After months of beta testing, this week Google released Android 13, which might not feel too different for those in the Pixel line. Android 13 does a number of minor things, including updating the media player, introducing support for Bluetooth LE Audio, and building on the monochrome launcher icons introduced in last year’s Pixel Launcher. Android 13 [also] continues Google’s work to optimize the operating system for tablets and foldables. The taskbar now has app suggestions and a drawer to quickly access all your apps and open them in split-screen mode via drag and drop. In fact, multi-window is now enabled by default for all apps. However, those that have not been updated can benefit from the mailbox compatibility feature. One particularly notable aspect of the Android 13 update is that it includes an important security update for owners of the Pixel 6 series. Unfortunately, Google considers this issue serious enough that it’s actually impossible to downgrade back to Android 12 once you’ve received the update. Google has offered some additional details for those who want to modify their Android devices. This is an unusual move on Google’s part, but the reason for the change is a new bootloader update that “increases the anti-roll back version”. Google has implemented this security measure in Android for several years, generally to prevent exploits from older software versions from being applied to devices. In other Pixel news, it looks like Google’s fall hardware event is getting closer to reality as the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro hit the FCC. The new public listings tell us that, just like last year, Google is including UWB connectivity, but only on the Pixel 7 Pro. Both phones should also be available in models with and without mmWave 5G. We believe the Pixel 7 Pro is GP4BC with only Sub-6 connectivity, while the GE2AE (which also includes the GFE4J on the e-label’s FCC list) has mmWave. These two listings advertise the presence of ultra-wideband (UWB), with Google keeping that feature for the Pro phone for another year. So far, Google is using UWB for “precise ranging and spatial orientation” with Nearby Share and later digital car keys. Over the past week, Samsung has been steadily reducing its prices for customers looking to upgrade from the Galaxy Z Flip 3 to the Z Flip 4. Where any of the phone’s three models — 128GB, 256GB, and Bespoke — would initially set you back $900 trade, now worth $700, $800 and $900 respectively. While the Galaxy Z Flip 3 future trade-in credits appear to have been reduced, the change doesn’t appear to be retroactive. At least one user has confirmed that their order is still showing the full $900 credit on a 128GB trade-in. We also exclusively reported this week that Google’s latest path to bringing Face Unlock to the Pixel 6 series — and possibly even the Pixel 7 — involves using your fingerprint. From what we’re told, if your face is sufficiently recognized by the camera, your Pixel will accept a less confident — and therefore much faster — fingerprint scan. However, it begs the question, should Google just use a better under-display fingerprint sensor? This new approach isn’t really face unlock in the way most people think it is, if you still have to place your finger on the screen. If anything, this approach better serves the Pixel 6’s below-average fingerprint recognition speed with the under-display sensor compared to other devices like the Galaxy S22 series and other flagship Android devices.
The rest of this week’s top stories follow:
Android 13 |
Apps & Updates |
Chrome / OS |
Powered by Google |
Samsung |
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