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Google has confirmed it is sunsetting Gemini Gems, with migration to its newer Skills feature beginning November 17. Existing Gems will remain usable until they're converted, and users will retain their customizations in the form of Skills afterward. A banner in the Gems manager announced the change, though Google's linked support page explaining details isn't yet live.
Google's new Pixel Search app, which expands the app drawer search bar to surface photos, emails and other content, ships preinstalled on the Pixel 11 series but isn't officially available for older Pixels. Android Authority found that the app can be manually sideloaded onto older Pixel devices, provided they are running the Android 17 QPR2 Beta 5 update or newer; installation fails on stable Android 17 QPR1 builds.
Android Authority polled nearly 5,000 readers on their preferred alternative to the Samsung Galaxy S26 FE, which costs $50 more than its predecessor with few added features. The Motorola Edge (2026) narrowly won with 25.6% of votes, edging out the Samsung Galaxy S26 at 25.4%, while the Pixel 11 placed third with 20.3%.
Following Valve's official Arm64 SteamOS release for its Steam Frame headset, open-source developers have expanded the Armada project to bring a similar Linux-based Steam experience to Android gaming handhelds. The system combines the Linux kernel, Valve's Arm64 Steam build, the FEX emulator, and Proton to run Windows x86 games on Arm hardware, with support already available for devices from Ayaneo, Ayn, Retroid and Konkr.
Android Authority found code in a recent Google Messages build showing Google testing a redesigned pinned chats experience. Planned changes include an animated Material 3 Expressive typing indicator that replaces the plain 'typing' text with a moving contact photo, plus thumbnail previews for images, videos and GIFs instead of generic labels. The teardown also revealed a feature to pin or unpin multiple contacts at once, though none of these features are live yet.
Samsung has begun pushing the stable One UI 9 update, based on Android 17, to the Galaxy S25, S25 Plus, S25 Ultra, Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Galaxy Z Flip 7 in Korea. Beta testers are receiving a smaller ~535MB download to move to the final build, while users still on One UI 8.5 get a much larger update package of around 3.8GB. The rollout follows the update's earlier launch on the Galaxy S26 line and is expected to expand to the US soon.
Google has published the schedule for its October 28-29 Android Dev Summit, listing Android 18 alongside a mention of upcoming 'powerful new graphics features.' The event will include an Android leadership keynote covering recent features and updates, plus tracks on AI, Android XR, app foundations, and developer tools.
Android Authority found that Android 17 QPR2 Beta 5 expands Pixel HiLight's color options from five to nine, adding blue, cyan, green, orange, pink, purple, teal, white and yellow among the choices. The beta also contains code referencing 'LIGHT_ANIMATIONS_SETTING_FAVORITE_MESSAGES_ENABLED,' suggesting Google is developing support for message notifications through the Pixel 11 Pro's camera-ring lighting feature.
A columnist for Android Authority describes turning off eight built-in features in Google Messages, including the Gemini AI shortcut, profile sharing, outgoing message sounds, floating chat bubbles and follow-up reminders. The writer says disabling these options over a week made the app less cluttered and reduced notification interruptions, and provides steps for other users to switch them off.
Android Authority found evidence in Google Messages beta version 20260921 of a new feature that surfaces a floating search icon when users scroll up within a chat thread. Tapping the icon opens the existing search interface, bypassing the current three-dot menu route. The outlet says it activated and tested the feature on a device, and it appeared to function smoothly, though it is not yet publicly available.
An Android Authority writer who used the iPhone 17 for nearly a year switched to the Pixel 11 as their main phone for over a month and compared the two. They highlight the Pixel 11's 10.8MP telephoto camera with 5x optical zoom, a feature the iPhone 17 lacks, as the standout advantage, praising its detail, natural colors and low noise, especially in portraits.
Kvaesitso is an open-source, search-first Android launcher that is distributed only through GitHub and F-Droid rather than the Play Store. Installing it requires downloading an APK from the project's GitHub releases page and enabling installation from unknown sources, and on some Samsung Galaxy phones users must also disable the Auto Blocker security feature.