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Android Authority
13 hours ago
- Android Authority
Your Pixel Watch could soon give you the same backup freedom as your Android phone (APK teardown)
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority A man pressed the digital crown of his Google Pixel Watch 3. TL;DR Google could soon let Pixel Watch users manually trigger backups. We've found code evidence suggesting Pixel Watches could soon get a 'Backup now' button in Settings, possibly removing the current requirement of having the watch connected to a charger during the backup process. The option is similar to the Backup now setting you find on Android phones. Google seems to be working towards making Pixel Watch backups a little less annoying. Currently, if you want to back up your Pixel Watch, you have to ensure it's connected to Wi-Fi and placed on the charger. The watch will then automatically start the backup process if you've turned on the backup option in Settings or during setup. So as it stands, you have no manual control over when your watch is backed up, and the automatic process requires you to connect it to a charger. We've now found evidence suggesting Google might remove these restrictions. Authority Insights story on Android Authority. Discover You're reading anstory on Android Authority. Discover Authority Insights for more exclusive reports, app teardowns, leaks, and in-depth tech coverage you won't find anywhere else. An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release. While sifting through the code in Google Play Services for Wear OS (version 25.28.34), we found a string referencing a new 'Backup now' option Google may be planning to add to Pixel Watches. The new option, likely presented as a button in the Pixel Watch settings when it goes live, is similar to the manual backup option on Android devices. That means you may soon be able to instantly trigger a backup on your Pixel Watch without waiting for the device to be idle and charging. Code Copy Text Backup now You might be wondering why only the Pixel Watch is expected to get the new backup option, while other Wear OS devices like Samsung's Galaxy Watch or the OnePlus Watch aren't. The reason is that Google Play Services doesn't support backups for all Wear OS watches. Samsung uses its own backup system via its companion apps, and OnePlus takes a similar approach through its OHealth app. So, the backup feature offered through Google Play Services appears to be specifically designed for Pixel Watches. Follow
Android Authority
a day ago
- Android Authority
Google is working on AI-powered custom icon themes for your Pixel phone
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority TL;DR Google may be working on new AI-powered icon customization features for Pixel phones. This feature could solve the inconsistent look of the current 'Themed icons' feature, which many apps still do not support. Code discovered in a recent update points to new 'AI icon' and 'Create' style options. Google Pixel devices offer many unique software features, but they lag behind when it comes to basic customization options, at least out of the box. For instance, to change your app icons, you have to ditch the stock Pixel Launcher — and its excellent universal search bar — for a third-party alternative. Fortunately, Google is working on a fix that could let you create custom icon themes using AI, finally improving home screen customization on Pixels. You're reading an Authority Insights story. Discover Authority Insights for more exclusive reports, app teardowns, leaks, and in-depth tech coverage you won't find anywhere else. These reports reflect developments at the time of writing. Some features or details uncovered in leaks may change before official release. Currently, Pixel devices have a single icon customization option: Themed icons. This feature tints app icons to match the dominant color of your wallpaper, but it only works for apps whose developers have provided a monochromatic icon. Unfortunately, many popular apps still haven't adopted this, resulting in an inconsistent home screen with a hodgepodge of themed and unthemed icons. C. Scott Brown / Android Authority To solve this, Google has a few options. It could continue waiting for developers to add support, but that 'wait and see' approach hasn't been effective, even three years after the feature was introduced. Another option is to force developers to provide monochromatic icons, but the company likely wants to avoid potential backlash. The third path is to bypass developers by deploying an algorithm to automatically tint existing icons. While this can be challenging to