MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) – Good news for Google. The company won’t have to sell off it’s Chrome, or Android operations.
The remedies decided by District Judge Amit Mehta have emerged after a years-long court battle over Google’s dominance in online search.
The case centered around Google’s position as the default search engine on a range of its own products such as Android and Chrome as well as others made by the likes of Apple.
The US Department of Justice had demanded that Google sell Chrome – Tuesday’s decision means the tech giant can keep it but it will be barred from having exclusive contracts and must share search data with rivals.
The 226-page decision comes as companies like ChatGPT and Perplexity try to upend Google’s long-held position as the internet’s main gateway.
The decision will likely ripple across the technological landscape at a time when the industry is being reshaped by breakthroughs in artificial intelligence.
Investors seemed to interpret the ruling as a relatively light slap on the wrist for Google, as the stock price of its corporate parent, Alphabet Inc., surged nearly 3% in extended trading.
While the new operating system made its debut on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Z Flip 7 in July, it’s now available to more devices.
We’re not quite at the stage where Samsung is going to push the button on the final roll-out for One UI 8 – instead we’re still pushing our way through beta access. Samsung’s One UI beta programme gives phone owners access to the new software to try it out, although it’s not final and some features might not work as expected.
The Samsung One UI beta programme officially started in May 2025 with the Galaxy S25, but over the past month we’ve seen that expand the Galaxy S24 and other models.
Now it’s the turn of an older tranche of Samsung devices, including the Galaxy S23, Galaxy A36 and A35, as well as the Galaxy A55 and A54, according to 9to5Google.
It’s expected that the final roll-out of the software will take place later this month, at which point Samsung will move to update eligible phones to the latest software, with the benefits of Android 16 and One UI 8.
How to access the One UI 8 beta
If you have a phone that’s on the list of supported devices for the beta (the Z Flip 5 and Z Fold 5 should be joining soon, too), then you can get access to the beta through the Samsung Members app.
Get all the latest news, reviews, deals and buying guides on gorgeous tech, home and active products from the T3 experts
You might not have noticed the Samsung Members app, as it blends into the bloatware that Samsung puts on its devices – but it’s key to getting enrolled on the One UI beta programme.
Head into the app and often you’ll find that One UI beta opt-in as a tile on the homescreen. For me it was right at the bottom. If you can join the scheme, you’ll see the details there.
Remember that this isn’t final software and there could be some parts that don’t work or are missing compared to the final version.
Samsung fans should also be aware that there’s another Samsung launch expected this week, which should see the Galaxy S25 FE announced.
PLEASE NOTE: Flashing software like Lineage OS on a device is an “at your own risk” activity. Even if you follow our guide to the letter, we can’t accept any responsibility if your device breaks. Our guide is meant for educational purposes, and we offer no guarantees of success.
One of the wonderful things about Android phones is how many choices you have for which version of the operating system to use. If you buy a smartphone with terrific hardware, but the software doesn’t meet your needs, you can often install something different (eat it, iOS!). Depending on the device, there are potentially dozens of versions of Android you can install. Some are created and maintained by a team of developers, while others have just a single developer overseeing all aspects. Best of all, they are free.
The biggest and most popular custom Android experience is Lineage OS. Formerly known as CyanogenMod (and later just Cyanogen), Lineage OS is a close-to-stock version of Android with additional features that make your device more powerful and customizable. One of the best things about Lineage OS is that it lets you update many devices to the latest version of Android — even if stock updates for that device ended long ago. This breathes new life into otherwise-forgotten smartphones and tablets.
Installing a new operating system on your Android device might seem daunting, but if you break it down into steps, it’s fairly easy. There’s also a wide margin for error, so beginners don’t need to worry about breaking their devices. Here’s how to do it!
First, a primer on Lineage OS
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
Before you get all crazy messing with the software of your device, allow me to explain some basic concepts. There are some terms and protocols that many sites and walkthroughs will assume you already know while installing an alternative Android-based OS, which could make things confusing if you don’t.
Here’s a quick glossary of terms for you to refer to later on if you’re confused:
ROM — Stands for “read-only memory.” This is where the core software of Android lives. Lineage OS will often be referred to as a “custom ROM,” but it really is a customized version of pure Android. Chalk this up to a manner of speech as the literal meaning of ROM doesn’t match what we’re installing.
Flashing — When you overwrite one piece of software with another piece of software, that’s called “flashing.” This guide you’re reading goes over how to “flash” Lineage OS.
