Latest news with #EdgarCervantes
Android Authority
3 hours ago
- Android Authority
Google Photos could soon get a surprising third-party integration (APK teardown)
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority TL;DR Google Photos is testing a CapCut button to help users edit Memories in the ByteDance-owned app. We spotted and were able to surface the button while conducting an APK teardown of the Google Photos Android app. The button only appears for Memories made up of photos and does not show up for a video-only memory. In a rather surprising move, Google seems to be quietly testing a new third-party integration in its Photos app, the likes of which we've never seen before. It's extremely rare for Google to promote a third-party app within its own app, especially one owned by a company under scrutiny in several regions, including the US, but that's exactly what may be happening. 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 digging through the code of version 7.38 of the Google Photos app, we spotted and managed to surface a new 'Edit in CapCut' button directly linked to the popular video editing tool owned by ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok. The new 'Edit in CapCut' button appears within the Memories viewer of Google Photos, a feature that auto-generates highlight reels of your past photos and videos. The screenshots below show the new, full-screen Memories UI in Google Photos, a change we first observed back in February. But now, for memories made up of photos, the 'Edit in CapCut' option shows up prominently in the bottom left corner of the screen. If the memory is a video spotlight (a video-only memory), the CapCut option doesn't appear. For users who don't have CapCut installed, tapping the button triggers a Play Store prompt to install the app. If you have CapCut already on your device, the selected memory will likely be downloaded and sent directly to the CapCut editor for further customization. We couldn't get CapCut to open up after pressing the button since the app isn't available in India, where our contributor Assemble Debug discovered the integration. This makes us wonder why Google would promote a non-Google, ByteDance-owned app in Photos? CapCut is banned in countries like India, meaning this feature will likely be inaccessible or broken for users in the region. The app was also temporarily suspended in the United States, but came back online earlier this year. Perhaps ByteDance has offered incentives to Google to push CapCut through one of its most widely used apps. Given that the feature hasn't rolled out widely or even appeared in the app's beta version, it's possible that Google is just testing the waters or planning a limited regional launch. 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
15 hours ago
- Android Authority
Google Drive's new tool makes it a breeze to skip right to the good part of your video uploads
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority TL;DR Google Drive will now show thumbnail previews when hovering over the video progress bar. The feature will be available to all users on the web version of Drive, but it only works on newly uploaded videos. It's rolling out to Rapid Release domains starting today, with a wider rollout starting on August 20. Scrubbing through a video in Google Drive often meant dragging the progress bar blindly and hoping for the best. That's finally changing, with Google adding thumbnail previews to the progress bar to make it easier to find the moment you're looking for. The new feature is already rolling out, but don't get too excited about navigating your old videos just yet. The feature was just announced in a Workspace Updates post and is now rolling out to Rapid Release domains, with a broader rollout to follow from August 20. Users can hover over the timeline of a new video in Drive on the web to view scene-by-scene thumbnails, helping you jump to the right moment without much guesswork. It's certainly a step in the right direction, albeit by adding a perk many other video players already offer. The slight catch here is that older video files won't benefit — only those uploaded after the feature becomes available will show thumbnails. This is just the latest in a string of updates for Google Drive. In June, the Android app got a redesigned video player that aligned it with the desktop version. That same update also improved the mobile upload process with easier file renaming and folder selection. Google has also been rolling out Gemini-powered features in Drive, including AI summaries for PDFs and a 'Catch me up' tool that highlights changes made to shared documents since you last opened them. 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
20 hours ago
- Android Authority
Google app's Saves and collections may finally get the visibility they deserve (APK teardown)
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority TL;DR Google is simplifying how it stores and displays saves and collections inside its Android and iOS apps. It is currently testing a new interface with separate tabs for saves and collections. The new interface is evidently a work in progress and might change before it becomes a more permanent feature. The Google app on Android and iOS allows you to bookmark and organize important search results and links to revisit later, grouped under 'Saves and collections.' The feature is incredibly useful, but it remains cluttered, and Google previously attempted to improve its utility by adding a search functionality. Now, it is finally working to simplify the interface, which could allow the feature to receive the attention it deserves from users. 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. Earlier this year, we spotted that Google was testing a new sharing method for collections. Now, we've noticed an additional change that may be coming to saves and collections, which primarily includes an entirely new interface. This new interface uses separate tabs to display your saves and collections, and we spotted it buried in version 16.28.59 beta of the Google app for Android. This change is significant since saves and collections currently have redundant interfaces. You can either access them by tapping Saves and collections from the menu under the profile picker or by tapping the Activity tab in the Google app, both of which show the saved links in two different styles. While accessing them through the overflow menu predominantly focuses on a clustered view, where bookmarks are grouped together based on category (the image on the left), viewing them through the Activity tab shows individual links with dedicated thumbnails for saves (the center image below) and a scrollable carousel. Method 1 to access Saves and collections in Google app Method 2 to access Saves and collections in Google app New interface with separate tabs for saves and collections This new interface is essentially still a work in progress, as my colleague AssembleDebug, who discovered it, was unable to view their saves or collections listed on the page. Additionally, the current interface redirected us to a webpage outside the Google app. When it's closer to completion, we can expect Google to integrate the interface directly into the app. Before that happens, we might also see some changes to this rudimentary interface, but will ensure communicating them to you. 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
