Latest news with #Android16
Phone Arena
7 hours ago
- Phone Arena
Google's Pixel phones may soon borrow a trick from Samsung's Now Bar
Referential image of the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra with the Now Bar. | Image credit — Phonearena Google might be working on its own version of Samsung's Now Bar, according to new details spotted in the latest Android 16 beta. The feature, called "Gemini Space," could be a major step forward for Google's At a Glance widget, offering more real-time information on the lock screen. As reported based on findings through a deep dive of the underlying code, traces of this new experience first appeared in last month's Android 16 QPR1 Beta 1 release. A new system configuration file named "Ambient Data" was added, which appears to be the internal codename for Gemini Space. That file was found in firmware for both the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 8 Pro, suggesting the feature won't be limited to the upcoming Pixel 10. Other clues point to an "Ambience Hub," though it's not clear how it will work. The name suggests a new interface for showing useful data on the lock screen or always-on display. This would align with other Google features that use 'ambient' in their name, such as ambient display or ambient AOD. More interestingly, the Android System Intelligence app — which powers the current At a Glance widget — now includes hints about sports scores and finance updates. A toggle for finance recaps was even found in the At a Glance settings, further supporting the idea that these updates could appear as part of Gemini Space. OneUI's Now Bar and Now Brief was a welcome addition when it launched with the Galaxy S25 series. | Image credit — PhoneArena All signs point to Google preparing a rebranded and upgraded version of At a Glance. If true, Gemini Space would serve a similar purpose to Samsung's Now Bar and Now Brief — the former being a live info chip on the lock screen, and the latter offering a full-page summary of your day. While some may say that At a Glance already covers this, Pixel phones don't have anything quite like the Now Brief: a dedicated, rich feed of contextual updates accessible right from the lock screen. That could change if Gemini Space and the rumored Ambience Hub roll out as expected. Whether this will be a Pixel 10 exclusive or come to older models remains to be seen, but the feature looks like a natural evolution of At a Glance — and perhaps a strategic way to keep Gemini AI front and center. Secure your connection now at a bargain price! We may earn a commission if you make a purchase This offer is not available in your area.
UPI
10 hours ago
- UPI
Samsung might launch its next foldable smartphone next month
Samsung likely will unveil the next thinner version of its foldable smartphone next month. Its previous version Galaxy Z Fold 6 (pictured) was introduced in Tokyo in 2024. File Photo by Keizo Mori/UPI | License Photo June 19 (UPI) -- Samsung likely will unveil the next thinner version of its foldable smartphone next month. Over the weekend, leaks showcased a look at the Galaxy Z Fold 7 -- it has a thinner hinge, larger camera bump and a 200 MP sensor. It will run on Android 16 and has an 8-inch inner display and 6- to 5-inch cover display. "The newest Galaxy Z series is the thinnest, lightest and most advanced foldable yet -- meticulously crafted and built to last," Samsung said in a blog post earlier this month. The phone is reported to be slimmer at 4.5mm unfolded. It has titanium hinge components, refined crease control and a Snapdragon 8 Chipset. The camera is expected to be upgraded from a 50MP to a 200MP sensor and uses AI-enhanced image processing. "With foldables, thinness has become more critical than ever because people aren't prepared to accept the compromise for a thicker and heavier phone to get the real estate that a folding phone can deliver," Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, said on Thursday. According to a Laptopmag leaker, the phone will be revealed on July 11 and will go on sale July 25. Analysts are expecting models to be priced at about $2,000 and a little higher depending on U.S. tariffs. CCS insight said that foldables will account for just 2% of the overall smartphone market this year. In previous years, over 50% of foldable phone owners have all switched back to traditional phones in the next upgrade cycle, according to data.
