6 Important Things to Know About Android P

Android P aka Android OS v9.0 is the next version of Android that is being beta tested by Google and a few other OEMs at the moment, prior to its full commercial release. In case you are wondering about the OS, know that there will be a number of big changes this year and they can be summarized as follows.

Overhauled Navigation System

Android P is taking a gesture-based route to navigation, so check out the following gesture commands to get an idea of what to expect.

·         Access to the recent apps tab will be granted by a swipe up

·         Long swipe/double quick swipe to access the app drawer

Also, the back button will only appear where applicable.

A More Colorful and Faster UI

Circular and colorful icons are immediately visible on the Developer Previews and the improved animation system makes it feel superfast.

Better Battery Life

Every version of the new Android OS promises this and while it might be true, we are not sure if the new OS versions really do make too much of a difference though. Nevertheless, Android P promises to maximize your battery life through machine learning. Adaptive brightness, adaptive battery use  and limited CPU usage are all things that Google is aiming for with this version of the OS.

App Actions and Slices

If you use an app for a certain purpose often on your phone, App Actions will recommend and create shortcuts that will help you do it faster the next time around. Slices on the other hand is an even more advanced functionality of the Google Assistant that will make more intelligent decisions, based on your voice commands.

Other Improvements

There are also multiple other minor but helpful improvements to the OS as well, like an instant screenshot editor and pop-up zoom while highlighting text. The fact that volume changes made via hardware button is now always mapped to media by default is a very welcome change.

Third Party Smartphones are Also getting Beta This Time

Unlike every other year, Google has surprisingly opened up the early access Beta doors to Sony, Nokia, Xiaomi, Vivo, OnePlus and Oppo via Project Treble. Just in case you are wondering, yes, it's definitely available on all the Pixels as well!

That about wraps it up for now, but this is far from being the complete list. We will keep you updated once the final version releases in August (hopefully).

Saikat Kar