Droid Life: Opinionated Android news.

It’s Official: Google Assistant is Dead, Replaced by Gemini

Kellen March 14, 2025 17

We knew this would happen at some point, but I'm still not sure anyone (including Google) is ready - Google Assistant is going away this year with Gemini taking its place. Google made the announcement today, confirming that Gemini is the future of your on-...

Samsung March Updates Hit Galaxy S23 Series, Fold 6, Flip 6, More

Kellen March 14, 2025 1

As we patiently wait the arrival of One UI 7 updates on almost all Samsung devices, we have a March update landing for now. Samsung is pushing the March patch to several devices this week, including the Galaxy S23 series and almost all of their still-supported...

New RCS Universal Profile 3.0 Adds End-to-End Encryption, Apple and Google Both Included

Kellen March 14, 2025 9

From the moment that RCS went live in iOS 18 and the world of iPhone owners joined the party that we've had over here on Android, there has been one missing piece to make this a truly great cross-platform messaging experience. I'm talking about end-to-end...

Android 16 Beta 3 Adds “Battery Health” Section

Kellen March 13, 2025 8

The latest Android 16 Beta 3 may lack any major features you would want to play with immediately, but there is a new section in the Battery settings area that might tell you how well your battery is holding up. We have a new "Battery health" section and it's...

Android Could Soon Get AI-Powered Notification Summary Feature

Tim March 13, 2025 2

As evidenced in the latest beta for Android 16, Google is currently working on a new feature for Android, though, it's unclear when it will launch. Dug up by Mishaal Rahman, the feature is labeled as Notification Summaries, taking your communication-based...

Google Pushes Initial Fix for Chromecast 2nd Gen and Audio Outage

Kellen March 13, 2025 3

The Chromecast (2nd Gen) and Chromecaset Audio outage that kicked off earlier in the week across the globe will soon come to an end. Google shared today that it has started to roll out a fix for the problem, at least for those who didn't factory reset their...

Android 16 Beta 3 Available for Pixel Devices

Kellen March 13, 2025 2

Android 16 in beta form has landed on a major milestone today by reaching platform stability. Android 16 Beta 3 is here and brings us one step closer to a stable release over the coming months, likely at Google I/O in May. Pixel device owners, you can now...

T-Mobile Continues Raising Prices on Older Plans, Up to $5 Per Line

Kellen March 13, 2025 27

T-Mobile informed a new round of customers on some of their older (and best) plans that they would be raising prices on April 2. The move copies similar increases from Verizon and AT&T in recent months, in that it blames "rising costs" for the increase and...

Galaxy Z TriFold Sells Out Quick in South Korea, Even With High Price Tag

Tim December 12, 2025 27

We shouldn't be surprised, folks. Samsung launched the Galaxy Z TriFold this week in its home country of South Korea, with in...

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YouTube TV Will Offer 10 Genre-Specific Plans in 2026

Tim December 10, 2025 27

More choice and more flexibility. That's what everyone has been clamoring for lately. If you'll recall, YouTube TV used to be...

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December Pixel Watch Update Rolls Out to Pixel Watch 2 and Above

Kellen December 9, 2025 27

Google announced new features for the Pixel Watch 3 and Pixel Watch 4 this morning, but didn't tell us exactly how those...

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Pixel Watch 4 Updates Bring New Gestures, Smarter Smart Replies

Kellen December 9, 2025 27

The Pixel Watch 4 is seeing its own little Feature Drop this morning with a handful of new features. Google is adding a...

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Google Sends First Big Update to Android XR and Galaxy XR With PC Connect, More

Kellen December 8, 2025 27

Google finished hosting the latest in "The Android Show" today and the topic at hand was Android XR. We knew this show was...

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Samsung Launches One UI 8.5 Beta on Galaxy S25 Ultra

Kellen December 8, 2025 27

The signs suggesting that Samsung was about to release One UI 8.5 in some form were there, like this massive changelog and a...

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Samsung Pulls Out Galaxy S25 Ultra Deal I’ve Never Seen Before

Kellen December 7, 2025 27

Even with last weekend well behind us, there are still Cyber Week deals to be had through places like Samsung. They appear to...

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Google Added 9 Sweet New Features to Your Pixel in Big Update

Kellen December 2, 2025 27

Following the release of several beta builds over a number of months, Google released Android 16 QPR2 today in stable as the...

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Google’s Latest Ad Pokes at iPhone for Copying Its Features, iPhone 17 Rumors

Kellen May 6, 2025 17

The iPhone 17 won't arrive for months, likely after Google releases its Pixel 10 series. For the most part, all talk around...

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Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro Unboxing and Tour!

Kellen October 11, 2023 17

Some of you have been lucky enough to receive your Pixel 8 or Pixel 8 Pro pre-orders a day early, thanks to Google's wildly...

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Pixel Watch 2 Unboxing and Tour!

Kellen October 11, 2023 17

The Pixel Watch 2 has been on my wrist for a full week and my list of notes has only grown. I've tested sleep tracking, put...

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Video: Galaxy Z Flip 5, Z Fold 5 Unboxing!

Tim July 27, 2023 17

Samsung was gracious enough to send us its latest foldables devices, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Galaxy Z Fold 5. Naturally,...

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Google Pixel 7a Unboxing and Tour!

Kellen May 10, 2023 17

Because the Google Pixel 7a is available today for you to run out and buy at $499, you may not want to wait around for our...

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VIDEO: Galaxy S23 Ultra Unboxing!

Tim February 3, 2023 17

Unboxing time, baby! We have the Galaxy S23 Ultra in-house, a bit before they're set to make their way to buyers later this...

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Pixel 7 Pro: First 10 Things to Do!

Tim October 13, 2022 17

Fancy new Pixel 7 or Pixel 7 Pro just show up at your doorstep? Perfect, then this video is for you. As is tradition, we've...

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Pixel Watch: First 10 Things To Do!

Kellen October 13, 2022 17

The day that most of you will receive your Google Pixel Watch from pre-orders is here. It's time for you to slap Google's...

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