AC News Weekly
News Weekly is our column where we highlight and summarize some of the week’s top stories so you can stay up-to-date on the latest tech news.
This is Android Central’s news weekly, your go-to source for a round-up of the week’s most important tech stories. This is where we delve into the top headlines that deliver the latest developments and innovations contributing to the digital landscape.
This week, Samsung unboxed some of its devices in Paris, starting with the Galaxy Ring, Galaxy Z Fold and Z Flip 6, Buds 3 and 3 Pro, and the Galaxy Watch 7 series. While this launch may have gotten attention in terms of news, here are some other things that went down in the tech world.
Starting with the XR headphones launching this year, the new Galaxy Watch series may be missing a feature, Google suspends Lollipop support, OnePlus devices leak ahead of its summer event, and a new feature could let you search the dark web. Let’s dive in.
Samsung will finally launch its XR headphones
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Samsung always ends its events by leaving us wanting more. January’s Unpacked gave us the Galaxy Ring, while the mid-year event ended with a quick mention of the Samsung XR headphones.
Samsung surprised us on stage by announcing that “a new XR platform is coming later this year.” While we didn’t get to see any images of the device, we have been speculating about XR headphones. The company was allegedly planning its debut in the summer of 2025, but it looks like we’ll see it in action sometime in the next five months.
All we know at the moment is that the Samsung headphones are still in the early stages of development. Samsung’s headset may be more than just for gaming, like the Meta Quest 3, but we expect full access to the Google Play Store with all the apps included. Samsung also wants to make its XR device more affordable – to be a third of the price of the Vision Pro it could cost around $1,000.
The new Galaxy Watch Ultra is missing one important feature
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The new Galaxy Watch series has ditched something called PowerShare, a wireless charging feature that’s compatible with smartphones. In a recent support page update, Samsung said that the Galaxy Watch 7 and Watch 7 Ultra do not support wireless charging from a paired Galaxy phone. X user Jordy Verboven was the first to notice this change.
This handy feature basically allows your phone’s battery to wirelessly charge compatible smartwatches by placing them near each other—a great way to give your watch a little charge when it’s almost dead. While this feature won’t be available on the new watches, it continues to be present on the older generation devices.
Samsung had to remove this feature due to a design change with the new sensor array, which required reshaping the back glass on both Watch models, which increased the distance between the internal wireless charging coil and external charging surface, making the former energy wireless. the ability to share is impossible.
Android Lollipop no more
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Google first launched Android Lollipop software in 2014 with its Nexus 6 device. Now, a decade later, the company is ending official updates.
Google will discontinue Google Play Services updates for Android Lollipop devices starting this month. A Google spokesperson said the reason for putting a nail in the coffin is the percentage of active Android Lollipop devices, which is said to be less than one percent at the moment.
While updates may no longer be available for this version of the software, Google Play Services support will continue to work. However, users won’t get “any new features, important security updates, and may not be compatible with some apps.”
Android KitKat updates also stalled in July last year. With Lollipop gone, Marshmallow handsets could be next.
Spoiler alert: OnePlus devices show up ahead of launch
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A mid-week leak spilled some serious beans about OnePlus’ upcoming launch event; gave us a full list of devices that could be launched on July 16 in Milan. The lineup includes the OnePlus Nord 4, Pad 2, Watch 2R and Nord Buds 3 Pro.
The leak came from Steve Hemmerstoffer (aka OnLeaks). According to him, the OnePlus Nord 4 will have an all-metal body, a toned finish and three colors: black, mint and silver. The Nord 4 is said to have a 6.74-inch 1.5K AMOLED display and a 120Hz refresh rate. The device will be powered by Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 and a 5500 mAh battery capacity. The dual cameras on the back include a 50MP primary sensor, an 8MP secondary camera and a 16MP selfie camera on the front.
Now, coming to the OnePlus Watch 2R – the leaked renders reveal that the smartwatch will come in green and a regular black color. This could be an affordable refurbished version of the OnePlus Watch 2 variant in the Chinese region with eSIM support.
Further, the OnePlus Pad 2 may closely resemble its predecessor, featuring a unified aluminum design with rounded corners. The tipster notes that it will include a 12.1-inch LCD panel with a 144Hz refresh rate and a maximum brightness of 900 nits.
Recently, the company’s upcoming headphones also seemed to have been leaked. They look like they’ll have a stem design similar to the old Nord Buds 2, but with an oval aesthetic. The drawings further show that the tip of the ear will have a glossy finish, while the stem will have a matte finish.
Google can tell you if you’re on the dark web
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It was announced in April that two Google One features are being shut down: the Google One VPN service and free shipping for Google Photos prints. However, a key part of Google One VPN is a feature called the dark web report, which provides subscribers with insight into their data — specifically account login details and personal information — and whether it has leaked onto the web. dark in will become a free for all.
As spotted by 9to5Google, a banner in the Google One app explains that starting in late July, Dark Web Reports will run as a separate service and no longer require a subscription.
“Dark Web Reports will become available to all users with a Google consumer account,” the company explains, as reported by 9to5Google. “The Dark Web Report is integrated with the results around you as a combined solution to help users protect their online presence.”
Why might this be a good move, you ask? Our staff writer, Brady Snyder, thinks things like this shouldn’t be a paid feature. “This functionality that helps people stay safe and protect their privacy should be free.”
“Even if you stick to the basics, like name, address and email, it’s still useful to know what kind of data is out there on the web. For example, if you see that your email is showing up on the dark web, you might want to be more careful when receiving unsolicited messages and improve your spam filters.”
These are some of the biggest stories this week. In the meantime, here are some other stories worth catching: