Google Messages could soon lose the ability to force SMS/MMS instead of RCS for each contact
https://www.androidauthority.com/messages-rcs-disable-3719799/

https://redd.it/1wzcum3
@reddit_android

Our first five impressions of Googlebooks - exciting but underbaked
https://www.theverge.com/tech/1005745/google-googlebook-android-laptops-dell-acer-asus-lenovo-hp-impressions

https://redd.it/1wzapax
@reddit_android

Android 17 QPR3 beta code hints that Google could soon solve Pixel's biggest face unlock flaw in low light with Face Active Illumination
https://www.androidauthority.com/google-pixel-face-active-illumination-apk-teardown-3719647

https://redd.it/1wz788i
@reddit_android

Samsung is deliberately crippling Linux/AVF support on its phones, and I’m honestly tired of it

I’m genuinely frustrated with Samsung’s approach to Android’s Android Virtualization Framework (AVF) and the new Linux Terminal. I recently bought a Galaxy F56 (Exynos 1480, One UI 8.5 / Android 16) specifically expecting that Android 16’s Linux/virtualization capabilities would be something I could actually use. Instead, after checking the device through ADB, it appears that Samsung simply hasn’t included the necessary components on this phone. I checked:
```
adb shell pm list packages | grep -E 'virtualization|microdroid|avf'
```

Nothing.
```
adb shell pm list features | grep -i virt
```

Nothing.
```
adb shell ls -l /dev/kvm
```

Result:
```
/dev/kvm: No such file or directory
```

And:
```
adb shell cmd virtualizationservice help
```

returns: Can't find service: virtualizationservice

The Samsung Linux Terminal package itself is also completely absent: Unknown package: com.android.virtualization.terminal So this isn't simply a case of Samsung hiding an app or forgetting to add a launcher shortcut. The underlying virtualization infrastructure doesn't appear to be present on my phone's stock firmware either. And that's what annoys me. Android itself has been moving toward proper virtualization with AVF, Microdroid, protected VMs, etc. Android 16 makes the Linux Terminal increasingly useful. Some Galaxy devices get the functionality, while other Samsung phones running essentially the same Android generation and One UI version don't. Why? If the hardware and Android platform are capable of supporting virtualization, why should Samsung decide that a particular phone simply doesn't get it?

I'm not asking Samsung to give a ₹20,000 phone every feature of a flagship. I'm asking for software capabilities that are already part of the Android platform to not be arbitrarily crippled or omitted. Samsung already has a huge history of limiting software features by device and region, but virtualization is particularly frustrating because it has enormous potential for:

* Linux development

* Running isolated

* Linux environments

* Developer/testing workloads

* Security research

* Container/VM experimentation

* Android development

* Education

* General power-user use

And Android's Linux Terminal could have turned a modern Samsung phone into a genuinely useful portable Linux development machine. Instead, on my F56, I'm apparently back to Termux + proot if I want Linux userspace. That's useful, but it isn't equivalent to having a proper VM backed by hardware virtualization. What makes this even more frustrating is that Samsung's own ecosystem is increasingly marketed toward developers and power users, while capabilities like this are being selectively withheld. Samsung: if AVF isn't supported because of a genuine hardware limitation, explain it. If there is a technical limitation, explain it. But if the hardware is capable and you're simply choosing not to ship the necessary components, please stop pretending that One UI's Android 16 features are universally available. At minimum, Samsung should publish a clear list of which Galaxy devices support AVF/Linux Terminal and why others don't. I bought an Android phone, not a phone where Samsung decides which parts of Android I'm allowed to use. Has anyone else checked their Galaxy device with ADB to see whether /dev/kvm, virtualizationservice, and the AVF packages are actually present?

https://redd.it/1wxb4tf
@reddit_android

This a flaw in my opinion: Not being able to call 911 and use video camera

I had a situation tonight while walking my dog. A person in the neighborhood assaulted my dog and me. I had to call the police but was forced to hang up on the police to record the situation. Police came and I guess I was connected with the person who assaulted me since they work for the fire department, and they downplayed it, but luckily I had the recording. But this situation could have got bad. I think its flawed that the phone prevents you from calling the cops and recording with your camera at the same time.

https://redd.it/1wzj5u4
@reddit_android

Linux 7.4 To Mainline Support For The Google Tensor G5, Pixel 10 Devices
https://www.phoronix.com/news/Linux-7.4-Google-Tensor-G5

https://redd.it/1wzkzje
@reddit_android

Dex rather than Googlebook

Early this year I lost my large Samsung Android tablet. I had set it up to be very useful in teaching, with a folding easel, folding little keyboard, and low profile Bluetooth mouse, all neatly fitting a backpack of just the right size. So, one warm afternoon I left Laguardia Community College and, having previously injured my back, grew very tired while walking the mile to the subway station, and sat on a park bench for several minutes. Upon arriving at the station, oops! No backpack! Retracing my steps, no sign of it at the park bench. Gone forever; somebody swiped it from the bench where I had left it alone for a few minutes.

So, since then I have unplugged my home Windows laptop from its big keyboard, big mouse, big screen, and carried it in my bigger backpack. It's actually a better computer, except that it's heavier, and instead of Android apps it runs Windoze apps, which tend to be better for me except or the Wikimedia Commons App, which is highly useful when teaching how to handle pictures on Wikipedia and is Android-only. Many people have one special app that dominates their thinking and impedes changing platforms, and that's mine. I must depend on the little screen of my phone, or else teach and use only the far more clumsy browser-based method of handling new Wikimedia pictures.

