Tag: Android

After an update rolled out to the app late last week, several users are reporting that notifications in Android Messages is no longer working.  The update in question is version 2.5.207 users are reporting that the SMS/MMS app simply stops giving notifications and there is no way to enable them again.  Indeed, the app will indicate that notifications are enabled but none are given to users.

The problem appears to be widespread.  Multiple reviews within the Google Play Store indicate that notifications have quit working across multiple devices and Android flavors.

OnePlus has begun the process of releasing core apps within OxygenOS, their version of Android, to the Google Play Store.  This allows for the apps to be developed independent of OS releases which, in turn, makes updates faster on the apps while concentrating the major system releases on new features and fixes.

This step is very similar to what Google themselves have been doing over the past 18 months and other manufactures such as Samsung and Huawei have been doing recently too.

A new update to Google Fit for Android is rolling out with several new features and enhancements.  The update is version 1.73 for those keeping score at home and most of the updates are aimed at improving your workout experience and summaries.

The most visible change in the update is the redesigned workout mode and you can now review summaries of past activities on your Android Wear device.  With Android Wear devices, you can now hear spoken announcements while you are running too.

T-Mobile has released an update for the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge on their network that is aimed at improving roaming on the devices.  Build G930TUVU4BQH7  for the S7 and build G935TUVU4BQH7 for the S7 Edge are the updates you are looking for on these respective devices and they should be hitting your device over the course of the next few days.

The biggest change in this smallish 200MB update is improved IMS Roaming.  What is IMS Roaming you ask?  Essentially it is an interconnect between T-Mobile and other carriers to allow you to make VoLTE calls, video calls and media sessions to someone on another carrier in another country.  It isn’t super sexy and unless you do international travel, it isn’t a big deal frankly.  But it is good to see T-Mobile improving support for it (and Samsung for that matter).

After being leaked a couple of days ago along with a slew of other leaks, the Google trade-in program for the Google Pixel is now live at the Google Store.  The program allows you to trade in previous Google Nexus phones, LG, Samsung, and iPhones to get a credit towards the purchase of a new Google Pixel or Pixel XL.

With the new Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL only a few weeks away, it is a little surprising to see Google open this program up now.  The assumption was that it would start when the next generation phones were announced.

As for the value that you get, it largely depends on how new your phone is and its condition.  For example, if I wanted to trade in my Nexus 6P with 64GB of storage, I would get back $155 since it is in working condition and doesn’t have a broken screen.  If I trade in my wife’s iPhone SE 128GB, that would get me $87.

Good news this afternoon for those of you who, like me, have the Lenovo Yoga Book.  The long awaited update to Android Nougat is now available.  The 1.39GB update is build YB1-X90F_17902 for those keeping score at home and brings a lot of updates and changes beyond the Nougat update.  The OTA is rolling out now and should be hitting devices over the course of the next few days.

The Nougat update for the Yoga Book was planned by Lenovo but it was not slated to hit until October.

First, Android Nougat.  The Yoga Book update takes it to Nougat 7.1.1 so you have all of the benefits that it brings.  It is also updated to the June 2017 Android Security Patch.  That’s not so great but hopefully it’ll get updated soon.