Android's hidden clipboard superpowers

3 invisible systems for smarter text sharing  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ # Brought to you by: [BookBub logo](=)​ My friend, few things are finer than the feeling of finding a feature that's never been announced, has no visual indication of its existence, and yet is hiding in plain sight — just waiting to be discovered. That's exactly what happened to me this week, by pure happenstance. And the feature I found is fan-freakin'-tastic. It's a powerful way to connect the clipboards between your phone and any other devices and then effortlessly share text between 'em. And it uses a system already present on your phone (and quite possibly also on your computer). You can check out my discovery — along with a look at a couple other similar (and similarly easy to overlook!) Android clipboard-connecting features — in this week's Things to Try roundup, below. JR Today's read: ⌚ 3 Things to Know: 1 minutes 30 seconds ⌚ 3 Things to Try: 1 minute ⌚ Just for Funsies: 20 seconds [] ❱❱ 3 Things to Know This Week 1. Google's stepping up its fight against iMessage ➜ THE SHORT VERSION: Grab some popcorn, 'cause things are about to get interesting in Google's battle with Apple over the future of messaging. 🔎 KNOW MORE: According to a new report, Google has now co-signed a request to EU regulators about iMessage. The letter asks the organization to force Apple to open up the gates around its iOS messaging service and make it play nicely with other platforms. - As it stands now, iMessage deliberately dumbs down messages sent from Android devices and makes 'em look like lesser, lower-class entities within the iOS universe. - Numerous analyses have found that effect and the stigma it creates is a significant part of what drives people to buy and then stick with Apple products, particularly among The Youths™ and particularly in the U.S. - Google and several mobile carriers now say iMessage should be considered a "core platform service," under EU regulations, and thus required to be interoperable with other such services — something Apple absolutely could do but carefully avoids in order to serve its own business interests. 📌 READ MORE: Catch up on [all the latest drama]( — and if you're hungry for even more thought-provoking perspective, chew over [how we got into this mess in the first place](. --------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Samsung's putting AI at the center of its Galaxy ➜ THE SHORT VERSION: Galaxy fans, get ready: Samsung' gearin' up to introduce a whole new series of AI services. And odds are, they'll serve as key features and selling points of its next-gen Galaxy gadgets. 🔎 KNOW MORE: Samsung's actually got two different AI initiatives breaking ground at the same time this week. - First, the company officially teased "Galaxy AI," which it describes as a "comprehensive mobile AI experience." - And separately, Senor Samuel reportedly demoed a ChatGPT-like generative AI system called Gauss (?!) that's supposed to show up on phones sometime next year. - Call me crazy, but it's starting to feel like the obsession around AI hype is getting a teensy bit overblown when it comes to an average-person's practical interests — don't ya think? Hopefully we'll reach a point soon where companies step back from the buzzword and start focusing more on features we actually want and need instead of slapping AI everywhere simply for the sake of being able to say "AI." 📌 READ MORE: Get [the full scoop on Samsung's latest steps]( (and stay tuned for much more on this subject in the weeks and months ahead!). --------------------------------------------------------------- 3. AI is on its way into YouTube, too ➜ THE SHORT VERSION: Also in today's "Because Of Course" news, Google's just announced a pair of fancy new AI features on their way to YouTube as we speak. 🔎 KNOW MORE: The features are currently described as "experimental" and aren't yet available for everyone, but YouTube Premium members can activate 'em within the site's or app's settings. - The first feature lets you summarize a video's comments to see a quick overview of what's being discussed. - The second is a "conversational AI tool" — a chatbot, in other words — to which you can ask questions about a video you're watching or request things like recommendations for related videos. - Some of this stuff could actually be useful, like being able to ask the chatbot for a summary of a lengthy video, for instance. The question with any such systems, of course, is how accurate and reliable they'll be. 📌 READ MORE: Google's official announcement has [a closer look at how this all works]( and how you can opt in to try it. #top SPONSORED MESSAGE Save big on ebooks 📖 [Beast from Beauty and the Beast reading](=)​ Remember the days when you would go to a bookstore and rifle through the discounted book bin to find a great deal? With ebooks on the rise, those days may seem largely behind us, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t still some rockin’ savings to be found! ​[BookBub](=) helps you find the same great deals, just on ebooks. Better yet, they take the guesswork out of the equation, and email you deals each day on books handpicked specifically for you. Here's how it works: 📝 Answer a brief questionnaire about what you like to read 📨 Check your inbox for personalized ebook deals 📚 Buy new books at a discount and read on any device To top it all off, you can even save books to your wishlist and BookBub will let you know when they are on sale! ➜ [Ready to start saving up to 95% off of bestselling books?](=)​ [START SAVING TODAY — FOR FREE​ ➜](=) #top [] ❱❱ 3 Things to Try This Week 1. Tap into Nearby Share's invisible clipboard copier Fair warning: This first discovery o' the day is something that may seem like a tiny, even insignificant little detail on the surface. But believe you me, it has the potential to make a massive difference in your day-to-day life. It's a way to seamlessly share text from your phone to a computer — and vice-versa. Just copy any words you want in one place, then paste 'em in the other. It's the cross-platform productivity dream. ➜ And, as I learned this week, it's entirely possible using systems already installed on Android and easy to set up elsewhere. ⌚ It'll take you about one minute to figure out. 