implement perfectly for every icon, it's an approach that companies like Apple and Nothing have already adopted with varying success. Back in early 2023, I discovered that Google was experimenting with a feature to automatically generate monochromatic icons for apps that don't supply them. While that feature never launched, it seems the company is revisiting the idea. Digging through the latest Android Canary build released last week, I found new code strings in the Wallpaper & Style app — the hub for all home screen customization on Pixel devices. These strings suggest you'll be able to choose from four distinct styles for your app icons: Default : Leaves app icons unmodified. : Leaves app icons unmodified. Minimal : Uses the monochromatic version of app icons. : Uses the monochromatic version of app icons. AI icon : Use AI to generate a custom icon style automatically (?) : Use AI to generate a custom icon style automatically (?) Create: Lets you build your own custom icon style (?) Here are the relevant strings from the app: Code Copy Text Style Default Minimal AI icon Create By inspecting the code of the Wallpaper & Style app, we confirmed that these four options are distinct and that the 'Minimal' style corresponds to the existing monochrome icon feature. However, we couldn't determine how the 'AI icon' or 'Create' options work, as they are not yet implemented in this version of the app. It's possible these features are currently limited to internal builds or are part of another app entirely. In addition to icon styles, Google is also working on letting you customize icon shapes, a feature we previously demonstrated. As for when Google will launch these new icon customization options, we don't have a clear answer. We recently spotted evidence that Google is developing theme packs for Pixel phones, so it's likely these new icon options will launch as part of that broader theme support. If you don't want to wait for Google to roll these features out, you can install a third-party Android launcher on your Pixel that supports custom icon packs. Follow
Android Authority
6 days ago
- Android Authority
Android might soon trust your smartwatch to help verify your identity (APK teardown)
Ryan Haines / Android Authority TL;DR Google may be working on smartwatch support for Android's Identity Check feature. A connected watch could serve as a second authentication factor outside trusted locations. The feature was spotted in the latest version of Google Play Services beta. Google recently introduced a feature called Identity Check on Android 15 and later devices, designed to add extra protection from phone theft when you're outside of predefined trusted locations. Now it looks like Google is working on an upgrade that could make the experience a little smoother — by allowing your smartwatch to play a role in verifying your identity. Authority Insights story on Android Authority. Discover You're reading anstory on Android Authority. Discover Authority Insights for more exclusive reports, app teardowns, leaks, and in-depth tech coverage you won't find anywhere else. An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release. According to strings of code we spotted in version 25.29.31 of the Google Play Services beta, Identity Check may soon recognize a connected smartwatch as a kind of trust signal. They suggest that, if your watch is nearby and connected, your phone may treat that as a sign that you're still in control. This could potentially reduce how much you need to authenticate with biometrics while not in one of your safe spots. This wouldn't necessarily remove the need for your fingerprint or PIN entirely, but it could strike a better balance between convenience and security for users who already unlock their watch with a PIN and keep it strapped to their wrist. It's a small touch that could make Android's theft protection feel a bit less intrusive in everyday use. Here are the strings we noticed: Code Copy Text With your watch connected, Identity Check automatically recognizes you while maintaining your security even when you're not in a trusted location Protection on the move with watch As an in-progress feature, we don't yet know if this addition to Identity Check will eventually roll out in a public release or if it will work exactly as we have assumed here. With Android's security tools continuing to evolve, smartwatch security integration seems like a logical next step, as long as the mugger doesn't swipe your wearable at the same time as your phone. Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at Email our staff at news@ . You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it's your choice.
