Taking a look at this week’s news and headlines across the Android world, including Black Friday Pixel 9 deals, Galaxy S25 Ultra leaks, Nothing welcomes e/OS/, ROG Phone 9 Pro review, app issues Microsoft’s Xbox, two new Android features, and Huawei says goodbye.
Android Circuit is here to remind you of some of the many discussions about Android in the last seven days. You can also read my weekly roundup of Apple news here on Forbes.
Black Friday deals for the Pixel 9
It’s that time of year again when the final big Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals are available. To pick an interesting one… Google’s Pixel 9 Pro XL is in a bidding war to get the lowest price. Google’s online store cuts it from $1,099 to $949, but Amazon is going further:
“Amazon has now slashed the price of Google’s Hazelnut, Obsidian, and Porcelain 128GB storage by an extra $100, meaning there’s now a $250 or 23% discount on the phone. That’s the best price lowest Amazon has ever sold this phone for, by the way.”
(Forbes).
Pixel 9 Pro XL
Three Galaxy S25 Ultra secrets leaked
The latest images of OneUI running on Samsung hardware offered a glimpse of something else, as internet experts spotted the new code running on the unreleased Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra. Three of the main design changes are on display, with a curved build, flat screen and confirmation of the S-Pen storage area:
“The photos, released by Android Authority, show OneUI 7.0 in use – the latest version of Samsung’s flavor of Android launched in early October. The surprise isn’t the presence of OneUI, but the device the code runs on… every hint that this hardware is the upcoming Galaxy S25 Ultra, this gives us a great chance to see the design changes discussed earlier.
(Forbes).
e/OS/ to Nothing CMF Phone 1
Pre-orders are open for an unusual combination of phone and software. Nothing Tech’s CMF Phone 1 looks to redefine the mid-range space, while Murena’s use of /OS/ as an alternative flavor to Google’s Android implementation makes this new handset feel a touch rebellious:
“/e/OS for CMF Phone 1 is now in alpha and on track to join the lineup of officially supported devices. Final touches are being made and full release is near. /e/OS With the Nothing CMF Phone 1 is an excellent combination in terms of specifications and privacy protection, all this with an unmatched design, Murena will start selling the device in January.”
(moray)
ROG Phone 9 is game for everyone else
There are gaming smartphones where everything is focused on the player and offers the best performance without compromising on other areas. Asus’s ROG Phone 9 goes in a different direction; the gaming features are still there, but toned down with options to help it work like a regular smartphone:
“The graphics have enough power and the PC should provide a great experience. There’s also a sense that this could be used as your regular smartphone without too many complications. I can’t decide if this is a place in a niche (it’s coming from gaming side) or a place on a widely known site (coming from the usual premium phones, since this is the second phone to go in the last direction, it is probably a safe place to assume that Asus has been). able to find a market in this space.”
(Forbes).
The Xbox Android app is still missing a key feature
Microsoft had stated that gamers would be able to “play and purchase Xbox games” directly from its Android app. As it stands today, this feature is not present. Richard Lawler investigates where:
On October 18, Judge James Donato granted Google’s request for a stay while it appeals his ruling that the Android app store is an illegal monopoly that could leave things hanging for a long time. [Microsoft Executive Sarah Bond] referenced that in a thread on Bluesky today, writing, “Due to a temporary administrative stay recently granted by the courts, we are currently unable to launch these features as planned. Our team has the functionality built in and ready to go live once the court makes a final decision.”
Google has reiterated its previous position in a statement to The Verge:
“Microsoft has always been able to offer their Android users the ability to play and purchase Xbox games directly from their app – they just chose not to. The court order and the rush to enforce it , threatens Google Play’s ability to deliver a safe and secure Experience Microsoft, like Epic, are ignoring these very real security concerns.
(The Verge).
Two upcoming changes to Android
The latest Android 15 developer builds continue to introduce new features for Android users to come in 2025. First up is a new way to present notifications on the standby screen while reducing clutter:
“This is a new feature that can hijack your lock screen without forcing you to unlock your phone to see your notifications… The description for the feature says it makes fewer notifications appear on the lock screen, but in our brief testing , it looks like it actually reduces the total number of notifications that appear there. Instead, the lock screen’s notification minimization feature seems to hide everything except the notification icons.
(Android Authority).
Second is the ability to sign in again when you restore your data to your phone either through Google Backup, or a local copy and restore between two devices. No more spending your first few days of a new phone trying to remember “what password goes in here?”
“According to Google, Reset Credentials allows app developers to generate a ‘recovery key’ that is stored locally on your device and in the cloud (if you’ve enabled Google Joining). When you set up a new Android phone and choose to restore apps and data, the keys are transferred to the new device and you’re automatically signed in to your app accounts on first launch.”
(Check Notebook).
And at the end…
Once one of Google’s brightest Android partners, Huawei is about to pull out of the Android space entirely and move all of its smartphones, wearables, and electronics to its own HarmonyOS:
“The company’s new flagship phone, the Mate 70, will debut HarmonyOS Next, the iteration of its operating system that ditches the remnants of Android in favor of completely indigenous technology. Announced at a live event on Tuesday, the new devices feed Huawei’s campaign to reclaim China’s premium tier from Apple Inc. and build an ecosystem without the involvement of major U.S. technology providers.
(Bloomberg).
Android Circuit collects the news from the world of Android every weekend here at Forbes. Don’t forget to follow me so you don’t miss any future coverage, and of course, read the sister column on Apple Loop! Last week’s Android Circuit can be found here, and if you have any news and links you’d like to see featured on Android Circuit, get in touch!