Posts From Brandon Russell

Brandon Russell
Brandon Russell

Brandon's love of technology can be traced back to his childhood, when he would obsessively watch Back to the Future. Since then he's followed the industry and its many innovations, from handheld consoles to powerful smartphones. He's still waiting on a hoverboard.

Google rolls out Google Meet, Chat, and Rooms tabs in Gmail for G Suite customers

Google rolls out Google Meet, Chat, and Rooms tabs in Gmail for G Suite customers

August 13, 2020
Google has a lot of different tools for staying productive while working from home, including Meet, Chat, and Rooms. Now, the search giant is adding tabs for each service inside the Gmail app, but only for G Suite customers at this time. Google announced the rollout for the new Meet, Chat, and Rooms tabs in a...
Dropbox launches its password manager, secure folder, and computer backups for Plus plans

Dropbox launches its password manager, secure folder, and computer backups for Plus plans

August 12, 2020
Dropbox Plus users were treated to a slew of new features today, including the company’s new password manager, PIN-protected folder, and computer backup. In a blog post, the company announced that Dropbox Passwords, Dropbox Vault, and computer backup are no longer in beta and are now available for users on Dropbox Plus (and Professional) plans. Dropbox Passwords...
Google explains why they’re experimenting with hiding the full URL in Chrome

Google explains why they’re experimenting with hiding the full URL in Chrome

August 12, 2020
We've known that Google has been experimenting with hiding the full address in the URL bar in Chrome for several months now. After all, Google has been developing these changes in the open in the open-source Chromium project, as spotted earlier this year by AndroidPolice. In a blog post published today, Google provided more details...
Google Meet will add hand-raising and background blurring for video calls later this year

Google Meet will add hand-raising and background blurring for video calls later this year

August 12, 2020
Over the last few months, Google Meet has added new features to make it a more viable alternative to popular group video calling platforms like Zoom. To meet the needs of educators, students, and professionals, Google is adding even more features in the coming months, including background blurring. Google detailed the new features during yesterday's Google...
Google announces ChromeOS.dev, a website for Chrome OS dev resources, announcements, and more

Google announces ChromeOS.dev, a website for Chrome OS dev resources, announcements, and more

August 12, 2020
If you’re a developer interested in building for Chrome OS, you might want to bookmark Google's new ChromeOS.dev website, an online resource for technical information, product announcements, code samples, and more. Google said it created ChromeOS.dev in response to the massive increase in interest of Chromebooks. According to Google, between March and June 2020, Chromebook unit...
The Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra is the first phone with Qualcomm’s 100W+ Quick Charge 5 technology

The Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra is the first phone with Qualcomm’s 100W+ Quick Charge 5 technology

August 12, 2020
The new Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra is an exciting smartphone as it's the pinnacle of 10 years of Xiaomi's growth in the smartphone business. Featuring a 120Hz refresh rate OLED display made by TCL's CSOT, a 48MP Quad Bayer sensor with a 120mm-equivalent, 5x optical lens for up to 120X zoom, and 120W fast wired...
ASUS ROG Phone II, Google Pixel 3 & 3 XL, and Samsung Galaxy A7 2016 are now supported by LineageOS 17.1

ASUS ROG Phone II, Google Pixel 3 & 3 XL, and Samsung Galaxy A7 2016 are now supported by LineageOS 17.1

August 12, 2020
Want to breathe new life into an old phone you have lying around? Sick of the stock software experience on your phone and want to try something new? If you have an ASUS ROG Phone II, Google Pixel 3 or Pixel 3 XL, or the 2016 Samsung Galaxy A7, you can now download LineageOS 17.1,...
Google Lens adds a homework mode to help kids solve math problems

Google Lens adds a homework mode to help kids solve math problems

August 11, 2020
Going back to school has taken on a new meaning thanks to this year's global COVID-19 pandemic. Instead of attending school, many students around the globe will take their education virtual. To help, Google is introducing new tools to help students at home, including a new Education mode in Google Lens. According to Google, when students...
Automagic, a popular automation app and alternative to Tasker, is no longer in development

Automagic, a popular automation app and alternative to Tasker, is no longer in development

August 11, 2020
Last Friday was a sad day for Android power users, as the developer of Automagic announced that development has been halted and the app has been pulled from the Google Play Store. Automagic has been one of the most popular automation apps for Android since it was first published in 2012. The app's flow-chart interface made...
Gboard adds real-time voice transcription and translation

Gboard adds real-time voice transcription and translation

August 11, 2020
Google's keyboard app is getting another big upgrade with version 9.7 beta. After rolling out smart completion, adding an "undo autocorrect on backspace" toggle, and testing new Google Assistant dictation support, Google is now rolling out real-time voice transcription and translation for all users of Gboard. As noted by Android Police, transcribing and translating text aren't...
Google Clock’s Bedtime tab and Sunrise Alarm are now available for all Android phones

Google Clock’s Bedtime tab and Sunrise Alarm are now available for all Android phones

August 11, 2020
Google's third Pixel Feature Drop for Pixel devices brought new features to the Google Clock app to help you get a better night's sleep. Google said the feature would be available this summer for all Android devices, and they're keeping their word. Today, Google announced that the Bedtime tab in the Clock app will be...
Google is turning your Android phone into an early earthquake alert system

Google is turning your Android phone into an early earthquake alert system

August 11, 2020
Google on Tuesday announced it is planning to roll out an earthquake early alert system on Android phones. The system, which will first deploy in California, could provide the public with a few seconds warning before an earthquake strikes. In California, Google partnered with the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and the California Governor’s Office of...