Latest news with #technews
Android Authority
14 hours ago
- Android Authority
Spotify may finally let you import music without jumping through hoops (APK teardown)
Ryan Haines / Android Authority TL;DR Spotify is working on a feature to import your music. Currently, the service offers no way to import music from other services. We also discovered a URL for the feature. Hopping from one music service to another can be a pain for multiple reasons. However, losing the playlists you spent all of that time creating may be the biggest pain of all. If you want to switch to Spotify, this will be the position you'll find yourself in since it doesn't offer an import tool. But that could change in the future. Authority Insights story on Android Authority. Discover You're reading anstory on Android Authority. Discover Authority Insights for more exclusive reports, app teardowns, leaks, and in-depth tech coverage you won't find anywhere else. An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release. Currently, if you want to import your music over to Spotify, the only way to do it is through a third-party service. And more often than not, those third parties will charge you for using their service. So if you don't want to waste any money, you'll just have to spend time rebuilding those playlists. However, we noticed strings of code in the Spotify app (version 9.0.56.459) referencing a feature that would allow you to import music. According to these strings, the feature would appear in the 'Your Library' tab. Additionally, we found a URL related to the feature hiding in the code. Unsurprisingly, the URL isn't live yet. Code Copy Text Go online to import your music Import your music We're unclear of exactly how this would work, all of what it would let you import, and where, but we can speculate. While there's no direct mention of playlists, we imagine it would include importing playlists as that would be the main use case for a tool like this. While Spotify doesn't currently have an import feature, it does have the ability to detect and show local music files. But we don't believe that feature and this feature are interconnected in any way. 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.
Android Authority
a day 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.
Android Authority
2 days ago
- Android Authority
Finding the right editing tool in Google Photos is about to get easier (APK teardown)
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority TL;DR An Android Authority teardown has revealed that the Google Photos app is getting a search button for editing tools. This will allow you to type the name of an editing tool or option to quickly access it. This search option would save time compared to manually sifting through menus to find the correct tool. We just discovered that Google Photos will get its biggest redesign in years, featuring a Material 3 Expressive visual style and functional upgrades. However, we've also uncovered a rather cool editing feature worth knowing. Authority Insights story on Android Authority. Discover You're reading anstory on Android Authority. Discover Authority Insights for more exclusive reports, app teardowns, leaks, and in-depth tech coverage you won't find anywhere else. An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release. We dug into the Google Photos app for Android (version 7.34.0.772224975) and enabled a search button for editing tools. The search button appears in the bottom right of the edit menu (see the first image below). Tapping this search icon takes you to a separate search screen, per the second image below. The second screenshot shows that you can use a text field to type the name of the editing tool you're looking for. That means you could type 'erase' to access the Magic Eraser or type 'sharpen' for the sharpening tool. This would be a welcome addition as Google Photos offers plenty of editing tools and options. So the ability to easily find these options without manually searching through various menus would be a time-saver. This isn't the only new feature coming to Google Photos, though. In addition to the aforementioned visual redesign, the company has also started rolling out an overhauled image editor and easier album sharing. 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.
Android Authority
4 days ago
- Android Authority
Android 16 QPR1 Beta 2 adds new animation for the power button long-press gesture
Joe Maring / Android Authority TL;DR Android is getting several new animations as part of its Material 3 Expressive revamp. Google has started testing one of the upcoming animations in the latest Android 16 QPR1 beta release. It appears as a black overlay that expands from the screen borders when you long-press the power button. In addition to refreshed UI elements, Android's new Material 3 Expressive design language is set to introduce some slick new animations. We gave you an early look at these animations last month, and Google has now started testing the new power button long-press animation in the latest Android 16 QPR1 beta release. Google rolled out Android 16 QPR1 beta 2 last week alongside the stable Android 16 update for its Pixel devices. In addition to significant changes, such as a desktop mode, desktop windowing for tablets, custom keyboard shortcuts, and taskbar overflow, the update introduces the new squeeze animation that appears when you long-press the power button to summon the voice assistant. As shown previously, it appears as a black overlay that expands inwards from the screen borders and disappears just before the assistant overlay pops up. You can see it in action in the attached video (via A_Button117 on Discord). This new animation will likely reach users with Android 16 QPR1, which is expected to arrive shortly after Google unveils the new Pixel 10 lineup. 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.
Phone Arena
6 days ago
- Phone Arena
OnePlus has a pleasant surprise in the works for its fans with low budgets
OnePlus Pad Lite | Image credit: 91mobiles @OnLeaks OnePlus introduced two high-tier devices in the last couple of weeks, the OnePlus 13s and OnePlus Pad 3. If you're a devoted OnePlus fan but can't afford either of the two devices, you'll be happy to know the Chinese company has a big surprise for customers with lower Pad Lite is an affordable tablet with premium design and solid specs. The folks at 91mobiles and Steve Hemmerstoffer ( OnLeaks ) put together several renders that show the upcoming tablet from different angles, as well as with its dedicated cover on. The Pad Lite doesn't look like OnePlus's latest slate, the Pad 3, but it does borrow most of its design traits from the other tablet the company introduced in the past. This makes perfect sense considering that the Pad Lite is supposed to be the child of OnePlus's previous entry-level tablet, the Pad Go. We also have OnePlus Pad Lite's dimensions in case you're curios: 254.9 x 166.5 x 7.4mm. The tablet weighs 539g, which makes it around the same weight as the OnePlus Pad Go, which weighs the Pad Lite offers some minimal upgrades over the Pad Go. For example, the slate is equipped with a MediaTek Helio G100 chipset, which is a tad more powerful than Pad Go's Helio G99. It's also worth mentioning the Pad Lite packs 6GB RAM and 128GB storage, but different storage options might be available at launch. OnePlus Pad Lite | Images credits: 91mobiles @OneLeaks As far as the camera goes, the Pad Lite got downgraded to dual 5-megapixel cameras, one on the front and one on the rear. In comparison, the Pad Go has an 8-megapixel main sensor and an 8-megapixel selfie biggest upgrade over the Pad Go seems to be the battery. As some of you probably know already, OnePlus Pad Go is powered by an 8,000 mAh battery, but the Pad Lite will have a much bigger 9,340 mAh OnePlus Pad Lite is said to feature an 11-inch LCD display with 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution and 90Hz refresh rate. This is slightly smaller than the Pad Go's 11.35-inch display, but that will probably not be as noticeable as the resolution, which is also lower. OnePlus Pad Lite will be available in Aero Blue color and will come with a folio cover. No information about the price is available yet, but we suspect this will be initially introduced in India for less than Rs 20,000 ($230 / €200).
