Tag: Google

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Google releases fix for Pixel 6 autodialing issue

Google has finally fixed one of the Pixel 6 series’ most annoying bug.

For those who are unaware, the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro suffered from an issue that caused the device to randomly automatically dial people in your contact list. Now, according to Android Police, the issue has been remedied

The problem relates to Google Assistant’s hotword detection. You can clear the Google app’s cache and settings to briefly resolve the issue, but the only way to prevent it currently is to disable the feature.

The problem was first spotted in early November shortly after the Pixel 6 series release. Google then announced a fix was coming and it’s already here. This all happened in just 10 days, which is pretty impressive on Google’s part.

Google’s new flagship handsets also suffer from a display flickering problem that will be fixed in an upcoming December update. 

Source: Android Police

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Mobile Syrup

Android 12 custom ROM can bring new life into your old Google Pixel 2 XL

Google’s Pixel 2 XL can now use Android 12 thanks to a custom ROM that includes new features such as ‘Material You,’ the redesigned Quick Settings panel and more updates.

Google officially ended its support of the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL in December 2020. For 11 or so odd months, those devices no longer received updates or security patches. However, if you’re a little technically inclined, you can now dust off the Pixel 2 XL and give Android 12 a whirl.

ProtonAOSP offers Pixel 2 XL users a way to try Android 12 on their hardware. Rather than installing a GSI build of the software, ProtonAOSP provides a more streamlined and accessible method.

To install the ProtonAOSP Android 12 ROM, users will be required to unlock the bootloader on the device. Following that, the bundled flash-all script will be required to have been used in order to install the ROM correctly. If the installation fails, allocating more storage may solve the issue.

Due to the ProtonAOSP Android 12 ROM not being officially supported by Google, bugs and performance issues can be expected. On the more serious side, users can run into issues with functional Wi-Fi service on their device or Premissive SELinux permission. Other issues are likely to exist. However, none have been reported as of the time of writing.

For users who enjoy holding on to their devices but don’t want to feel left behind when it comes to software, this Android 12 ROM should speak to Pixel 2 XL owners. It may be slightly obtuse to get working. Though, it’s a solution that wasn’t exactly expected following Google’s decision to stop supporting the Pixel 2 family.

As of now, ProtonAOSP’s ROM is only available for the Pixel 2 XL. However, a build for the standard Google Pixel 2 is said to be in the works. No release window has been given for that, however.

Source: AndroidPolice

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Mobile Syrup

Google Home update on Android brings digital TV remote to the masses

Google is finally bringing its Android TV/Google TV remote to the Google Home app — at least on Android, and in the U.S. only.

While the tech giant has been making strides to improve its virtual TV remote and its availability, the latest version of the Google Home app is the perfect home for it; I just wish it would finally roll it out in Canada.

A report from 9to5Google states that the remote function is in ‘version 2.46’ of the Google Home app and that it’s currently rolling out to Android users. The update is set to come to iOS as well, but it’s uncertain when that update will release.

Google rolled out its new virtual remote within the Google TV app back in 2020. This app took its sweet time coming to Canada and finally (kind of) launched here in September of 2021. While Google confirmed the app is officially coming, two months later, its Play Store listing still directs me to Google Play Movies and TV.

Then when Android 12 launched, Google said it would bring new Remote functions to the ‘Quick Toggles’ at the top of the notification shade. While this is true, I haven’t been able to sync it with my Google TV. This is likely because there’s no real Google TV app in Canada to set up the remote with.

9to5Google says that the version of the Google Home app that’s currently rolling out to Android phones also features the remote. While I’m happy about this because the Google Home app already has a spot on my home screen, I’m not seeing any app updates or the ability to trigger the remote on any of my Android devices yet.

If you’re luckier than me and can access the remote function, 9to5Google says you need to input a pairing code to connect the remote to your phone. This is likely why the Quick Toggle remote isn’t working for me.

Source: 9to5Google

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Mobile Syrup

Google reportedly re-sent Verizon-specific Android 12 update to most Pixels

If you see a new update on your Pixel today, you probably shouldn’t download it.

