YouTube's Picture-in-Picture mode in Oreo is only available to paying Red customers in five countries, and that's a problem

One of Android 8.0 Oreo's biggest features is picture-in-picture (PiP) mode, and given YouTube's status as the most popular video-sharing platform in the world, you'd be forgiven for thinking that quite a bit of PiP use would be for YouTube. Unfortunately, you'd also be wrong, as Google has made it very difficult for people to actually use picture-in-picture mode.

Picture-in-picture itself can be used for any video in many apps so long as you can make the video full-screen, but YouTube has chosen to bundle it into its YouTube Red service.

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YouTube's Picture-in-Picture mode in Oreo is only available to paying Red customers in five countries, and that's a problem was written by the awesome team at Android Police.

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Apps , Apps/Games – Android Police – Android News , Games , Phones , Tablets 9:54 PM No comments

More parking features added to Google Maps, including difficulty icons in 25 non-US cities

Back in January, Google Maps on Android added a handy new parking availability feature, letting you know the likelihood of finding a spot at your destination. It was initially only available in a handful of US cities. Since the v9.51 Maps beta update in April, a parking difficulty icon is visible before you even start navigation, so you can change your destination accordingly if parking is going to be too difficult.

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More parking features added to Google Maps, including difficulty icons in 25 non-US cities was written by the awesome team at Android Police.

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Apps , Apps/Games – Android Police – Android News , Games , Phones , Tablets 8:14 PM No comments

Duo v17 begins experimentation with color effects, white balance, and exposure controls, also brings round and adaptive icons [APK Teardown + Download]

Duo has done well positioning itself as a simple, yet innovative app for video chat. Despite a focus on simplicity, it's time to begin experimenting with enhancements that can establish Duo with new audiences. The latest update contains clues suggesting the development team may bring some advanced camera settings to the app so users can make sure they're sending the very best image possible.

What's New

Unofficial Changelog: (the stuff we found)

• Adaptive and round icons

Adaptive and round icons

Left: Old icon.

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Duo v17 begins experimentation with color effects, white balance, and exposure controls, also brings round and adaptive icons [APK Teardown + Download] was written by the awesome team at Android Police.

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Apps , Apps/Games – Android Police – Android News , Games , Phones , Tablets 11:49 AM No comments

Samsung launches Star Pink Galaxy Note 8 in Taiwan

Samsung is no stranger to releasing new color options for its smartphones, and that’s the case with the Galaxy Note 8, which is getting a new paint job in Taiwan.

The Galaxy Note 8 is launching in Taiwan in an exclusive “Star Pink” color option. According to an ePrice report, the pink shade is popular in Taiwan, which is why Samsung continues to launch that color in that market. The Galaxy S8+ has its own pink variant, too.

The Star Pink Galaxy Note 8 has the pink accent on the metallic edge, and the buttons are pink as well. And, of course, the S Pen isa shade of Star Pink, too. Everything else in this Star Pink Galaxy Note 8 will be the same as other Galaxy Note 8 colors, including the Exynos 8895 processor under the hood.

As far as pricing goes, the Galaxy Note 8 costs TWD 34,200 (about $1,134 USD).

What do you think of the Star Pink Galaxy Note 8?

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Android and Me 6:01 AM No comments

Start off the week with 18 temporarily free and 28 on-sale apps

Welcome to the final week of August! A holiday weekend is just around the corner for us in the U.S., which is awesome. We have a little ways yet to go, so let's pass the time with an app sales post. For a Monday, it's a very short list, so let's get started.

Free

Apps

1. BrowserX6 (Paid) $24.99 -> Free; 1 hour left
2. Metapod - Podcast Manager $0.99 -> Free; 1 day left
3. Weight Checker PRO $0.99 -> Free; 3 days left
4. Volume Scheduler Pro - Schedule Volume Profiles $0.99 -> Free; 6 days left
5. Where's My Watch - VR $0.99 -> Free; 6 days left
6. App Shortcuts - Easy App Swipe (TUFFS Pro) $0.99 -> Free; 7 days left

Games

1. LINES | PRO $0.99 -> Free; 2 days left
2. Mystery of Fortune 2 $0.99 -> Free; 5 days left
3. Spaceship Rotation $0.99 -> Free; 6 days left
4. Monster Fantasy:World Champion $0.99 -> Free; 7 days left

