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The Weekly Authority: đ± Pixel 7's 32-bit support
⥠Welcome to The Weekly Authority, the Android Authority newsletter that breaks down the top Android and tech news from the week. The 222nd edition here, with the Pixel 7âs (unofficial) 32-bit support, a plethora of Black Friday goodness, all the latest Twitter drama (which seems to be an ongoing thing, now), amazing moon views from NASAâs Orion, and moreâŠ
đŠ Happy Thanksgiving weekend! Hope youâre all enjoying the holidays and are suitably full of turkey with all the trimmings (or whatever delicious celebratory meal youâve enjoyed). Iâve been browsing PS5 game deals, but havenât made a purchase⊠yet.
Popular news this week
Google:
- You can now (unofficially) add 32-bit support to your Pixel 7 phone.
- Googleâs Project Zero finds that millions of phones with Mali GPUs are at risk from exploits due to slow response from OEMs.
- Donât fall for these common Gmail scams this festive season, as detailed by Google.
- Android 13 fixes Android Auto call issues on Pixel phones; Google still investigating Pixel 7 issues.
- Bye-bye Twitter? An official Google social account is now on Mastodon.
- Google Messages is finally giving us the power to react however we want.
- And Pixel Watch confirmed to support transit cards in Google Wallet with future update.
Samsung:
- Move over Apple, the Galaxy S23 series could offer satellite support with a key upgrade.
- A growing number of Samsung owners are using the same terrible password
- Samsung could finish its One UI 5 rollout soon.
- Samsungâs Galaxy Z Flip 3 is now getting stable Android 13 update: The Galaxy Z Fold 3 is getting in on the action too .
OnePlus:
Apple:
- Uh oh⊠Brazilian regulator seizes iPhones from retail stores as Apple fails to comply with charger requirement.
- SwiftKey is unexpectedly back on iOS following its App Store removal in October.
- Is your iPhoneâs usage data anonymous? Apple says yes, but new tests show otherwise.
Social media:
- Donald Trumpâs Twitter account was reinstated after Elon Musk held a public poll, with 51.8% of Twitter users voting in favor of reinstatement â but the former president is sticking with Truth Social for now.
- Elon Musk posts pictures with engineers as they leave a Twitter âcode reviewâ at 1:30 AM.
- And Musk demands weekly updates from Twitter employees to âinnovate rapidly.â
- Meanwhile, Fired SpaceX employees made a list of Elon Muskâs 25 worst Tweets.
- Facebook is making teensâ accounts more private by default, will encourage users under 16 to enable more restrictive privacy settings.
- Meta researchers create AI that masters Diplomacy, tricking human players.
- According to a new investigative report, major tax filing websites in the US have been sending sensitive data to Facebook.
- And EU confirms multiple ongoing investigations into TikTok data practices.
Space:
- NASA âgiddyâ over amazing moon views from Artemis 1 Orion spacecraft.
- NASA will not change the James Webb Telescopeâs name.
- UK surgeon named worldâs first astronaut with a disability: No word on John McFallâs first flight, but heâll enter a 12-month training program next spring.
Elsewhere:Â
- The vivo X90 series is now official. The line is once again contending for the best camera phone title.
- And HONOR Magic Vs foldable launched: A cheap Galaxy Z Fold 4 rival with stylus â China only for now, though.
- First Fitbit Sense 2 and Versa 4 update rolls out: Screen cover gesture and on-wrist calls.
- Amazon Alexa is a âcolossal failure,â on pace to lose $10 billion this year.
- We asked, you told us: Your phone definitely supports dual SIMs.
- More poll results: You prefer stock Pixel 7 Pro shots to a photographerâs edits.
- Tesla issues back-to-back recalls: The automaker recalled over 350,000 vehicles from US customers last weekend.
- Speaking of, Teslaâs full self-driving beta is now available to everyone in North America.
- Thought BMWâs heated seat subscription was silly? Mercedes locks faster acceleration behind a $1,200 annual paywall.
- And Sony Honda electric cars may incorporate PlayStation 5.
- Meanwhile, a BBC documentary used face-swapping AI to hide protestersâ identities.
- Something interesting: How much would you pay to see a woolly mammoth?
Movies/TV:
- Our pick of this weekâs best new streaming movies includes sci-fi horror flick Duel and Joe Wrightâs adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac.
- Weâve also got the weekâs best new streaming shows, like the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, and a âcreepy and kookyâ Netflix adaptation.
- Some sad news: Long-time Power Ranger Jason David Frank has passed away.
- Ben Affleck and Matt Damon to start film production company, will share profits with their actors and crew.
- We enjoyed the Walking Dead season finale, but what should you watch next?
- With the Willow follow-up series on the horizon, what other classic titles could Disney revive as streaming shows?
- According to Empire, John Wick 4 is a cross between âThe Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Zatoichi, and a Greek myth.âÂ
- Amazon orders eight-episode limited series about the FTX scandal from Russo Brothersâ AGBO, âHuntersâ creator David Weil, hopefully in production spring 2023.
- Finally: Amazon plans to invest $1 billion a year in movies for theaters, aiming to make between 12 and 15 movies annually for theatrical release.
Gaming:Â
- Buying a Nintendo Switch this Black Friday? Hereâs what else you should buy.
