Tag: Android

While the future of the company may be in question, there is no question that Essential is on top of their game when it comes to updates.  The same day that Google released the July Android Security Update, yesterday, the California company has released their update with the security patches for the Essential Phone.

The new build is OPM1.180104.267 and it is already rolling out to PH-1 owners, bringing the security patch as well as stability improvements for Android Auto.  If you have an Essential Phone, you can manually check for the update in Settings as it should be ready to roll for everyone.

Google Keep, Google’s note taking and checklist app, has a new update rolling out in the Play Store today.  Version 5.0.251.04.40 is the updated build for those keeping score at home and it brings support for grid and ruled lines for drawings.

Keep has always supported drawing but grid lines to help you keep lines straight and the like wasn’t there.  It was added a few weeks back to the online version of the note taking app and now has made it to the mobile version too.

The fourth Developer Preview and 3rd beta of Android P has been released to those in the Android Beta Program today.  The update is a few days later than expected.  According to the timeline Google published when Android P was announced, Developer Preview 4 was slated for a late June release.

The update is just under 300 MB and is already rolling out to those who have devices registered in the Beta Program.  I currently have my Google Pixel XL in the program and the OTA update has already been received and installed.  As far as new things are concerned, you won’t find much.  There are a tweaks here and there throughout the build but no major feature changes.

As expected, the July 2018 Android Security Update patches were released this morning by Google.  As a general rule, the Mountain View company releases the monthly updates on the first Monday of the first full week of each month.

This month’s update consists of two patches, one dated July 1, 2018 while the second is dated July 5, 2018.  The first patch consists of 11 patches, 3 of which are considered critical updates.  This July 1st patch is generally aimed at Android as a platform itself while the second patch is more device specific drivers and fixes.

T-Mobile has become the last US carrier to release the Android Oreo update for the LG G6.  Build H87220a rolled out to a small group of users last week but has now begun rolling out broadly to T-Mobile customers with the 2017 flagship phone.

To check for the update, go to Settings>About Phone>Update Center>System Update and check for the update there.  Keep in mind that it is still rolling out so it could well take another day or two before it lands on your phone.

T-Mobile, who generally is one of the first to release software updates, has taken their time on this one.  AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon have all released the update, in some cases nearly two months ago, so it is unclear why it took T-Mobile so long.

The new Moto G6 Play, one of the newest phones in Amazon’s Play lineup, is now available and already discounted.  Normally the 5.7″ phone is $199 but right now Amazon has it down to $189.  Hey, ten bucks is ten bucks, right?

The G6 Play is the entry level of the G6 lineup and is powered by the Snapdragon 430 SoC, has 3GB of RAM and comes with 32GB of storage.  That storage can be expanded up to an additional 256GB thanks to the MicroSD slot built into the phone.  All-in-all, not bad for a sub-$200 phone.