Google appears to be ditching its Pixel thermometer feature.
Leaks show a “Pixel Glow” feature taking its place.
The Pixel was the only flagship phone with a thermometer.
I’ve been a loyal Pixel user since the beginning, but I might be tempted to switch because Google is removing one of my single favorite features from the Pixel.
Google introduced a temperature sensor and built-in thermometer app into the Pixel 8 Pro in 2023. It was a fairly unique feature, and the Pixel was the only flagship phone to have it. It would go on to be present over the next two years on the 9 Pro, the 9 Pro XL, the 10 Pro, and the 10 Pro XL.There hasn’t been an official announcement, but if leaks hold true, it won’t be coming to the Pixel 11 Pro.
Leaks have begun surfacing about an upcoming feature on Google phones called “Pixel Glow” — LED lights on the back of the device that keep you informed of important notifications when your phone is face down (taken straight from the latest Nothing phone). According to the leaks, Pixel Glow will be taking the temperature sensor’s place on the phone’s iconic camera bump.
Artie Beaty / ZDNET
One of my favorites
While it was a small feature, it was one of the more unique smartphone features and one of my favorite phone tricks.
As a parent, I used it countless times to see if my kids were running a fever. The first time I used it, I compared it to an in-ear thermometer that I had to dig through a kitchen drawer to find and found it was within 0.3 degrees. From there on, it was certainly close enough that I could just use my phone for a quick assessment instead of trying to track down the actual thermometer.
I also used it numerous times when I was out with family or friends and someone mentioned feeling feverish, and I got shocked, “Wait, how did you do that?” responses every time. The times I used it for a quick fever check alone made it invaluable.
Beyond body temperature, I would use my phone to check the road temperature to see if it was too hot to take my dog for a walk, to diagnose that my home HVAC system wasn’t heating or cooling like it should, and a number of other cases.
I’m all for fancy LEDs, and Pixel Glow certainly seems like a way for Pixels to stand out in a market where every phone starts to look the same. But the forthcoming lights seem gimmicky at best to me. At least from the leaks so far, it seems like you’ll need to sit your phone face down, and that’s something I rarely do.
Since Pixel phones now have always-on displays, I wonder if Google couldn’t set a certain part of the front-facing screen to flash certain colors depending on notifications and accomplish the same thing. Admittedly, that would look much less cool, but it wouldn’t mean the demise of one of my favorite features.
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Disney+ is embracing the Dark Side, as Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord is about to emerge on the service. Before The Mandalorianbrought Star Wars into live-action television, the franchise was thriving in animated form, thanks to the initial success of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Among the many new twists that the series introduced, one of the most notable developments was the return of Darth Maul after his apparent death in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace.
Now, after several series that have developed the character from a terrifying figure to a tragic Sisyphean antagonist, Maul – Shadow Lord will throw the character into a fight against the tyranny of the Empire, leading to tense chases and surprise alliances:
What is Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord?
The former Sith Lord returns
Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lordis set on the newly introduced world of Janix, a planet on the Mid Rim of the galaxy far, far away that has been unbothered by the still young Galactic Empire in the wake of the Clone Wars. While the planet’s Tactical Defense Force keeps the population in check, the planet has become host to individuals looking to avoid Imperial interests, either out of fear for their lives or to rebuild in the shadows.
Following his usurping of Mandalore and escape from Republic custody in TheCloneWars season 7, Maul is attempting to rebuild the Shadow Collective crime syndicate with what remains of his forces, including fellow Dathomirian Zabraks and Mandalorian supercommandos. As Maul’s operations become too much for the TDF to handle, the Empire establishes a foothold on Janix. While grappling with Stormtroopers and Inquisitors, Maul must make an uneasy alliance with a young Jedi on the run if he wants to initiate his plan for revenge.
Who is in Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord?
An Oscar nominee joins the cast
Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord sees Sam Witwer reprise the role of the former Sith Lord-turned-crime lord from his appearances across Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels. Fellow Rebels stars Vanessa Marshall and Steve Blum join him as the Mandalorian Rook Kast and Zabrak fighter Icarus. Meanwhile, Gideon Adlon takes on the role of the young Twilek Padawan Devon Izara, while Dennis Haysbert’s Master Eeko-Dio Daki hopes to guide her in the Dark Times.
Meanwhile, Oscar-nominee Wagner Moura will provide the voice of TDF captain Brander Lawson, with Richard Ayoade voicing his partner Two-Boots, and Charlie Bushnell voicing his son, Rylee. Chris Diamantopoulos and Stephen Stanton will voice crime lords Looti Vario and Marg Krim, David W. Collins will voice Spybot, and A.J. LoCascio will voice Marrok, the Inquisitor first introduced in Ahsoka.
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When does Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord take place?
Stuck between two familiar events
Credit: Lucasfilm
Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord is set during the Dark Times, the period of the StarWars franchise between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope where the Empire was expanding its power over the galaxy, with those who opposed them choosing to lurk in the shadow. This period has been explored in The Bad Batch, Star Wars Rebels, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Andor, and the Star Wars: Jedi video game franchise, as well as briefly explored in select episodes of the Tales of the Jedi, Tales of the Empire, and Tales of the Underworld anthology series.
The Star Wars universe has plenty to watch to keep the Force flowing now that Andor’s finished.
In the trailer itself, Maul and Devon are seen facing Stormtroopers wearing TK armor, an early version of Stormtrooper armor that was introduced in The Bad Batch season 1. This means that the Empire is still in a time of transition from the Galactic Republic to the forces that we see closer to the Star Wars Original Trilogy. As such, Maul – Shadow Lord events are likely happening concurrently with the events of The Bad Batch’s later two seasons.
Maul – Shadow Lord can finally explain the final years of the Sith Lord’s life
Time to explore new horizons
Credit: Lucasfilm
While The Clone Wars successfully resurrected Maul and Rebels would give him a fitting end, there is still a large portion of his story left unexplored. While it is unclear whether the series will receive multiple seasons, the show will explore how he rearranged his forces from the Shadow Collective into Crimson Dawn, the faction first introduced in Solo: A Star Wars Story. Paul Bettany’s Dryden Vos did feature as a cameo in The Clone Wars’s final season, but the arc largely focused on Maul’s Mandalorian forces over his other agents. As such, Maul – Shadow Lord can complete his turn from a man well-aware of Smith’s schemes into his own fully-fledged criminal mastermind.
Furthermore, the presence of Devon in Maul’s story is allowing Lucasfilm to dust off long-scrapped plans. Prior to the Disney acquisition, a Darth Maul-focused game was in development that saw Maul paired with Darth Talon, another red-skinned Twilek, at the behest of George Lucas himself, as the pair took on the galaxy. While Devon may not be a direct adaptation of Talon in the existing canon, Witwer has teased that the series will finally adapt several unused concepts for Maul to screen, and Devon’s visual similarities to Talon could suggest that the series will fulfill one of Lucas’s final ideas for the franchise.
When will Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord stream?
Two-episode premiere coming soon
Credit: Lucasfilm
Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord will arrive on Disney+ on April 6th with a two-episode premiere. The series will then release two new episodes every Monday, culminating in the finale on May 4. While one of the shorter StarWars series, Maul’s long-awaited 10-part story will finally give fans a glimpse into the mind of one of the Dark Side’s most terrifying warriors.
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