Articles by Jay Bonggolto

Google Photos beat it to the punch.

What you need to know

Samsung has quietly rolled out an update to its Gallery app that allows you to edit its metadata.
The latest change lets you change the date and time of when a photo or video was taken.
You can also edit the location data of a media file.

Samsung’s Gallery app has gained a bunch of new features, including the ability to change the time and date when photos and videos saved to your phone were taken. It’s the same feature that was just added to Google Photos a few days ago, as spotted by a Twitter user.

The new feature should come in handy when media files transferred from another device to your phone have incorrect time and date information. It was discovered by a Reddit user and picked up by Android Police. To edit a file’s metadata, open it, tap the overflow menu, and then navigate to the details section.

This has the potential to save users a significant amount of time. Simply entering the time you took a photo …

Up to 16 users can now join a Signal group call.

What you need to know

Signal has raised the number of people who can join a group call from eight to 16.
In contrast, WhatsApp group calls can accommodate only up to eight users.
The service also adds new options to create your own sticker packs and a private scratchpad.

Signal announced a slew of new features on Wednesday, including more room for additional users during a group call and new features to expand the app’s messaging options.

The biggest announcement is Signal’s group call expansion. It can now make room for up to 16 users, up from the previous limit of eight persons.

Group calls can now hold up to 16 people. Across iOS, Android, and desktop, you can go ahead and get your whole rugby squad together for an overdue catch up. pic.twitter.com/O0Qq1iCiNI— Signal (@signalapp) October 5, 2021

Signal’s expanded group calls demonstrate the company’s increased effort to provide a platform where friends and colleagues can…

Samsung’s RAM Plus feature is trickling down to its mid-range and flagship devices.

What you need to know

Samsung’s virtual RAM expansion feature is rolling out to more Galaxy phones.
RAM Plus is now available on the Galaxy S21 ultra running One UI 4 (beta) and Galaxy Z Fold 3 through a software update.
The feature was initially made available on the Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G.

Samsung appears to have started rolling out a RAM feature first seen on the Galaxy A52s 5G to more Galaxy devices, including some of the best Samsung phones like the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra and foldable devices such as the Galaxy Z Fold 3.

RAM Plus is now available for download via software update on the Galaxy S21 Ultra running One UI 4 (beta) based on Android 12, as spotted by Android Central’s Alex Dobie. It joins a slew of new features, performance enhancements, and bug fixes.

For starters, RAM Plus is a new feature that gives your smartphone a virtual RAM expansion with an extra 4GB of memory by uti…

It might be called the Honor Magic X.

What you need to know

A new tip suggests Honor will launch its own foldable phone in the fourth quarter of this year.
It will supposedly be called the Honor Magic X.
The phone is said to borrow from the design of the Huawei Mate X2.

Honor’s breakup with Huawei opened new opportunities for the company, including regaining access to Google Play Services. Now, the smartphone manufacturer appears poised to take on its former parent company as well as the other tech behemoths in the foldable phone segment.

According to a post on Weibo, Honor plans to unveil its own foldable device before the end of 2021 (via GSMArena). The company was first rumored to be dabbling in the foldable space earlier this year with a device called the Honor Magic Fold, which was supposedly set to debut in 2020 if the pandemic hadn’t occurred.

However, the Chinese company’s upcoming foldable phone may have a different name. Honor will be known as the Magic X, accordin…

It will be HMD Global’s first tablet since acquiring exclusive rights to the Nokia brand.

What you need to know

Nokia teased its upcoming Android tablet, the brand’s second such device ever.
The device is set to be announced on October 6.
It could be the rumored Nokia T20 with modest specs.

Nokia is set to announce a new tablet on October 6. The company has released a teaser for the upcoming unveiling, implying that the new slate will be inspired by the Nokia 3310 from 2017.

The tablet appears to have rounded edges, similar to Nokia’s recent smartphone lineup. Aside from that, the teaser doesn’t reveal much about what Nokia has up its sleeve. It only shows a sliver of a slate peeking out from around a corner, alongside the Nokia 3310 in full view.