Phone Arena
10 hours ago
- Phone Arena
A subtle UI tweak in Android 16 hints at Google's next big AI push
Google is quietly rolling out two notable design changes as part of Android 16 QPR1 Beta 2: a redesigned Pixel Launcher search bar and a new Gemini launch animation. Both features appear to be part of Google's ongoing effort to better integrate AI and streamline the visual experience across Android. The new Pixel Launcher search bar now looks more like the Search widget found in the Google app and Circle to Search. The previous layout, which featured a gradient "G" logo, a voice search mic, and a Google Lens shortcut, has been rearranged. These elements have been shifted to the left side of the bar, making space for a new circular AI Mode button on the right. This updated layout is housed within a pill-shaped container, giving the bar a more modern look. The new Pixel Launcher search bar. | Image credit — PhoneArena Users with Themed icons enabled will see the search bar adapt to Material You's Dynamic Color system, replacing the traditional four Google colors. However, the search bar itself remains static in functionality. In this beta, there is currently no way to remove or customize the color or transparency of the new design. It's important to note that this updated design is currently limited to users in the United States who have access to Google's Search AI Mode. Users outside the U.S. will still see the older, fuller version of the search bar, at least for now. Google is expected to bring the redesign to more regions as AI Mode becomes more widely available. In addition to the search bar changes, Google is also rolling out a new animation when launching Gemini via the power button. When users long-press the power button, the screen shrinks slightly with black borders appearing around the edges, before the Gemini overlay slides up and returns the screen to full size. This animation also brings back vibration feedback, which had been missing in some recent builds. Both the Pixel Launcher redesign and the Gemini animation are being released as server-side updates, meaning availability may vary depending on region, device, and user settings. Google has not yet shared when these changes will reach stable versions of Android. These small but noticeable updates continue to shape how Pixel users interact with AI features on their devices, suggesting more user-facing tweaks could be on the way as Android 16 continues to evolve. It's unclear if these will also show up on non-Pixel Android devices with the Google Search widget and Gemini installed, but it will interesting to see how these play with other Android skins such as OneUI. We will have to wait and see as Android 16 and Material 3 Expressive gets refined further. Secure your connection now at a bargain price! We may earn a commission if you make a purchase This offer is not available in your area.
Tom's Guide
17 hours ago
- Tom's Guide
I can't believe Google is making such a big deal out of Pixel VIPs — it's the most disappointing new feature in years
Pixel VIPs is a new feature that's part of Android 16, and if you paid attention to Google's marketing and release notes,you'll know that it's being treated like a flagship addition — something that's to be desired, and that'll make owning a Pixel phone worthwhile. Now that Android 16 is here, I can tell you that this absolutely isn't the case. In fact, Pixel VIPs seems pretty darn pointless in the grand scheme of things. Of all the new features that have landed in Android 16, I don't know why Google is making such a big deal out of something that doesn't really offer anything of value. Pixel VIPs is a new feature in the Contacts app on Android 16. As the name suggests, it's exclusive to Pixel phones. You can preselect up to 8 VIPs, each of whom have their own special pages. Those pages have icons for the phone app, Google Messages, Google Meet, the Contacts app and (if you give Pixel VIPs permission) other third party apps like VIP pages also features a location option for "local updates," details on when you last spoke to each VIP, and notes and suggestions on "things to do together." It'll also remind you about their birthday, assuming you've told the app when it is. The Pixel VIPs can be accessed through Contacts, or with a special new Pixel VIPs widget — which is also technically part of the Contacts app. Really, it's kind of like the MySpace top friends list from back in the pre-Facebook era. Any readers born after 1995 should go and ask their parents or older siblings what I'm talking about. I can see what Google is trying to do here. It's a way of resurrecting that idea of having your favorite or most important people in a list and adding some practical value to it. But every time I look at, or tinker with the Pixel VIPs feature, all I can think of is "Why?" Do I need Google to suggest things I can watch with my girlfriend? Even after disclosing the kind of things she likes, those recommendations aren't particularly good. I also don't need another app to remind me when her birthday is — that's already in Google Calendar with all the other birthdays that don't belong to VIPs. She also has an iPhone, so conversing on Google Meet is never going to happen I also don't need to know what the weather is like wherever my VIPs are. I'm English. Discussing the weather is half of what we all talk about, and without it, there would be little reason to speak to anyone. I could maybe see some use in adding specific group chats to a list like this, but the fact Pixel VIPs is tied to the Contacts app means that isn't possible. The only real benefit is that these contacts are supposed to be able to bypass the Do Not Disturb setting on your phone — though as far as I can tell, there's no way to toggle this particular feature on or off for individual contacts. So if you actually want to get the benefits of Pixel VIPs for certain people, you apparently need to be willing to give them unfiltered access to your phone as well. Having a feature that lets key people contact you regardless of whether Do Not Disturb is on or not could be useful. But it feels like something that should be its own feature. Frankly, it would have been better if Google had quietly added this feature in the background, and let more important apps and updates take the center stage. Because Pixel VIPs just doesn't have headliner potential. Unfortunately, as it stands, Android 16 doesn't actually have a whole lot going for it. Maybe it's the fact the software was released so early, but it seems like all the actual upgrades are few and far between. Take the Material Expressive 3 redesign, as one example. Google announced this at I/O 2025, but confirmed that it wouldn't be arriving until much later in the year. When that might be is anyone's guess. The same is true for the Desktop windowing feature, which is set to hit "large screen devices" toward the end of the year. Similarly Live Updates, which seem to be Google's closest thing to Apple's Live Activities in the Dynamic Island doesn't seem to have a home on my Pixel 9 Pro. There's no settings menu for the feature, and I can't seem to find evidence that it's actually been added to my phone. But, assuming it has, Google said that it would be restricted to ride share and food delivery notifications at first. And that's not a particularly large number of use-cases, so it feels rather disappointing even if I know these features can't include all apps right away. So when you think about it, Google didn't have much chance not to try and hype up Pixel VIPs. Because it's not like anything more exciting was available.