Bootloader — When you power on a device, the first thing that turns on is the bootloader, which is responsible for starting up other processes. Most Android devices come with locked bootloaders — i.e., you can’t alter what it does. Luckily, most bootloaders can be unlocked, which allows you to then flash new software.
Recovery — After the bootloader loads, the recovery software system will launch the operating system (Android). In almost all cases, to launch a custom ROM, you will also need a custom recovery that differs from the one your device comes with.
Wipe — Various parts of the flashing process will result in a “wipe” — the erasure of data from your device. A full wipe would eliminate all operating system files from your device, causing your device to boot into the recovery and then stop.
Packages — Lineage OS, Google apps, custom recoveries, etc., will usually download to your device in a “package” of some kind, usually in ZIP format. In most cases, you can simply assume “package” is equivalent to “ZIP file.”
ADB — Stands for “Android Debug Bridge.” This tool allows communication between a personal computer and an Android smartphone. In most cases, you will need ADB on your computer to complete a flash.
Fastboot — This diagnostic tool comes with most Android installs and allows you to flash a new ROM. You usually access fastboot through ADB. Some device manufacturers (including Samsung and a few others) use the term “Download mode” instead, but the functions are relatively the same.
Brick — If something goes wrong with a flash, in rare cases, it could cause your device to cease functioning. If your phone doesn’t even turn on, it’s as useful as a brick, hence the name. Some people will say things like “soft brick” to clarify that the device is unusable but has the potential to be fixed. It is very difficult to brick a device, and it usually only happens when people don’t follow instructions carefully (hint hint).
Flashing Lineage OS: The basics
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
When you flash Lineage OS (or any custom ROM), there are a set of steps you almost always follow. How you complete those steps — and the tools needed to do the job — differs from device to device. But overall, the basic steps are the same.
Here’s what you’ll need to flash a ROM:
A compatible Android smartphone or tablet. Not every device is compatible with Lineage OS, so make sure you have one that fits the bill before proceeding to the next step.
A USB cable for that device
Laptop or desktop running Windows, macOS, or Linux
An internet connection
Time (this could take an hour or two, depending on how comfortable you are with the technologies involved)
Here are the steps one usually performs to flash a ROM:
Each step begets the next. You install the computer software first because it accesses the device’s bootloader. Then, you unlock the bootloader because it accesses the recovery. You then change the recovery to a custom one because it flashes the ROM. You then flash the ROM, and on and on. It’s a very linear process.
One incredibly important fact to keep in mind is that this process will almost always involve a wipe of your personal data. Unlocking the bootloader always results in a format of data.
Make sure to back up all of your data before proceeding to install Lineage OS.
With that in mind, it is imperative you follow the third step and make a backup before performing any changes to your device. If something goes wrong after you unlock the bootloader, there will be no way to get your phone back to the way it used to be. Instead, your phone will be set back to factory default like it was when you first turned it on.
One other thing to keep in mind: unlocking the bootloader usually voids your device’s warranty. Devices will permanently record an unlocked bootloader so even if you unlock it and then lock it again the company will know. If something goes wrong and you give it to the OEM, there’s a good chance it will refuse to help if it sees you unlocked the bootloader.
Step 1: Install the pre-requisite software on your computer
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
Some rare devices out there allow you to flash new ROMs without needing to hook up to a computer first. However, the vast majority of devices will require access to a PC running Windows, macOS, Linux, or even Chrome OS. This can be a ten-year-old laptop or high-performance desktop — it doesn’t take a lot of computational power to flash a ROM.
Usually, the software you need is ADB. Google hosts and maintains ADB, so there are no concerns about viruses or malware when downloading and installing the program.
Except in rare cases, you’re going to need ADB on your computer to do this.
Lineage OS has a guide for installing ADB. It doesn’t take long, and the instructions are very straightforward. Once you’ve installed ADB, you’ll access it through a command prompt on Windows or a terminal window on Linux and macOS. This might seem daunting, but don’t worry: the commands are simple and easy to copy and paste.
You’ll also need your computer to have the appropriate drivers for your phone. Google has a whole article about downloading drivers for OEM devices, so you should follow those steps for your system.
Pro Tip: Eventually, you’ll hook your Android device to your computer to connect to ADB. When you do this, make sure you use the USB cable that came with the device. If you can’t access that, use a high-quality, short-and-thick cable. Cheap cables you get for $1 each could cause problems with flashing, so don’t use them.
Step 2: Download packages
To get Lineage OS for your device, you’ll need to check to ensure your device is compatible with the ROM. Go to the Lineage OS wikion your computer and search for the device you’d like to flash.