Everything you’d expect from a Nokia phone in a tablet.Coming 6.10.21 pic.twitter.com/uTssAURMMQ— Nokia Mobile (@NokiaMobile) September 27, 2021

That said, it’s possible that the teaser refers to the same tablet that hit the r…

Google could soon make it easier to view your recent search results and current tab at the same time.

What you need to know

Google Chrome looks set to add a new feature to easily browse your search results in a side panel.
The new capability will let you view your current tab and recent search results without having to open a new tab.
Chrome’s sidebar search has been spotted in the latest build of Chrome Canary.

Google is reportedly developing a new Chrome feature that will allow you to open your recent search results in a sidebar. The experimental feature, dubbed “Side search,” appears to be similar to Microsoft Edge’s sidebar search feature.

As per 9to5Google, the experimental feature opens a sidebar to the left of your current tab when you click the Google “G” logo that shows up next to the URL bar. The sidebar panel displays your most recent Google Search results, while the main browser tab displays any results you click.

This means you won’t need to click the “Back” butto…

Your favorite NBCUniversal channels will go dark on Thursday if both companies fail to reach a deal.

What you need to know

YouTube TV subscribers may lose access to several NBCUniversal channels if both companies fail to make a new deal.
Some 14 channels will go dark if Google and NBCUniversal’s carriage agreement isn’t renewed by Thursday.
When NBCUniversal’s channel lineup becomes unavailable, YouTube TV will reduce its monthly price by $10.

YouTube TV subscribers may soon lose access to several NBC-owned channels. Google’s streaming TV service has announced that NBCUniversal’s lineup of channels will go offline after September 30 unless an “equitable” agreement is reached.

Google said in a blog post that it has been trying to renew its deal with NBCU. The existing agreement between the entertainment company and YouTube TV is set to expire on Thursday, but both companies are still locked in a carriage dispute, with no new agreement in sight.

In a statement, NBCU accuses Goog…

The event is likely for new Nest devices and updates to Google Maps and Travel.

What you need to know

Google is rumored to be holding an event on October 5 to announce new hardware products.
The company could unveil new Nest products as well as updates to Google Maps and Travel.
However, there’s no mention of Google Pixel 6 being unveiled at the event.

Google’s October event schedule may include more than just announcements for Android 12 and the Google Pixel 6 series. According to a CNET post that has since been removed (a cached version is available here), the company plans to hold an event on October 5 for a few hardware unveiling and updates to some of its services.

XDA Developers’ Mishaal Rahman managed to grab some screenshots of the post before it was taken, revealing a few important details. First, it suggests that Google will introduce new Nest smart speakers and smart home devices on that day. The last time that Google unveiled a Nest product was in early August with …

The search giant has so far paid around $9.4 billion in fines in the last 10 years.

What you need to know

Google is allegedly offering to enter a settlement with the EU over an ongoing antitrust investigation.
The EU is looking into whether the company is favoring its own online advertising platform to the disadvantage of competitors.
The search giant could be fined up to $18.2 billion if the EU decides to junk the settlement offer.

Google is reportedly seeking to settle a new antitrust probe by the European Union into its digital advertising practices. Reuters reports the settlement might help the search giant avert another hefty fine that could amount to $18.2 billion.

In June, the European Commission launched an investigation into Google’s online advertising technology business for possible violations of EU competition rules. Margrethe Vestager, the European Commission’s executive vice president in charge of competition policy in the region, stated at the time that Google ma…

The new advertiser pages will give you quick access to an advertiser’s campaign history.

What you need to know

Google has announced a new way to increase the transparency of its ads.
The new feature allows users to see the previous ads, among other information, run by an advertiser on the platform.
These disclosures will be available to everyone in the U.S. over the coming months.

Google is doubling down on ads transparency for consumers. The company has announced a new capability that will allow you to take a glimpse of previous campaigns run by advertisers on Google on top of their identity.

The new advertiser pages will give users a quick way to learn more about the ads they see on the search engine, such as the advertisers’ legal name, country of origin, and ads they’ve run in the last 30 days. Using some of the best Android phones or laptops, these disclosures can be accessed by tapping the “About this ad” menu and then an option that states “See more ads by this advertise…