The first developer preview of Android 16 unexpectedly came the week before Thanksgiving, but the updates we had been eagerly anticipating apparently needed more time in the oven. This week, Samsung’s first version of Android 15 beat Google’s second version to the punch by a matter of hours, with One UI 7 beta and the December Pixel Feature Drop both touching down on the same day. And while updates were on the menu, Google decided to give several Pixel models unexpected fourth and fifth helpings.
Last Week’s Roundup
Google’s Pixel perfect US run faces a new Snapdragon 8 Elite challenger in last week’s top news
Plus, Pixel Tablets are getting a privacy boost
One UI 7 finally brings Android 15 to Galaxy devices
Samsung’s Android 15 beta program was originally rumored to come in late July or early August, but Samsung supposedly delayed development to focus on One UI 6.1.1. By the time September and October came and went, the rumor mill was convinced we would see it in November. But the month came to an unceremonious end while most of the US was on Thanksgiving break.
On Thursday, the big day finally came: The first beta of One UI 7 arrived to bring Android 15 to Galaxy devices, sporting an all-new look and feel that we already love. In addition to an iOS-inspired visual design and features like the new Now Bar, Samsung’s big update finally embraces the vertical app drawer layout seen on other Android phones like the Pixel.
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Samsung’s long-awaited One UI 7 beta is here to end 2024 on a high note
Android 15 for the rest of us
The latest Pixel Feature Drop touches down with an Android bundle
To start the week, there were three pre-release Android builds going: Android 15 QPR1, Android 15 QPR2, and the developer preview of Android 16. With Google already looking ahead to the March 2025 Feature Drop and beyond, it came as no surprise that this week saw the stable release of Android 15’s first Quarterly Platform Release, the December 2024 Pixel Feature Drop.
When Google announced the new Pixel firmware, highlighting features like new Gboard, Google Wallet, and Circle to Search integrations for the Pixel Screenshots app, it left out quite a few of the smaller features added by this release. But the company’s updates this Thursday weren’t just about Pixels — a new Android bundle brought Quick Share QR codes and captions that actually show emotion.
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Here’s everything Google didn’t tell you about in Android 15’s first Feature Drop
A quarterly release with more than meets the eye
Google extends support for several Pixel models
When Google announced that the Pixel 8 series would get seven years of OS upgrades, our hearts went out to people who had just bought a Pixel Fold months prior, when Google’s update policy had only guaranteed three years of OS updates followed by two years of security patches. But when the Pixel 6 unexpectedly got an Android 16 build last month, there was a glimmer of hope that Google might extend support for some of its “older” Tensor-powered Pixels beyond the guaranteed date.
This week, Google went ahead and made things official: Every Tensor-powered Pixel phone will get a guaranteed five years of OS updates. This essentially upgrades those final two years of security patches to full-blown OS updates, so the phones will still only get five total years of support. Nonetheless, it is a major boon for people who use the Pixel 6, 6 Pro, 6a, 7, 7 Pro, 7a, and the original Pixel Fold.
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Google breathes new life into old Pixels with two more years of OS upgrades
Pixel 6, 7, Fold, and more now get 5 years guaranteed
Everybody wants to recreate that Spotify Wrapped magic
Whoever came up with the idea for Spotify Wrapped was apparently a genius, because every tech company with telemetry data on their users wants to recreate it in 2024. Last week, we had already seen YouTube Music’s version of this — not at all remarkable, considering the two are in direct competition. On the other hand, we didn’t quite see the YouTube Gaming Recap coming.
This week, the actual, real-deal Wrapped came out, followed by another version from a music streamer in Amazon Music Delivered. But in a more unexpected twist, Google Photos also debuted its own heartstring-tugging version of Wrapped. And while Netflix Wrapped isn’t a real thing, there’s now a third-party tool that can make it happen — that is, if you’re not completely burnt out on end-of-year usage data presented like an Instagram story.
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Spotify Wrapped 2024 is here to give Google’s AI podcasts the attention they deserve
A personalized podcast presents your playlist
Waze reports make their way to Google Maps
Waze is all the user reports — if you’re going to be fighting through a lot of traffic on your trip, it’s always been at least a slightly better pick than Google Maps, if only for the more abundant incident reporting for things like hazards on the roadway and neveropen activity. Now, though, Google Maps is getting the last thing keeping most people on Waze: Incident reporting from Waze users.
Google owns both apps, but tends to operate Waze as if it’s its own thing. There’s no reason to think that might change anytime soon, but with Google Maps properly integrating this data into an app that already includes Street View, satellite view, and Google Search data for businesses and places, it now seems like the clearly superior product. Even Google Maps on Android Auto got the new Waze data, so longtime Wazers might want to re-check to see if the grass is truly greener on the Google Maps side nowadays.
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