Author: Clinton

There is a new update for the Android Messages app for Android rolling out in the Play Store today.  Frankly there isn’t anything very interesting about the update from a user perspective but what is in the code is quite interesting.  It appears that there is code now in the app that would allow for a Allo-like web experience for Messages.  This could allow for sending and receiving of text messages from your desktop.

The code was discovered by the team over at Android Police in a tear down of the new version of the app.  It appears that, like Allo, you will scan a QR code to sync your computer with your phone and be able to send and receive messages on both.  This feature isn’t something new.  Google Hangouts still has this feature if you are a Project Fi user and use Hangouts as your SMS app (SMS in Hangouts isn’t supported anymore outside of Fi).  Instead, it would be a return of a feature and that is a great thing.

There is little doubt that Google is on a mission to add Google Assistant to all the things.  That, now apparently, includes your Chromebook.  A new merged commit in the Chromium Gerrit suggest that Google Assistant flags will be coming to Chrome OS.  This means that any device on the platform, assuming it meets performance specs, could potentially have Assistant a tap away.

Right now Google Assistant on Chrome OS is exclusive to the Google Pixelbook.  For that device, a specific build, which enables Google Assistant, is provided each time there is a build update on the platform.  But, according to this commit, a flag option could be made available to enable it on any device.

In their continuing effort to keep end users safe and aware when they are visiting a non-secure website, Google has announced that starting in July 2018, these sites will be clearly identified in the Chrome browser.  The change will coincide with the release of Chrome 68 and will be across all platforms as well as Chrome OS.  A non-secure website is noted as http:// when you visit the site while a secure, encrypted site is noted as https:// in the URL.

The official announcement should not come as a surprise.  Google has already been urging sites to move to secure deployments with changes in how page ranking is done for secure versus non-secure sites.  This is the culmination of that effort.

Microsoft Skype has a new update rolling out in the Play Store today that brings improved audio controls to the messaging and communications apps.  The new build is version 8.15.04 for those keeping score at home.

In this new update, you can now switch between your audio sources while in a call.  You can switch between your phone’s build-in speaker/microphone, a wired or Bluetooth device without having to drop the call.  As you switch, you will lose a couple of seconds of audio, especially when moving to a Bluetooth connected device.  This new flexibility should make it easier to start a call while at your office, then move it to your car’s Bluetooth speakers so you can continue the call on your way home.

A new commit in the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) Gerrit suggests that a change could be coming to the LTE signal bars in Android P.  The commit suggest that carriers would be able to manipulate how this is displayed on devices to be more specific to them an not quite as generic as they are today.

Before the conspiracy theorists out there start to percolate, let’s be clear:  The carriers would not be able to hide the signal strength bars nor manipulate them in a why that gives false information.  Google doesn’t allow that to happen already and has reinforced it with other commits for Android P.  No, this change would give carriers the ability to change how the LTE bars are displayed to be more accurate for their coverage in a specific area.

After months of testing and teasing, the Android Oreo update for the Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+ are starting to roll out.  The update brings Samsung Experience 9, the company’s skin on top of Oreo, to the 2017 flagship devices and weighs in at 487MB.  Right now, it appears that the release has only happened on the unlocked variants of the phones in Europe.  No indication on if it has hit US users yet but it will likely be soon.  Also keep in mind that beta testers will be the first to get the update so if you did not participate, you have a bit longer to wait.

Public beta testing of the Oreo build on the Samsung Galaxy S8 lineup began last November with the beta period ending January 15th of this year.