Google is making it easier than ever for potential iPhone converts to make the jump to Pixel 10 and switch allegiances over to Android. If you pre-order or purchase a Pixel 10 series handset directly from the Google Store, you’ll receive a helpful email that prepares your iPhone data for transfer. This will include passwords from iOS, other wallet items, and app data. It’ll do this even before your new phone arrives. Once you have your new Pixel 10 in hand, the support continues. If you’re new to Android, your Pixel 10 will provide contextual tips as you use it, guiding you through basic functions like taking a screenshot or turning the device off. Most of that is not new, but it might help those not familiar with the intricacies of Android make that daunting jump over from the mess that is Liquid Glass on iPhone. To simplify things further, the upgraded My Pixel app works in tandem with these features to get you up to speed quickly. When combined, these tools aim to make your switch as effortless as possible, so you can start enjoying your new device without any stress. You can also stay connected with your friends and family using RCS in Google Messages, no matter what phone they have. A new on-device, AI-powered agent is also available to provide instant support and help troubleshoot issues. This agent can seamlessly hand you off to a live customer support representative if you need further assistance. It’s up to Google now to convince people to switch from iPhone to the Pixel 10, but maybe this might give people an easier “out” from Apple if they want it.
Apple pivots to a full LLM Siri after hybrid led to delays; promising context‑aware tasks, legacy app control, and evaluating external models to accelerate capability without compromising privacy
Apple is developing a new version of Siri that’s supposed to be better than the existing Siri in every way. It will be smarter and able to do more, functioning like ChatGPT or Claude instead of a barely competent 2012-era smartphone assistant. The next-generation version of Siri will use advanced large language models, similar to ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and other AI chatbots. Here’s what we’re waiting on: Personal Context: With personal context, Siri will be able to keep track of emails, messages, files, photos, and more, learning more about you to help you complete tasks and keep track of what you’ve been sent. Onscreen awareness will let Siri see what’s on your screen and complete actions involving whatever you’re looking at. Deeper app integration means that Siri will be able to do more in and across apps, performing actions and completing tasks that are just not possible with the personal assistant right now. Apple is rumored to be considering a partnership with ChatGPT creator OpenAI or Claude creator Anthropic to power the smarter version of Siri. Both companies are reportedly training versions of their models that would work with Apple’s Private Cloud Compute servers, and Apple is running tests with both its own models and models from outside companies. No final decision on Siri has been made as of yet. Partnering with a company like Anthropic or OpenAI would allow Apple to deliver the exact Siri feature set that it is aiming for, while also giving it time to continue work on its own LLM behind the scenes.
Google moves Gemini beyond chat into a full creative‑ daily productivity platform with guided learning, flash‑card generation, privacy‑tuned temporary chat and watch integration
Google is beefing up its features for Gemini, its primary suite of generative AI models and the chatbot that serves as its main interface. For creative folks, the Gemini app now offers image editing using text prompts through its viral Gemini 2.5 Flash Image model, codenamed Nano Banana. Also, Google has added Veo 3, the newest version of its video generation model. The tool can animate still photos, drawings or digital art into moving video clips, complete with AI-generated audio. For productivity, Google is also adding scheduled actions, a feature that lets users queue tasks and recurring requests directly within the Gemini app. The Productivity Planner Gem integrates email, Calendar and Drive into a single view, designed to help users prioritize daily tasks more easily. Meanwhile, Temporary Chat allows people to hold private conversations with Gemini that won’t be saved or affect future responses, an answer to growing demand for more user control over AI memory. Gemini can now draw on past chat history if users opt in to provide more relevant answers. Users can manage or delete stored conversations. Real-time captions to Gemini Live, its voice chatbot, can connect with Google services such as Maps. For education, one new feature is Guided Learning, which helps users break down complex topics into digestible steps. The tool is designed to make explanations more interactive, with the AI walking learners through a process rather than delivering a static answer. Students and business professionals can also now generate study guides and flash cards directly from their own notes, readings or problem sets, automating one of the more time-consuming aspects of learning. Google has also introduced Storybook, a feature that allows users to turn personal memories or even dense concepts into illustrated stories that can be read, shared or printed. The tool can add text and audio, blending creative writing with multimodal AI generation.