Lineage OS supports popular devices from many major manufacturers. Unless you have a very unpopular or low-priced budget device, chances are good you can install at least one version of Lineage OS.
One of the first steps is getting all your packages downloaded on your computer.
When you find the device you want to flash, click on its photo. That will take you to a page filled with information on that particular device as it relates to Lineage OS. On this page, you’ll find a link to download packages. Click that link.
When you get to the list of packages associated with your device, you might wonder which one to download. Generally, you will want to download all the packages that appear in the top portion of the list (everything above the first horizontal line). The number of packages here will vary for each device, but most will have six different packages. Download them and take note of where they are on your computer.
Got the packages! Now what?
Once those files are downloaded to your computer, you can install your new ROM. However, that just gets you the operating system; you’ll also need the Google apps package, colloquially referred to as GApps.
Why do you need a Google apps package? The rules of open-source systems state that Lineage OS cannot come with Google Play Services pre-installed. Without GApps, you won’t have access to the Play Store to find the apps you want. Furthermore, if you don’t install this during the initial flashing process, you will not have any Google products on your device when you boot. You can’t install the package later — you must install it during your original flash.
To be clear, there’s no rule stating you must have GApps. If you don’t want Google on your phone, you can skip the GApps installation. However, we assume most people want them, so our instructions will include this step.
Once you have these seven packages downloaded (six Lineage packages and a GApps package), move the files into the same location as the ADB files you installed in the previous step. Then rename the long ones to simpler things; for example, the ROM file name is very long and tricky (lineage-20.0-20230305-nightly-lemonade-signed.zip, for example). Change it to just LINEAGE.zip. This will make it easier to find the files later and also save you some command line typing.
You can leave the other five packages alone, as they have short and manageable names.
Don’t forget to move them to the ADB folder (for Windows, that’s %USERPROFILE%adb-fastbootplatform-tools). Once the files are all organized, you’re ready for the next step!
Pro Tip: Your device has a code name that Lineage OS will use to identify it. The code name is shown on the Lineage OS compatible devices list — use this to search for compatible packages; that way, you know you’re always downloading the right one!
Step 3: Back up and prepare device
There are many different ways to back up your Android phone. There are free and paid apps on the Google Play Store and free and paid software for personal computers. There’s no one right way to back up your device. Figure out whichever method works best for you and make the backup.
After you’ve backed everything up, you need to do two things on your device before you move on to the next step: enable USB debugging and OEM unlocking. These are two toggles in your device’s settings panel, hidden in a section called “Developer Options.”
Don’t skip this step: back up everything first!
Do a Google search for “how to access Android developer options [your device name here]” to find instructions on how to access these two toggles (it usually involves tapping a bunch of times on your Android build number in Settings). Once you have access to developer options, toggle on both USB debugging and OEM unlock. If OEM unlock isn’t there, don’t worry: just make sure USB debugging is turned on.
Once you’ve done all that, connect your device to your computer with a good USB cable. You might see a notification on your phone asking if you trust the computer. Confirm you trust the connection and exit out of settings. You might see drivers are installing on your computer, which is normal.
You’re ready for the next step!
Pro Tip: Do not skip anything in this step. This stuff is here for a reason. It could take you hours to reinstall all your apps, log in to all your accounts, move over all your photos, and all that. You also don’t want to risk losing any important data. Be safe!
Step 4: Unlock the bootloader
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
The steps for unlocking the bootloader of your device will vary depending on the make and model of your smartphone or tablet. Some OEMs make the process incredibly easy, while others purposely make it difficult (or even impossible). This step will thus vary wildly depending on your device, so it’s hard to give explicit instructions from which everyone will benefit. That said, here’s an overall primer!
To make your life easier, head over to XDA Forums and find the forum for your device. Skim through the threads and see if other users have successfully unlocked the bootloader. If everyone else seems to be having no trouble, you’ll be fine. If you find other users are having trouble with the bootloader, it could be for a few reasons. It might be because the device is too new, so no one has figured out the process yet. It might also be that the bootloader is protected and difficult or impossible to unlock; Samsung is notorious for this.
Remember: this will wipe your device’s data.