It appears Google may have re-issued the Android 12 update to older Pixel phones — so far, everything from the Pixel 3a to the 5 (or 5a if you live in a market where that phone is available) appears to be affected. The Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, however, don’t seem to be. Worse, it looks like Google issued the U.S.-based carrier Verizon’s specific Android 12 updates to non-Verizon Pixel phones.

According to reports from 9to5Google and Android Authority, some users who have updated their Pixels with this new update now have build numbers matching the Verizon Android 12 update. Further, others examined the MD5 checksum (a string of numbers used to uniquely identify a file) and found it matches the Verizon update.

The main difference between the Verizon and non-Verizon variants likely comes down to radio bands. Android Authority notes that Verizon offers mmWave 5G on devices with hardware to support it. The U.S. carrier also uses a CDMA-based network while many other places use GSM. While installing the update may not break anything, it’s also probably better not to risk it.

Besides, the whole update totals over 1.5GB, which can be pretty large (especially if you pay by the gig for your internet).

It’s not clear how widespread the problem is, but some U.K. Pixel owners report receiving the update. Ultimately, if you have a Pixel and you get a prompt for a large Android 12 update, you probably shouldn’t install it.

Source: 9to5Google, Android Authority

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Mobile Syrup

Google’s Pixel 6 series may get face unlock in future update

The rumoured face unlock feature for the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro may arrive in a future update, like one of Google’s regular Pixel feature drops.

According to an XDA Recognized Developer who goes by ‘Freak07’ (@mile_freak07 on Twitter), Pixel 6 devices still include code related to face unlock in the ‘PowerHAL’ config file. In a series of tweets, Freak07 said that Google added a tool for face unlock to the config file under the internal codename ‘Tuscany’ back in July.

Freak07 also shared a link to a commit about face unlock, which seems to focus on adjusting power usage to save battery.

Some readers may remember that leaked marketing material from before the Pixel 6 launch showed off the face unlock feature. However, face unlock wasn’t on the Pixel 6 series at launch. Although it’s unclear why Google didn’t include face unlock — perhaps there were too many bugs, or maybe developers weren’t able to reduce the battery hit caused by Tuscany.

Regardless, some code for face unlock remains in the Pixel 6 PowerHAL file. That could mean Google’s working on bringing face unlock to Pixel 6 phones in the future, or it could just be some leftover code from previous work on the file.

Even if Google did bring face unlock to the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, it’s not clear how it’d work. The only other Pixels with face unlock were the Pixel 4 and 4 XL, which had dedicated hardware for it. The Pixel 6 series doesn’t have that hardware, which likely means the phone would use the front-facing camera — as we’ve learned with similar attempts from other phones, camera-based face unlock isn’t exactly secure or reliable.

Source: Freak07 (Twitter), Google Git, XDA Developers Via: Android Police

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Mobile Syrup

YouTube to hide dislike count across the platform, dislike button will remain active

YouTube has formally announced that it will make video dislike counts private across all YouTube videos. This follows an experimental phase where the company measured ways to protect creators from harassment and dislike attacks.

The changes are said to be gradually rolling out today. Once in effect, a viewer will still be able to leave feedback by way of using the dislike button. However, contrary to how the system previously worked, the total number of dislikes will not be viewable by the public. Instead, that metric will only be shown to the creator of the channel.

On Google’s official YouTube blog, the company states that earlier this year, it experimented with ways to protect content creators and channels from targeted dislike attacks. As a part of this experiment, YouTube hid the dislike count and found that viewers were less likely to drive the total number up. As such, this measure will soon be used across the board. This will, hopefully, deter viewers from driving up the dislike numbers purely based on mob mentality.

Although not stated by YouTube, it’s within reason to assume larger companies and advertisers were none too keen to see their videos receive an overwhelmingly negative like to dislike ratio. One notable standout is the ‘Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack — Overview Trailer’, which received 18K likes and 173K dislikes. YouTube itself has been the victim of dislike attacks as evident by its annual ‘Rewind‘ videos (which are dead).

YouTube assures users that the dislike button can still be used to tune recommendations and share feedback to individual creators. The company is aware that this transition may not be favoured by all. Though, YouTube states that it believes “this is the right thing to do for the platform.”

