2 – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
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Android Archive

Archives for March 2024

DoorDash, Uber Eats — and TonyDoorDash, Uber Eats — and Tony
David Pierce
Wes Davis
Wes Davis
Google is prepping “Powered Off Finding” for Android phones.

You may still be able to use find your Pixel 8 or 8 Pro when it’s off using Google’s Find My Device network in Android 15, writes Mishaal Rahman for Android Police.

Rahman says older Pixel phones, including the Pixel Fold, don’t appear to support the in-progress feature, though.

A better way to find stuff to watchA better way to find stuff to watch
David Pierce
Asus Zenfone 11 Ultra review: just another big phone

6

Verge Score

It’s bigger for sure, but is that really better?

Allison Johnson
Allison Johnson
Allison Johnson
The Xiaomi 14 Ultra photography kit is a beaut.

I’m busy testing the Xiaomi 14 Ultra’s camera but please take a minute to appreciate this gorgeous photography accessory kit. It updates last year’s version with a beefier battery that can power the phone. Just feast your eyes on that gorgeous two-stage shutter button!

One thing I’m noticing so far? It’s heavier than the previous version. That’s not so hot.

Xiaomi 14 Ultra with photography kit.
Xiaomi 14 Ultra with camera kit showing shutter button from above.
Xiaomi 14 Ultra photography kit grip showing USB-C connector inside the grip.
Xiaomi 14 Ultra with photography kit.
Xiaomi 14 Ultra with photography kit showing shutter button and top of grip.
1/5Photo by Allison Johnson / The Verge
Ariel Shapiro
Ariel Shapiro
YouTube Music may be laying the groundwork for a “trim silence” podcast feature.

It appears Google is further optimizing YouTube Music for podcasts as it prepares to sunset Google Podcasts at the end of this month.

9to5Google reports spotting a line of code that indicates it is building out a “trim silence feature,” which is standard on Google Podcasts and other podcast listening apps. It automatically skips long stretches of silence that appear in an episode, saving the listener a bit of time.

Jon Porter
Jon Porter
Samsung’s new Galaxy A55 is skipping the US.

The company has confirmed to Android Police that only the Galaxy A35 will be coming to the US, and that “we will not be carrying Galaxy A55 5G at this time.” It’s unfortunate given that we rated last year’s Galaxy A54 as one of the best affordable handsets.

Allison Johnson
Allison Johnson
Merry Dexmas, Pixel 8 owners.

Okay, it’s not exactly Dex, but Mishaal Rahman reports that the latest Android 14 beta allows Pixel 8 phones to use DisplayPort over USB-C for screen mirroring. Plug your phone into a monitor or TV and you’ll be able to output your phone’s display to the big screen — no adapter required. You can’t run a whole desktop environment ala Dex just yet, but that might be in the works.

Wes Davis
Wes Davis
WhatsApp is testing identifying when chats are end-to-end encrypted on Android.

That’s according to WABetaInfo, which spotted that a new “end-to-end encrypted” indicator that appears briefly at the top of chat threads was under development in late January. Yesterday, the outlet reported that the test is now rolling out to beta testers.

The change is being tested as Meta rolls out third-party chat interoperability in the EU.

A picture of a WABetaInfo screenshot showing the new badge.
What the new “end-to-end encrypted” status message will look like.
Screenshot: WABetaInfo
Allison Johnson
Allison Johnson
The Pixel 8 won’t get Gemini Nano because of “reasons.”

Google is hosting its quarterly show for Android developers and the ever-watchful Mishaal Rahman caught the response to a great question: will the regular Pixel 8 be able to run Google’s mobile-optimized language model? Google’s answer: No, because of “hardware limitations.”

The thing is, the Pixel 8 uses the very same chipset as the Pixel 8 Pro, which can run Gemini Nano. What the heck, Google?