In most cases, to unlock the bootloader, you hook your device up to your computer using a USB cable and then run a few ADB and fastboot commands to unlock the smartphone or tablet:
An ADB command to make sure your device is properly connected
An ADB command to reboot the device into fastboot mode (see glossary above)
A fastboot command to check that the device is in fastboot mode and properly connected
A fastboot command to unlock the bootloader
If you are on Windows, you might run into an error when you try the steps listed on your device’s bootloader page. The problem might be that your command prompt is not in the right location. With the command prompt open, type the following command (see above):
cd %userprofile%adb-fastbootplatform-tools
The first thing to do after hooking your device up to the computer is run an ADB command to ensure a proper connection (see above):
If you don’t see any devices listed after running that command, check your Android device — it might have this screen:
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
Click the “Always allow” box and hit “Allow.” That should solve the problem, but run the “adb devices” command again just to be sure.
If, after successfully connecting to ADB and rebooting into fastboot mode, you face some problems, that likely means you need to update the drivers on your computer. Do a Google search for “[device name here] drivers” and download and install the latest version.
With all that done, you should be able to successfully unlock the bootloader. After your bootloader is unlocked, your device will reboot and enter Android setup, just like after a factory reset. Continue with the setup as normal. Once you have access to the home screen, go back into Settings and re-enable USB debugging, if necessary.
Flashing additional partitions
Most modern phones use A/B partitions. This semi-new feature of Android requires some additional flashing before you can move forward. First, make sure you have USB debugging enabled on your phone. Then, follow these steps:
Boot into the bootloader again by using the adb reboot bootloader command from earlier.
Once in the bootloader, type the following commands into your prompt:
fastboot flash dtbo dtbo.img
fastboot flash vendor_boot vendor_boot.img
You’re ready for the next step.
Pro Tip: YouTube is your friend! A quick YouTube search could net you a video walkthrough of how to unlock your device’s bootloader. Watch it, and this whole process will likely be so much easier!
Step 5: Flash a custom recovery
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
Now that the bootloader is unlocked and your partitions flashed, it’s time to flash your recovery. This is a big step! This will replace a fundamental aspect of your device.
You already downloaded the appropriate custom recovery from Lineage back in step two. However, if you haven’t done this already, head back to that step and get the recovery file that exactly matches your device model.
As one final warning: flashing the wrong custom recovery onto a device could cause a brick. Be absolutely certain that the file you downloaded matches the model of your device. You’ve been warned.
Flashing your Lineage OS recovery
If you’re not already in fastboot, plug your phone into your computer and fire up ADB via a command prompt and perform the following command:
Just like before, the command above ensures your device is properly connected to your computer. After that, run this one:
Also as before, that command gets you into fastboot mode. Next, run this command:
That performs one final check before the flash that your device is connected and fastboot is ready to go. Finally, you run this command:
fastboot flash boot boot.img
Check out the screenshot below to see how this should all look:
Once you’ve flashed your new recovery, reboot your phone. The easiest way to do this is right from the command prompt:
Your phone will reboot as normal. Once it’s done, you’ll have terminated your fastboot connection and be back in ADB. You’ll now use ADB to boot into your new recovery with this command:
Since you just flashed over your original recovery, your device will boot into Lineage recovery. You’ll be greeted first by the screen below:
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
Once you’ve booted your device up into Lineage recovery, you are ready for the next step: flashing Lineage OS!
Pro Tip: There are numerous YouTube videos and online tutorials on how to flash a custom recovery. In fact, there’s probably a video specific to your device! Search Google for “flash Lineage recovery on [device name here] video” and see if you can watch someone else go through this process first so you’ll have a better idea of what to do.
Step 6: Flash Lineage OS
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
You downloaded the appropriate Lineage OS file to your computer way back in the second step. Remember that it needs to be in the ADB folder and renamed to LINEAGE.zip.
From the main menu of Lineage recovery, tap Factory reset, and then tap Format data/factory reset. Lineage will warn you this is serious business, but since you made a backup in the third step you have nothing to worry about (right?!). Follow the prompts and complete the format process.
After you get a “Data wipe complete” message at the bottom of the screen, hit the back button until you’re back at the recovery’s main menu. Hit Advanced and then hit Enable ADB. Now you’ve factory reset Android and are ready to use ADB commands again.
Once that’s done, you’re ready to flash Lineage OS.
Moving files and flashing
With your device still in recovery mode and connected to your computer, fire up a command prompt or terminal window in the ADB folder and perform a device check (adb devices). Once checked, from the main menu of the recovery, tap Apply update > Apply fromADB. Now, type in this command:
After you type that in and press Enter, ADB will begin flashing the Lineage OS file to your device. This could take some time, and sometimes there’s no progress bar to watch how fast it’s going. Give it a while (at least five minutes) before touching anything. Eventually, you’ll see a “Total xfer” notification. This means it worked!
