According to a new report, Google has locked in production of its Tensor chipsets for Pixel phones through at least the Pixel 14 generation over the “next 3 to 5 years.”
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Disney Plus will become the new home of CoComelon outside of YouTube starting in 2027, according to Bloomberg. All eight seasons will move over from Netflix, which has hosted the absurdly popular kids show since 2020.
CoComelon, essentially a series of mind-numbingly plotless, CG-animated vignettes set to karaoke-quality nursery rhymes, is a giant in the world of programming for children, having accounted for 601 million Netflix views in 2023. According to Bloomberg, it was the second most-streamed show on the platform last year.
Despite its popularity, Bloomberg reports that CoComelon views fell by “almost 60% over the last couple of years,” and that compared to all of streaming, it went from the fifth most-watched show in 2023 to not even breaking the top 10 last year. Still, it’s probably going to be a good deal for Disney, which will reportedly pay “tens of millions” a year for it. After all, 2027 is also the year that the first CoComelon movie hits theaters.
With the Pixel 10 series expected to be nearly identical to the current generation, color is how Google can physically distinguish the phones. A new leak today reveals the possible colors for the Pixel 10, 10 Pro, and 10 Pro XL.
more…Upcoming smartphone tariffs first aimed at Apple, and since confirmed to apply to other brands, will apparently result in a huge 30-40% price hike on Samsung Galaxy smartphones.
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DJI seems to be preparing three new drones for release in the coming months: a Mini 5 Pro, Avata 3, and a Neo 2, according to DroneXL. The site published leaked images and video of the drones, along with a new FCC filing that suggests DJI is also working on a new action camera called the DJI Osmo Nano.
DroneXL published a video showing two drones that may be follow-ups to the Avata 2 and the adorable DJI Neo. DroneXL notes a few differences, like that the Avata 3’s battery sits farther back and it’s got a larger camera unit up front. It also has four-blade propellers rather than the three-blade setup of the Avata 2. Next to the Avata 3 is what the outlet thinks is a Neo 2 prototype, although it’s hard to discern much more than that it appears to have redesigned propeller guards compared to the original.
Yesterday, DroneXL pointed to a new FCC filing that revealed some information about the unannounced Mini 5 Pro. The filing shows the Mini 5 Pro will pack a whopping 33.5Wh battery — a big improvement over the 18.9Wh of the Mini 4 Pro — and the outlet writes that the wireless transmissions specs support rumors that it could stream video from as far as 25 kilometers (15.5 miles) away, or 5 kilometers farther than its predecessor. That range edges it closer to that DJI Mavic 4 Pro that wasn’t supposed to launch in the US but somehow went on sale here, anyway. (We’d love to know why, but DJI won’t say.) The Mini 5 Pro is expected to launch in September.
Rounding out DroneXL’s rumor post is a newly-published FCC filing for the DJI Osmo Nano, a new wearable action camera that appears to have a modular display like the Action line. The outlet notes that the company is also expected to release a Mic 3 and Osmo 360 camera, though it doesn’t have any solid guesses about when they’re coming.
I spent my morning with Gemini in Chrome, the new integration that puts the AI-powered assistant right in your browser. Instead of going to the chatbot's web app, you can click the new Gemini button in Chrome's top-right corner to start a conversation - but the key difference is that the browser's built-in assistant can "see" what's on your screen while you navigate the web.
To me, Gemini's integration in Chrome seems like just the start of Google's mission to make its AI more "agentic," as I found myself wanting it to do more than it actually could. For now, you can only try out the early access version of Gemini in Chrome if you're an AI Pro or AI Ultra subscriber, and use either the Beta, Dev, or Canary version of Chrome.
I started out by using Gemini to summarize some of the articles on The Verge, as well as even find some gaming-related news on the homepage, where it pointed out the new Game Boy games Nintendo added to its Switch Online service, the upcoming Elden Ring film adaptation, and Valve's massive Steam Deck update.
But Gemini can only "see" what's on your screen, so I found that if you want it to summarize certain elements, like The Verge's comments section, you'l …
Android Auto is getting more than just Google’s Gemini assistant after the Google I/O developer conference. The company has also announced or otherwise shown off a slew of changes coming to the infotainment operating system, including an updated Spotify app, a light mode, and the introduction of web browsers and video apps.
Let’s start with Spotify. Google revealed in a video last week that the Spotify app for Android Auto is getting an overhaul through new media app templates the company is making available to developers. One feature the music service is adding to Android Auto is Spotify Jam, a feature that lets users share control of an audio source from their individual devices.
In cars with Android Auto, that means anyone with Spotify will jump in by tapping a new “Jam” icon on the car’s touchscreen, then scanning a QR code to start adding upcoming songs to the playlist. Being a Spotify feature, it’s much more inclusive than Apple Music’s similar SharePlay feature, which requires everyone to have an Apple device to participate. Spotify Jam will be available “in the coming months,” the company says.
Also in the video, Google says it’s adding support for Quick Share to cars with Google built-in soon, letting users do things like add stops to in-progress Google Maps routes. The company also says it’s going to add passkey support for its infotainment OS.
Through a Google Figma kit Google made for prototyping Android Auto app UI, we also have a new look at a light mode theme the company is working on for Android Auto. Google didn’t actually say it’s rolling out a light mode in its blog post about all the changes coming to Android Auto, but as 9to5Google notes, the UI option has been in the works for years.
One thing that Google did mention — and briefly at that — is that browser and video apps are coming to Android Auto. The company says that app category, along with video apps, will be available “soon” for Android Auto and that gaming apps are available already available in beta. Naturally, Google says these features will only work while a car is in park. The browsers feature is already available in beta for cars with Google built-in, while video apps are already available in that version of its infotainment system. The company also announced that support for weather apps is officially out of beta.
Google I/O’s big focus was, obviously, on AI, but Android 16 was also a big part of the event thanks to the release of the first QPR1 beta with the Material 3 Expressive redesign. What do you think of it so far?
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