What our tech lovin' mommy friends want for Mother's Day

By Sonya Davidson

Ask any mom (myself included) what we want for Mother's Day. We will tell you that we'd like to stay out of the kitchen (especially the cleaning up part) and we'd really just like some time to do something we enjoy doing like reading, sleeping in, do something creative, watching movies, time to take care of ourselves without interruption by someone asking what's for lunch? Where are my soccer socks? or is the laundry done yet? We love you all but seriously, just a few hours of peace is bliss. 

So, when we asked some of our tech lovin' mommy friends what would be on their gift lists, it came to no surprise that their ideas tie right into our collective desire for "me time" and of course, the kids can shower us with all the hugs and kisses too!  

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Google Pixel devices also only gets a two-year OS update cycle

Google Pixel XL

Google had the opportunity to do something different with its flagship Pixel smartphones. But, unfortunately, it’s sticking to an old formula. Just like Nexus devices of years past, there is a two-year cycle for the Pixel and Pixel XL to get operating system updates from Google. This means, users won’t be getting Android Q when that comes out in October 2019. What you would get is an additional year of security updates but that ends there. Google had the chance to keep users loyal to Pixel and give them a reward for sticking to the device but it seems they’ve missed the chance on this one.

Source: PCWorld 

Google’s next Pixel devices get codenamed in the Android AOSP gerrit

Google Pixel XL

It doesn’t really say much about the new devices but there might be three new Google-made devices coming out later this year. The rumoured Google Pixel XL replacement, with its codename Muskie, has shown up in the Android AOSP gerrit. Android Police spotted Muskie alongside the other codenames Walleye and Taimen.

Walleye is predicted to be a Pixel-sized smartphone and Taimen is expected to be a bigger smartphone than Muskie. It’s also plausible that Taimen can be a tablet. We really can’t say at this point. But this does point to having three new Google devices coming soon.

Source: Android Authority

Some Google Pixel users reporting microphone issues

Some Google Pixel owners are reporting issues with their smartphone's microphone. Hundreds of users have chimed in saying that their devices are having issues with some of their microphones, rendering audio unusable in some cases even when shooting video.

"The most common problem is a hairline crack in the solder connection on the audio codec," said Google employee Brian Rakowski. "The other related problems are due to a faulty microphone."

This isn't the first issue that's affected the HTC-built Google Pixel, which had early LTE-disconnection issues with certain carriers. In the case of the microphone issues, these are hardware related, possibly because the Pixel had a short time to get to market.

Google is aware of the issue, it is helping customers get replacements for their faulty devices. Is this issue affecting your Pixel phone?

Source: Engadget