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One of the best smartwatches you can buy for an Android phone doesn’t actually run Android, but Tizen. Samsung’s Galaxy Watch has proven a stellar option for many, and this week it’s getting updated with improved swim tracking and more.
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The post [Update: Gear Sport] Latest Samsung Galaxy Watch update improves alarms and swim tracking appeared first on 9to5Google. …

In this week’s top stories: the winner of the 2019 “Doodle for Google” competition was announced and proudly displayed, Nest takes away the ability to disable camera status lights, Android Auto has been crashing for many, and more.
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The post This week’s top stories: ‘Doodle for Google’ 2019 winner, Nest cam light can’t be disabled, more appeared first on 9to5Google. …

Android TV is growing quickly, but it’s rare to see on a consumer device that’s not a full-size TV. After a long delay, the JBL Link Bar hit the market as the first Android TV soundbar and I’ve spent the past couple of weeks using it in place of my Nvidia Shield. For $399, is it for you? Let’s take a look.
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The post JBL Link Bar Review: A solid soundbar w/ Android TV and a frustrating Assistant appeared first on 9to5Google. …

Twitter is testing a new way to hide abusive direct messages which should be particularly useful for those whose account is set to accept messages from anyone, not just those you follow.
The social network already offers one way to do this, but it’s a bit of a blunt instrument. There’s a ‘Quality filter’ toggle in Message Settings which completely hides what it believes to be abusive messages from those you don’t follow. The new approach is more refined …
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The ‘new’ Nokia unveiled its first wave of Android phones a couple of years ago at MWC 2017, initially with two years of security updates promised. Good news though, if you own the Nokia 3, 5, 6, or 8, you’ll now get security patches until at least 2020.
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The post Nokia extending security patches by another year for its first Android phones appeared first on 9to5Google. …

OnePlus has confirmed the logo, launch date and name of its upcoming smart TV project — which will be called the “OnePlus TV.”
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The post OnePlus confirms ‘OnePlus TV’ name and logo appeared first on 9to5Google. …

Google Duo 60 is rolling out this evening with the ability to delete audio and video history, as well as an upcoming “Messages from Duo Team” feature. There is also work on a dark mode for the calling app, while “Low Light” might be coming soon.
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The post Google Duo 60 preps dark mode, adds deleting call history [APK Insight] appeared first on 9to5Google. …

We exclusively revealed several key Google Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL specifications earlier this week. In addition to official teases, the phone has been spotted in the wild a handful of times. Another such incident of sketchy provenance this weekend provides a look at the Pixel 4’s thin bezels and screen.
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The post Sketchy Pixel 4 shots show off thin bezels all-around appeared first on 9to5Google. …

The biggest problem with Wear OS as a platform is hardware, and the biggest problem with most of its hardware is battery life. Last year, the Mobvoi TicWatch Pro implemented a clever solution to that problem with a dual-display. Now, the TicWatch Pro 4G is here, and while LTE might be the feature that earns the new name, it’s the improved performance that should have you interested in this watch.
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The post Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 4G Review: Worth it for the performance, not the LTE [Video] appeared first on 9to5Google. …

Despite the last beta coming on Monday evening, a new version of the Google app is ready for testing. Google app 10.41 continues work on Ambient Mode and reveals the addition of device notifications, while alarms could be coming to At A Glance.
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The post Google app 10.41 preps device notifications in Ambient Mode, Alarms in At A Glance [APK Insight] appeared first on 9to5Google. …

Google Drive on the web was one of the very first services to get the Material Theme treatment in 2018, with the Android and iOS clients following this April. The homepages for Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides were updated in February, with a similar Google Material Theme revamp now available for the Android apps.
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The post Google Material Theme revamp rolls out to Docs, Sheets, and Slides for Android appeared first on 9to5Google. …

Despite the corpus of websites and information that Google Search indexes, “unanswered questions” remain online. Google wants to collect those standing queries and give them to content creators through a new Question Hub tool that’s launching in beta today.
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The post Google Question Hub collects ‘unanswered’ Search queries for publishers, now in beta appeared first on 9to5Google. …

One recent trend in interface design has been to replace icons with text buttons. Aimed at reducing confusion by being explicit about the nature of an action, Google.com is now using such a “Search” button.
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The post [Update: Rolled out] Google․com replaces ‘magnifying glass’ icon with ‘Search’ button appeared first on 9to5Google. …

Last week, we learned that Google is beginning to experiment with potential improvements the Chrome OS shelf, starting by offering a smaller version for clamshell Chromebooks. We’ve now learned from an internal doc that Google is making some changes to the Chrome OS app shelf and its icons, specifically in preparation for the Pixelbook 2.
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The post Google to make Chrome OS shelf icons more circular, in prep for Pixelbook 2 appeared first on 9to5Google. …

The latest round of Google Store “Special offers” are live and the Pixel 3 sees a $300 discount. What’s particularly notable is how the deal runs until September 28th, which should be just a few weeks from the expected Pixel 4 unveil at Made by Google 2019.
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The post Google Store discounts Pixel 3 by $300 ahead of Pixel 4 unveil appeared first on 9to5Google. …

As we’re finding new Wear OS hardware with better performance, it seems Fossil is working on an upgrade as well. This weekend, a new Fossil Wear OS watch has leaked in some hands-on images, alongside a spec list that details 1GB of RAM and a Snapdragon Wear 3100.
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The post Fossil Wear OS watch w/ 1GB RAM, Snapdragon 3100 leaks alongside official teaser appeared first on 9to5Google. …