📌 [Check out this guide](=) — and get ready to break down virtual barriers like never before. --------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Let Chrome act as your covert clipboard bridge Nearby Share is a nifty way to beam text between your Android device and other gadgets, but if you're working within Chrome, specifically, you've got another interesting option. ➜ You'd be forgiven for failing to notice, but the Chrome Android app has an out-of-the-way feature for wirelessly sending text between any two devices where you're using Chrome and signed in — so long as the text is something you're seeing within the browser. ⌚ It takes seven seconds to surface and start using. To try it: - Open up Chrome on your phone and highlight any text on any web page. - Look for the "Share" option in the menu that pops up alongside it. - Tap that, then look for the "Send to devices" option in the sharing panel that shows up at the bottom of the screen. [Chrome's "Send to devices" sharing option] ​ And we've got one more related possibility to tuck away in your pocket for future reference... --------------------------------------------------------------- 3. Lean on Lens for swift text transporting Last but not least in the realm of Android clipboard superpowers is an exceptionally versatile way to snag and copy any sort of text on your phone and share it instantly with any computer — or any other Android device, for that matter. ➜ This trick relies on awesome Android service called Google Lens​. Lens is built right into the Google Photos app on Android​ nowadays, and that's where we'll lean to make this next connection happen. ⌚ It'll take you roughly one minute to figure out: - The next time you find some text you want to share to another device, snag a screenshot showing it on your screen (by pressing your power and volume-down buttons together). - Now, open up Photos on your phone (or [go download it](=), if you don't already have it). - Tap the Library tab at the bottom, then select "Screenshots" within the "Photos on device" section. - Tap the thumbnail of the screenshot you just captured. - Tap "Lens" in the row of options along its bottom edge, then press and hold your finger onto the text within the actual image to select it. - Last but not least, scroll horizontally along the line of options beneath the screenshot until you see "Copy to computer." - Tap that, then tap the name of your computer within the list of choices that pops up. (Note that you'll need to be signed into Chrome on a computer in order for it to show up in this list.) [Lens's "Copy to computer" option] [Lens shows a list of available computers] A split second later, the text in question will be on your computer's keyboard and ready to paste. All you've gotta do is go into any text field, in any app, and hit Ctrl-V to summon it. Not too shabby, eh?! #top [] ❱❱ And Just for Funsies... Man, do I love me some good old-fashioned tech nostalgia. And if you do, too, good golly, have I got just the treat for you. Thanks to an Android Intelligence reader's remarkable recommendation, I found my way into the incredible [Internet Artifacts website]( this week. It's a simple site that shows you tech memories ranging from 1977 all the way through 2007. You can explore everything from the first MP3 (hint: "duh duh duh duh, duh duh duh duh, duh duh duh duh duh duh duh duh") to the earliest known LOL and footage from the first-ever webcam. (Spoiler alert: No nudity is involved — unless you count an unclothed coffee pot as being technically "naked.") It's an awesome journey through our collective tech past and a fine way to waste a few quiet moments of your day. 📌 [You can check out the site for yourself]( in any browser, on any device you're using. #top See Ya Next Week Keep an eye on your inbox for some fun news from these Intelligence-scented quarters of ours early next week. Exciting stuff is on the way, my fellow Android-appreciating animal. And I absolutely cannot wait to share it with you, at last. More soon! What'd you think of this issue? Pick a face to vote and let me know! [Loved it]([It was all right]([Coulda been better]( ​ ➜ Did you enjoy this issue? [Copy your custom referral link]( and share it with other people to spread the word and earn [all sorts of awesome rewards](=)! ➜ Hungry for even more? [Try a Platinum membership]( to gain access to three premium Android Intelligence publications along with oodles of other advanced resources. ➜ New here and not yet subscribed? Take two seconds to [sign up now](). ➜ Not feelin' it anymore? Sorry to see you go — but no worries: You can [unsubscribe or update your preferences here](=). [Get even more Android Intelligence. Upgrade to a Platinum membership today.](=)