a day ago
- Android Authority
Snapchat could soon offer free Snapchat Plus if you invite your friends (APK teardown)
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority TL;DR Snapchat is working on a referral program that grants users a free month of Snapchat Plus if they get three friends to sign up for the service. Snapchat is also looking to integrate the recently acquired Saturn app, allowing students to link calendars and communicate more easily. Snapchat is credited for popularizing the trend of disappearing photos and videos, aka Snaps, as well as temporary broadcasts in the form of Stories. The app remains popular amongst Gen Z and Gen Alpha, but as with all social networks, it could always benefit from more people joining and using the service. Snapchat could be working on a new incentive program for onboarding more users, gifting a month of Snapchat Plus to users who refer their friends to join the service. 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. Snapchat Plus referral program Snapchat for Android v13.51.0.53 beta includes code that suggests Snapchat will start offering a month of Snapchat Plus subscription to users when they get three of their friends to sign up for the service. Here are the strings: Code Copy Text Invite 3 friends, you will get a month of Snapchat+ for free. Share Invite Bring your new friends to Snapchat All 3 friends must sign up Unlock 40+ exclusive features Invite 3 New Friends 1 Month of Snapchat+ As you can see, the strings are pretty straightforward: To receive a month of Snapchat Plus subscription, you will need to invite three new users and get them to sign up for the service. It's not immediately clear if users will be able to stack multiple months of subscription if they invite more than three people to the service. Snapchat Plus adds a whole bunch of features like a custom app icon, themes, chat colors, sounds, story expiration, extended best friends list, story view notifications, streak restore, and more. Snapchat Plus costs $3.99 per month for the monthly plan, and $29.99 per year for the annual plan. There's also a Platinum Monthly Plan that cleans up the UX by removing Sponsored Snaps, Story ads, and Lens ads, but it costs $15.99 per month, and doesn't appear to be within the scope of this incentive campaign, so don't get your hopes too high. Snapchat x Saturn integration Beyond these Snapchat Plus benefits, we've also spotted some clues on how Snapchat would integrate the Saturn app, a calendar app for high school and college students, that it acquired last month: Code Copy Text Link your Saturn and Snapchat accounts! Linking lets Saturn and Snapchat share your account and activity data (like profile info, friends, calendar, and more) for a streamlined and personalized experience across both apps. Integrated features include sharing your calendar and status and connecting with and messaging friends. By tapping Continue, you agree to link your Saturn and Snapchat accounts, and understand that personal data shared between apps will be governed under Snapchat's and Saturn's respective privacy policies. You can always unlink your accounts in your app settings on Saturn or Snapchat. Users will soon be able to link their Saturn and Snapchat accounts together in the Snapchat app. Linking with Saturn will open up integrated features like sharing your calendar and status, as well as connecting and messaging your Saturn friends. If you change your mind, you will be able to unlink your Saturn and Snapchat accounts too. Both of these features haven't yet rolled out to users. We'll keep you updated when we learn more. 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
a day ago
- Android Authority
Google Messages may extend its nudity-scanning photo filter to also work on video (APK teardown)
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority TL;DR Last year Google announced Sensitive Content Warnings for Messages. The opt-in system runs on-device and can detect nudity in still images. Google now appears to be working to extend this system to also work on video content. Modern communication truly is a double-edged sword, and for as easy as it makes it for us to keep in contact with our loved ones, privately sharing all the important details of our lives, these systems can make it just as easy for someone we don't want to hear from to reach out with some particularly disturbing content. It's for reasons like this that last year Google announced Sensitive Content Warnings for Messages, an on-device tool for scanning media and alerting you in advance of any potential nudity. After seeing that start to go live this spring, we're now checking out what could be the next evolution it's getting ready to take. 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. Sensitive Content Warnings are designed to help limit the unwanted proliferation of nude images, but with RCS now in wide deployment, users can send each other a lot more than just still pics. As we look into Google's new build of Messages, we've uncovered some evidence that has us thinking about how this system could extend to also apply to video: Code Copy Text video Video may contain nudity As you may remember from a teardown we did while first waiting for the option to go live, 'Spatula' is Google's codename for Sensitive Content Warnings, and the value of that second string here makes perfectly clear that we're still looking for the same thing. AssembleDebug / Android Authority Right now, this is all we have to go on, and we haven't yet been able to actually get Messages to process video through SafetyCore to scan for nudity. That said, this pretty transparently feels like it's headed in that direction, and we'd suspect that it's only a matter of time before we have something along that line to share with you. After all, Sensitive Content Warnings for photos are a good start, but there's a lot more media out there that could be full of unwanted nudity. Hopefully we'll soon have the tools to stay on top of all of it. 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.
