Google's next major
Android update, Android 15 (Vanilla Ice Cream), is expected in May 2024. It
brings new features like native satellite connectivity, high-quality webcam
mode for PCs, and improved optimisation for foldable phones.
Google releases a new major update to Android every year, its operating system that powers the world’s most popular smartphones from the biggest brands. This year, the search engine giant will likely launch Android 15 alongside new hardware at Google I/O 2024 on May 14. Going by the current trend, Android 15 will bring a ton of new features, with many powered by Generative Artificial Intelligence. Here are 10 new features that Google is introducing with the Android 15 release.
01 Android 15: A new name and logo
Android 15 will be the
name of the next major Android OS release, which comes with a new logo inspired
by space and rockets, similar to the Android 14 logo. Android 15 is internally
known as Vanilla Ice Cream, following the tradition of naming Android versions
after desserts. The first stable version of Android 15 is likely to be
available for select Pixel smartphones in the second half of 2024.
02 Native satellite connectivity
While several Android
smartphones have been offering satellite connectivity for a while, with Android
15, Google is natively integrating satellite connectivity, making it easier for
OEMs to deploy this technology on smartphones with supported hardware. This
also hints that the next-generation Pixel smartphones are likely to support
satellite connectivity, similar to the iPhone 14 and iPhone 15 series.
03 Web camera mode
Android 15 will allow
users to use their smartphones as high-quality web cameras when paired with a
Windows 11 PC. Google enabled the ability to use Pixel smartphones running on
Android 14 as web cameras; however, the image quality was quite low. With the
Android 15 release, the company will address this issue.
04 More optimised for foldable smartphones
Android 15 will be further
optimized to support foldable devices, including enhanced continuity. Apps will
retain their status on the cover display when the primary screen is closed.
Additionally, Android 15 will introduce a new taskbar, especially for
large-screen foldables, similar to the one on the Galaxy Z Fold5.
05 New camera controls
Android 15 will add new
camera control options, enabling developers to include more manual camera
features such as boosting the brightness of the camera preview, controlling
flash strengths, and low light enhancements to enable better picture-taking
capability even in low light situations.
06 Partial screen sharing
Android has been
supporting screen sharing for a while now. With the Android 15 update, users
will be able to share just a part of the screen, which could be a single app or
a single window. This ensures that even if someone gets virtual access to your
Android smartphone, they will only be able to see and access the window that's
visible to them.
07 Notification cooldown
If you are someone who
worries about the constant bombardment of notifications from a specific app,
Android 15 will come to the rescue. Android 15 will smartly lower the volume of
successive notifications without manual intervention.
08 Sensitive notifications
Android 15 will be able to
distinguish regular messages and messages with OTPs. The system will smartly
hide confidential details such as one-time passwords from other apps, adding an
additional layer of privacy and security and preventing third parties from
stealing confidential information.
09 New
volume control panel
Android 15 is also
introducing a sleeker volume control panel. While it might not be coming to
smartphones with third-party skins such as OneUI and OxygenOS, a smartphone
running on stock Android 15 will be able to take advantage of the new volume
control panel, which offers granular control over volume along with the ability
to set per-app volume.
10 Popup Bluetooth dialogue box
This feature will be
appreciated by those who have plenty of Bluetooth devices. On Android 15,
long-pressing on the Bluetooth quick toggle will open a Bluetooth dialogue box,
which will include recently paired/connected devices, and users can switch
between the different devices from this menu.
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