Today Gboard released a significant change to the way your (beta build) keyboard appears in your phone. This update appeared as the default for beta users across the internet. As the change is default, some users were likely caught off guard - but don't worry! Nothing's broken. This is just the first day of the rest of your life.
Android 11 was released to the public on September 8, 2020. In the old world order, it wouldn't be until January or February the following year at the earliest before Samsung Galaxy phone owners would even hear anything about the update from Samsung. In less than three months, however, Samsung has already rolled out betas for its One UI 3.0, based on Android 11, of course, to its most recent flagships. Granted, it's still in beta testing but things are seemingly on track for a stable release soon given how things are moving smoothly except for one specific case.
It's a big week for Apple and not just because of the Apple Silicon M1 and new Macs running on it. The company also released new software, including the very first ARM-based macOS version, Big Sur. To assure its mobile users that iOS isn't being forgotten in the flood of Mac news, Apple has also rolled out the first beta version for the upcoming iOS 14.3 and, unsurprisingly, it holds quite a few hidden treasures beyond what the changelogs say.
Samsung has earned the bad rap for being slow on Android updates, be it the major ones or even the monthly security fixes. That, however, may be a thing of the past and its has turned over a new leaf, even going so far as committing to three years of updates starting with this year's flagships. Continuing that new tradition, Samsung has just expanded the reach of its One UI 3.0 beta, which carries with it Android 11, to more phones, including last year's Galaxy Note 10.
This week the Samsung One UI 3.0 beta update was released for a set of Samsung Galaxy smartphones in both S20 and Note 20 families. The Samsung Galaxy S20 series was gifted its fourth One UI 3.0 beta release (yes, 4th 3.0 beta, if that makes any sense at at all,) and another (the second) beta for both the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. If you are in the beta program, now's the time to check for an update.
The Galaxy Note 20 series might be Samsung's latest "normal" flagships but it wasn't the first to get the beta version of its upcoming One UI 3.0. That privilege, naturally, belongs to the Galaxy S20 from earlier this year which got their Android 11 appetizer just a few weeks ago. Now Samsung is opening the doors a bit to owners of the Galaxy Note 20 in the US to take the beta version of the software for a spin, presuming their particular model is actually eligible for the beta program.
Today we're taking a peek at how you'll get in on the Microsoft xCloud game streaming beta, starting on the 11th of August, 2020. If you're an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscriber, you'll be among the first people to gain access to this system - if you WANT access, that is to say. It'll still be in beta, which means you'll effectively be play-testing Microsoft's system for them.
Today you'll be able to access the next big update to Apple's desktop operating system. This is macOS Big Sur, an update to the desktop space for users that wish to check said major changes out before they're sent to all Apple computers post-beta. For now, we're in Public Beta, which means it's probably OK to give the software a whirl, but it's still BETA - which can mean there MAY be issues.
There is an ongoing debate on how difficult certain action-oriented games should be. Should they be easy enough so as not to scare off new players or should they be punishing to challenge veterans? For a certain class of games that take after the popular yet notorious Dark Souls franchise, that's not really a question. And based on the demand that Mortal Shells' developer said flooded their systems, there is no question about the existence of a market catering to the hardest of hardcore action RPG players.
Some big iPhone software changes are in the making now with WWDC 2020 and iOS 14's big reveal for 2020. This update will be released to Public Beta in July and is out for developers in an early Beta now - and will be available to everyone by the end of the year. But if you don't want to change the way your iPhone looks, you don't need to - pretty much everything is optional.
A beta release, though closer to the final version, doesn't mean it's bug-free. In fact, it's actually more of a call for developers and adventurous users to put the software through the wringer to uncover those bugs before it finally lands in the wider public's hands. Unfortunately, some nasty bugs do manage to sneak in from time to time, like some rather serious that have discouraged some users from even trying out the first beta for this year's Android 11 release.
This afternoon Google released Android 11 Beta for Pixel 2, 3, and 4, with a very obvious upgrade to Voice Access. This is a feature in Android that allows the user to make commands - it's part of the "OK Google" and Google Assistant family. This feature now, far more accurately than ever before, understands screen context and content, so you can ACTUALLY control your phone without touching your phone.