Technologies

Google Will Merge Android and ChromeOS, Exec Says. That’s Taking a Page Out of the Apple Playbook

The eventual unification should help Google-based devices run more in concert with each other.

In a move that could make life easier for folks using devices based on its operating systems, Google is working toward unifying Android and ChromeOS, according to a high-ranking Google executive.

Merging the systems could have positive outcomes for customers using, say, a Chromebook and an Android cellphone, much like Apple users have seamless functioning among MacBooks, iPhones, iPads and Apple Watches.

«We’re going to be combining ChromeOS and Android into a single platform, and I am very interested in how people are using their laptops these days and what they’re getting done,» Android president Sameer Samat said in an interview with TechRadar published over the weekend.

When we reached out to Google for comment, the company referred us to an X post from Samat on Monday. He wrote: «we’re building the ChromeOS experience on top of Android underlying technology to unlock new levels of performance, iterate faster, & make your laptop + phone work better together. I’m excited about it!»

Samat did not give a timeline for unifying the systems, though he noted in his X post that the company has been working on the integration since last year. The latest development comes just as Google has rolled out Android 16, whose new features include a Material 3 Expressive design that allows for more customization and a more robust experience with tablets. Samat told TechRadar it’s the «biggest design change in Android in three or four years.»

What an Android-ChromeOS union will mean for you

Jason Howell, former CNET staffer and currently co-host of the Android Faithful podcast, says the merging of ChromeOS and Android is inevitable.

«We’ve seen years of incremental changes paving the way for this,» Howell told CNET. «It’s not entirely surprising that Google finally made it official, but I’m glad they’re being decisive about the transition. Apple’s ecosystem integration is a huge strength, so it makes sense that Google wants a piece of that. Android has evolved a lot since its launch.»

Howell added that combining the systems «will likely make everyday tasks much simpler for users, since they won’t have to relearn how to do the same things on different platforms. This kind of consistency should reduce confusion and streamline the experience, especially for people who move between phones and different types of devices.»

The Linux-based Android was launched in 2008 and is the most widely used mobile operating system in the world. ChromeOS came onto the scene three years later and is used with the Chrome web browser. The most popular cellphones using Android include devices from Samsung, Motorola and OnePlus, along with Google’s own Pixel.

«Android and ChromeOS always felt like two ways to tackle similar challenges,» Howell said. «ChromeOS for web-first, lightweight computing and Android for mobile apps. Merging them lets Google focus its resources on one unified platform that works across devices.»

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Saturday, Nov. 8

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Nov. 8.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? It’s the long Saturday one, so you might need assistance. Read on for the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Uber alternative
Answer: CAB

4A clue: Red-headed character in the «Scooby-Doo» franchise
Answer: DAPHNE

7A clue: Not arrive on time
Answer: RUNLATE

8A clue: Label on a green U.S.D.A. sticker
Answer: ORGANIC

9A clue: Prestigious engineering school in Pasadena
Answer: CALTECH

10A clue: Prepares to be knighted
Answer: KNEELS

11A clue: Parts of a city grid: Abbr.
Answer: STS

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Fashion brand with an interlocking «C» logo
Answer: CHANEL

2D clue: Silly behaviors
Answer: ANTICS

3D clue: Tree with smooth gray bark
Answer: BEECH

4D clue: Kevin ___, 15-time N.B.A. All-Star
Answer: DURANT

5D clue: They’re measured in degrees
Answer: ANGLES

6D clue: Division of the earth’s crust
Answer: PLATE

7D clue: Ice, in bartending lingo
Answer: ROCKS

Technologies

Spotify Brings Wrapped Energy Year-Round With Friend-Sharing Stats

The music service introduced new ways for music nerds to share their listening habits with friends.

It can be a long wait for Spotify Wrapped, the end-of-year promotion that allows Spotify users to view and share their listening habits. Now, users can keep an eye on those stats daily, plus share their listening habits with friends.

You can view your Spotify usage statistics every 24 hours and share your updates via social media services, such as Instagram Notes or Spotify Messages. The new share icon gives you access to eight different services where you can post your stats.

Every week, you’ll get updates on your top artists and songs from the past month, and Spotify will recommend new playlists. The app also gives you a «special highlight» based on a specific artist or song.

To access your personal musical data, click on your profile in the top left corner of the app and scroll down to «listening stats.»

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The new features are somewhat similar to Spotify Wrapped, the service’s annual end-of-year review of users’ listening habits, which is designed to be shared. Every year, Spotify adds extra details to Wrapped, such as assigning users a listening personality or a city that supposedly reflects their music tastes. It’s been the most popular way for Spotify users to view and share their music listening in the past. A number of third-party services do the same thing, including Volt.fm.

Read more: Best Music Streaming Services

Spotify is the world’s largest music streaming service, offering 100 million tracks and serving more than 713 million users. In addition to its $12-per-month subscription service, Spotify also offers a free, ad-supported option.

Technologies

Wordle Gets Personal: You Can Now Make and Share Your Own Puzzles

If you’re a Wordle obsessive, you can now make your own inside joke puzzles to send to friends.

Wordle’s an immensely popular New York Times word game (we post the answers daily), but it’s not the most personal game in the world. Answers such as GUISE and PERIL are tricky, but generic. Now, Wordle fans who have ever dreamed of making their own puzzles can test their friends and family by creating their own Wordle creations up to seven letters in length.

No surprise, you have to be a New York Times Games or All Access Subscriber to use this feature. If you are, you’ll find the Create a Puzzle option available from the top menu above today’s Wordle. While you must be a subscriber to create your own personalized puzzle, you can share it with anyone — they only need the link, not a subscription, to complete your Wordle.

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Enter a word, and the site will tell you if it is available. Real Wordle limits you to five-letter words, but the puzzle-making feature lets you choose words between 4 and 7 letters.

The usual dictionary rules apply, and so curse words, some pet names, and obscure inside jokes are essentially out. If your cat is named TANGO, that’s there, but RINGO is not an option. You can drop a proposal with a single word like MARRY, but MARRYME will get rejected since that’s two separate words.

Word chosen, you can then fill out your name and add an optional hint, and the feature will generate your puzzle with a link you can send around. Unlike standard puzzles, your puzzle doesn’t appear to reset after a day, so whoever you send it to doesn’t need to rush to solve it.

Looking for the most recent Wordle answer? Click here for today’s Wordle hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.