Source: YouTube

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Google Store discounts Nest Hub Max, Nest Thermostat and more

The Google Store is offering a couple of deals on Nest products before its big Black Friday sale.

You’ll be able to save money on the Nest Hub Max, Nest Thermostat and Nest Hub 2nd gen and Nest Doorbell wired.

These products will be on sale until November 11th.

The Nest Hub 2nd-gen and Nest Doorbell wired is on sale for $348.99 and previously cost $428.99. The sale runs until November 18th. You’ll need to add both products to your cart to get the discount.

Source: Google Store

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Mobile Syrup

Google working to make videos sent via text less compressed

A new version of the Google Messages app looks like it will use the Google Photos app to send videos instead of relying on older MMS tech that compresses videos so much that they become unwatchable.

Google has been working to solve this problem with RCS chatting over the last few years, but since iPhones and some other Android phones still don’t support this standard, the company has had to find a new way to provide decent quality video transfers.

The latest solution has been discovered by 9to5Google, and so far, all we know is that there’s a new section in the Google Messages app labelled ‘Google Photos’ with the subtext ‘Share sharper clarity video in text (SMS/MMS).’ Since Google Photos already has a link-based video/photo sharing scheme built into it, this update suggests that when you’re using a legacy text service, Google will send these links instead of a highly compressed video.

This is a bit of a weird workaround, but it will allow users to now send and receive video. However, when you do this, it basically means you’re uploading your video to Google Photos, and the other person will stream it or download it on their end. This is fine, but if you don’t have a data plan, you’ll be unable to do this without Wi-Fi.

As of the time of writing, the update isn’t live on my Google Pixel 4a 5G, but it will likely roll out at some point during the next few months.

Source: 9to5Google 

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Google says it’s working on a fix for Pixel 6/6 Pro ghost call issue

Google confirmed its “aware” of the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro ghost call issue and is “working on an immediate fix.”

The search giant confirmed it was working to fix the problem in a statement to 9to5Google after several reports emerged Friday that Pixel 6 and 6 Pro devices were calling people randomly. Threads on Reddit and Google’s Pixel support forums claimed that Pixel 6 phones were calling numbers in the middle of the night and without any input from users.

People speculated that Google Assistant was the culprit behind the problem after some reported success in stopping the problem by disabling Assistant on the lock screen. That effectively prevented it from activating (and thus calling someone) while the phone was locked.

Although Google hasn’t yet confirmed the source of the problem, Android Police founder Artem Russakovskii shared on Twitter that launching Assistant and saying nothing would eventually result in it placing a call to someone. It remains unclear why this happens, but it appears that once Assistant activates, it will decide to call a contact.

Some Twitter users replied to Russakovskii, saying they could also reproduce the issue. I couldn’t make it happen on my Pixel 6, but I also haven’t experienced the phantom calling problem at all yet (hopefully, that doesn’t change).

With Google working on an “immediate fix,” the issue should be resolved soon. For those who are suffering from phantom calls, you can disable Assistant on the lock screen to temporarily fix the issue (open the Google app > tap your profile in the top-right corner > Settings > Google Assistant > Lock screen > disable Assistant responses on lock screen).

Source: Artem Russakovskii (Twitter), 9to5Google

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Google adds new ‘Pet Portraits’ to ‘Art Selfie’ feature

Google is one-upping itself by launching a new version of its ‘Art Selfie’ that lets users match their pets with famous artwork.

Back in 2018, Google launched an Art Selfie feature that had users from around the world taking selfies of themselves so that Google’s AI could match their characteristics to works of art from the past. Now, using the Google Arts & Culture App on Android, you can tap on the camera button at the center of the bottom bar to launch a new ‘Pet Portraits’ feature.

This means that when you take a picture of your pet, it compares it with thousands of historical artworks, including paintings, sculptures and old photographs. Google says its Pet Portraits feature can match four-legged animals, birds and fish with famous artwork.

After you’re done snapping a picture of your pet, you’ll be given a percentage of how much your animal matches the artwork. Other Arts & Culture app modes include ‘Art Projector,’ ‘Color Palette,’ ‘Art Filter,’ and ‘Pocket Gallery.’

Google’s Arts & Culture app is available in the Google Play Store. 

Via: 9to5Google