It’s been another big week for Google, but this time, mostly for good reasons. Last week, the company was slapped with a hefty EU antitrust fine just as it began court proceedings for a separate antitrust case in the US. This week, though, Google scored a legal win when the EU tossed a separate antitrust fine of $1.7 billion for procedural reasons. Also: RCS has starting landing on iOS, giving all us green-bubblers a better texting experience with our iPhone-owning friends. Here’s all the big Google news of the week.
RCS comes to iPhone with iOS 18
Apple confirmed last November that, after years of public prodding from Google, it would implement RCS messaging in iOS. Nearly a year later, it’s here: RCS messaging is now available on iPhones running the latest iOS 18, which launched Monday.
Now that the default messaging clients on both Android and iOS support the more modern RCS, text conversations between Android devices and iPhones are getting better. Messages sent from outside Apple’s proprietary iMessage still show up in green bubbles on iPhones, but the experience is improving overall, with read receipts, typing indicators, and high-quality media attachments, chipping away at the long-held (albeit true) notion that the iPhone-Android texting experience is inferior to iMessage. Android-to-iPhone RCS chats aren’t end-to-end encrypted yet, but Google says that should be changing eventually.
Google gets out of some EU antitrust fines
Last week, we reported that Google would have to pay up on a massive European Union antitrust suit dating back to 2017, to the tune of $2.7 billion. That saga is still unfolding, but this week, Google got some better news: a separate EU antitrust fine, $1.7 billion levied in 2019, has been overturned by the EU General Court.
While the Court agreed with the majority of the EU’s findings in the case, which is over Google’s AdSense for Search, the European Commission’s case was thrown out for procedural reasons. The Commission can appeal, but hasn’t said whether it intends to.
Proceedings for a separate, US antitrust suit over Google’s online ads business began last week.
Android 15 could hit Pixels on October 15
Android 15 is taking longer to hit stable than we expected it to. While the latest version hit AOSP earlier this month, it still hasn’t started rolling out publicly yet. Now, Android Headlines has reported that Android 15 is set to roll out to Pixel phones beginning on Tuesday, October 15. That date breaks with Google’s tradition of pushing new Android builds on Mondays, but given the 14th is a US holiday, the 15th is believable.
Google had previously inadvertently confirmed that Android 15 would roll out in October, so this latest report is in keeping with that timeframe. Android 15 should make its way to devices from Samsung, OnePlus, and others in the weeks and months following the initial Pixel release.
Pixel 10 codenames give us a preview of next year’s lineup
Android Headlines also reported on codenames for the Pixel 10 series this week. It’s looking like a repeat of this year’s lineup, with a Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, Pixel 10 Pro XL, and Pixel 10 Pro Fold planned. Of course, we don’t yet know anything about these devices, other than that they’re in some stage of development.
These are the reported codenames:
- Pixel 10: Frankel
- Pixel 10 Pro: Blazer
- Pixel 10 Pro XL: Mustang
- Pixel 10 Pro Fold: Rango
Circle to Search could finally come to more phones
Google’s Circle to Search feature debuted on the Galaxy S24 series early this year and has since made its way to many Pixel and Galaxy phones, but as of yet, no devices from other manufacturers. That could be changing soon, though: Mishaal Rahman reported this week that Google intends to bring Circle to Search to Android devices from other manufacturers beginning in October.
It’s been reported that the Xiaomi 14T and 14 Pro will be the first non-Google or -Samsung devices to get the feature, and Rahman points out that Tecno has told multiple outlets that its Phantom V Fold 2 will be getting the feature next month.
Pixel Watch 3 loss of pulse detection arrives… in Europe
When the Pixel Watch 3 was announced, Google spent a lot of time on a loss-of-pulse detection feature that can automatically call emergency services when a wearer’s pulse is no longer detected. The feature was billed as coming to European markets first, and according to renowned Android tinkerer AssembleDebug, a new version of the Pixel Watch app (v 3.1.0.673374531) enables the feature in those markets.
We still don’t know when or if the feature will be released in the US.
Google partners with Masimo to improve Wear OS health tech
Apple is currently in a legal scuffle with health tech firm Masimo, who has claimed Apple infringed on its patents on pulse oximetry technology in Apple Watch wearables, resulting in a pause on US sales of the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2.
Now, Masimo has announced that Google will partner with Qualcomm and Masimo to get the latter company’s patented tech into new Wear OS watches. The partnership should eventually yield more accurate blood oxygen monitoring on Wear OS watches, but it’s early days for the new arrangement. We’ll be keeping an eye on this story as it develops going forward.
