⚡ Welcome to The Weekly Authority, the Android Authority newsletter that breaks down the top Android and tech news from the week. The 219th edition here, with Pixel 7 Pro durability tests, Twitter verification tomfoolery, a crazy Xiaomi concept, and more.

🤝 Hadlee and Jonathan here for this week’s edition, covering for Paula. We’ve got a lot to get through this week, so let’s get on with it!

Popular news this week

Google:

• Pictures of a Google Pixel 2 prototype with iris recognition have appeared online: An interesting look at what could’ve been. (Android Authority)
• The Pixel 7 Pro barely survived a durability test by JerryRigEverything: Nowhere near as bad as the OnePlus 10 Pro and 10T, though. (Android Authority)
• This could’ve been the first Android phone: A neat look at an early G1 prototype, five months before the iPhone launch. (Android Authority)
• Heavy Google searchers just got a great new Chrome feature: A side panel for searches, bringing to mind rivals like Edge. (Android Authority)
• YouTube is letting you add your favorite streaming services to your account, bringing to mind Prime Video Channels. (Android Authority)
• Google Hangouts is now officially dead and buried, so pour one out for the long-running service. (Android Authority)
• Also: Google could kill the standalone Street View app next year. (9to5Google)
• PSA: Pixel phones automatically turn into wireless charging pads when plugged in. (Android Authority)

Samsung:

• The Samsung Galaxy S23 is just around the corner, but should you buy the Galaxy S22 in the meantime? (Android Authority)
• Galaxy S23 Ultra camera specs have emerged and we aren’t surprised: The S22 Ultra with a 200MP camera, then? (Android Authority)
• Samsung wants an S Pen slot on its future foldables: The company apparently wanted one on the Z Fold 4 too. (Android Authority)
• Get early access to the Samsung Black Friday sale ahead of the November 18 sale date. (Android Authority)

Motorola:

• Listing reveals almost all of the details for Motorola’s next flagship: Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, 144Hz OLED panel, and triple camera setup. (Android Authority)

Apple:

• New EU rules could force Apple to change how iMessage and other IM apps function, to make interoperability a reality. (Android Authority)
• Apple’s own 5G modems might come to iPhones later than expected, bucking a previously reported 2023 launch. (The Verge)
• New Mac app wants to record everything you do, so you can ‘rewind’ it later: The app will also use optical character recognition to let you search by text. (Ars Technica)

Social media:

• Twitter verification could now cost $8/month for anyone and everyone who can pay: Elon Musk also reportedly plans to fire engineers if they can’t make the November 7 deadline. (Android Authority)
• A team under Musk is working to reboot Vine next year, but is it too late in light of TikTok’s success? (Axios)
• Instagram fixes outage that told millions their accounts were suspended: Did you notice this issue? (The Verge)
• We’re currently running a poll, asking whether you’d be willing to pay for a blue check mark on Twitter. (Android Authority)
• The FCC commissioner has called on the US to ban TikTok, citing security concerns. (Axios)

Space:

• China’s mystery spaceplane has ejected an object after three months in space, with suggestions that this could merely be a companion module or satellite. (Gizmodo)
• SpaceX successfully launches its first Falcon Heavy in 40 months: Those booster landings were pretty cool too, as this video by Trevor Mahlmann shows. (Ars technica)
• Construction of China’s Tiangong space station has entered the final phase with the launch of a lab module. (Space News)

Elsewhere:

• The DJI Mavic 3 Classic is the drone we wanted last year: This new drone offers the same powerful Micro Four Thirds camera and amazing flight time as the original Mavic 3 series, but at a lower price. (Drone Rush)
• This Xiaomi concept lets you use a full-blown camera lens on a phone: Xiaomi told us there won’t be a commercial release, but this is still pretty freaking cool. (Android Authority)
• Prime membership now has an entire ad-free Music Unlimited library with a big catch: It’s basically just shuffle only. (Android Authority)
• Inside the underground market for fake Amazon reviews: A pretty interesting look at how it all works. (Wired)
• Microsoft now lets you add pictures from your Android phone to Word and PowerPoint on the web: Microsoft’s Android integration is extending to specific services now. (Microsoft)
• Matter goes official as 190 devices get certified for the smart home standard: Apple, Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and other tech giants are backing it. (Android Authority)
• You now have to pay to use Pantone colors in Photoshop: Software as a service really is a joke. (Kotaku)
• Thawing permafrost in the Arctic could unearth viruses that were previously locked away: Covid-19BC, more like. (Wired)
• UK police fail to use facial recognition ethically and legally, study finds. (Android Authority)

Movies/TV:

• The official Avatar 2 trailer dropped: If anything, it’ll be a visual feast. (YouTube)
• The best ad-supported streaming plans for people on a budget (Android Authority)
• The 12 best Discovery Plus shows to stream now (Android Authority)
• What were the most popular streaming shows in October 2022? (Android Authority)
• Living to Breaking Bad: the film and TV series facing up to death (BBC)
• HBO’s The Last of Us series premieres January 15th (Engadget)
• Netflix renews The Witcher, recasts Liam Hemsworth as Geralt of Rivia (Engadget)
• Sling TV is raising its prices by $5, claiming that rising content costs are to blame (Variety)
• It turns out that the Netflix ad-supported plan might not work on some devices. (Android Authority)
• A rundown of the best new TV shows and movies to stream this week. (Android Authority)

Gaming:

• AMD’s first RDNA3 graphics cards are here, offering a chiplet design, FSR 3, and starting at $1,000 (Euro Gamer)
• Sony has revealed PSVR 2 pricing and launch info: Expect to pay $549.99 when it launches in February. (Android Authority)
• We’ve also got the first God of War Ragnarok reviews, with Polygon calling it “captivating and inconsistent.” (Polygon)
• And one of the game’s accessibility options is getting some praise: Checkpoint saves if you’ve reduced a boss character’s health to at least 50% (Games Radar)
• The Sims may finally have some real competition with Paralives: An indie game to look forward to ahead of The Sims 5. (Polygon)
• Embracer Group shuts down Montreal video game studio: The studio, responsible for titles like Hitman Go, had just been rebranded (Bloomberg)
• Microsoft promises eternal support for Call of Duty on PlayStation (Ars Technica)

Reviews

• Staring at a small screen all day? You’ll probably enjoy this laptop: “In short, the ASUS Zenbook 17 Fold is a solid, if not fantastic, PC, that’s completely overshadowed by its main selling point — that beautiful folding screen.” (Android Authority)
• Apple TV 4K 2022 review: “Its performance is top-shelf, and the rest of the experience is a treat as well.” (Tom’s Guide)
• Shockz OpenRun Pro review: “They’ll probably never sound as clear as in-ear headphones with top-notch isolation, but it’s the very lack of isolation that makes them shine.” (Android Authority)
• Fitbit Versa 4 review: “The Versa 4 is a confusing step back as a smartwatch and only an average fitness tracker.” (Android Authority)
• Nothing Ear Stick review: “For an open design, I’m impressed with how comfortable and secure these earbuds are, along with how good they sound without having to position them in a specific sweet spot.” (Trusted Reviews)

Features

• The past 2 weeks underscored the new Pixel line-up’s biggest weakness for me: Slow charging and short battery life are big issues if electricity is in short supply (Android Authority).
• Sorry Apple, I still much prefer Sony’s compact flagship: “Compact phones with most of the bells and whistles are a rarity only Sony dares to tackle.” (Android Authority).
• I can’t believe I waited this long to get a smartwatch: “For me, embracing the smartwatch life makes me feel like I’m in charge of my phone rather than the other way around. I don’t need it on my person at all times anymore.” (The Verge).
• The blue check rapture will render verification meaningless: “Some of us enjoyed sitting behind the velvet rope; we also enjoyed insisting we were behind said rope for practical purposes. The pay model destroys that delusion.” (Wired).

Weekly Wonder

Like the idea of moving fast but don’t want to use a scooter/bicycle or break out into a jog? That’s where the quirky Moonwalkers come into play, strapping on to any pair of shoes.

• New Atlas reports that these are somewhat similar to strap-on roller skates.
• However, you actually need to walk while wearing them rather than skate.
• The team claims a 250% increase in walking speed too, owing to the “AI drivetrain.”
• You can stop in less than a meter from top speed and it automatically controls your speed when going downhill.
• What if you need to negotiate stairs? Well, a foot-driven gesture lets you switch to locked mode to do just that.
• Expect a range of up to six miles with USB-C charging taking 1.5 hours.
• The Moonwalkers are currently available for $1,099 on Kickstarter, and it’s achieved over $243,000 of its $90,000 goal.

Tech Calendar

• November 8: Skull and Bones release date on Xbox Series S/X, PS5, PC, and Luna
• November 9: God of War: Ragnarok launches on PS4, PS5
• November 9-11: MediaTek Executive Summit 2022
• November 15-17: Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit
• November 18: The Dark Pictures: The Devil in Me launches on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, and PC
• November 28 to December 2: Amazon Reinvent

Tech Tweet of the Week

This format has resulted in loads of funny tweets:

Something extra: It’s the beginning of the American Indian Heritage Month, and we’d like to say hello to all the indigenous folk in our audience! Did you know Motorola added a Cherokee language option to its Android 12 phones earlier this year?

Have a great week!

Hadlee