Do note that sometimes you could see “adb: failed to read command: Success” or “adb: failed to read command: No error.” Either way, this still means the sideloading worked.
Now that you’ve flashed Lineage OS, you’re ready for the second-to-last step. Stay in recovery!
Pro Tip: If sideloading your Lineage OS file isn’t working, make sure the file is in the same computer directory as ADB. If the Lineage OS package is on your desktop and ADB is in its own folder, ADB won’t know where the file is when you type in its name. All the files you are pushing and flashing should be in the same folder as the ADB program. Refer back to the second step if you’re confused!
Step 7: Flash GApps
Jimmy Westenberg / Android Authority
You’ve come a long way so far! You are so close to being done. You have an unlocked bootloader, a custom recovery, and a fresh install of the latest version of Lineage OS.
The only thing you’re missing is Google apps such as the Google Play Store, Google Play Services, Gmail, and Google Maps. You’re going to flash the ZIP file of GApps you downloaded in the second step in the same fashion as you flashed Lineage OS.
With your device booted into Lineage recovery, head to the main menu. Tap on Advanced > Reboot to Recovery. Your phone will reboot, so give it a second. Once it’s rebooted and back to the main menu of your recovery, tap Apply Update > Apply from ADB. As before, you’re going to sideload the Google apps:
Usually, your Google apps package is smaller than your Lineage OS package, so this sideload won’t take as much time. Halfway through the sideload, the recovery will alert you that the Google Apps package failed a verification test. This is normal and expected behavior. Just tap on Yes to install the package anyway.
After you tap Yes, you can watch your apps installing. You have finished! Navigate back to the main menu of recovery and tap Reboot system now.
Pro Tip: If you want to root your device, you can also flash a root file at this stage (before rebooting into the system). There are multiple root methods and files available for different devices, so I’m not going to go over them here. If you want root access, this would be the perfect opportunity to flash that file too.
Step 8: Reboot and personalize
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
Your first boot into Lineage OS will take a minute — give it time. You just installed a new operating system and don’t want to rush it! However, if your first boot takes longer than 15 minutes, something is wrong. Do a hard reboot by holding down the power button until the device restarts. Let it try to boot again. If it still doesn’t boot, something didn’t flash correctly, so head back to the sixth step above and start again.
The first thing you’ll notice upon a successful boot is a new boot animation, with the Lineage OS logo’s three circles on a curved line.
Once the boot is complete, you’ll be at the startup screen of Android, where you’ll pick your language, add your Google Account, connect to Wi-Fi, and so on. This is all very similar to what you previously performed when you first got your device, so there shouldn’t be any surprises.
Once you get to the home screen, you are officially done — you have Lineage OS on your device! Now head to YouTube to learn about all the nifty features you can play with in this new version of Android.
Pro Tip: This is a great time to restore all the apps you backed up in the third step. You can also manually re-download them all if you skipped that step. We’ll talk to you in a few hours.
Final thoughts
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
Depending on your device, there are likely a lot of other custom ROMs out there besides Lineage OS, including privacy-focused alternatives like Graphene OS. Now that you know how to flash a ROM, you can get flash-happy and try out all sorts of new flavors. All you need to do is find ROMs that match your device’s model number and then repeat steps six through eight. You don’t need to unlock the bootloader or install a custom recovery again.
However, you’ll need to backup your device again. Don’t forget this vital step!
If you try out custom ROMs and decide you don’t like them anymore, it is incredibly easy to switch back to the stock ROM your device originally had. There’s a different set of instructions for flashing back to stock, but the essence is essentially the same. Do some Googling to figure out how to flash your particular device back to its factory defaults by searching for “flash [device name here] back to stock.”
I hope this guide has been helpful to you! If you get stuck, ask some questions in the comments, and someone will surely help you out!
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It’s the most wonderful time of the year: Pixel season. Google’s latest batch of flagships is upon us, and there are many new features to explore, from a telephoto camera on the Pixel 10 to new Gemini capabilities across the entire range. With so many new wrinkles to explore, diving into a brand-new Pixel can be intimidating. That’s where we come in. We’ve already had our hands on the entire Google Pixel 10 series, and here are the tips and tricks we’ve relied on so far.
Before we dive in, make sure that the very first thing you do with your Pixel 10 is check for an update. We can promise that one will be waiting for you, and it will take quite a while to install, so just be ready to sit by while your new Pixel gets up to speed. When it does, you’re finally ready to jump in, so let’s get to it.
