Best Android Pie Features

If you already own Android 9 Pie, the alias for Google’s latest mobile operating system, a treat awaits you – and not just because Google names its software after desserts. There are dozens of new features to dive into and explore, including those that can only be unlocked by unlocking Developer Options.

However, not everyone has access to the new software as Android is well known for its fragmented update cycles. For now, only Google Pixel and Essential Phone users should expect wireless downloads. If that’s you, then take the time today to find a comfortable spot and check out some of the best new features in Android Pie.

A new way to turn

In Android Pie, you can rotate the app window without pulling down the notification panel or looking for the quick settings toggle. Just flip your device sideways and you’ll see a tiny rotation icon pop up next to the Recent Apps button. Tap it to rotate the app horizontally, then switch to the other side and tap the same icon to rotate it back to its vertical position. It is much more convenient.

A battery that adapts to you

We could all use a little more battery life on our devices, especially those of us who don’t have the money to spend on fancy new phones with a lot of milliampere-hours. Android Pie’s Adaptive Battery feature helps you manage your device’s power consumption. You can check if this feature is active in Settings> Battery> Adaptive Battery.

If you are using Adaptive Battery, the system will know which applications to prioritize and which may remain dormant. Or, if an application is running in the background, the system will ask you if you want to prevent it from happening again. Android will also preload the apps you use frequently so that they don’t take up your system’s resources when you launch them. You can learn more about how the Adaptive Battery feature works in interviews with the people who created it at Ars Technica .

Disable annoying notifications

Admittedly, I was a little annoyed with this feature at first, but quickly realized it was worth using for my sanity. Android notifications can be overwhelming, especially as these icons clog up the status bar and increase throughout the day. A handy new feature in Android 9 marks notifications that you dismiss right away and then asks if you want to stop the frenzy. Or, if you don’t want to wait for it to take root, you can manually control which notifications appear in your settings panel.

I use this feature with my Nest app to cut down on the number of notifications I receive throughout the day. I no longer see general alerts like when the front door opens or if cameras are detecting movement. You can do the same for any app installed on your device.

Meet new gestures

There have been some doubts in the Android community about the new Pie ​​navigation scheme with swipe gestures, including how the recent apps screen has been updated to scroll from left to right instead of up and down. But once you feel the usefulness of the new method, you might not want to go back to the old three-button method.

On the System Settings screen, tap Gesture and then turn on the Swipe up Home button option. This will remove the Recent Apps shortcut and replace the navigation bar with a button that looks like a peppermint tic-tac-toe. Swipe up to see recent apps, and then swipe up again to open the app drawer. Alternatively, you can swipe left on the navigation bar to browse the apps, or swipe up with one quick swipe to quickly draw the app bar. This is a handy trick for large phone screens.

Download Digital Wellbeing

Google praised its digital wellbeing feature at a developer conference earlier this year, but it’s not yet part of the Android Pie update. According to The Verge , it will not be officially released until autumn. You will need to download the app from the Play Store and, since it is currently in beta, register for access. But it offers many useful features if you are worried about smartphone addiction.

Once activated from the settings panel, Digital Wellbeing continuously collects data about your usage habits, including how often you use different apps, how many notifications you receive throughout the day, and how often you check your phone. The results can be dire. If you’re feeling guilty, you can turn on daily app timers to set limits on how long you use certain apps. There is also a Wind Down feature that reminds you to turn off at night and sets a schedule by which your screen will turn to grayscale before bed and immediately after you wake up.

Easier screen pinning

Screen snapping was originally introduced in Android Lollipop, but Pie now offers a better way to snap your device’s screen to a single app.

In the Settings menu under Security & Location, click Advanced for more settings, and then select Screen Pinning. Once selected, you will see the Dock popup when you click on the icon on the Recent Apps screen. To unpin an app, press and hold the Back and Home buttons.

Interact with your recent apps

Need to share images or text between apps? This was a daunting task in previous versions of Android, but with the new Pie ​​Latest Apps screen, you can now select text or share images from the app switcher. Press and hold the area you want to copy or perform an action and the interface will respond accordingly. Android Police has a great guide on how it works. This feature was originally included on Google’s first-generation Pixel phones, but has never been included. Now that he’s here, you can quote what you read more often than before.

Mute your Android device

Android Pie no longer defaults to ringing when you press the volume rocker up or down. Instead, you adjust the volume of the media on your device, which makes more sense in terms of user experience. You can also prevent ringing in quiet environments by pressing the volume up and power buttons at the same time – no need to unlock the screen at all.

