Android is Google’s open-source mobile operating system; think of it like a public park compared to Apple’s walled garden. It dates back to 2007, and though its dessert-inspired version names were retired in 2019 for a straightforward numbering system, there will always be a special place in our hearts for an OS called “Oreo” and “Ice Cream Sandwich.
There are some complex pros and cons to Google’s new “advanced flow” for sideloading unverified Android apps, which may well protect some users from scammers. But it would sure be nice if I could just install the apps I want on the computer I own.
orion_resident:
Remember when you didn’t need special permission to install software on your own computer? Those were the days.
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Just open a conversation, tap Attachment, and then Real-time location. You can let friends and family know where you are for specific durations or until you disable the feature. It comes almost a decade after WhatsApp, iMessage, and Facebook Messenger introduced live location sharing, but better late than never, right?
The feature, announced as part of various updates alongside the GDC Festival of Gaming, is rolling out to select games to start, including Brotato: Premium. Also: free 60-minute game demos, ones that let gamers pick up where they left off after they pay.
[Android Developers Blog]
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney made the announcement alongside the news of Google’s sweeping Android App Store changes. The game already returned to Google Play in the US in December.
The privacy and security-focused Android fork currently only has official support for Pixel devices, but that could be changing. Motorola announced on Monday at MWC that it has struck a long-term partnership with the GrapheneOS Foundation to “strengthen smartphone security and collaborate on future devices engineered with GrapheneOS compatibility.”
Part of Rahman’s new role includes “community engagement,” he says. He’s joining Android after spending 10 years reporting on the platform.
Google is testing the second Android 17 beta on compatible Pixel devices in line with its accelerated release timeline. The release notes say it adds desktop window-like app bubbles so users “can organize, move between, and move bubbles to and from anchored points on the screen,” although testers report they haven’t seen them working yet.
There are also cross-device app handoffs, which can work with a web app even if it isn’t installed on the second device.
The Galaxy Unpacked keynote ended less than an hour ago, and with it the announcements of the Galaxy S26, S26 Plus, and S26 Ultra. We watched the whole thing, but you don’t have to. Got twelve minutes?
Blizzard apparently isn’t busy enough with Overwatch, announcing a mobile version of the game that “will begin select region testing soon.” Unlike mobile versions of games like Call of Duty, PUBG, or Fortnite, it’s not an attempt at an FPS and is being made by a separate team.
A gameplay preview trailer shows a similar feeling but slower-paced game capable of running on devices like an iPhone XS or Pixel 4a.
The likes of the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Open Rights Group signed an open letter from the Keep Android Open project in opposition to developer registration, which opens next month and will be mandatory from September. The group’s Marc Prud’hommeaux explains why:
“We’ve been reaching out to Google for months to implore them to reverse course on this lockdown. The implications of their threatened action for competition and digital sovereignty are dire.”
The very good Ball x Pit is coming to iOS and Android on March 12th.
Sonic The Hedgehog Classic and Sonic The Hedgehog 2 Classic are the latest games from Sega’s Forever program that could soon disappear from the Google Play and Apple app stores. Both games now display a pop-up message warning that “support for this game will be discontinued, but you can continue playing offline!”
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It’s a minimal update. Google didn’t bring many Pixel 10 features down to the Pixel 10A this year. Buy the berry color.
You’ve been able to add them via desktop for decades, and even iPhone users had the option, but finally Android is catching up. You still can’t customize the colors from your phone, but maybe we’ll get that in another ten years or so.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, that is, re: the Nvidia Shield TV, likely the most supported Android gadget ever at over a decade. Nvidia’s Andrew Bell tells Ars Technica a new model isn’t in active development, but hints at what he’d add (like AV1 and YouTube HDR). He says Nvidia doesn’t profit off its Netflix button, BTW.
Google says you can now use the AI chatbot to ask questions while using walking or cycling directions in Google Maps, which already worked for driving directions.
When you’re exploring around town and navigating with Maps, Gemini can be your personal walking tour guide. Just ask, “OK Google, what neighborhood am I in?” If you’re hungry, follow up with “What are top-rated restaurants nearby?” and Gemini will recommend delicious options along your route based on Maps’ fresh, comprehensive information about the real world.
Update: Google’s blog post says it’s rolling out now on both iOS and Android.
And we’re done! Lawyers for Epic and Google have asked for a few weeks to talk amongst themselves and file one more brief by early March. Judge Donato says yes “just so long as we are clearly duel-tracked and the order is going forward.” He wanted to be sure Google is actually complying, and Google says it is. Epic says the court-ordered technical committee, where Google and Epic must hammer out the details of store-within-a-store and catalog access, is up and running too.
Sweeney, earlier today: “Every store will be able to do a much better job of serving US users if it can reach a worldwide audience.”
Epic’s lead attorney has continued to push on that with Dr. Rose, who says she was not assigned or resourced to explore “all of the fundamental economic issues,” but admits she doesn’t know if other app makers would think the whole world is as important to their business as Sweeney suggests Epic does. (Again, the Epic Google proposed settlement would change things globally, but the current injunction only applies in the US, while Epic and Google continue to fight elsewhere in the world.)
He tried a few other questions with Dr. Rose as well, but I didn’t catch anything particularly interesting. She has now stepped down, and we’re going into Epic and Google’s logistics for the next steps going forward, presumably before the judge gives us his final thoughts for the day.
When we return from the short break, Epic’s lead attorney gets to ask Dr. Rose more questions, and the judge has asked he doesn’t use that time to come up with “800 more.” Dr. Bornstein, Epic’s CEO, and both Bornstein and colleague Yonatan Even seemed to be in a tight huddle drafting one or two, though, which Bornstein seemed to jot down. Now, Google lead attorney Glenn Pomerantz is whispering in Bornstein’s ear as well.
“You’ve got a hike to tell me that something has changed so much in the world that I should change that injunction, and I’m not hearing it,” he tells Epic and Google here in the courtroom.
We’re taking a 10-minute break, because the court reporter says she’s already typed 140 pages today and the fingers need a sec. Wow.
