Android

Google’s rollout of the Find My Device network has been a bit less than ideal, but things are due to get better over time. One of the highly anticipated additions to Find My Device is support for UWB trackers, which the app appears to be preparing for with the addition of a “compass.”

Google Maps is picking up a couple of new features on Android Auto, with a new and much easier way...

Howdy fellow lemmings,

I know your collective knowledge is greater than mine, so I have come to you for your wisdom.

My OnePlus 9 is nearing the end of it's life. The power button doesn't work or registers a double press (I use tap2wake and tap2sleep instead) and some other parts are hinting that they're starting to die. Also, something in 915Mhz or 925Mhz seems to be causing random UI reboots at the grocery store. Might be hardware or custom rom related.

I'm looking for something with:

1. Unlockable bootloader with option for root. I may or may not root this time around, depends on how tailscale to my pihole at home works. I absolutely must be able to strip out the bloat and preferably the google apps as well (though I'd like to keep the option for play store), I'm extremely ad-phobic.
2. Open hardware that third party developers can properly use. I'm running CrDroid on my OP9 and it's ridiculously great, but cannot make good use of my camera. There are quality issues, cropping issues, and functionality issues and I've experienced similar with other phones I had in the past. Are there manufacturers who publish specs resulting in better 3rd party camera implementations? I would be fine with a more midrange phone, as I don't play many games, but I need the camera to work well.
3. A large/active modding scene is appreciated
4. Bonus points if they don't advertise a bunch of AI bs that I don't want or need
5. Location is USA, though phone can be from anywhere as long as it works. I need at least a few bands to be able to use the phone in Germany.

Can anyone advise on which manufacturers meet my requirements?

My understanding is: OnePlus - unlockable, rootable, custom ROM cameras suck unless the rom uses default op9 camera and it seems that this doesn't work well with more AOSP-y ROMS

Pixel - varies by manufacturer

ASUS - I'm seeing concerns about unlocking and Roms though it seems they have been good in the past

Nothing Phone - unlockable/rootable

Fairphone - seems ideologically pure, but performance, camera, and battery life may not be awesome

Suggestions and insights are appreciated.

The unknown phone is Techno

Third-party Android launchers often suffer from limitations and issues because of Android, but this user survey could help.

Google could be working on a feature that syncs notifications between your Android phones and your Android tablets.

Google seems to be preparing a new feature to help users backup their Health Connect data on devices running Android 15 or higher.

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/19441320

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/19441267

I have a 2nd-gen chromecast, it's factory reset. If i plug it in all it tells me is to install the app to start configuring.

I don't have a google account not do i want to install/use google-related stuff on my phone.

My home router doesn't register any new device, which makes sense since the cast doesn't know the SSID/pass of the WiFi.

Does it try to ping some service/port? Multicast perhaps? Where would it get an IP from without authenticating?

My (wired) PC runs gentoo.

How can i get it to work in these conditions?

Hi,

I would like to change the owner of a directory on the sdcard /sdcard/aDirectory

I have a terminal installed on my Android 10 (LineageOS 17) com.android.terminal

sudo is not present so I use su and it works.

su
#Terminal was granted Superuser rights

cd /sdcard
chown 10:10 aDirectory
#I don't get any error message.

stat aDirectory
#Uid (0/root)

So the owner stay root no matter what I'm doing, any ideas ?

Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 redesigns the Settings app with some Material You tweaks and better organization.

I have an unrooted GrapheneOS phone. I was surprised that it doesn’t offer a native option to limit battery charging to a specific upper limit (e.g., 80%) to preserve battery health and prolong the battery's life.

To work around this, I decided to implement a charging limit feature using automation software and a Wi-Fi-controllable plug. After some research, I bought a Shelly Plug S for this purpose. I'm trying to keep things open-source, so I avoid Google Play apps when possible. The closest Tasker alternative I found on F-Droid is Easer. Unfortunately, Easer seems to lack some crucial features that would make this process easier, such as switching Wi-Fi networks or starting external apps.

Here’s my plan so far:

• My phone’s charger is plugged into the Shelly Plug S, which is connected to my Wi-Fi network.
• I want to use Easer to automate the process: It would turn on the plug when the charger is connected, monitor the battery level, and, once it reaches 80%, turn off the Shelly Plug S by making an HTTP call to its local web interface (or an API call).
• I prefer to block the Shelly Plug from accessing the Internet entirely (to avoid leaking data to the cloud) by setting up firewall rules that restrict its access to only my local network.

