Mishaal's Android News Feed

Google is bringing Gemini Nano to even more Android phones. Motorola is the latest manufacturer to get Google's Gemini Nano AI model on one of its phones. Now the question is: When will Google bring Gemini Nano with multimodality to other phones? 🤔

The Google Home app is starting to show some devices connected through Google's Find My Device service, like the Pixel Buds Pro 2 and Pixel Watch 3. Currently, the devices just appear as "offline," but this suggests we might be getting some more FMD integration in Google Home. Thanks to Anh on Discord and Joe Lenington on X for the screenshots!

Pebblebee has launched a trio of new item trackers that are compatible with both Apple's Find My and Google's Find My Device networks! The Pebblebee Universal Card, Clip, and Tag are now available for $34.99. Here's everything you need to know.

You probably heard about Epic's latest lawsuit against Google, which alleges they were involved in the decision to make Samsung's Auto Blocker feature be enabled by default in the latest version of One UI. (Auto Blocker, if you aren't aware, is a feature…

You probably heard about Epic's latest lawsuit against Google, which alleges they were involved in the decision to make Samsung's Auto Blocker feature be enabled by default in the latest version of One UI. (Auto Blocker, if you aren't aware, is a feature that, when enabled, blocks sideloading apps from outside the Google Play Store or Samsung Galaxy Store.) Google is now coming out to say that Epic's lawsuit is a "meritless and dangerous move" and that they did not request Samsung create their Auto Blocker feature. Google goes on to state that "Android device makers are free to innovate and design additional safety features for their devices." I find the use of the word "create" in Google's statement to be interesting. Epic didn't allege that Google made Samsung create the Auto Blocker feature but rather made them turn it on by default. However, Epic admitted that they don't yet have any proof that there was any collusion. We'll have to see how things go in court. Edit: And here's Samsung's statement, via The Verge: Contrary to Epic Game’s assertions, Samsung actively fosters market competition, enhances consumer choice, and conducts its operations fairly. The features integrated into our devices are designed in accordance with Samsung’s core principles of security, privacy, and user control, and we remain fully committed to safeguarding users’ personal data. Users have the choice to disable Auto Blocker at any time. We plan to vigorously contest Epic Game’s baseless claims.

The Xiaomi 14T and 14T Pro are Xiaomi's first phones to support dual eSIM! This means you can enable multiple SIM profiles of them even though they only have a single eSIM chip. This is possible because they support Multiple Enabled Profiles, a feature introduced in Android 13. For the full list of Android phones that support dual eSIM, check out this article.

Here's the Android 16 news I was ACTUALLY teasing today: Google may release Android 16 much earlier than expected. Evidence and sources point towards a release happening in Q2 - not Q3 - of 2025! Details + evidence can be found in my latest article on Android Authority.

The Android 16 codename has been revealed, and it isn't a dessert that starts with the letter W! That might seem odd since Android 14's codename was Upside Down Cake & Android 15's was Vanilla Ice Cream, but the reason why makes sense once you read it.

Google is rolling out a new Quick Settings tile that lets you quickly open the Google Wallet app on any page! The reason this tile is needed is because some OEMs removed the AOSP Wallet Quick Settings tile as well as the Quick Access Wallet feature. And since Google Wallet itself didn't provide its own QS tile until now, you'd need to manually open the app or add a lock screen shortcut (if possible). With the dedicated Google Wallet tile, though, you can open Wallet from any page. You'll need to authenticate to open it from the lock screen, though. This tile has rolled out to at least one user, but I don't see it yet on my devices. According to the "what's new in Google System Updates" page, you'll need Google Play Services v24.33 or later for this feature, though it seems to be rolling out as part of a server-side update. Thanks to Petro on Discord for the tip!

The Google Gemini app is rolling out multi-window support on Android! On select large screen devices like the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, you'll see a handle at the top of the Gemini overlay. You can drag this overlay to open Gemini in split-screen mode or a floating window. This feature was announced at I/O 2024 and highlighted at Samsung Unpacked in July, but I haven't seen any reports of it rolling out until a few days ago. LMK if you have it! (Thnaks to LordServerReset on X for the tip!)

Vivo is rolling out an Android 15 update to some of its phones, making it the first company to do so. Is this really a big deal? No, but typically Google is always first. This time they've chosen to delay the update for Pixel phones to make it more stable…

Xiaomi wants its phones to work better with Windows PCs, so they're integrating Microsoft's Link to Windows app on their new Xiaomi 14T series. Here's what this integration enables.