A Chromebook plus-plus was predicted, so I held off on replacing the lost tablet and its accessories. The new thing has now arrived, now called Googlebook. Reviews indicate it can do pretty much all I want. There's no mention of how well it handles my vital Android app, but I'm reasonably hopeful. However, the price is high, and I don't want a clamshell-only computer. Often I want to cradle a computer in my lap, which the tablets do delightfully. Camshells are less cuddly. More recently the detachable keyboard versions were introduced, and those seem exactly what I wanted. Except, prices are high and there is no reliable estimate on when the cheaper models will come out.

So, how about a folding phone? They have a bigger screen than my old slab phone, and the Samsung ones have a Dex feature that can take a lot of advantage of a big external screen. However, they also are expensive. So, how about a better Samsung slab phone with Dex? Moderately high end ones are not so expensive, and have a better camera than the folders. For classroom use I can bring a small backpack with a keyboard and mouse and, taking most of the space, a small portable TV set with HDMI input. Oh, but those TVs don't have a touch screen. That rules out the cuddle in my lap scenario for using Dex.

Well, I have not gone overseas this year, due to that injury, and won't go far until next summer, so I can afford to wait until then. Maybe cheaper detachable keyboard Googlebooks will come out, or touch screen television sets will make the Dex solution more workable.

https://redd.it/1wzjr6m
@reddit_android

Google Messages may soon let you play games with your friends
https://www.androidauthority.com/google-messages-games-3719879/

https://redd.it/1wzo071
@reddit_android

vivo X Fold6 review - GSMArena.com tests
https://www.gsmarena.com/vivo_x_fold6-review-3006.php

https://redd.it/1wzoji1
@reddit_android

I made a free camera app that helps with red-green colour blindness (Slant)

Hi r/Android, I'm the developer of Slant, a free app for people with red-green colour blindness.

I built Slant because red-green colour blindness means asking someone "is this the red wire or the green one?" about ten times a week. About 1 man in 12 has it.

What it does:
- Point the camera at anything. Reds get moving stripes and greens get dots, so you can tell them apart at a glance.
- A circle in the middle names the colour under it in plain words, live. When it isn't sure, it says so: the likelier colour big, the other possibility small underneath.
- Freeze the picture and tap one wire, then another, and it names each (always check real wiring with a tester).
- A "see what I see" slider shows family and friends how red-green colour blindness can look.
- A notebook keeps the colours you've checked, with a small picture of each.
- Share a frozen picture with its name on it, like "Slant says: navy. Could be black."

Privacy and cost: free, no ads, no accounts, and no internet permission. The camera picture never leaves your phone unless you share it. It helps you tell colours apart; it doesn't test, diagnose or treat anything.

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nebulacolors.slant

I'll be in the thread and I'd like to hear what doesn't work, especially on your phone and with the colours you confuse.

https://redd.it/1wzfa54
@reddit_android

GizmoChina - OPPO Find X10 Pro Max Review
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceEy8Qd2hMo

https://redd.it/1wzt7wy
@reddit_android

Google could soon solve Pixel's biggest face unlock flaw
https://www.androidauthority.com/google-pixel-face-active-illumination-apk-teardown-3719647/

https://redd.it/1wz8g0b
@reddit_android

Android vs. iOS: comparing capabilities and restrictions

I’ve been trying to compare what Android and iOS actually allow users to do, excluding access to brand-specific services and accessories. Equivalent functionality counts even when it comes from a different app.

Many of these capabilities won’t matter to everyone, and a longer list doesn’t automatically make a platform the better choice for someone. This comparison concerns available functions and restrictions, rather than overall phone quality or purchasing preferences.

Scope and qualifications

>This comparison concerns Android phones and iPhones. Availability varies by manufacturer, model, OS version, region, and permissions. Some differences concern broader access rather than a capability being completely absent from iOS.


Android capabilities unavailable or substantially more restricted in standard iOS

- Install compatible apps from downloaded files with fewer signing and distribution restrictions
- Use independent third-party app stores without Google approving their app catalogs (Android distribution rules; Apple distribution rules)
- Replace the default home-screen launcher
- Run two ordinary apps side by side in split screen
- Run ordinary apps in movable, resizable floating windows (Android documentation)
- Create separate private or work app profiles with independent app data
- Run independent instances of the same app across separate profiles (Google Private Space; Samsung Secure Folder)
- Switch between separate device-wide user and guest profiles (Google documentation)
- Choose default apps and file handlers for a broader range of actions
- Give third-party apps permission to draw over other apps
- Give third-party apps access to read and manage other apps’ notifications (Android documentation)
- Automate a broader range of system settings and actions with tools such as Tasker (Tasker's Google Play listing)
- Remap a wider range of hardware-button functions
- Give file managers broader access to shared storage (Android documentation)
- Run desktop-style windowed environments on supported devices and external displays
- Use ADB for command-line control of apps, permissions, and system settings (ADB documentation)
- Unlock the bootloader through a manufacturer-provided mechanism on supported devices
- Install custom Android builds or alternative operating systems on compatible devices (bootloader documentation)

The final two entries are advanced modification options on compatible hardware. They aren’t available on every Android phone. Some Tasker actions also require additional permissions or root access.

iOS capabilities without an available functional Android equivalent

>Within the scope above, I haven’t identified an obvious major general-purpose capability exclusive to iOS. That’s the section where I’d particularly welcome specific additions or corrections.

Final Thoughts

Apple-only services and integrations can still be valuable reasons to choose an iPhone; they’re simply outside this particular comparison. Differences in convenience, consistency, or implementation quality can also matter even when both platforms provide the same basic function.

What would you add or correct, and which of these differences do you actually use? If an example depends on a particular

device, OS version, or region, please include that.

https://redd.it/1wz6rgn
@reddit_android