Articles about Android

Google is no stranger to investigations into and questions about its practices, and in Europe the company has faced great interest from the European Commission for violating antitrust laws. Now, in a move that echoes that of Microsoft's Browser Choice nearly a decade ago, Google is going to give Android users the option of choosing their default web browser and search engine.

This is not something that will be happening on a global scale, however -- at least not to start with. As Google is merely keen to avoid accusations of being anticompetitive in Europe, it is only European Android users that will be affected.

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Check Point Research has uncovered two massive mobile adware and data stealing campaigns, which have already had a combined total of over 250 million downloads globally.

Both target mobiles using Android, and exploit the mobile app development supply chain to infect devices and perform malicious actions.

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Microsoft first introduced its Your Phone app late last year, and Windows Insiders running a 19H1 build can now try out a brand new feature -- screen mirroring.

This new addition lets users mirror an Android phone’s screen directly on a Windows 10 PC, but -- as you might expect -- this feature isn’t available to all.

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In one of the biggest tests of Android antivirus software ever conducted, out of 250 apps tested the majority proved to be dubious, unsafe or ineffective.

Independent testing organization AV-Comparatives put the apps to the test against an array of common threats and found that some are not properly protecting users.

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At MWC last month, OnePlus did not -- as many people had hoped -- show off the OnePlus 7, opting instead to give visitors a hands-off glimpse at a 5G prototype. But a new leak gives us an idea of what we might expect to see in the upcoming handset.

In a video, the OnePlus 7 is shown to have virtually no bezels, and a 6.5-inch screen is unencumbered by a notch or hole punch cut-out. This is thanks largely to the use of a camera that pops up out of the top of the handset.

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Apple gets a lot of praise for the length of time it offers iOS updates to iPhone owners. Manufacturers of Android handsets, on the other hand, tend to be chastised for failing to offer OS updates for anywhere near long enough.

Bucking this trend is OnePlus, one of the few companies that does not just forget about owners of older phones as soon as a new model is released. But having promised some time ago that OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 3T owners would get Android Pie, users were starting to fear that the update had been ditched. Good news. OnePlus has confirmed that Pie is still in the pipeline.

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The age of the folding phone is upon us. Gone are the days of prototypes -- now we have hardware we can actually buy... or at least will be able to very soon indeed. Both Samsung and Huawei have unveiled foldables in recent days, but how do they stack up?

The two companies have taken different approaches with the Galaxy Fold and the Mate X when it comes to the hinging, but there are also specs to consider -- and, of course, price. So how do the two flagship foldables compare?

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Google has a history of changing its mind about messaging services, launching and closing them left, right and center. The company now seems pretty invested in its Messages platform, and has been gradually adding more and more features to increase its appeal.

Google's latest move sees it bringing Assistant integration to the Messages app so you can get one-tap access to AI-powered help and information. The company also says that it remains committed to RCS (Rich Communication Service) and wants to bring the standard to more Android users.

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Opera Software has unveiled no fewer than 24 improvements since launching its mobile browser for Android and iOS. The latest build, Opera Touch 1.5.0 delivers a much-needed setting for automatically handling website cookie dialogs.

Other improvements since launch have included expanding the My Flow feature to connect mobile and desktop iterations of Opera, support for Private Browsing mode and a dark theme

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Following the scandal surrounding the collection of user data, Facebook has removed its Onavo VPN app from the Google Play Store -- a full six months after the iOS version of the Facebook Research app was kicked out of the App Store by Apple.

Facebook will also be ending its controversial paid data collection program which saw the company paying people for access to information about their device and internet usage. The app will continue to function as a VPN -- minus the questionable privacy invasion -- for a little while to give users the chance to seek out an alternative, but it will ultimately close down completely.

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Faced with continued criticism about privacy, Facebook is rolling out an update to Android users that gives a greater degree of control over the sharing of location data with the social network.

Specifically, the update makes it possible to stop Facebook from using tracking your location in the background when you are not using the app. The change brings parity to the iOS and Android Facebook apps.

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Samsung may be on the verge of officially unveiling its Galaxy S10 range of phones, but ahead of this the company announces its Galaxy Tab S5e tablet.

Being thin and light, there's a strong focus on portability here, and the display makes it perfect for movie watching. This is a 10.5-inch Super AMOLED screen with a 16:10 aspect ratio, and the bezels have been stripped right back. The tablet is driven by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 670 processor, comes with up to 6GB of RAM, and pricing starts at $400 -- which compares well with Apple's iPad.

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Google has announced that it is dramatically narrowing the focus of Android Things, originally conceived as the company's wide-ranging IoT platform.

Now rather than being an OEM tool that can be used to produce just about anything for the Internet of Things, Android Things will instead be focused on just two product lines: smart speakers and smart displays.

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A number of British and European politicians have written to the UK home secretary, Sajid Javid, to complain about the government's EU Exit mobile app.

The app was created to enable EU citizens to apply for "settled status" in the UK in the wake of the referendum vote that saw the start of the Brexit process. The government stands accused of "digital discrimination" because the app is only available for Android devices -- and only relatively modern ones at that. iPhone users have been left out in the cold, as have those with older Android phones, adding to the stress and concern that already surrounds Brexit.

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Mozilla has launched a test version of a new mobile web browser -- sort of, anyway. Known as Reference Browser, Mozilla stresses that "this is NOT a new end product, it is a collection of parts".

Described as a "technology preview", Reference Browser sees the company seeking feedback about various components which may or may not be used together in the future. It is looking for Android users to provide "input, telemetry and feedback and bug reports" to shape the future of mobile web browsing.

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