Google Pixel 10 tips & tricks
Set up Magic Cue, well, everywhere
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
First, make sure you tap into one of Google’s most intriguing new features: Magic Cue. It was announced for the Pixel 10 series, and we’ve only just begun to explore its AI-powered suggestions. Magic Cue is like a pocket-sized personal assistant that uses your behavior to predict the information you might need on your screen at any given time.
Now, that can sound a little overwhelming, but the example we’ve seen a couple of times helps to clarify it. Say a partner asks you where your dinner reservations are for the evening. Magic Cue will then see that question in Google Messages and spring into action, pulling the address and name of the restaurant from your confirmation email. If you called to make your reservation, well, that might not work so well.
Magic Cue makes life easier… if you can get it to trigger.
Google has given other examples of where Magic Cue can come in handy, like pulling the ETA of your friend’s incoming flight or sending out pictures from a recent beach trip by using location data to filter through Google Photos. We haven’t had much luck with some of these finer points yet, but it’s all part of training Magic Cue on our usage.
Thankfully, Google makes it incredibly easy to access Magic Cue by giving it a dedicated header in the settings app.
Let Camera Coach improve your composition
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
Camera Coach
We could have picked any number of new Pixel camera features to add to our list of tips, but let’s go with the one that’ll improve your photography. Yes, Google’s Camera Coach is an AI-powered teacher that analyzes what your camera is seeing and suggests ways to take a better photo. It sounds pretty out there at first, but after a few runs through the Camera Coach, I really like its flexible approach.
I was initially worried that the Camera Coach would offer one suggestion for a better shot and expect you to follow its lead. It doesn’t. Instead, it gives you options for what you might want in your composition and lets you choose between them. Then, the Camera Coach offers step-by-step instructions to try different shooting modes, adjust your frame, and ultimately press the shutter button.
The Camera Coach requires a data connection, so it may not always work if you’re on an adventure away from a reliable signal. However, if you practice with the Camera Coach while you have service, remembering the lessons should be easy enough as you capture more shots.
To trigger the Camera Coach, open your Pixel Camera and tap the icon in the top right corner, which looks like a camera with the Gemini star next to it.
Jot down some thoughts in the Pixel Journal
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
I didn’t expect to want a journal on my phone. In fact, I’d probably rather have my most profound thoughts logged somewhere on paper, but I have to give Google some credit for trying. After all, if the best camera is the one you have with you, maybe the best journal follows the same rules. So, if you’re willing to ditch the Moleskine, it’s a good time to try the new Pixel Journal.
Like I said, I prefer most of my thoughts on paper, but I like the idea of the Pixel Journal as a stepping stone into journaling. It uses AI to help you develop prompts, which you can expand on or let your writing wander to other thoughts that might have skipped your mind on a busy day. I particularly like that the app interface is clean and straightforward, which has kept me from getting distracted while writing things down.
Of course, you may or may not love the idea of letting AI into your most personal thoughts. I respect that Google runs things on-device, but I’m not sure that I want Gemini to know exactly what prompts I respond well to and which ones I don’t. There’s also the matter of Google’s tendency to axe apps and services before they’ve reached maturity, so it might help to have a backup for your Pixel Journal entries.
Pick up some Pixelsnap accessories (and maybe a charger)
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
Oh, look, someone besides Apple added magnets into a flagship phone. See, Samsung? It wasn’t that hard. I, for one, am very excited that the entire Pixel 10 series supports Qi2 charging, with the Pixel 10 Pro XL jumping to Qi2.2 for 25W wireless charging. On top of that, Google has introduced a new line of Pixelsnap accessories, and it’s worth picking up at least one or two of them.
The Pixelsnap ring stand (pictured above) is a fast favorite of ours. It reminds me of the stand Google introduced for the Pixel Tablet, which makes it easy to carry your new phone by the metal ring and prop it up vertically or horizontally. Google also offers a leather Pixelsnap wallet from Bellroy, but I’m in a committed relationship with the Peak Design wallet I’ve been using for years.
Of course, Pixelsnap also means that Google has a slate of new charging accessories to choose from, including new in-house pads and stands, and a new stand from Mous if you want an upright charger. Others like Anker and Belkin have also been making magnetic charging accessories for as long as Apple has supported MagSafe, so there are more options to explore.
Make music in Recorder
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
Alright, so our next Pixel 10 tip is for a feature that you may or may not love — but sometimes getting a new phone is about having fun. We love the Recorder app, and now you can use it to add a beat to your voice notes. It’s one of those features that will probably have particular use cases, but I like that it makes Recorder a helpful tool for musicians. Granted, it probably won’t churn out something as good as when Gorillaz used a rock preset to make their song Clint Eastwood.