Pixel 10 can now connect to Galaxy Watch 8 following update
Following an update to the August 1 Google Play services update, users are reporting that the Galaxy Watch 8 can now connect to the Pixel 10. It’s unknown if this is the case for other Pixel devices, as the issue appeared to include other models. In our own testing, a previously barred Galaxy Watch 8 Classic paired flawlessly to our Pixel 10 Pro XL on the first go following the update. It’s worth noting we skipped signing into Samsung Health at the start, though that should have no bearing on a successful connection. The connection appears stable after rebooting both devices. One user had submitted a ticket indicating that their Pixel 10 Pro would not connect with the Galaxy Watch 8, and over 260 users have indicated that they’re experiencing the same issue. According to them, after confirming pairing codes on both watch and phone, the setup fails or glitches out. No pending updates seem to be the issue. Some devices on the 9to5Google team had the same issue. After getting the Watch 8 Classic to work on the Pixel 9 Pro Fold with no problems, upgrading to the Pixel 10 Pro XL resulted in multiple failed setup attempts. Sometimes the Pixel 10 Pro would refuse to give a pairing code, and the Watch 8 Classic would have to be reset because of the error. Other times, the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic and Pixel 10 Pro XL could agree on codes and begin the pairing process, though it never exceeded 84% completion without faulting. This issue takes a tremendous amount of time and has no success.
Google brings Gemini in Chrome; with agentic browsing capabilities Gemini can now work across multiple tabs, allowing users to quickly compare and summarize information across multiple websites
Google is rolling out Gemini in Chrome to all Mac and Windows desktop users in the U.S. after previously limiting the capability to Google AI Pro and Google AI Ultra subscribers. The tech giant also announced that it’s bringing agentic capabilities to Chrome in the future, adding its AI Mode search feature to the address bar, launching new Gemini features, using AI to combat AI-generated scams, rolling out automatic password resets, and more. U.S. users who have their language set to English can now ask Gemini to clarify complex information on any web page they’re reading using the Gemini icon in the top-right corner of their Chrome window. Gemini can now work across multiple tabs, allowing users to quickly compare and summarize information across multiple websites. Gemini will soon be able to retrieve web pages you’ve previously visited, making it easier to return to past browsing sessions without sifting through your browser history. Additionally, Google is launching a deeper integration between Gemini in Chrome and other Google apps, like Calendar, YouTube, and Maps. Google says this will allow users to do things like schedule meetings, see location details, and more without having to leave the page they’re on. Google notes that the AI assistant will be able to complete tedious tasks, like booking a haircut or ordering weekly groceries. Gemini will navigate to the site, add things to your cart, and let you take the final action by checking out with your payment option. Google is also bringing AI Mode, its advanced search feature, directly into the Chrome address bar. With AI Mode, users can ask complex questions with follow-ups to dig deeper into topics. Chrome can now suggest relevant questions based on the context of the page to kickstart your search in the address bar. Google says users will get a helpful AI Overview and the option to ask follow-up questions with AI Mode. The company says Chrome will also soon be able to use its Gemini Nano model to detect and protect against scams, such as fake virus alerts and fraudulent giveaways. These scams often impersonate trusted brands and use generative AI to create convincing phishing attempts. Google also announced that it’s using AI to help users fix compromised passwords with a single click on supported sites, like Coursera, Spotify, Duolingo, H&M, and more.
Google now lets you share your custom Gemini AI assistants known as Gems with friends, family, or co-workers
Google is making it possible to now share your Gemini Gems — custom AI assistants and experts designed for specific tasks — the company announced on Thursday. The feature launched last year, initially as part of the Gemini Advanced paid subscription, allowing users to write instructions to create an AI chatbot for different scenarios. For instance, Google launched with premade Gems like a learning coach, a brainstorming assistant, a career guide, a writing editor, and a coding partner. Now Google says you’ll be able to share your Gems with friends, family, or co-workers as easily as you can share a file from Google Drive. This would make Gems more accessible to more people, as not everyone uses the advanced customization feature. It could also help prevent people from building the same Gems as others. For instance, if multiple co-workers were using a similar type of custom Gemini assistant, they could just share the same resource instead of each making their own version that could have slight inconsistencies between them. Google suggests Gem sharing could also be useful for people working on family vacation plans and guides, meal planners, or collaborative writing projects. Also similar to Google Drive, you can control who can view and use your Gems and who’s allowed to edit them.
