Robby Payne

Indian Hills

Writer at Chrome Unboxed

Co-Host at The Chrome Cast

Lover of all tech things, especially Google, more especially ChromeOS. Founder of Chrome Unboxed.

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Articles

One week with the best small Android tablet you can buy, and I’m sold

1 week ago | chromeunboxed.com | Robby Payne

After a few months of pestering, Lenovo finally sent over their small-yet-mighty Legion Tab Gen 3 about a week ago. We swiftly got the cameras fired up and did an unboxing with it because I was so excited to see what life with a small and powerful tablet would be like. As a somewhat anti-tablet person, the idea of having a flagship-level device in an 8.8-inch form factor sounded interesting.
How Google is leveraging AI to combat scammers

1 week ago | chromeunboxed.com | Robby Payne

Online scams are an unfortunate reality of modern life, and the actors behind them are constantly upgrading their tactics. It’s a never-ending game of cat and mouse, but Google is doubling down on its efforts to protect users, and not surprisingly, AI is at the forefront of this renewed push.
I’ve been using Gemini Live with camera sharing a lot and I’m gobsmacked

1 week ago | chromeunboxed.com | Robby Payne

In case you were unaware, Google’s primary AI model – Gemini – now has eyes to see things in the real world. Created under the ‘Project Astra’ working title, Gemini’s new ability to utilize your phone’s camera to see and react to the physical world is mind-blowing to say the least. And to show you what I’m talking about, let me tell you a quick story from a recent family get-together where Gemini blew everyone away. Have you heard of a game called Skyjo?
Walmart’s latest, affordable Google TV streamer should hit shelves soon

1 week ago | chromeunboxed.com | Upcoming Devices |Robby Payne

Walmart appears to be gearing up to release their latest budget-friendly streaming device, the Onn Google TV 4K Plus. This very compelling Chromecast alternative was spotted earlier this year, and has just recently been listed on Walmart’s website at a very attractive price point of just $29.88.
A new unsubscribe button in Google Messages should help curb spam

1 week ago | chromeunboxed.com | Robby Payne

Google Messages is enhancing its capabilities with the introduction of a new “Unsubscribe” feature designed to provide users with more control over unwanted messages from businesses. Hopefully, this helpful feature will help to mitigate the barrage of promotional content and other non-essential messages most of us have delivered via SMS, MMS, and RCS on a daily basis.
Gemini image edits are arriving for more users

1 week ago | chromeunboxed.com | Robby Payne

Following up on last week’s news, Google is now more broadly rolling out native image editing capabilities within the Gemini app. This is a really important step forward, moving us beyond the previous setup where asking for a modification to a generated image would result in an entirely new picture. Instead, Gemini now intelligently preserves the core elements of your base image while allowing for specific alterations through natural language prompts.
Gemini 2.5 gets a massive coding upgrade in the run-up to I/O 2025

1 week ago | chromeunboxed.com | Robby Payne

Google has announced the early access release of the Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview (I/O edition), an enhanced version of its 2.5 Pro model. This update brings substantial improvements in coding capabilities, particularly in the realm of building engaging and interactive web applications. Originally slated for release at Google I/O in the coming weeks, Google has instead decided to make this preview available sooner in response to the enthusiasm surrounding the latest model.
If your YouTube uploads are getting stuck, you aren’t alone

1 week ago | chromeunboxed.com | Robby Payne

Content creators attempting to upload new videos and Shorts to YouTube are running into difficulties as the platform is currently experiencing an issue that is preventing some uploads from processing properly. According to Google’s statement, the core problems being reported involve uploads becoming stalled at the very beginning of the process, indicated by a persistent “0%” completion status.
The Samsung Galaxy Chromebook Plus reduced price returns

1 week ago | chromeunboxed.com | Robby Payne

The Samsung Galaxy Chromebook Plus has once again seen a price reduction, giving anyone interested in this top-notch Chromebook an opportunity to snag this awesome device at a reduced price point. Currently, the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook Plus is available for $75 off its standard price at Samsung’s official website. Interestingly, Best Buy is also offering a similar discount, listed at $125 off; but don’t be fooled, here.
You can now start Gemini conversations right in Google Drive about specific files

1 week ago | chromeunboxed.com | Robby Payne

Google continues to integrate Gemini directly into the Workspace ecosystem to further streamline workflows and enhance productivity. Following the recent introduction of helpful prompts on the Drive homepage, a new update makes interacting with Gemini about specific files even more intuitive. Rolling out now, users can directly initiate conversations with Gemini in the side panel of Google Drive while referencing a precise set of documents.