Android Faithful

Jason Howell returns from the Qualcomm Snapdragon Summit in Hawaii and Ron Richards and Huyen Tue Dao are not jealous at all, in fact they want to hear all about the exciting new technologies and new phones he saw there. That plus more Gemini insanity gets dealt with as we wind down Bugdroids in Bucket Hats month here on Android Faithful!Note: Time codes subject to change depending on dynamic ad insertion by the distributor00:06:39 - NEWSIt's time to start talking Android 18 as Google just dropped the first hint about it...And we have the first official non-Pixel phone running GrapheneOS...from Motorola!It's a bold new future for F-Droid as they announce F-Droid 2.0PATRON PICK: Beware! Your Android phone will no longer protect you from walking into a pole00:33:00 - HARDWAREJason reports on the cool phones he saw at the Qualcomm Snapdragon Summit from Xiaomi, Oppo, Motorola and more!Thanks to our interview last week, people went hunting for the Googlebook easter egg. Oh and it looks like Chromebooks will be moving to Googlebooks after all!Details and specs have emerged for the Motorola Wide FoldableBigger batteries are becoming the norm, like on the new Honor Magic 9 Pro Max01:00:58 - APPS 'n SOFTWARE 'n STUFFGemini can now make phone calls. Yes, phone calls. Can't make this stuff up.And now Google Messages wants to chat with you. And there's a bug in Google Messages that might be ruining your photos!Adobe brings Premiere to Android!01:17:17 - COMMUNITY FEEDBACKChris Barrett wants to know if the iPhone Duo will have an impact on foldable apps?Zip is dealing with the finality of Assistant going away in favor of Gemini on Android

The wait is over as Google finally unveils and rolls out the Googlebook line of premium laptops! We've got all the details plus an exclusive interview with Alexander Kuscher, Sr. Director of Product for Laptops & Tablets at Google to in-depth on the new line of devices and what it means for Android users. Ron Richards breaks it all down for Huyen Tue Dao and Florence Ion, along with the rest of this week's Android news PLUS Jason Howell checks in from Hawaii direct from the Snapdragon Summit with the latest news from the event!September Special - get 10% off supporting Android Faithful on Patreon with code AFSEPT and enter to win a Google Swag giveaway at the end of the month!Note: Time codes subject to change depending on dynamic ad insertion by the distributor00:05:22 - HARDWAREThe full details on the Googlebook and the line of laptops from all the OEMs like HP, Asus, Lenovo, Acer and Dell and what it means for Android users.And what is the critical reaction to the new Android-focused laptop?00:26:20 - INTERVIEWAlexander Kuscher, Sr. Director of Product for Laptops & Tablets at Google gives us the inside look on what went into the development of the Googlebook and who this laptop is made for and what you can do with it.01:06:03 - NEWSSamsung's new position is MORE FOLDABLES! Plus OneUI 9 with Android 17 begins rolling outA tale of David vs Goliaths as a little company is trying to get Samsung, Apple and Google devices banned in the USClicks Communicators pre-orders begin and they get a bump up in specs at no extra cost?Jason Howell visits us from Hawaii to report on the news from the Snapdragon Summit and a give a peek at the new Motorola Signature 27PATRON PICK: Google's back to talking about Emoji design and this time getting a little cheeky and NSFW01:39:30 - COMMUNITY FEEDBACKKevin had a Surface Duo and looks back on it fondlyGary from Houston spotted a Pixel 11 in the wild on a soap opera

The unthinkable has happened! We're talking about a new Apple iPhone on the show this week with a very special guest! None other than Tom Merritt of the Daily Tech News Show joins the show to chat about the new iPhone Duo and what it means for the world of Android with Jason Howell and Ron Richards. Will we ever be the same?!?September Special - get 10% off supporting Android Faithful on Patreon with code AFSEPT and enter to win a Google Swag giveaway at the end of the month!Note: Time codes subject to change depending on dynamic ad insertion by the distributor00:05:31 - NEWSThe iPhone Duo is here, how does it stack up against other Foldables? Also that cool iPhone Duo transition? Yeah someone replicated it on a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8The flagship chip game gets a new entrant with the MediaTek Dimensity 9600 ProOne critique of Passkeys gets undone as Google is rolling out the ability to transfer passkeys between devicesPATRON PICK: Rambler is so cool but it's a Pixel Exclusive, so SwiftKey went and copied Rambler and made it available to all Android devices00:44:52 - HARDWARENot to be left out, Motorola makes it official and unveils their passport style foldableCurious what's inside the Honor Robot Phone? Watch JerryRigEverything tear one apartPour one out for the Pixel Tablet, looks like it's cooked and not coming back00:54:49 - APPS 'n SOFTWARE 'n STUFFWeird stuff is going on with Google Maps as the Speedometer and Traffic Overlays are disappearing for users.It's the September 2026 Google Pixel...DROPAnd we've also got the Android 17 QPR1 release details01:08:58 - COMMUNITY FEEDBACKTom from Manhattan is a OnePlus loyalist looking for a new phone that isn't a PixelNik is having RCS cause havoc on his phoneJon in Minneapolis uses LineageOS and did some research behind his troubles with RCS and it's pretty fascinating