However, Easer seems to have some limitations that make this more challenging than expected:

• Easer cannot switch Wi-Fi networks: I was hoping to use the Shelly Plug’s local access point (AP mode) for a more portable solution, but since Easer doesn’t have permission to switch networks, I'm restricted to my home network.
• Easer cannot start external apps: It also can’t trigger external apps that might help with network switching or more advanced controls.

At the moment, I’m stuck with these limitations and was wondering if anyone has experience with similar setups or has already written code to implement something like this. Specifically:

Has anyone written or seen code to automate switching off a Shelly Plug once a certain battery level is reached? Are there any workarounds for Easer’s limitations, or should I consider switching to a different automation tool that fits my FOSS preference?

I would greatly appreciate any tips, code snippets, or discussions around best practices for this type of setup. Ideally, I'd love to make this work while keeping the setup local and portable, but I’m open to suggestions!

Thanks in advance for your help!

After coming to Advanced subscribers a month ago, Gemini Live is now rolling out to free users on Android.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/19727402

Google is updating Safety Check in Chrome, with a big focus on getting rid of unwanted website notifications through one-tap unsubscribe.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/19650358

Through an updated Google API, Android app developers can now effectively block sideloading and force downloads from the Play Store.

Google is experimenting with changing which icons Android uses to show notifications in the status bar and always-on display.

Is there is any app that combine all the reddit alternatives inton one feed the same way Openvibe combine Mastodon, Nostr and Bluesky or the same way that Grayjay combine all the YouTube alternatives into one feed.

Does it exist?

Android updates are undergoing a revolution as we speak. Is it a positive thing, though? We will see. Google’s focus on N+3 for everyone might make it more common for OEMs to provide 2 or 3 platform updates, but on the other hand, in the cases where they want to provide more updates than it’s expected of them it gets way more complicated than before. It might also cause a feature stagnation, stripping users of useful improvements.Where is Google leading us? I don’t know, but I think we will find out very soon.

I was doing some research on putting a custom GSI ROM on an older device and stumbled on this article. It's from 2022, but should still be accurate.

If you've ever wondered about how Android updates work and why some devices seemingly have arbitrary cutoff points for updates, this article explains why.

I won't spoil the read, but things are actually better than they used to be with one glaring regression in the form of GRF (Google Requirement Freeze)

I recently bought a Wireless Android Auto box for my car which only had Wired Android Auto before. It works perfectly when I'm driving. That part I'm very happy about, coupled with a wireless charger/holder it's easy and convenient.

What's not so good is that whenever my car wakes up to charge the 12V battery (my car is an EV) the Wireless Auto box wakes as well and my phone tries to connect to it. Last night I was talking to my mother on the phone in my living room and suddenly the call was transferred to my car outside.

I'm recently moved from IOS to Android, so I'm unsure what the best way to remedy this is. I've thought about a few possible solutions:

• Use Tasker to shut off Android Auto when I'm at home with geofencing or Wifi network (Don't know if this is possible)
• Unplug the Wireless Auto box when I park at home (Not ideal)
• Make a physical switch that connects/disconnect the Wireless Auto box depending on whether someone is sitting in the front seat (Seems like a loot of work)
• Ask here to get an instant reply with the one setting on my phone I need to toggle to fix this (I do hope this is the one :) )

Have any of you had the same problem, and if so, how did you fix it?

Technical details: Pixel 8 Pro running GrapheneOS. Car is a Hyundai Kona 2020.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/19594581

Here's a video preview of how the upcoming Files by Google ZIP creation tool will operate once the feature's available.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/19576371

Google is changing up the look of the account switcher on its apps. We have now managed to activate this new UI.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/19576153

I don’t need it to be with zero effort, but most of the instructions I find these days on XDA forums are extremely ambiguous and assume the reader is someone who does this every day and therefore knows most of the steps and what the terminology means.

Years ago when I used to do stuff like this more, directions were written meticulously and without abridgment of any elements. Seems today it’s not common for someone to go to the effort.

I’m extremely proficient, that’s not the issue. It’s just most instructions say stuff like “Step 1: root the phone. Step 2…” I’m like “whoa excuse me… how do I root this phone?”

Anyway, so all I’m asking is are there just comprehensive directions for any of these.