The Tensor G5 came out this year in the new Pixel 10 line, and an earlier codename leak suggested that Google may opt to cut corners to keep the price in check for the 10a. This phone is now expected to reuse Pixel 9’s Tensor G4, which also came with last year’s Pixel 9a.

Looking at how the Pixel “A-series” stacks up against other devices in its price range, the phone could be a tough sell with an older chipset, which was already weaker than other SoCs that came out around its time.

This time, Mystic Leaks (via Telegram) has posted some spec data for the Pixel 10a (codenamed “stallion”). Another area that the Pixel 10a will miss is UFS 4.0. The phone is listed to get a base 128GB storage option, at UFS 3.1. The display is listed to come with a peak brightness of 2,000 nits.

At this point, the Pixel 10a doesn’t look too exciting, but at the same time, it will be interesting to see how Google goes ahead with making this a competitive sell.

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In a tweet, Google has teased the new feature:

Pixel10 has you covered on and off the grid. Pixel devices will be the first to offer voice and video calls on WhatsApp over a satellite network starting 8/28.

The post also shows a brief demo video where you can make calls without a mobile connection. The caveat, however, is that the service will only be available to select carriers.

As of now, most phones only come with an emergency-only satellite messaging service, but Google has partnered up with Meta to push a bit further into bringing this level of practical communication. When you make a call through this method, you will see a satellite icon in the status bar.

At this point, services like T-Satellite only provide SMS and MMS, while others like Apple only offer the ability to send texts over iMessage, both only for emergency SOS.

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Xiaomi will only phase out support for legacy devices; the decision is seemingly linked to the EU’s RED directive

The new provisions of the European RED directive were put into effect earlier this month, which caused quite an uproar in the Android enthusiast community, as it legally gave phone makers the power to limit bootloader unlocks. Though these claims were later found to be exaggerated, industry patterns say otherwise.

A leak earlier this month revealed that Samsung will also be cutting off the option to unlock the bootloader in OneUI 8, as part of meeting stringent compliance deadlines. In the U.S., the South Korean OEM didn’t allow for tinkering with the software. But now, the regulation extends to outside the region, and it comes at a similar time to Xiaomi’s end of legacy bootloader support.

We’ve seen a similar trend when HUAWEI blocked access to custom ROMs by cutting off official bootloader unlock support. Users then turned to third-party, risky avenues, which the manufacturer can not audit. At least, now, the company has a licensing system to keep the unlocks in check, though with heavy limitations.

In the enthusiast scene within the Android community, Xiaomi devices were once seen as the go-to phones, that just worked, with third-party ROMs or unofficial mods. It was one of the company’s strong suits, especially with solid hardware in its budget and mid-tier devices. That seems to be changing now, especially when the company moved to a licensing system a few years ago.

This change would affect some of the company’s iconic device lines, with the likes of Redmi Note (Note 6 and later) and the Mi Max series. The affected devices include those running MIUI (12, 13, 14) and HyperOS 1.

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The upcoming Pixel 10 is reported to come with a heap load of Gemini-powered camera features. Using on-device AI, Google will now allow you to edit photos using text or voice prompts. It doesn’t require you to have previous knowledge of editing photos, just a simple prompt, and wait for the AI to work its magic.

You can tell Gemini to either make your photos brighter, remove objects, or fix the blur on certain parts. All of the aforementioned editing tools aren’t new per se, but now they won’t require you to “know” what or how to edit.

Gemini may give real-time suggestions via “Camera Coach” on taking better photos

Not only this, but the new Pixel will also come with “camera coach,” which will guide you through taking better photos, when you pull up the camera app, in real-time. It’ll also be coaching you through choosing the best lighting, adjusting framing, or the camera angles.

At the moment, we don’t have more information on how this “coaching” will work, or how fast it’ll give suggestions. But it’s interesting to see Google diving headfirst into using AI to play to its strengths. The Pixel 10 comes out on August 20th, at the “Made by Google” event, and will be available to pre-order the same day.

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Notification summaries are finally coming to Android later this year, though they might be Pixel-exclusive at launch. They are expected to summarize conversation messages only and will work in a more conservative manner than what we’ve seen from others.

Apple’s implementation of notification summaries came under fire recently after users found it to be inconsistent, and at times, plain wrong, especially with shorter messages or news articles. Google is sidestepping this entirely by limiting the summaries to conversations only, that too larger than a set limit.

Mishaal Rahman of Android Authority has given details as to what filters Google will use to make it blend in. First, it will only work with longer messages, specifically those that are in the 25-200 word range, with a maximum of 50 summaries per day.

Other than this, notifications for news and other entertainment channels will not be summarised as they can potentially be misinterpreted. Google understands that summaries using genAI may not be entirely accurate, which is why it also includes a disclaimer when enabling the feature: “Summaries are AI-powered and may contain errors.“

In the QPR1 beta updates for Android 16, industry insiders also spotted other features like “notification bundling.” They work by reading a stack of missed notifications and sorting them into one of the four categories: promotions, news, social, and recommendations.

Google may introduce this feature as a Pixel Drop before pushing it to other devices, potentially to only those that support Gemini Nano locally.

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Google to bring built-in magnets to Pixel 10 as part of its “Pixelsnap” magnetic charging ecosystem

Even though Apple donated its MagSafe technology to the Wireless Power Consortium in early 2023, no Android phones support it. There is mounting evidence that a heap of phones may choose to opt in, with this leak showing the Pixels to be in the front row.

It has recently been reported that Google may bring some Qi2 accessories with the launch of the next Pixel, calling it the “Pixelsnap.” It reportedly has a standalone charger, a charger with a stand, and a ring stand to go along with the Pixel 10’s Qi2 support.

In a separate leak, the Pixel 10 is reported to be slightly thicker, which may strengthen the case of magnets baked into the phone. Suffice it to say, if it does happen, the Pixels would be the first mainstream phone to bring MagSafe to Android.

With Qi2 charging, phones wouldn’t have to rely on external cases. Samsung’s S25, Z Fold 7, and Z Flip 7 are all “Qi2 ready,” but they require an external case to supply the magnets to charge the phone. Not to mention, Qi2 has bumped up the maximum charging speeds to 25W this year, which may come as an additional selling point to devices opting into this ecosystem.

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Evan Blass (@evleaks) has shared the new CAD renders for the Z Flip 7 on X, which corroborate the previous claim of a larger outer screen, and also show the new, thinner chassis. There has already been some discussion about Samsung reducing the side thickness of the larger ‘Fold,’ specifically from 12.1mm to 8.9mm.

While the book-style Folds have received their fair share of size reduction over the past few years, the Flips have been left behind. Even in these renders, there is no confirmation of the size changing, but what is being said is that, looking at the older Flip 6, and comparing the new renders side by side, there is a visible difference in the size above and below the SIM card tray on both phones.

The Z Flip 7 is also expected to come with Samsung’s in-house Exynos 2500, based on the 3nm process node. It will also be interesting to see how this SoC fares against the much more popular option of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite series of chipsets.

This is all we know for now, but rest assured that we will keep you updated as new information becomes available.

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You may be used to seeing a somewhat symmetrical layout for the camera lens on the backside of your phone. But, that is probably going out the window for the Phone (3), which places two cameras side by side, with another slightly above and towards the left of the pair.

An interesting choice from Nothing was phasing out the Glyph Interface (or as it seems). Instead, there’s this circular display on the top right-hand side. This comes in line with a tweet from Nothing that is reminiscent of what could go into this display. Nothing is calling it the “Glyph Matrix.”

Nothing usually banks on bold choices for its devices, which is one of their major selling points as well. They were one of the first to fully embrace the concept of lighting on the backside of a somewhat transparent glass, and now, with an unconventional design choice, they’re opting for an even bolder one.

The Phone (3) comes out July 1st, and it remains to be seen if these leaks hold any weight.

This is all we know for now, but rest assured that we will keep you updated as new information becomes available.

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This Year’s Pixel Fold Sees Subtle Design Changes; SIM Tray Moves, but Tensor G5 Is the One to Watch

See, Google has stuck with a consistent design for its Pixel phones ever since the Pixel 6 came out. In the foldable segment, too, it looks like the Mountain View tech giant is eyeing a similar strategy. Courtesy of Android Authority, the first renders are here, and they don’t look too different from the Fold’s predecessor.

Neither the internal specifications not the dimensions are mentioned, but we do know that the phone will launch this Summer, along with the rest of the Pixel line. For the changes, there’s one: the SIM card tray has moved up top, like with the Pixel 9a.

Other than that, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, codenamed “Rango,” will also house Google’s much-hyped Tensor G5. The SoC will be fabricated on TSMC’s 4nm process node and is expected will come with a notable performance jump, enough to compete with Android’s top-of-the-line Snapdragon counterparts.

For the price, there are no concrete rumors at the moment, but the Android Authority has mentioned citing “sources” that the foldable may see a modest price reduction this year. The Pixel 9 Pro Fold came with an MSRP of $1,799, and did get its fair share of criticism for keeping the launch price high. But, with internal upgrades and a heap of AI on the Pixel Fold, the phone may have the potential to sell more volume.

This is all we know for now, but rest assured that we will keep you updated as new information becomes available.

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Shielded Email Will Automatically Suggest to Use an Alias When You Open a Sign-Up Page

This alias lets you generate a random Gmail address that forwards all incoming emails to your personal inbox. It’s similar to Apple’s “Hide My Email“ feature, which is exclusive to paying iCloud+ subscribers. On Android, however, the feature will be available for free.

Shielded Email was first spotted in late 2024 integrated with Android’s Autofill, alongside the Google Password Manager, which becomes available when you try and sign into new apps on your phone. It uses that email to send any messages received directly to your email. It also has the option to stop forwarding to control spam, if any.

Now, if you come across a sign-up page that requires your Google account, Shielded Email will automatically prompt you to use an alias if you wish to keep your personal email and the data associated with it private.

With the increasing cleverness of scams and phishing emails, Google has doubled down on security measures in its last few Android releases. It’s rolled out features like Live Threat Detection, Spam Call Warnings and is now working on an Advanced Protection Mode. Recent leaks also indicate that Google may add an inactivity reboot as well to make it a bit more difficult for hackers to access your phone’s data.

This is all we know for now, but rest assured that we will keep you updated as new information becomes available.

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