Icon packs & customization

1. Oscuro Icon Pack $0.99 -> Free; 1 hour left
2. Luzicon Icon Pack $0.99 -> Free; 1 hour left
3. Chicago 3D Pro live wallpaper $0.99 -> Free; 1 hour left
4. Ergon - Icon Pack $1.49 -> Free; 1 day left
5. Dream Shell ~ S8/Note8 Icon Pack $0.99 -> Free; 3 days left
6. Toro Icon Pack $1.99 -> Free; 5 days left
7. White Gold Icon Pack $1.99 -> Free; 5 days left
8. Blacker : Icon Pack $1.49 -> Free; 7 days left

Sale

Apps

1. Active pro for Facebook $1.99 -> $0.99; 1 hour left
2. Habit Streak Pro $2.49 -> $0.99; 1 hour left
3. TaskLife Performance Tracker $2.49 -> $0.99; 1 day left
4. 15 Minute Workout $3.99 -> $0.99; 3 days left
5. VR Player PRO - 3D, 2D & 360 Support $2.49 -> $0.99; 3 days left
6. FineScanner Pro - PDF Document Scanner App + OCR $59.99 -> $5.99; 4 days left
7. Locale $9.99 -> $4.99; 4 days left
8. AirPlay/DLNA Receiver (PRO) $4.99 -> $2.49; 5 days left
9. Nostalgia.NES Pro $3.99 -> $0.99; 5 days left
10. LayerPaint HD $6.99 -> $4.49; 6 days left
11. SuperN64 Pro (N64 Emulator) $1.99 -> $0.99; 6 days left
12. mobile112 lite $2.78 -> $1.99; Time left not specified

Games

1. Bending Moment Diagram (pro) $2.49 -> $1.49; 3 days left
2. Forgotten Places: Lost Circus (Full) $2.99 -> $1.99; 4 days left
3. Regained Castle (Full) $4.99 -> $2.99; 4 days left
4. The fabulous Animal Playground $3.99 -> $1.99; 4 days left
5. Block Out HD Full $3.99 -> $0.99; 5 days left
6. Talisman $4.49 -> $0.99; 5 days left
7. Talisman: The Horus Heresy $5.49 -> $1.99; 5 days left
8. Beholder $4.99 -> $2.99; 6 days left
9. Deluxe Track&Field $1.99 -> $0.99; 6 days left
10. Gold Rush!

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Start off the week with 18 temporarily free and 28 on-sale apps was written by the awesome team at Android Police.

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Apps , Apps/Games – Android Police – Android News , Games , Phones , Tablets 5:44 AM No comments

NVIDIA SHIELD Portable 2 prototype found in the wild

The original NVIDIA SHIELD Portable was an awesome device. With a powerful Tegra chip, a flip-out display, a comfortable grip, and amazing speakers, it was great for gaming. NVIDIA also released some exclusive games to the device so it wasn’t just Android games. Unfortunately, the device sold very poorly.

A successor was never released, but apparently it was considered. This prototype of the NVIDIA SHIELD Portable 2 was found at a Canadian pawn shop, matching the FCC filings last year. It features a 1440×810 display with smaller bezels, what is likely a Tegra X1 chip (also found in the Nintendo Switch), 3GB of RAM, and a very similar clamshell design with a gaming controller.

While this is a very interesting look at a device we could have had, it will never be released to the public. The owner of this prototype is a very lucky guy!

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Android and Me 4:56 AM No comments

11 new and notable Android apps from the last week (8/22/17 - 8/28/17)

Welcome to the roundup of the best new Android applications that went live in the Play Store or were spotted by us in the previous week or so.

Please wait for this page to load in full in order to see the widgets, which include ratings and pricing info.

Looking for the previous roundup editions? Find them here.

Apps

MaskIt - Customize your icons!

With the current state that Android's icons are in, it's no wonder that many developers are creating fixes for Google's shortsightedness.

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11 new and notable Android apps from the last week (8/22/17 - 8/28/17) was written by the awesome team at Android Police.

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Apps , Apps/Games – Android Police – Android News , Games , Phones , Tablets 4:09 AM No comments

Google offering Play Protect branding on certified devices

Android’s diversity has long been a blessing and a curse. A myriad of options are available for any price point or interest, but fragmentation and security have been sticking points. Google has implemented several initiatives to combat the issues, and the company has a new program in place to benefit security.

Certified secure devices will now receive Play Protect branding, guaranteeing that a suite of security features are working to protect the device. Examples of these security features include scanning apps for malware, safe browsing protection in Google Chrome, and Find My Device to locate and secure a lost device.

Nearly all mainstream manufacturers are certified, but the program is largely designed to combat vulnerabilities and security issues in emerging markets with small manufacturers. Next time you’re shopping for a device, use Google’s handy tool to find out if the manufacturer is Play Protect certified.

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Android and Me 4:01 AM No comments