Android Authority

With memory at a premium in 2026, the SanDisk 256GB microSD Express Card is built for people who want faster storage in a tiny card, and there’s a good Amazon deal on it right now. This model uses a PCIe/NVMe interface instead of standard UHS-I tech, which is why it stands out for portable gaming, apps, and media work. See the deal at Amazon

Amazon has dropped the Hisense 65-inch U7 Mini-LED Google TV to $847.99, down from its $1,499.99 RRP. That saves you $652, which is a 43% discount relative to the recommended retail price, and it brings the TV back to its Prime Day price, matching the all-time low. See the deal at Amazon

Keeping an eye on a place without Wi-Fi or nearby power can be a real pain, especially for places like farms, cabins, RVs, and job sites. That is exactly where the Reolink 2K Plus 4G LTE Cellular Security Camera fits in, and it is now on sale at Amazon for $152.98. See the deal at Amazon

TL;DR Galaxy Z Fold 8 demand is reportedly outpacing Samsung’s expectations. A Display Driver IC (DDI) shortage is now putting pressure on Fold 8 production. Samsung is tapping future DDI reserves to keep making current Fold 8 units. Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra just became the best-selling Android phone globally in Q2 2026, while the regular Galaxy S26 also cracked the top 10. Now, Samsung has another phone that people apparently want more than it expected — so much so that the company is repor

Credit: Joe Maring / Android Authority TL;DR Google updated the Now Playing app with subtle interface tweaks. It’s also moving closer to restoring Now Playing notifications, which it removed earlier this year. We have spotted Now Playing’s upcoming support for secondary user accounts on Pixel devices. Beyond that, a sync feature for Now Playing history is in the works. Now Playing is a Pixel-exclusive feature with few haters, but Google managed to rile up users when it refashioned it as a s

TL;DR HUAWEI’s Mate XT 2 has just gone up for pre-order in China, giving us a decent idea about its design elements and other changes. One of the biggest changes from the original Mate XT is the way the device folds: the new model uses an inward-folding mechanism that keeps the inner screen protected at all times. Pricing information is currently unavailable, though we know the Mate XT 2 will be available with up to 16GB of RAM, and 512GB and 1TB of storage options. While standard foldable p

Credit: Joe Maring / Android Authority TL;DR Android 17 QPR2 Beta 4 adds a dedicated “Data logging” menu for Private Compute Core within Privacy Dashboard. Users can toggle logging between Limited (up to three days/100MB) and Detailed (up to 12 hours/100MB) tiers, download logs, or delete them. Google rolled out Android 17 QPR2 Beta 4, and alongside several under-the-hood tweaks, it introduces a major transparency upgrade for how the OS handles sensitive on-device data. The new release adds

Sometimes, upgrading to the latest smartphone is a simple process. A lot of us look at the phone we have now, and if we liked it, we look for the newest version of the same thing: probably more powerful, likely introducing a couple new features, and hopefully not costing too much more. But the market doesn’t always make things so simple for us, and this year with Google’s new Pixel 11 series, some shoppers might want to take a long, hard look at exactly what those upgrades offer — and what Googl

TL;DR Xtream Player v1.4.0 adds games such as Chess and Connect 4 for Premium users, with more planned. The update also brings new icons, YouTube Music improvements, and several playback fixes across Free and Premium versions. The developer is already working on phone-to-car YouTube playback and a proper EPG guide, with another update expected this weekend. Waiting in a parked car while someone runs into a shop is hardly the most exciting way to spend a few minutes. That familiar scenario ap

Credit: Joe Maring / Android Authority TL;DR Android 17 QPR2 Beta 4 improves the process of granting apps permission to install other apps with a new inline dialog, eliminating the need to leave the active app. The update also adds one-time install permissions that are automatically revoked once the APK has finished installing. Users retain the ability to grant apps permanent permissions to install other apps. Google released Android 17 QPR2 Beta 4 last week, bringing new additions such as

