Articles by Michael Allison

Messages is acting more like an IM app than a traditional SMS one.

What you need to know

Google is testing a new “attach recent photos” button in chat.
However, it only pops up briefly after taking a photo.
The new button does serve to highlight the speedy and efficient media sharing of Google’s RCS-powred chat service.

Ever so often we get a reminder that Messages isn’t just an SMS app, it’s Google’s new instant messaging effort. Powered by RCS, Google hopes for this app could rival the likes of WhatsApp and iMessage, and it’s adding nifty little features to underscore that. First discovered by the folks over at Android Police, the Messages app in beta will now pop up an “attach recent picture button.”

Simply put, it’s a one-tap shortcut for sending the last photo captured. It doesn’t show up if you’re using MMS, but it does if you’re using RCS i.e chat. The reasoning is clear. Sending multi-media messages via Google’s chat is free and can work even over WiFi, while it’s proba…

Apple and Google’s new contact tracing APIs will let public health agencies build efficient contact tracing apps.

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Apple and Google have teamed up to create a contact tracing API for their respective smartphone operating systems.
The API will enable efficient and light contact tracing experiences on smartphones running iOS and Android.
Both companies shared screenshots and code snippets this week to help developers get a headstart.

Amid the unprecedented actions taking to tackle the coronavirus pandemic, large-scale contact tracing is one of the routes out of global lockdown. The idea is that users install apps on their cell phones which would let them know if someone they have come into extended contact with has tested positive for the coronavirus. It’ll prompt people into self-isolation, and help limit the spread as a result. The approach was praised for its effectiveness in South Korea, and now governments in Europe and The Americas are onboard to create …

Google promised to bring RCS to more regions in 2020 after a limited release in 2019.

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RCS is a set of standards that makes SMS a contender in an age of instant messaging.
Google rolled out its implementation of the standard in 2019 to the U.S., UK, Mexico, and France.
Now reports indicate it’s testing it out in Italy and Singapore as well.

Google’s RCS service is reaching more people after an initial rollout last year. Reports of the RCS set-up screen popping up have emerged from Italy and Singapore. Italian siteTuttoAndroid (via Android Police) noted that some Italian users have gotten Google’s Chat prompt upon launching the Messages app. At the same time, some Singaporean Messages users have shared screenshots of the same prompt on social media. Google itself has yet to share anything indicating a roll-out, but the growing presence of the prompt means one can’t be too far behind.

Google last year rolled out RCS to the U.S., the UK, Mexico, and France, i…

Xiaomi may be collecting more data than users are aware of, but the company says it’s doing so strictly within legal limits.

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Xiaomi has been accused of collecting more data than would reasonably be anticipated from smartphone users.
A report from Forbes spotted data from incongito mode being routed to servers in Russia and Singapore.
Xiaomi denied the allegations, arguing that it was strictly abiding by local regulations.

Browsing on incognito mode may not be as private as users think if you’re using a Xiaomi phone. As per a report from Forbes (working with security researcher Gabi Cirlig), the default Xiaomi browser was sending records of every website users accessed, even while they were in incognito mode.

Forbes reports:

The device was also recording what folders he opened and to which screens he swiped, including the status bar and the settings page. All of the data was being packaged up and sent to remote servers in Singapore and Russia, though t…

The Pixel 4a was always thought to launch in May, this just puts a date to it.

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Google is probably launching the Pixel 4a in the middle of May.
Internal carrier documents put the shipping date for the company’s first mid-range phone on May 22.
The Pixel 4a was previously expected to launch at the now-canceled Google I/O developer’s conference.

Google’s Pixel 4a is said to be available on Vodafone Germany from May 22, according to Caschys (via Android Police) which looked at internal carrier documents.

Reasoning backward, it’s possible Google could announce the Pixel 4a around a week before launch as it has done in the past, placing it right at the time where it would have been hosting I/O. Alternatively, it could announce them like the Pixel Buds, with sales beginning at or shortly after an announcement post.

Google’s Pixel 4 and 4 XL are expensive phones with obvious cons for regular users (poor battery life) and not-so-obvious benefits (soli). The Pixel…

Google’s Meet takes the battle to Zoom as it goes free for all

What you need to know

Google Meet is now free for everyone.
Anyone with a Google account will be able to create and join meetings over the coming weeks.
It’s not entirely the same as the paid version, Google will be enforcing a 60-minute time limit from September 30.

Google this morning announced that it would be making Google Meet, its premier video-conferencing product, free for everyone over the coming weeks. It had previously offered the product as part of its paid G-Suite offerings, but now it’ll let anyone with a Google account sign-up to the service now.

Google will eventually have limits on the free version of Meet, mostly related to how long a meeting can be run (60 mins, or 20 more than Zoom’s limitations). For now, it’s providing all of Meet’s features for free. This will include the Zoom-like Grid layout it introduced a few weeks back, dedicated mobile apps, strong controls that prevent unwanted intrusi…