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Tech News
A guide details split tunneling, a VPN feature that lets users choose which apps or sites route through the encrypted VPN connection and which connect directly to the internet. The feature is included in many VPN packages and helps users avoid the speed loss or location-masking issues that can come with routing all traffic through a VPN.
Projects such as Cleanyourtv (formerly tv-vibehack), tv-detox, and dumbtv have surged in popularity, using LLM-assisted coding to remove ads, block tracking, and speed up smart TVs running Android or Google TV. The tools rely on existing developer modes and Android Debug Bridge access rather than rooting or firmware hacking, making changes reversible, and many users are also building custom homescreen launchers, including one styled after a Pokémon town.
YouTube is redesigning its Android and iOS apps, relocating the Subscriptions tab from the bottom navigation bar—where it has sat since 2017—into a new top bar on the Home screen. The update also introduces custom feeds, letting signed-in users type descriptions of content they want to see and generate tailored feeds, with new dedicated tabs for Live, Music, and Movies & TV. Custom feeds are launching first for English-speaking, signed-in users in the U.S. on mobile and desktop, with free accounts capped at 3 saved feeds and Premium members at 8.
A widely shared video demonstrates how a nano-texture matte coating on a conceptual foldable iPhone, dubbed the 'iPhone Duo,' reduces glare and reflections compared to glossy screens on existing Android foldables. The clip argues that removing or avoiding this matte layer would make the display harder to view in certain lighting conditions.
A research project called HackiOS, from a group identifying as OOSEX GANG, runs Apple's open-source XNU kernel alongside an unmodified iOS 16.5 user space on a POCO X5 Pro 5G Android phone and in QEMU emulation. The system boots entirely from RAM via fastboot without flashing the device, and reverts to Android on reboot; the project uses custom EFI/UEFI loaders and driver replacements rather than any Apple binaries, pulling IPSW files directly from Apple's CDN at runtime.
Google has told Android users in Canada to install pending software updates and restart their devices after some phones showed incorrect times following British Columbia and Manitoba's permanent switch to daylight saving time. The provinces will not turn clocks back on November 1st, which can confuse devices still expecting the old time change. Google also suggested enabling location-based time zone detection or manually setting the correct time zone if the issue persists.
Coolpad has opened preorders in China for the Cool X Wide, a budget Android phone priced around 999 yuan (about $150) through JD.com, with shipping starting November 8th. The phone features a 6.38-inch 16:10 display with up to 90Hz refresh rate, a MediaTek Helio G99 chip, 8GB RAM, 128GB storage, a 50-megapixel rear camera, and a 4,600mAh battery, running Android 16 but limited to 4G connectivity.
A review of Googlebook laptops from Acer, HP, Lenovo, Dell and Asus finds strong hardware—OLED displays, premium build quality, 16GB RAM and good battery life—undermined by an unfinished Googlebook OS plagued by bugs and weak app support. The reviewers say the software feels more like an Android tablet interface bolted onto a laptop than a unified operating system, and do not recommend buying any current model.
A ZDNET writer discovered that after Google's August Android update, Pixel phones no longer offer a straightforward way to set a third-party app like Waze as the default mapping tool. The workaround involves disabling Google Maps first through the phone's Apps settings before Waze can take over as default for links and other apps that open map locations.
Google has released a Rust style guide covering formatting, API design and implementation practices for use across google3, Android, ChromeOS, Fuchsia and Chrome. The guide states it has been developed in consultation with teams at Android and Chromium, which intend to begin adopting it, though each codebase may apply it with differing strictness.
Users have reported that the Google Play system update field on their Android devices displays a date set in the future rather than the actual update date. The issue appears concentrated on Samsung phones, with some OnePlus and Motorola users also reporting the same glitch.
Google is rolling out Gemini integration in Google Maps for Apple CarPlay, letting drivers ask multi-step questions, request route changes like avoiding tolls, and report traffic incidents by voice while navigating. The feature is accessed via a Gemini icon that appears during turn-by-turn navigation. It's live now in the US with a global rollout underway.