Scalable UI in Android Automotive OS: The Panel Controller

jetc.dev Newsletter Issue #319

Bản tin jetc.dev số 319 cập nhật các phiên bản mới nhất của Jetpack Compose gồm bản vá 1.11.3, beta 1.12 đầu tiên và Compose Multiplatform 1.12.0-alpha02. Nội dung nổi bật bao gồm hỗ trợ iOS cho Jetpack Ink, các BOM mới, lifecycle/viewmodel-compose 2.11.0 mở rộng đa nền tảng, thư viện locationbutton Compose mới, cùng nhiều chủ đề như scoping ViewModel, Coil 3 cho tải ảnh đa nền tảng, kiểm thử screenshot theo locale, và các thư viện mã nguồn mở mới.

Những tiến bộ mới trong Jetpack Compose và Compose Multiplatform từ phiên bản 1.12 beta sẽ giúp bạn tối ưu hóa ứng dụng Android/iOS/native với các tính năng mới như ink iOS, viewmodel scoping và Coil 3, từ đó nâng cao hiệu suất và tính đa nền tảng cho dự án.

4 apps I always remove from every Samsung Galaxy phone

A Samsung Galaxy user shares four preinstalled apps they always remove: Samsung Browser (replaced by Chrome for cross-device consistency), Samsung Notes (replaced by Google Keep for web accessibility), Samsung TV Plus (unused ad-supported streaming service), and Samsung Global Goals (a charity app they prefer not to use). The author clarifies these aren't truly bloatware — they're decent apps — but cross-platform compatibility with iPhone, iPad, MacBook, and Windows PC makes Samsung's ecosystem apps redundant for their workflow.

I turned an old Android phone into a home server, and it outperformed my Raspberry Pi

An old Android phone running Termux can serve as a capable home server that outperforms a Raspberry Pi in several ways. The phone's UFS storage is significantly faster than microSD cards commonly used in Pi setups, and even older flagship Android chips tend to be more powerful than typical SBC processors. Setup involves installing Termux, disabling battery optimization, and assigning a static IP. Services like Jellyfin, Tailscale, ad-blockers, file servers, and lightweight databases run well. The main caveat is battery longevity when kept plugged in constantly, which a smart plug can help manage.

Control an Android Phone with Gemini 3.5 Flash Computer Use

Gemini 3.5 Flash has built-in Computer Use capability that lets it control Android devices by analyzing screenshots and issuing structured actions like taps, swipes, and text input. This guide walks through setting up an Android emulator on Mac without Android Studio, installing Python dependencies, and running an agent loop that connects the Google GenAI SDK with ADB to execute model-requested actions. Supported mobile actions include open_app, click, type, long_press, drag_and_drop, press_key, go_back, wait, list_apps, and take_screenshot, all using a normalized 0-999 coordinate grid. The guide also covers connecting to physical or remote devices and notes on extending to iOS, adding production robustness, and handling safety decisions.

Google Finance gets a dedicated app for Android

Google has launched a dedicated Android app for Google Finance, offering watchlists, real-time market data, live financial news, and an AI-powered 'Key Moments' feature that explains stock movements. An iOS version is planned for later. The move puts Google in direct competition with Yahoo Finance and Robinhood. Alongside the app, Google is rolling out portfolio tracking globally on the web, letting users view holdings in a single dashboard and interact with an AI research tool using natural-language queries. New AI task features allow users to set up automated briefings and performance summaries based on their watchlists or portfolios.

4 useful widgets I always add to every Pixel phone right away

A personal rundown of four home screen widgets the author adds to every Pixel phone: Google Keep for quick note access, Google Clock for at-a-glance alarm confirmation, The Weather Network for daily planning, and Google Calendar for a simplified view of the day's meetings. Each widget is chosen for speed and convenience over opening the full app.

Beyond CLEAN and MVP: Architecting an Offline-first Reactive Data Layer in Android

Reactive Data Layer Architecture (RDLA) is a mobile-optimized pattern for Android that addresses shortcomings of MVP and Clean Architecture in reactive, offline-first apps. It enforces a strict split between public API contracts and private implementation modules, uses Kotlin Flow cold streams so the UI subscribes to data rather than polling, and treats the local Room database as the single source of truth. The article walks through a heart rate tracking example covering the API module, repository coordinator, Room data source, ViewModel with StateFlow/SharedFlow, asynchronous mutation queues merged on-the-fly, WorkManager-backed background sync, conflict resolution with rollbacks, and a TestExtensions pattern for Robolectric-based unit tests without SQLite mocking.