Android News

Google first revealed the existence of Android O earlier this year with the beginning of the developer preview. After four preview builds, it’s almost time for the final version to drop. Google has added a countdown timer to the Android O landing page, confirming that Android O’s release will coincide …

Your phone rides around in your pocket or bag all day, making it a great eavesdropping device. After all, it has a constant internet connection, a microphone, and plenty of your personal data. Online criminals have sometimes created spyware apps that aim to make phones into listening devices, and a …

Andy Rubin has been involved in the mobile industry for years, including a role in founding both Danger (makers of the Sidekick) and Android before it was acquired by Google. Now, Rubin is heading up an effort to build new phones at his new company, Essential. Rubin says the phone …

Google made a big deal of the new Google Play Protect system at this year’s Google I/O event, citing it as a strengthening of Android security. After a few months of waiting, Google Play Protect is beginning to roll out to devices. However, this isn’t actually a new system; it’s …

For a long time, the iPhone was the indisputable king of mobile photography. Even those of us who used Android phones were doing it for other reasons, but you don’t have to make that sort of trade-off anymore. There are plenty of Android phones with a good camera, and even …

Google has taken Android from a small startup to the largest mobile computing platform in the world. You can’t do that solely on luck, but that doesn’t mean Google hasn’t made some mistakes. Some have pointed to one issue or another as evidence of Android’s inadequacy. Still, things have worked …

Google launched Google Now just over five years ago as part of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. It has evolved over the years to be smarter and more useful, but Google’s energies are now focused elsewhere. After the flop of Google Now on Tap, the company pulled back on the “Google …

LG has a similar release cycle to Samsung with a flagship phone in the spring (the G series) and a larger companion to that phone showing up in the fall (the V-series). However, neither of LG’s high-end product lines have been as successful as Samsung’s lately. With the IFA trade …

Google has stepped up its efforts to secure Android in recent years, but exploits are bound to happen with billions of devices out there. Security firms are reporting on a particularly successful strain of malware called CopyCat, which reportedly hit some 14 million devices last year, and successfully gained root …

A few years ago you had to spend big bucks to get a smartphone that was actually enjoyable to use. Things changed when great unlocked devices like the Moto G and OnePlus One came out. Suddenly, you could have a reliable phone without selling your soul to a carrier. OnePlus …