So far, I’ve used the music feature in Recorder only twice: once to make myself laugh at a backed-up recording from a briefing and again while trying to remember the words of a nursery rhyme. I don’t think either result was great, but it’s probably because there are only so many ways you can spice up being told specs and features about a smartphone.
If you’re willing to give Recorder a bit more of a run than I have, you can swap back and forth between featured vibes and vibes that you make yourself by combining a genre like jazz or blues with a feeling, like angry or upbeat. There’s a lot of room for customization here; you just have to be willing to listen to recordings of your own voice.
Ask Photos to reimagine your favorite Pixel 10 photos
Ryan Haines / Android Authority
Let’s circle back to another Pixel camera feature, shall we? You won’t find this one in the camera app, but Ask Photos has quickly become one of the most powerful parts of Google Photos. It’s equal parts search engine and editing tool, but maybe it’s only because Google’s naming convention is pretty confusing. Our team is split between calling it Ask Photos and Help me edit, but the idea is the same: Type out what you want to see in your photo and press enter.
So far, I’ve put several of my early Pixel 10 Pro photos through the wringer, asking for everything from simple color swaps to all-out item replacements. Some things Ask Photos handles better than others, like removing or resizing objects, which I’ve been doing since Google introduced Magic Eraser on the Pixel 6. I’ve had a little more trouble getting Ask Photos to replace items, with Gemini occasionally hallucinating an extra buoy here or a wonky seagull there.
If you’re ready to try Ask Photos, it’s as easy as opening Google Photos and choosing the image you want to modify. Then, press Edit and start typing your changes into the text box. You can also regenerate your edits as often as needed until you’re happy with the result.
Use Voice Translate to chat in other languages in real time
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
The Pixel 10 adds new calling features to the mix, and we’ve graduated far beyond Hold for Me and Call screening. Both are still around, but now Google has new translation features to explore, too. My colleague Scott got a chance to try Voice Translate during his earliest experience with the Pixel 10, and he came away raving about it. If there’s any chance that you’ll be on the phone with someone who speaks another language, you should probably try it too.
In many ways, Voice Translate is like Google Translate’s Conversation Mode, but applied to a phone call. It takes the words you’re saying and processes them into the other person’s language, but does so while preserving your original voice. The finished product is a bilingual call that both speakers hear in their native language without necessarily speaking the other language.
However, you will have to activate the feature and select your partner’s language for each phone call. Hopefully, if you’re chatting with someone you’ve met before, you’ll know their language of choice, but it could be a little tricky if you’re calling an Airbnb host in a foreign country to ask for help accessing your rental.
Turn on Clear Calling, like, seriously
Ryan Haines / Android Authority
Let’s stick with Google’s calling features for another tip, because this next one is quick. There’s nothing worse than hopping on a call while you head out for a walk, only to find that your partner can’t hear you over the sound of the wind. If you’ve ever found yourself in the same position, there’s an easy solution: Turn on Clear Calling.
Yet again, Clear Calling is easy to explain, mainly because Google has named it correctly. It processes the audio of your call to reduce background noises like cars, wind, and other common city sounds. You’ll need to enable Wi-Fi calling or rely on your mobile network for the processing to work, but remember that it won’t work on 3G networks.
Check your Daily Hub to see what’s new
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
I won’t lie — some of Google’s new Pixel 10 features feel a bit familiar. One of them is the Daily Hub, which is very similar to Samsung’s recently introduced Now Brief, an AI-powered briefing we’ve had mixed experiences with. It handled some things pretty well, like offering quick updates on the weather and upcoming appointments, but the Now Brief’s recommendations for news articles and Spotify playlists never felt quite right.
So, with Google introducing the Daily Hub, my hopes are once again high. I prefer Google’s weather and calendar interfaces to Samsung’s, so I know they’ll fit better into my usage. That said, the Daily Hub’s recommended YouTube videos have already proven hit or miss. My colleague Joe Maring was sent a video update on the life of Honey Boo Boo — a name that I haven’t thought about in years.
Once you’ve finished setting up your Pixel 10, you can head over to the Google app to check out your first Daily Hub update. If you get a particularly good video recommendation (or even a bad one), please share it. I’m curious if everyone else’s algorithm is as unpredictable as Joe’s.
Share your screen with Gemini Live for extra help
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
Last but not least, make sure you give Gemini Live a try. We’ve been saying this since Google’s conversational assistant launched on the Pixel 9 series, but now it’s even better. At first, Gemini Live centered largely around voice inputs and creating transcripts of your conversations, but now you can share what your camera sees to ask questions about it. Obviously, with the power of the Tensor G5 at your disposal, you have to try it.