Google TV gains presence sensing through TCL QM9K starting at $2,999 with automatic wake functionality and conversational Gemini AI assistant
Google TV is adding support for TVs with presence sensing hardware, but the first TV set with support is not cheap, as the TCL QM9K is now available starting at $3,000. The TCL QM9K series is now on sale at Best Buy in the US. The new flagship TV from TCL is a 4K QD-Mini LED TV, and Google TV is taking advantage of its new hardware. Firstly, this is the first place that Gemini is debuting, at least according to TCL. More importantly, though, the TCL QM9K is the first Google TV set with presence sensing hardware built in. Using mmWave radios, the TV can detect when someone is in the room and turn on the TV to show an ambient screensaver or select information. TCL previously explained that this can be adjusted to your preferences, including the distance from the TV in which the presence sensor is used. The TCL QM9K series starts at $3,000 at Best Buy. That’s for the 65-inch model, with larger sizes of course being more expensive. Pricing breaks down as follows: 65-inch: $2,999; 75-inch: $3,499; 85-inch: $3,999; and 98-inch: $5,999. Sales will likely follow in time, though. TCL’s QM8K series started at $2,499 when it launched earlier, but you can now get a 65-inch model for $1,500.
Google confirms ChromeOS and Android are being merged into ‘a single platform’ with more robust app support likely on this combined platform
Google’s Android head has confirmed that ChromeOS is being combined with the company’s mobile platform. Sameer Samat, President of the Android Ecosystem, noted the usage of Apple’s typical ecosystem of products — including a MacBook Pro and an Apple Watch — before finally acknowledging the writing on the wall with ChromeOS. The only real hint comes from Samat’s curiosity over, as he says, how people currently use their laptops to get work done. That could hint at a focus towards providing more robust app support on this combined platform. This move comes with plenty of questions for current ChromeOS users, including how their laptops will adapt to this new platform and if the move to Android will change the typical decade-long support window provided by Google and various Chromebook OEMs. It could also cause plenty of headaches for enterprise users, especially schools, depending on how the rollout is conducted. It doesn’t sound like the move is right around the corner, of course — to reiterate, there’s nothing here that would really constitute real details. But with ChromeOS feeling stagnant at times and ARM laptops having a bit of a moment, it feels like there’s no better time than the present to enact this sort of shift.
Apple’s future devices may feature two-stage displays with a camera and flash embedded within a display that allows the camera to remain completely hidden when not in use
Apple has been granted a newly revised patent that in part describes embedding a camera and flash within a display. “Electronic devices with two-stage displays,” is concerned with producing a screen that has layers of different display technologies. It’s ostensibly for any conceivable device with a screen — and Apple lists the broadest possible range of those — but much of the patent describes the Apple Watch. “An electronic device may be provided with a two-stage display,” it says. “The display may have an inner layer with a pixel array for displaying images and an outer layer formed from a light modulator with an array of cells that can each be placed in a transparent mode or a light-blocking mode.” The patent describes having first a type of fast-reacting display that is capable of showing video. Then on top of that there could be a second display layer that’s typically used to show slow-changing images, such as text. That layer could be effectively turned off to allow users to see the video on the layer below, or it could be turned on to change the appearance of the device. In that case, a camera shutter “may have an appearance that matches the housing of the electronic device.” “When it is desired to capture images, control circuitry in the electronic device may temporarily place the shutter in a transparent mode to allow light from a flash and/or light being imaged by the camera to pass,” continues the patent.
Google adds simplified Unsubscribe feature to Gmail
Google has added a feature to make it easier for Gmail users to unsubscribe from emails. The company’s recently announced “Manage subscriptions” tool lets users view and manage subscription emails, to make it easy to unsubscribe from the ones they don’t want from a single place. “It can be easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of subscription emails clogging your inbox: Daily deal alerts that are basically spam, weekly newsletters from blogs you no longer read, promotional emails from retailers you haven’t shopped in years can quickly pile up,” Chris Doan, director of Gmail, wrote on the Google blog. Google’s move is part of a larger trend, with customers seeking more control, more meaningful content and greater value from their brand interactions. “If email doesn’t meet that standard, people now have a faster and easier way to walk away,” Omar Merlo, an associate professor of marketing strategy at Imperial College London told. “This isn’t the end of email marketing. It is perhaps the end of sloppy email marketing.”