There are a lot of Android features that go unused because they’re hard to access, but there are often useful shortcuts that you don’t know about. One such tool on Google Pixel devices is a notification history shortcut that has quickly become my favorite trick.
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Notification history for Android was introduced a few years ago and is an incredibly useful tool. Did you scroll the notification by accident? Did you see something deleted by the time you opened it? Notification history makes it easy to get back to these things.
Unfortunately, some Android manufacturers, namely Samsung and OnePlus, hide this feature from users unnecessarily, but Google keeps it fairly readily available through a “History” shortcut visible below notifications when the feature is turned on and when it’s unread. Notifications.
But what about when they are all read?
One clever touch hidden within Google’s software on Pixel phones is that if you tap No Notifications, you’ll quickly be able to access your history. There’s nothing in the software that tells you this, keeping it hidden from the vast majority of people, but when my colleague Kyle told me about it, it was a game-changer. Many times in the past I’ve had to dig through the settings menu after accidentally clearing notifications, so this little shortcut is a welcome addition that really saves me time and effort.
What’s your favorite shortcut in Android?
The most important news of this week
Google TV Streamer and Pixel Buds Pro 2 are here
This week saw the launch of two more products from Google. On Tuesday, Google TV Streamer officially launched, and so far we’ve been impressed with the set-top box’s improved performance and experience, as well as its new features.
As Damian Wilde explains in our review:
Although there are many important improvements and changes, Google TV Streamer is not the powerful streaming device that many people were hoping for. However, it’s a significant upgrade over Chromecast with Google TV in the most important ways. To me, this feels like the big hub Google TV should be. Make your TV the main interaction point for all other smart home services.
Meanwhile, the Pixel Buds Pro 2 have finally started shipping with their improved hardware, sound quality, and more.
Andrew Romero explains:
At $229, the Pixel Buds Pro 2 are more like productivity powerhouses that make things a little easier on the go or in the office, though I don’t know if Google has added much in terms of quality to justify the price. You can certainly relax and listen to music, but it wouldn’t be the best option if that’s all you want. The value is rather in the program and in Gemini.
Wear OS 5 for the Pixel Watch has launched… sort of
Late week, Google also launched Wear OS 5 for the Pixel Watch and Pixel Watch 2. However, the update was quickly pulled due to a variety of fairly widespread issues.
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