🌐 FIRST LOOK: This special version of Chrome for Android supports extensions

Chrome for Android doesn’t support browser extensions yet, but Google is developing a version that does, and I went hands-on with it.

More details + video 👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/chrome-for-android-with-extensions-demo-3540132/

Since I originally posted this news on April 1, some of y'all thought this was a joke. It's not. There really is a version of Chrome for Android now that supports browser extensions, and you can try it for yourself!

You can see it in action in this video.

🚗 Google made a dashcam app for cars with Android Automotive, but you can't download it

Google wants more cars with Android Automotive to have dashcams, so it built a production-ready, customizable dashcam app for OEMs.

More details👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/android-automotive-dashcam-app-3540443/

🪞Android 15 blocked Phone Link from mirroring sensitive notifications, but Microsoft has a fix

Android 15 blocked Link to Windows from mirroring notifications w/ OTP codes as the OS deemed them “sensitive,” but Microsoft has a fix.

More details👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/phone-link-sensitive-notifications-fix-3540158/

⚙️ Android 16 could mimic how iOS handles app settings, but it's not as bad as you think

Apps can contribute their own preferences to Android Settings in Android 16, similar to iOS

More details on how this works👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/android-16-app-settings-3540868/

🎧📺 Google wants to make Android 16 even better at streaming music and video

Android 16 adds support for running media codecs within an app’s process instead of a sandboxed process, which would make media playback more efficient.

More details👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/android-16-in-process-software-audio-codecs-3541408/

🎮Google will require new Android 16 devices to support this game-changing graphics feature

New Android 16 devices must support Host Image Copy, a Vulkan 1.4 feature that one Google engineer says is a "game changer for games on Android."

Here's why👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/android-16-host-image-copy-3541523/

⏩ Android 16 has a new trick to speed up app installation

Android 16 adds support for cloud compilation, a feature that bypasses on-device app compilation to speed up app installs

More details on how this works can be found 👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/android-16-cloud-compilation-3541910/

📺 Exclusive: Google says all upcoming Google TV remotes will have a 'Free TV' button

I hope you like dedicated buttons on your TV remote, because starting this month, new Google TV devices will have a “Free TV” button that launches Freeplay.

Details👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/google-tv-remote-free-tv-button-3542332/

—-

Follow-up: In markets where Google TV Freeplay isn't available, OEMs can map the "Free TV"/"Live TV" button to launch live guides instead. The article has been updated to reflect this new information.

💬 Google Messages is making it easier to unsubscribe from automated text messages

Google says it's rolling out a new feature that makes it easier to opt out of business texts sent via A2P SMS or RBM (RCS Business Messaging).

Details + screenshots👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/google-messages-unsubscribe-button-3542411/

Oof: the OnePlus Watch 3 is finally available in the US again after it was pulled to fix the "Meda in China" typo...but it now costs $499 (!) instead of $329.99!

When asked why, OnePlus refused to comment, but we can all probably guess why...

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/oneplus-watch-3-us-price-increase-3543595/

📁 Google won't let cheap Android phones and tablets ship with only 16GB storage anymore

Google is raising the minimum requirement for how much storage Android devices must have.

More details👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/android-15-minimum-storage-requirement-3543169/

❄️ RIP Android Snow Cone

Android 12 has officially reached end-of-life, meaning Google will no longer provide security support for the release.

If you still have an old device running Android 12 or 12L, it's time to upgrade.

More details👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/android-12-end-of-life-3544499/

🔐 Android 16 will bring this crucial anti-theft feature to more phones

Identity Check is coming to more Android phones with the Android 16 update

More details on this feature can be found 👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/android-16-identity-check-3544525/

🚘 Samsung's version of Android Auto has a clever notification trick

Location-based navigation saves you from having to manually enter a new navigation destination you receive from a message

More details 👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/samsung-location-based-navigation-3544545/

Google is preparing to roll out a new feature that auto reboots your Android phone after it's been locked for 3 days!

This feature is activated when Advanced Protection Mode is enabled in Android 16. There is currently no user-facing way to enable APM.

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/android-inactivity-reboot-rollout-3544779/

📽 I tried Gemini's new AI video maker, and I'm amazed how far AI has come

I've been using Veo 2 for a few weeks now, and I'm really impressed by how good it is!

Check out the videos I made👇

🔗 https://androidauthority.com/veo-2-in-gemini-hands-on-3544942/

(Thanks to Google for providing early access!)

🎨 Google may introduce Material Design 3 Expressive at I/O this May

In a since edited post, a Google engineer mentioned there's going to be a talk at I/O about a new 'expressive' Material Design theme.

More details 👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/material-design-expressive-google-io-3545058/

As I revealed before, Android 16 adds an Advanced Protection Mode API that apps can query and enable their own security features if the user is enrolled in Advanced Protection.

@AssembleDebug just discovered Messages & Phone by Google will support it.

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/android-16-advanced-protection-mode-security-features-apk-teardown-3545203/

✨Galaxy AI is perhaps the most comprehensive suite of mobile AI features, but some features aren't available globally.

Social Composer, for example, is limited to China, but thank goodness for that: AI-generated social media posts sound horrible.

Some of the other China-exclusive Galaxy AI features seem genuinely useful, though, especially that Samsung Assistant and its Clipboard Assistant feature.

🔗 https://androidauthority.com/galaxy-ai-social-composer-3544596/

🚨Important clarification on that auto-reboot feature you may have recently read about 🚨

Google says the feature is NOT rolling out yet and that it's going to be OPTIONAL. I thought this was the case, but it's good to have confirmation.

More details👇

🔗 https://www.androidauthority.com/android-auto-reboot-optional-3545366/