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Summer is almost here and that means that it is rumor season for the next generation of Pixel phones from Google.  The Google Pixel 3 lineup is likely a few months away from being announced but already we are starting to get loads of rumors as to what the phones will look like and now, who will be building them.

Roland Quandt of WinFuture and MobileGeekDE took to Twitter today with a rumor that both the phones in flight for release later this year are to be built by Foxconn.

Google really is going it alone: there are two Google Pixel 3 devices in the works, both based on SDM845. One has “new display hardware”, both are built by Foxconn – not HTC, LG or whomever. Launch timeframe is Aug/Sep 2018. https://t.co/CelnTfO5IB

— Roland Quandt (@rquandt) May 30, 2018

If the rumor is true, this would be a significant shift for Google by cutting out a manufacturing partner and having the phones built directly by Foxconn for themselves.

Google’s MVNO solution, Project Fi, is expanding their lineup with the addition of two LG phones and the Moto G6.  The LG V35 ThinQ and the LG G7 ThinQ will both be available for subscribers starting in June while the Moto G6 is now available for pre-order.  These three join the current lineup of phones that support Project Fi including the Moto X4 and the Google Pixel 2 lineup.

The announcement will give subscribers to the service a budget friendly mobile in the Moto G6 which will be priced at just $199 or $8.29/month for 24 months on a payment plan.  The two LG devices will serve, as you would expect, on the flagship end of the spectrum.

While the future of Essential is a bit in doubt right now, the company has confirmed their commitment to their first phone, the Essential Phone, for at least 3 years.  The company took to Twitter and clarified that support for the PH-1 will continue with major Android release updates for two years while Android Security Updates will be supported for three years.

Doing the math from the August 2017 release of the PH-1, that means that Android P is likely the last major version of Android for the device while you can expect security patch updates through August 2019.

The latest update to the Netflix app for Android brings a lot of improvements that should make it easier to use on touchscreen Chrome OS devices as well as your Android phone or tablet.  The update, which is now in the Play Store, brings bigger controls for those using a Chromebook while everyone gets a Next Episode button and 10-second rewind and fast forward buttons too.

The update to the Netflix app is version 6.3.0 for those keeping score at home and when you start the app and play a television show or movie, the changes are immediately apparent.  For those who use a Chromebook with a touchscreen, like the Google Pixelbook, you will see much larger touch controls for starting and pausing the show, as well as the 10-second rewind or fast forward buttons on the main display.  This makes it much easier to use these controls if you are using our Chromebook, or an Android tablet, as previously these were pretty small and difficult to tap accurately.