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Google has started sending automated texts to Google Messages users through the app's business chat feature, promoting new app features like RCS photo and video quality. The messages appear as a verified conversation from 'Google Messages' but only allow pre-set replies, not user responses. Users can opt out by declining a prompt that appears before the texts begin, or unsubscribe later if they've already accepted.
Code found in Android 17 QPR2 Beta 5 references an 'Unlock with Google Account' feature that would let users regain access to a locked phone using their linked Google credentials instead of performing a factory reset. Google offered a similar pattern-unlock recovery option through Android 4.4 before removing it, leaving users locked out of forgotten PINs with no option but a full wipe. The feature appears unreleased and possibly optional, suggesting Google is still testing how to implement it.
Google has opened pre-orders for Googlebook laptops built by Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, and Lenovo, priced between $899 and $1,299. These devices merge Android and Chrome OS into one platform, running on Arm and x86 chips, and deeply integrate with Android phones for syncing files, messages, and settings. Gemini AI powers core features including a voice-to-document tool called Rambler and an app-building agent named Antigravity.
An APK teardown of a recent Google Messages beta build reveals an unreleased interface change that relocates the Gemini shortcut to the top header, replacing the current search icon there. The Start Chat button shifts from the bottom-right corner to the bottom-center of the screen, and a new Search button joins it at the bottom, both expanding and collapsing based on user scrolling behavior.
Google's Play Services v26.37 update, released September 21, extends the Motion Assist feature beyond Pixel devices to any Android phone running Android 17 or later. The tool displays small visual bubbles along screen edges that move in sync with a vehicle's motion, using the phone's sensors to help reduce motion sickness. Users can customize the bubbles' appearance and choose automatic or manual activation.
Google has made the games category for Android Auto and Android Automotive OS generally available, ending its beta phase. Developers can now publish compatible titles directly through Google Play's open testing and production tracks, rather than relying on early-access programs.
GM introduced a new picture-in-picture feature letting CarPlay and Android Auto run alongside its native infotainment system in the Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra trucks. This sparked reports that GM was reversing its 2023 decision to drop phone projection from its EVs, but a GM spokesperson confirmed to journalist Joanna Stern that the update applies only to gas-powered light-duty pickups, which never lost CarPlay support in the first place.
Android Authority found code in Google app version 17.60.13.sa.arm64 showing an early redesign of Gemini's Settings screen. The new layout groups options in a style similar to the current account switcher, building on previously spotted plans to move settings out of that switcher and into categorized sub-screens like Preferences, Data & privacy, and others.
Google has begun taking pre-orders for its Googlebook laptop, priced at $899, months after unveiling it in May. The device runs Android OS with a desktop Chrome browser and ChromeOS-like features, but its main selling point is deep integration of Gemini AI, including an AI-driven cursor called Magic Cursor and a dictation tool called Rambler that cleans up rambling speech into text.
GM introduced a redesigned software interface for its upcoming Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra trucks that refreshes the look of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Several outlets mistakenly reported this as GM reversing its 2023 decision to drop phone mirroring, but that removal only ever applied to GM's electric vehicles, not its gas-powered lineup.
Google has officially unveiled Googlebook, a new laptop platform built on Android and Chrome OS foundations, previously known internally as Aluminium OS. Acer, Asus, Dell, HP and Lenovo have all announced flagship Googlebook laptops starting at $899, with US sales beginning October 4 and pre-orders already open at the Google Store, Best Buy, and select retailers.
Google has officially rolled out its Googlebook platform, merging ChromeOS and Android into a single desktop operating system with deep Android phone integration, Gemini AI features, and a widget-creation tool. Five laptops from Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, and Lenovo are launching alongside the platform, all starting with at least 16GB RAM, 256GB storage, and claimed 14+ hour battery life. The devices go on sale in the US starting October 4, with the Acer Googlebook 14 priced from $899 as the cheapest and only convertible option.