TL;DR Android 17 QPR2 Beta 4 update includes new Settings menu options to control the visibility of status bar icons. Users can individually control system or notification-related icons in the status bar. Multiple smartphone makers, including Samsung and OnePlus, already offer a similar option to hide icons in the status bar. Android 17 QPR2 Beta 4 landed over the weekend, and we’re gradually learning what’s new with the update. In July, we uncovered evidence in an Android Canary release sug

Credit: Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority TL;DR Google is adding a new privacy dashboard to track AI agents installed and running on your phone. In addition to agents created with Spark, Android 17 should allow you to track ones using third-party services. This appears to be part of Android’s upcoming Privacy Dashboard for AI activities on your device. Agentic workflows are the next big thing in AI, letting users hand off elaborate tasks to assistants like Gemini, ChatGPT, and Claude to h

TL;DR Some Google Messages users say old texts from unrelated conversations are unexpectedly resurfacing. Reports span multiple Pixel and Samsung phones. In some cases, those messages appear to be sent alongside new texts or images, raising serious privacy concerns. Google Messages is getting some welcome attention with custom chat themes and selective text copying finally becoming available, but the app’s recent run of bugs is taking some shine off those additions. Besides broken RCS messag

Three months after Samsung launched the three mainline Galaxy S25 models, it followed up with a fourth offering: the Galaxy S25 Edge. By all indications, Samsung released the ultra-thin Galaxy S25 Edge to get ahead of the iPhone Air, and it almost worked. The Galaxy S25 Edge came with better specs and fewer compromises than the iPhone Air, but one year later, Samsung’s slim flagship has no successor in sight. It’s easily the brand’s worst phone of 2025, and seems destined to be forgotten as a qu

I’ll admit that for the last few years, I’ve been pretty lazy about testing new weather apps. I’ve almost exclusively used a combination of Samsung Weather or Pixel Weather alongside AccuWeather. Ready for something new, I decided to dive into the alternatives. What I was looking for was something that bridged the gap between the two services. That meant something easy to jump into, with a fair amount of customization, and a reputation for accuracy. Ultimately, I found two apps that best fit wha

Credit: C. Scott Brown / Android Authority TL;DR Code in One UI 9 Beta 7 indicates Google and Samsung plan to bring Scam Detection to the upcoming Galaxy S27 lineup. The feature could also expand to the Galaxy S25 series, Galaxy Z Fold 7, Galaxy Z Flip 7, and Galaxy Z TriFold. The code also mentions the “s5e9975” (Exynos 2700) alongside a Qualcomm chip, signaling that Samsung may retain its dual-chipset strategy for 2027 flagships. Scam Detection started off as a Pixel-exclusive feature whe

Google Clock might come preinstalled on several Android phones, but it’s not necessarily the best in its class. It’s not a particularly great alarm app, nor does it offer the range of timing features that more specialized apps do. It lurks somewhere in the middle, and its accessibility is the primary reason many use it. However, with just a few minor tweaks and upgrades, Google Clock could easily grow into one of Google’s gems. Looking over the fence at the host of other timing and alarm apps av

Credit: Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority TL;DR Snapseed is the first app to implement the new location metadata API in Android’s Photo Picker. When you use the Photo Picker to choose an image in Snapseed, it’ll now ask whether you want to include the picture’s location info. This is a welcome move as it gives users greater control over sensitive metadata. Google recently announced a major improvement to Android’s Photo Picker. The photo picker will allow users to choose whether to keep or

I wasn’t expecting much from the Pixel 11 Pro. I didn’t plan to buy the phone, let alone love it. In fact, the original idea for this article was to discuss how Google hasn’t earned the right to make small iterations of its phones the way Samsung and Apple have, and that I was going to keep my Pixel 10 Pro. In the end, I changed my mind, and after almost a week with my Pixel 11 Pro, I can say that Google has (barely) done enough this year, and I’m glad I upgraded.

Credit: Joe Maring / Android Authority TL;DR Android 17 QPR2 Beta 4, which was released last week, brings an easier way to broadcast your voice over a private network. The new Audio broadcast feature expands Pixels’ existing Auracast-based media-sharing features to transmit audio over Bluetooth LE Audio. While the feature was introduced last month, it is now much easier to access. Google is in the final legs of testing Android 17 QPR2 Beta before a significant feature drop for Pixels in Sep