Get rid of the new animation

Android transitions haven’t always been a delight, but Pie adds dynamic new UI elements to spruce up the operating system. Menu screens now slide up from the bottom of the screen and have a slight bounce effect when navigating between inputs and outputs. This is a minor feature addition, but if you don’t feel the new animations or they are slowing down your system, you can get rid of them in the accessibility settings. Click on the toggle to “Remove Animations” and they will disappear. Note that this will disable animation in some other applications as well.

Lock screen lock

I am never as annoyed as when I am on a trail and my phone is constantly unlocking in my pocket. Android Pie offers a setting called Lockdown, which effectively locks your phone so that only a PIN or pattern opens the home screen. This feature also disables Smart Lock and hides lock screen notifications if you’re worried about passersby spying on your conversations.

To enable this feature, go to Settings> Security & Location> Lock Screen Settings and turn on Show Lock Option. You can then access this capability by pressing and holding the power button and then pressing the Lockdown option. You will see a blank lock screen indicating that the interface is correctly locked. However, after you unlock it, you will have to do this procedure again to ensure it is backed up.

Dive into developer capabilities

Experienced Android users know that if you delve deeper into the developer options in the settings panel, you will find real gems.

Under Settings, tap System, About Phone, and then tap Build Number at the bottom of the screen seven times. A new developer options option will appear in the settings panel. Click on an option to open a completely new list of features. Not all features are intended for day-to-day use as Google explicitly marks them as experimental. Here are two, in particular, that you can try in Android Pie:

– Automatically turn on Bluetooth while driving: Scroll down to select the Feature Flags option. Enable the “settings_bluetooth_ while_driving” option. Every time your phone detects that you are driving somewhere, it automatically turns on Bluetooth to connect to your car stereo.

– Enable Night Mode: Android Pie is offering the dark theme right away in a software update this year, but there is also a night mode that you can enable, forcing third-party apps to implement their own night themes. In developer options, scroll down to Night Mode to choose whether you want to turn it on, off, or only turn it on based on the time of day.

Try a new smiley

It would be an oversight if I didn’t tell you about the new Android Pie emojis. The software update includes Google’s Emoji 11.0, as well as several rework of some of the existing characters. The pistol is now portrayed as a toy water pistol, and the Turtle looks much less alienated. Some of the new emojis include faces with red and silver heads, as well as faces when you’re hot or cold (so you don’t need to combine emoji to let people know about the weather). Raccoon and Cupcake can also be seen in the Android 9 emoji pack, and there are even Superhero and Supervillain emojis.

Emojipedia has a fantastic breakdown of what emoji to look for in the latest software update. One caveat: not everyone with Android 9 has new characters – for example, I don’t have the updated Hugging Face. New characters are likely to appear in a future update.

One-touch alarm access

Sony, you can quickly check your alarms (or access your stopwatch) with a new shortcut in Android Pie. Swipe down on the notification bar once and then tap on the clock, which is now in the upper left corner of the interface. To check the next alarm, simply swipe down twice from top to bottom, it’s located right above the screen brightness slider.

Quickly edit screenshots

I love spilling tea with my friends, but I don’t always want to send them a screenshot of my entire screen. Android 9 now offers the ability to quickly edit the screenshots you just took. A notification will appear within a second with shortcuts to send, edit, or delete your screenshot. If you click on the second option, you will be taken to a screen where you can crop, select, or mark your screenshot. It’s much more convenient than having to deal with a third-party image editing app or touching Android’s built-in image editor.

Connect up to five Bluetooth audio devices

In Android 8.1, you could only connect two Bluetooth audio devices at the same time. Android 9 UPS counts up to five. However, as Android Police points out, there is no concurrent playback, so don’t even think about starting a blocky party.

Try on a new dark theme

Some people prefer a dark interface, which is why Android Pie has added an option for automatic light and dark themes in Pixel Launcher. You can choose if your device is always in light or dark mode, or if it should adapt the color scheme to your wallpaper.

This particular feature differs from the night theme mentioned in the developer options as it doesn’t go beyond the launcher. If selected, the dark theme will only apply to the Home screen, Quick Settings, Google Feed page, App Drawer, and Power Menu and Volume Pop-ups.

Let your hotspot play out

You don’t need to worry about data overload with Android 9. There is a new feature that automatically turns off your Wi-Fi hotspot if no devices are actively connected. In the Wi-Fi hotspot settings, select the “Disable hotspot automatically” option.

Still waiting for the slices

One feature you can’t use right now is Slices, which is unfortunate considering it’s Android Pie and, well, it goes well with the title.

But seriously, it’s a shame that we are missing fragments, because they are designed to help you get work done faster without switching between applications. Slicers allow apps to perform a significant portion of their search capabilities, such as typing “Yelp” and getting the reviews you want without opening the app. It will be released later this fall, according to Popular Science .