Android is one of those operating systems that do nothing but consistently improve. Last year, Google announced Android 11. It is now available, but what really matters is this: what is new?
Let us take a look at the new features that we can expect from this update.
Message Bubbles
Once you receive a message, it will show a notification on your screen through a bubble, not the typical drop-down type from above. The news is that this bubble will trickle down to other apps in the future.
This is like the chat bubble that you have with Facebook Messenger. Only this time, it works on the text messaging app. The beauty of this is you no longer have to tap the messaging app itself. There will be a message bubble on your screen if you have received a new message—a constant reminder that you have a friend waiting for a response from you.
Media Playback Widget
This one is great for those who listen to music all the time. This widget pretty much stays at the top of your phone screen, and you can use it to adjust the volume, see the album art, forward to the next track, loop, and many more. This is great if you are a music lover, and you are busy. There is no need to unlock your phone, go to the media player and make adjustments. The media player buttons are just hovering on your screen, ready for you to access.
Screen Recording
One major problem that content creators have is screen recording. Before Android 11, you would have to download a screen recorder to do this. Thankfully, this function has been added to the Android OS. All you have to do now is to tap some buttons. You have the option to record sound from a microphone too or record the audio from the device. This is great if you are a content creator and, say, you are creating content for roulettes casino online. You no longer have to play on a PC to record your games—an Android device will do.
Dark Mode Scheduling
Although Dark Mode first appeared in Android 10, the version we get in Android 11 has a scheduling system. You can even automate it if you want. It is up to you to set the time for it or turn it on and off manually.
Voice Control
This is a great accessibility feature where you could control your phone with your voice. This is only made possible with Google’s Voice Access. Now, you can do a lot of things by simply saying something. Here are some of the things that you can do with it:
- Open an app
- Compose a message
- Sent a tweet
- Ask the phone to show you photos and images.
You can also assign numbers to specific elements. For example, if you assigned “12” to the X button, just say the word “twelve,” and the app will tap that X button.
Smart Reply
The smart reply function goes beyond suggested messages. Now, you will get recommended actions. For example, let us say that a friend asked you out for dinner. The phone will suggest a response but also ask you to pull directions from Google Maps—provided that your friend’s text mentioned a restaurant’s name.
One-Time Permissions
In the current Android, you give permission to apps, but this permission lasts until you decide to disable the app or deny the permission. In Android 11, you can set your phone to grant permissions only once. This means that you are granting permission to the app only for the time that you will use it. Because of this feature, you are in better control of your privacy. You no longer have to worry that various apps have consistent access to your images and texts or other personal information.
Recall Cleared Notifications
Sometimes, notifications can be annoying, but we do not want to turn them off. What we usually do is swipe down and then tap on Clear Notifications. Once we do this, all those notifications are gone. With Android 11, you can undo this action. You can find the notifications inside the settings menu. However, the maximum you could see are notifications for the past 24 hours only. Pretty much, it is a notification history feature.
App Suggestions
This one is only for Pixel phones. The phone will fill unused slots at your home screen with apps that you may want to use. This is great if you have lots of apps, like online casino games, that you are not using all the time. This feature is not automatic. You have to turn it on. You can also choose apps that you do not want to appear on the home screen so they do not become obtrusive.
Android is the ultimate platform there is. The beauty of this OS is that it does not matter which phone brand you are using—for as long as it is running on the Android operating system, you will get these features. Sure, you may not need all of them, but know that they are just there on your service.