This year, accessing Gemini Live is about as easy as possible, with the Pixel 10 loading up a Gemini widget as soon as you finish the setup process. So, there aren’t too many steps to offer, tap on the widget and start asking Gemini about the world around you — including asking for gardening advice like one of my colleagues above.
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There you have it — everything we’ve picked up about the Pixel 10 series so far. If you have a favorite Pixel 10 tip, feel free to drop it in the comments. If you still haven’t picked up a Pixel 10, you can also check the current prices in the widgets.
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Personal Safety is rolling out an update that implements a new color scheme.
While the app still doesn’t use your system palette, it does improve readability.
Google has managed to mess up clock rendering, though, with the time fitting poorly on the screen.
Developers like Google are constantly trying out new looks for their apps, and not everyone’s going to be a fan of every change. But even if we prefer one layout over another, or thought an old workflow was superior, we generally expect these changes to still function properly — it’s one thing to go in a new direction we’re not sold on yet; it’s quite another to break something.
That’s just what we saw happening with Google’s Clock app recently, and while it still told the time just fine, updates to how the app rendered its font had those numerals jumping all over the place, or not even fitting properly on the screen. Google spoke up to reassure users that it knew what was wrong and was working on a fix, but now we’ve spotted another clock-related issue in another Google app redesign.
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We’re looking at version 2025.08.06.791860033.0-release_gms of Google’s Personal Safety app. We already saw the app start picking up new Material 3 Expressive elements earlier this summer, and while Google isn’t seriously changing any of that here, it has blessed the app with a new color palette.
⚠️ 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.
So far, so good. While the app still doesn’t pay attention to your system color theme for its Material palette, these are all pretty smart changes than enhance contrast and aid with visibility — which for an app like Personal Safety, is all the more important. And if it weren’t for one little clock, we might call this update an unambiguous win:
Well, maybe not so “little,” actually. Just like we saw with the Clock app itself, Google has a real problem right now getting the time to render in a size that makes sense. Here it’s right at the edge of actually introducing readability problems, but we think we can safely say this is not how Google intended things to appear.
It’s a little frustrating to see oversights like this when installing a new update, but all things considered, we can’t find much reason to get too bent out of shape here. Hopefully whatever Google’s working on for the Clock fix will also help here — if these even are connected at all, and we’re not just witnessing a bizarre spate of unrelated Google-app clock bugs.
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Despite what you may have heard, your Apple computer isn’t immune to malware. We’ve tested the top programs to identify the best antivirus protection for Macs.
Honor’s MagicOS might get a new beta soon. (Image source: Honor)
Honor is thought to release updated software based on the latest version of Android to go with its new Magic8 series of flagship Android smartphones. Now, its name has allegedly been confirmed in a new leak. The report also claims to reveal a general window for the release of its first-ever publicly available build.
MagicOS 10 is thought to first appear on a Mini and/or Ultra version of the next-gen Magic8 flagship smartphone, as well as more direct successors to the Magic7 and 7 Pro.
The new series is thought to start appearing in October 2025, even though the top-end Snapdragon 8 Elite-series chipset on which most of them might be based is slated to be official by September.
Now, a basis for this possible delay might have emerged. The (well-named) leaker Wangzai Know-it-All claims to have heard from Honor’s MagicOS product manager that its next public beta might not be available until September 2025.
The build is already lagging behind other Android 16-based counterparts such as HyperOS 3 and ColorOS 16 in this respect as it is. Then again, its new leak suggests that it will be made available to an appreciably large pool of testers when it is available.
Meanwhile, Digital Chat Station (another mobile tech leaker) asserts that a number of these new OS versions will be veritable iOS 26 clones with their own versions of UI features such as Liquid Glass and notification stacking.
Whether MagicOS 10 will follow this formula or not remains unknown at this time, although Wangzai Know-it-All already insists that its design language will be significantly different from that of the AI-heavy MagicOS 9 “from first glance“.
Deirdre O Donnell – Senior Tech Writer – 8645 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2018
I became a professional writer and editor shortly after graduation. My degrees are in biomedical sciences; however, they led to some experience in the biotech area, which convinced me of its potential to revolutionize our health, environment and lives in general. This developed into an all-consuming interest in more aspects of tech over time: I can never write enough on the latest electronics, gadgets and innovations. My other interests include imaging, astronomy, and streaming all the things. Oh, and coffee.
