APH Networks and...

Some Pixel owners are reporting laggy, stuttering gameplay in lightweight titles like Clash Royale and Brawl Stars after installing Android 17, with the slowdowns seemingly tied to restricted GPU performance (9to5Google, last month). It's a small story on its own, and the report doesn't pin the blame on any specific Pixel generation. But it's a useful reminder that Pixel 10 GPU performance issues never fully went away, despite months of driver updates aimed at fixing them.

Google may be testing location as a new signal for Pixel Launcher app suggestions. Android Authority spotted interface text yesterday that swaps "routines" for "location" in the wording Pixel Launcher uses to describe why certain apps surface on the home screen or in the app drawer. Nothing beyond that text has turned up, so this reads as an early signal, not a confirmed feature.

Google Calendar currently forces every calendar in an account to share one default event length. That might not last. A teardown of the Android app's code points to Google testing a per-calendar default event length setting, one that would let each calendar hold its own typical duration instead of borrowing a single number for the whole account, according to Android Authority.

Samsung is going bigger again with the Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra, a 14.6-inch Android flagship built around a massive OLED display, an included S Pen, expandable storage, and desktop-style multitasking. Samsung will release the tablet in the US on Oct. 7, 2026, putting it directly against Apple's 13-inch iPad Pro M5 at the top of the premium tablet market.

Every Google Wallet vs Samsung Wallet comparison eventually turns into a feature checklist: cards, passes, keys, IDs. That's the wrong place to start.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 deal spotted by Tom's Guide puts the foldable at $1,649 on Best Buy's site, a price the outlet called $250 off, in a report published five days ago (Tom's Guide). That listing surfaced roughly two weeks before iPhone Duo preorders open on October 16, with Apple's foldable starting at $1,999 for the 256GB model (Apple Newsroom). If the Best Buy price still holds and both phones are matched on storage, the Fold 8 would land roughly $350 cheaper than Apple's entry-level...

Google Find Hub NFC tracker support is rolling out via Play services version 26.39 and later, changing what happens the moment someone finds a lost tag. Tapping an NFC-compatible phone against an NFC-compatible Find Hub tag can surface its details and settings, or help identify a lost tag, according to 9to5Google. The same release lets owners name a tracker, assign it a category, and turn on Left-Behind Reminders during initial setup instead of circling back into the Find Hub app later, per...

Galaxy devices running One UI 9 will wipe themselves after 13 failed lock screen attempts, a hard limit confirmed by a Samsung support document and reported by Android Authority today. Not a temporary lockout. Every photo, app, and setting on the device gets erased, accounts are signed out, and the phone returns to factory condition.

Ireland's Data Protection Commission fined Google €403 million, about $463 million, over how it processed location data through three features: Web & App Activity, Location History, and Location Accuracy. The regulator also ordered Google to bring its processing into compliance with GDPR within six months.

Some Pixel owners are still waiting for the Google Wallet fix that should have landed automatically. If your phone is showing a "Device doesn't meet security requirements" warning every time you open Google Wallet, it hasn't been compromised and your cards are fine. A stalled update rollout left a specific group of beta opt-outs stranded on a software build that Wallet's security checks no longer recognize as certified.

Google closed its Pixel 11 launch event in New York on August 12 the way it opened: with Trevor Noah on stage. Near the end, Rick Osterloh, Google's hardware chief, joined him, apparently to wrap things up, after a lineup expected to include Alex Cooper, Steph Curry, PinkPantheress and Ayami Nakajo, according to Engadget's live coverage of the show. It made for solid television. It made for a thinner night of proof.

Samsung Electronics' phone business lost money in the same quarter its chip division posted the most profitable quarter in company history. The MX and Networks unit, which sells Galaxy phones, tablets, wearables and networking gear, reported an operating loss of KRW 0.7 trillion for the second quarter of 2026, even as the company's chip division posted KRW 89.2 trillion in operating profit and companywide operating profit hit an all-time high of KRW 89.5 trillion, according to Samsung's...

A hidden screen tucked inside a Google Messages beta build caps pinned chats at six, well below the 20 conversations the app currently lets most users pin. The find points to a broader Google Messages pinned chats redesign that would show pinned chats as large contact icons in a row at the top of the inbox, replacing today's smaller pin treatment.

Some Nest Doorbell owners outside the US are hearing their doorbell announcements delivered in an American accent even though other Google Home interactions on the same account still match their configured language or dialect.

Xiaomi has now launched the 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max in China, locking in the camera hardware that was being teased before their Sept. 23 debut. Samsung, meanwhile, hasn't officially revealed the Galaxy S27 Ultra camera system yet, and leakers are still disagreeing over parts of its telephoto setup.

Samsung's stable One UI 9 update is now reaching the Galaxy S25 series, Galaxy Z Fold 7, and Galaxy Z Flip 7, with the rollout confirmed live in South Korea, according to Android Authority. It's the next phase of a staged rollout that started with the Galaxy S26 family, and it puts Samsung's 2025 flagship lineup on the same Android 17 build already running on the newer S26 and Z8 devices.

Samsung is boosting compensation as engineers weigh offers from rival SK hynix, but the gap between its memory and foundry businesses remains wide.

Samsung recently unveiled the Galaxy SmartTag3, and for the first time in the SmartTag lineup, the tracker supports iPhone finding and sharing alongside Galaxy devices. T

Two rows on a spec sheet, two names with "Android" in them, and a lot of shoppers who assume they're the same feature wearing different labels. They're not.

Samsung just introduced the Galaxy Tab S12 series, a new tablet lineup built around Galaxy AI, a bundled S Pen, and a new MediaTek chip. The Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra and Galaxy Tab S12+ go on sale October 7 in select and major markets.

A fresh APK teardown suggests the Pixel Search app coming to older Pixels might finally go official, though Google still hasn't said a word about it. Code inside Pixel Search version 1.0.983036833 points to support for Pixel 6 and newer, a Gemini-powered suggestions feature, and new privacy controls, Android Authority found. Only one of those three things is actually live right now: the privacy toggles. The rest is still buried in code.

Google has filed a legal challenge against two European Commission orders that would force it to open Android and Search to AI competitors, taking the case to the EU General Court in Luxembourg. The move targets July 2026 decisions requiring Google to give rival AI assistants access to Android features comparable to what its own services receive, plus a separate mandate to share search data with competing search engines, according to The Irish Times and The News International.

Google Photos' Wardrobe feature may be getting fixes for two of its biggest gaps: a way to add new clothes without wiping the digital closet, and a way to redo item images that come out looking wrong. Android Authority found both controls in an unreleased Google Photos build, version 7.95, enabled through manual tinkering rather than any Google announcement, according to its regeneration report and refresh report. Neither control is public, and the cited reports don't describe either as a live...

The Galaxy S27 Pro Exynos 2700 chip story just moved from spec leak to factory floor. Samsung has reportedly started full-scale front-end production of the Exynos 2700, the processor expected to power next year's Galaxy S27 lineup, according to industry sources cited by The Elec last week. Wafers typically take three to four months to go from entering a fab to becoming finished chips, so this stage of production is a firmer signal of real deployment plans than an early benchmark leak.