- Reviews are in for Evil West: IGN calls it âa refreshing blast from the past that nails the most important parts of its old-school, vampire-hunting action,â while Eurogamer says itâs âa gleeful splat-âem-up featuring a lovely bag of tricks.â
- Ubisoft games are returning to Steam: Assassinâs Creed Valhallaâs coming December 6, and the gameâs getting a free epilogue to wrap up dangling plot threads on that date, too.
- Epic alleges Google paid $360 million to keep Activision from launching its own app store.
- Speaking of, Feds likely to challenge Microsoftâs $69bn Activision takeover: Three sources say the FTC is likely to file a lawsuit to halt the deal.
- Microsoft says it offered Sony a 10-year deal to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation.
- Itâs not been a good technical start for the new titles, but PokĂ©mon Scarlet and Violetâs bugs are the funniest part of the game.
- Did you get a refund for your Stadia Pro subscription? Bad news; itâs just an error.
- Microsoft admits its games are worse than Sonyâs: The company said âmany of [Sonyâs first-party games] are of better qualityâ than its own output.
Reviews
- Amazon Echo Dot (5th gen) review: Maybe the only Alexa smart speaker you need â âIt doesnât reinvent the wheel (or sphere), but it doesnât have toâ (Android Authority).
- HONOR Magic Vs hands-on impressions: The on-paper foldable king â âOut from under HUAWEIâs shadow, HONOR is taking aim at Samsungâs foldable market lead with the Magic Vsâ (Android Authority).
- The Logitech G Cloud is a failure from the future â âThe G Cloud does offer plenty of ways to game, but it casts such a wide net that it fails to excel at anythingâ (Android Authority).
Features
- A gaming keyboard didnât make me a better gamer, but it was still worth buying â âRazer has put together a mechanical keyboard so compelling, itâs almost a no-brainer when on saleâ (Android Authority).
- Handy tips for buying headphones as a gift this Christmas â From advice for real music lovers to buying pitfalls to avoid (Android Authority).
- Are you ready for workplace brain scanning? âExtracting and using brain data will make workers happier and more productive, backers sayâ (IEEE Spectrum).
- Can you get sued for using a meme? âIn recent years, the subjects and photographers behind some of the internetâs most popular memes have taken legal action to protect their work from nefarious actorsâ (The Hustle).
- Autonomous vehicles join the list of US national security threats: âLawmakers are growing concerned about a flood of data-hungry cars from China taking over American streetsâ (Wired).
Weekly Wonder
Unless youâve been sleeping under a rock this past week, youâve probably noticed itâs Black Friday weekend. Weâve got a roundup of all the best deals, money-saving tips, and more, coming right upâŠ
- But first, did you know that Black Friday sales usually start well before the big day? You might already have picked up some bargains earlier this week.
- The sale continues into Cyber Monday, which this year falls on November 28.
- Black Friday started in the US, but has since become an international event.
- In case you need any help finding the best Black Friday deals â and letâs face it, browsing for them can be exhausting â weâve done the hard work and rounded up everything you need in one place.
- Weâve also rounded up the best UK Black Friday deals and top Canada Black Friday deals, if you live in either of those countries.
- Looking for some Black Friday streaming deals? Here are all the best savings on Hulu, Peacock, HBO Max, and more â plus, weâve got the best Black Friday streaming device deals on Roku, Amazon Fire, and more, too.
- And AAâs Nick Fernandez did an epic roundup of top deals in Fridayâs Daily Authority.
Save even more money this Black Friday
Before you get your wallet out, weâve also got some money-saving tips for you.
- AAâs Senior Audience Engagement Manager John Dye recommends abandoning your cart â so, add the deals you want to buy, go through the checkout process, but stop just before making payment. âMany of these companies have âre-engagementâ or ârecaptureâ campaigns that offer discounts to encourage you to complete your purchase,â Dye explains. By not completing a purchase, your cart triggers this system, which will then automatically send you a nudge to buy, usually along with some sort of discount. Sweet!
- AA Writer Mark OâNeill also recommends this method for saving money and has got up to 20% off in the past â however, he notes that this method wonât work with all retailers, such as Amazon, for example.
- AA contributor and Executive Editor of our sister site Drone Rush, Jonathan Feist, is also a fan of abandoning his cart, but for a different reason. By leaving items he wants to buy in his cart, heâs letting Amazonâs suggestion algorithms find cheaper alternatives. This may take a day or two, but even if you donât find a cheaper option, youâll be able to keep an eye on the deal in your cart in case it becomes even cheaper.
- Check out our guide for even more money-saving tips this Black Friday.
- Elsewhere, Wired has some helpful advice to help you avoid Black Friday scams.
Tech Calendar
- November 25-28: Black Friday (and Cyber Monday) sales
- November 28-December 2: Amazon Reinvent
- December 2: The Callisto Protocol launches on PS4, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, and PC (not in Japan)
- January 5-8, 2023: CES 2023 (Las Vegas)
Tech Tweet of the Week
trying to explain whatâs happening in the tech industry to your family members at thanksgiving pic.twitter.com/PDx42bM8Xpâ The Hustle (@TheHustle) November 17, 2022
Something extra: Weird thrift store shirts that you wonât be able to stop scrollingâŠ
Until next week,
Paula Beaton, Copy Editor.