Android Authority
18 hours ago
- Android Authority
Android 16 for Pixels brings too many bugs for a 'stable' update, but at least one is getting fixed
Joe Maring / Android Authority TL;DR Android 16 is causing a very annoying bug where Pixel phones take too long to wake up. Google is aware of the issue and is working on a fix, and temporary workarounds are also available. This is one of several bugs reported by users after the Android 16 update, but there are many more, including freezing lock screens and unresponsive gestures. Android 16 is the flavor of the season, and Pixel owners are already enjoying the latest Baklava update. Granted, plenty of headline features are missing from this release, but there are still enough changes in here to call Android 16 a big update to the platform. Unfortunately for some Pixel owners, this update is also bringing in new bugs, like this annoying one where the phone takes too long to wake up. Google is aware of this and is working on a fix for it, but there seem to be plenty more that need highlighting. Pixel phones are slow to wake up after Android 16 Reddit user jdawg0024 highlighted that waking up their Pixel 9 Pro XL has become unreliable after updating to Android 16. Their phone stays unresponsive for about five seconds every time they try to wake the display, either by double-tapping the display or by pressing the power button. The phone functions normally once it has woken up, but if the screen turns off again, the issue repeats itself. As you can imagine, this does sound very annoying. It's the kind of bug that negatively impacts the user experience in a very noticeable way, but not enough to become a dealbreaker, so most people carry on using their device but stay frustrated. Plenty of other users chimed in to affirm that they are facing the same issue, and we can see many others complaining across multiple Reddit threads. For what it's worth, we couldn't reproduce the issue across a couple of Pixel devices on Android 16, including a Pixel 9 Pro XL. The official PixelCommunity account responded to the complaint, advising the user to reboot their device to fix the issue temporarily: We are aware of this issue and a fix will be released in the coming weeks. For the time being, you can reboot your device to temporarily fix the issue. Some users suggest disabling Tap to check phone and Lift to check phone in Settings > Display & touch > Lock screen, then restarting your device and re-enabling both features. This seemingly fixes the issue, though some users also say it only does so temporarily. Still, you can try it and see if it works for you. The Android 16 update appears to bring a lot of new bugs This isn't the only bug that users are facing with Android 16, though, but it's the one that is the most widespread. Based on scores of user reports across Reddit and X, we could also gather that users are facing the following issues with the Android 16 update: Lock screen frequently freezes Slow/unresponsive fingerprint unlock Unresponsive screen gestures Erratic auto-brightness Erratic/unresponsive proximity sensor Auto-rotate stops working Apps freezing and not responding to touch input Camera freezes, often requiring multiple shutter button taps to take a photo Android Auto drops connection Circle to Search stops working For most of these issues, restarting the device temporarily fixes the problem. As part of the troubleshooting steps, you could attempt a factory reset to see if the issues are resolved, though remember to back up your data, as it will all get wiped. If problems persist, you can consider rolling back to Android 15 and wait for the next stable release that hopefully fixes the issues. You can and should also file a bug report with Google to add your voice to the complaints. These expensive phones are getting a 'stable' update after an extensive beta program, so such a long list of bugs is unacceptable. Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at Email our staff at news@ . You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it's your choice.