Huyen Tue Dao returns from Japan just in time to join Jason Howell and Ron Richards as something happens on the podcast that's NEVER happened before! Thankfully IFA brings about some wacky news in the world of Android for us to delight in along the way!September Special - get 10% off supporting Android Faithful on Patreon with code AFSEPT and enter to win a Google Swag giveaway at the end of the month!Note: Time codes subject to change depending on dynamic ad insertion by the distributor00:05:29 - NEWSWant to try Nothing's new products early? Now's your chance!Gaming on Android is about to change forever thanks to AI UpscalingAlert! Do you use WhatsApp? Well, turns out it can access your photos without unlocking your device...what?PATRON PICK #1: This crazy Android phone features a detachable action camera for $999 AND is available in the US!PATRON PICK #2: TCL’s new Nxtpaper phone offers both e-reader and OLED00:41:35 - HARDWAREThe Enough phone has got target specs and they look to be...just enoughNow Motorola's got a wide foldable and we've got a first look at it AND they're back with a Moto WearOS watch too!Is your Galaxy Z Fold 8 soft? Not emotionally, but in the corners? Then you're not alone.01:01:41 - APPS 'n SOFTWARE 'n STUFFMapQuest is BACK BABY!Google says let's do it LIVE and rolls out GMail Live, Docs Live, and Keep Live. Everyone is going LIVE!Thankfully Google is rolling out a fix for that pesky bug in Google Messages that was sending old texts to other people. Good cause that was hella awkward.01:09:33 - COMMUNITY FEEDBACKChad writes in that it's been a while since he and his wife have upgraded and are looking for adviceHarry from Florida had a pretty bad experience upgrading to the Pixel 11 via Google unfortunately

It's time to ride into fall with our Bucket Hats on our Bugdroids as Jason, Flo and Ron navigate a quiet week in the world of Android as the world awaits Apple to "invent" the foldable phone. But we know better, don't we. Still, we find some time for some interesting Android news and discussion this week along with a September Android....DROP!September Special - get 10% off supporting Android Faithful on Patreon with code AFSEPT and enter to win a Google Swag giveaway at the end of the month!Note: Time codes subject to change depending on dynamic ad insertion by the distributor00:08:22 - NEWSFoldables are primed to explode with shipments doubling by 2028, but Flippables? Not so much.Age Verification laws in California won't affect Linux/GPL License based softwareThe dreaded AI Memory Crunch is coming for Android Apps. When will the madness end?PATRON PICK: The perfect Android phone exists and it's made by Sony, but there's some issues...00:38:15 - HARDWAREWhat up fans! It's time for the Samsung Galaxy S26 FE!How does the Pixel Fold Pro 11 stack up? Not so great it seems...Have you ever seen a more stylish tri-fold than the Huawei Mate XT 2?00:53:46 - APPS 'n SOFTWARE 'n STUFFIt's the Android September Feature DROP!That's not all that's dropping, Android 17 QPR2 Beta 4 dropped!Who says Google can't do whimsy? Froggy says Google can do whimsy!Drama with GrapheneOS and Google as GrapheneOS skips the Pixel 11 over the lack of MTE01:16:14 - COMMUNITY FEEDBACKCraig writes in with some gripes about the new phone transfer process hiccupsJeremy has some RCS issues to reportDaniel checks in on his audio volume issue and why he's not upgrading his Pixel Fold 9

This episode is sponsored by TORRAS.Jason, Flo are reunited with Ron who has tales of the Pixel and Friends Made By Google 2026 After Party in New York City and the gang all weigh in on the Pixel 11 lineup up of phones with our official Android Faithful review and the results may surprise you!This episode of Android Faithful is brought to you by TORRAS. The Pixel 11 is coming, and you'll want it protected from day one. Buy the TORRAS Q3 Air for the Pixel 11 Pro XL on Amazon today at https://amzn.to/3TDn5gC and use promo code JASON2608 at checkout for 15% off. Thanks to TORRAS for supporting Android Faithful!Note: Time codes subject to change depending on dynamic ad insertion by the distributor00:12:14 - NEWSMore bad news on the horizon with sales numbers, but hey Samsung looks to be #1 again!And now Xiaomi is getting in on the "make your own chips" gameRCS being glitchy for you? Don't worry, Google is on the case and they're working with the carriers to fix itPATRON PICK: Now you can customize Discover and News audio briefings on Google with chat!00:39:38 - HARDWAREThe official Android Faithful Google Pixel 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro XL Review!Google announces the Googlebook unveiling event in NYC on September 15Motorola phones running GrapheneOS will launch in 2027!01:14:48 - APPS 'n SOFTWARE 'n STUFFPuke no more! Google's motion sickness feature is finally rolling outWhat the heck is Android Pulse? Spoiler: it's boringSomeone hacked HiLight already, because of course they did01:22:24 - COMMUNITY FEEDBACKDerek from Illinois weighs in on Gemini and the other AI's popularityTom from Colorado sends a very lengthy, thoughtful missive about Rambler, Data Privacy and how we screwed it all up