Android Authority
16-07-2025
- Android Authority
Samsung fixes the Secure Folder flaw that let anyone see what apps you're hiding
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority TL;DR Samsung has patched a Secure Folder flaw that previously allowed anyone with physical access to see your hidden apps and photos. The vulnerability existed because Secure Folder was implemented as a 'work profile,' which key system components didn't recognize as a highly secure space. One UI 8 reclassifies Secure Folder as a 'private' profile, ensuring system apps now correctly hide its sensitive files and app information from view. Samsung's Secure Folder feature makes it easy to hide sensitive files and apps on your Galaxy device. It creates a separate, sandboxed profile where you can move your private content. This profile is then protected by a passcode, preventing unauthorized users from accessing what's inside. However, a flaw was discovered earlier this year that allowed anyone with physical access to your device to see which apps and photos you had stored in your Secure Folder. Fortunately, Samsung has patched this vulnerability in its latest One UI 8 release. Here's how the flaw worked and what Samsung did to fix it. You're reading an Authority Insights story. Discover Authority Insights for more exclusive reports, app teardowns, leaks, and in-depth tech coverage you won't find anywhere else. These reports reflect developments at the time of writing. Some features or details uncovered in leaks may change before official release. To understand the flaw, you first need to know about Android's 'profiles.' These are sandboxed spaces with their own app data separate from the main user, but they share the same lifecycle and some system-wide settings. The 'work profile' is the most well-known type, but there are some others. For instance, Android 14 introduced 'clone' profiles for running multiple instances of an app, while Android 15 added 'private' profiles to support Google's Private Space feature. When Samsung introduced Secure Folder back in 2017, the only option was to implement it as a 'work profile.' While this worked for the most part, it created a fundamental issue: some system components would incorrectly identify Secure Folder as a standard work profile. This was problematic because these components wouldn't treat it as the highly secure space it was intended to be, which could lead to them inadvertently revealing the sensitive information stored inside. You might wonder how it's possible for system components to leak Secure Folder data when Samsung controls the One UI operating system. The answer is that certain core components, like the Photo Picker and Permission Controller, are actually controlled by Google. Google designed these components to recognize and hide content within Android 15's new 'private' profiles (used for the Private Space feature). However, they weren't designed to afford the same protection to 'work' profiles. This is why the Photo Picker and Permission Controller could be used to see photos and reveal which apps were installed in the Secure Folder. Fortunately, One UI 8 fixes this by reclassifying Secure Folder as a 'private' profile. This change ensures that Google's Photo Picker and Permission Controller now recognize it as a protected space and properly hide its files and app information. It's important to note, however, that this protection is only active when you fully hide the Secure Folder, not just close it. Hiding the folder does more than just remove its icon from your app drawer; it also encrypts the data inside, which stops its apps from running and prevents them from sending notifications. One lingering issue, however, is that the updated Secure Folder still doesn't integrate with third-party launchers like Niagara Launcher. I was hopeful this would change, especially since Google enabled Private Space support for third-party launchers in Android 15, but it seems Samsung hasn't fully implemented the necessary APIs. Hopefully, this is something that can be addressed in a future One UI release. Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at Email our staff at news@ . You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it's your choice.
Android Authority
16-07-2025
- Android Authority
Google Drive could get seamlessly smarter about your PDF documents (APK teardown)
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority TL;DR Google is working on bringing automatic PDF summaries to Google Drive's PDF viewer on Android. The summary will appear at the top of the document pane without user interaction. Users can provide feedback on summaries and interact with Gemini for more answers. We've previously spotted that Google Drive on Android could soon serve PDF summaries through the PDF viewer. While the control given to users is excellent, there was potential to streamline the experience by automatically generating the AI summary for the uploaded PDF. We suspected the feature would come soon, as Google Drive on the web already supports automatic PDF summaries. We were on the right track, as Google is indeed working on bringing automatic PDF summaries to Google Drive on Android. Authority Insights story on Android Authority. Discover You're reading anstory on Android Authority. Discover Authority Insights for more exclusive reports, app teardowns, leaks, and in-depth tech coverage you won't find anywhere else. An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release. Google Drive v2.25.280 includes code for automatically generating summaries of uploaded PDF files. We managed to activate the feature to give you an early look: AssembleDebug / Android Authority In future versions of Google Drive, users will not have to click the 'Summarize this file' button when viewing a PDF to get its summary. As you can see in the first screenshots, the summary will automatically be presented at the top of the preview pane. Users will be able to like and dislike the summary to give feedback on the AI's performance, and they will likely be able to tap on the 'Ask Gemini' button to open the usual Gemini bottom sheet, where they can ask more questions around the PDF. Note that the summary currently visible is placeholder text, as the feature isn't fully functional just yet. We expect Google to fix the issue whenever they roll out the feature to end users. Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at Email our staff at news@ . You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it's your choice.
