C. Scott Brown / Android Authority

Android Auto is one of the best apps you can get for your car. It’s already available on your Android phone, and if your car supports it, you have a quick way to access Google Maps and music apps, make and receive calls, and reply to messages (with your voice) while you’re out and about. Android Auto makes life much easier on the road, assuming it’s working properly. Unfortunately, one of the most common phone problems users complain about has to do with Android Auto. Here’s a look at some Android Auto problems and how to fix them.

Editor’s note: Some of these steps were assembled using a Google Pixel 7 running Android 14. Some steps might be different depending on your hardware and software.

Does my phone, stereo, or car support Android Auto?

Damien Wilde / Android Authority

Let’s start with the basics. Not all phones, cars, or stereos support Android Auto. There are also location restrictions, so you won’t be able to use Android Auto in unsupported countries.

Android Auto requirements: Your phone needs to run at least Android 8.0.

You’ll need data access.

Google recommends a high-quality USB cable. Preferably under three feet long, without hubs or extensions.

Android Auto is available in 46 countries, and not all of them support Google Assistant while using Android Auto. You can find the complete list of supported countries here. Scroll down to the FAQ and look for Is the Android Auto app available in my country? .

. You’ll need a supported car or third-party stereo. You can check compatibility on Google’s official list.

Android Auto wireless requirements: Your phone needs to run at least Android 11. Google and Samsung phones can run Android 10. Samsung Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8 Plus, and Note 8 handsets can do with Android 9.0.

5GHz Wi-Fi support.

You’ll also need data access. You can download the app from the Google Play Store. For any phone with Android 10 or newer, Android Auto is already baked into your phone’s Settings menu.

Unfortunately, if the car or stereo doesn’t support Android Auto, you won’t be able to use it on just your phone. Google removed the Android Auto for phone screens feature with Android 12. You can still download and install the app on older devices. But with any phone running Android 12, you will have to rely on Driving mode.

Similarly, if you live in an unsupported country, there isn’t much you can do other than wait (very patiently).

The classic solution of turning it off and back on! One of the most common troubleshooting tips is to restart your phone. I’ve found the same applies to Android Auto when it is not working. First, try unplugging your phone and plugging it back in. This often fixes the problem. If that doesn’t work, turn the phone off and on. Lastly, you can try turning the car off and on again, which I’ve had to do a few times.

How to restart your Android phone: Press the side and volume up buttons simultaneously. Tap on Restart.

Android Auto not working on recently purchased phones Phone makers make it easy to transfer files, apps, and settings from an old phone to a new device with apps like OnePlus Switch, Samsung Smart Switch, and more. Users say that using these methods to set up their new phones often causes problems with Android Auto. There are a couple of solutions we can recommend.

Uninstall and update the Android Auto app: Open the Google Play Store. Search for Android Auto. Tap on the Android Auto app page. Hit the Uninstall button and confirm the action by tapping on Uninstall again. Let the process finish. Tap on Update. Try using Android Auto again.

Clear the Android Auto app cache and storage: Open the Settings app. Go into Apps. Tap on See all apps. Find and select Android Auto. In some devices, the app is moved to the system and might appear as com.google.android.projection.gearhead. Go into Storage & cache. Tap on Clear storage and Clear cache.

Check Android Auto app settings The Android Auto app has various settings that might be deactivated, which can stop the app from working when connected to a car.

Check the Android Auto settings are correct: Open the Settings app. Go into Connected devices. Tap on Connection preferences. Hit Android Auto. Select Start Android automatically and pick Always. Toggle on Start Android Auto while locked. Enable Wireless Android Auto if your car and phone support it. If it doesn’t, or you want to use a wired connection, disable this setting instead. Tap on Previously connected cars at the top of the settings and ensure your vehicle isn’t accidentally on the Rejected cars list. Enable Add new cars to Android Auto. However, in some cases, if you plan to use the same car every time, users say that disabling this setting helps fix connection problems.

Android Auto problems with the USB cable A faulty cable causes many Android Auto connection problems. If you see frequent disconnections or Android Auto isn’t loading at all, the cable might be the problem.

Potential solutions: Google recommends using a cable that is under 1 meter (three feet) long. It’s also best to use the cable that comes with the phone. If you use a third-party cable, make sure it is USB-IF certified.

Check the cable to see if it works with another phone or car. If not, it’s likely a faulty cable that you will need to replace.

A March 2022 Android Auto update (version 7.5.121104) added a USB startup diagnostics tool to tell you if you are using a suitable cable. After connecting the phone to your car, open the Android Auto Settings , tap on Connection help , and go to USB startup diagnostic .

to tell you if you are using a suitable cable. After connecting the phone to your car, open the Android Auto , tap on , and go to . It could be a settings issue. The phone should automatically recognize when you are trying to use Android Auto. If it only charges the phone when you plug it into your car, open the notification drawer. Tap on USB settings and select Data transfer/Android Auto.

Problems with Android Auto Wireless You don’t have to worry about carrying a cable around if your car supports Android Auto Wireless (check with your car manufacturer). However, plenty of users face problems with connecting to the wireless feature.

Make sure Bluetooth is enabled: Open the Settings app. Go into Connected devices. Select Connection preferences. Hit Bluetooth. Toggle Use Bluetooth on.

If you are facing problems with Android Auto Wireless, users say that setting up a wired connection first seems to do the trick. Plug the phone in with a cable and set up Android Auto. Once the connection is established, Android Auto should work the next time wirelessly. Turn off your car, unplug the phone, and try to use Android Auto Wireless.

Blurry, pixelated, or blank screen Some users say that while Android Auto seems to connect and the Google Assistant works as expected, they see a blurry, pixelated, or blank screen.

How to increase the Android Auto video resolution: Open the Settings app. Go into Connected devices. Tap on Connection preferences. Hit Android Auto. Scroll to the bottom and tap on the Version section to display the Version and permission info. Tap on this section multiple times continuously. You’ll be asked if you want to allow development settings. Hit OK. Tap on the three-dot menu icon in the top-right corner. Open Developer settings. Go to Video resolution. Set the resolution to the highest option available.

Fixed/known Android Auto problems With a mix and match of phones, cars, and third-party stereos, it’s difficult to pinpoint why Android Auto is not working and offer solutions beyond general troubleshooting. Google continuously updates Android Auto and fixes issues as they come up. You should also report any problems you face to let Google know.

Recently fixed problems (February 2025): No audio on Android Auto after a recent update

Sirius XM menu not working as expected

Error displayed “Your phone Doesn’t Support 5GHz Wi-Fi Connections”

Audio stutters when connected wirelessly

Icons visible with white background

WhatsApp messages not being sent

Gboard shrinks while using Android Auto

Known issues: Android Auto disconnects on Pixel 9 Pro

Connection issues on Android 15

Call audio not heard on Pixel 9

Screen freezing issue with Xiaomi phones

How to send feedback/bug reports: Open the Android Auto page by going to Settings > Connected devices > Connection preferences > Android Auto. Tap on the three vertical dots at the top right corner. Go to Help & feedback > Send feedback. You can also post your problems on the Android Auto community page.

FAQs

What is Android Auto? Android Auto is technically an app on your Android phone. It uses your car’s screen to display a driving-focused interface and features you can use while on the road.

Can I use Android Auto wirelessly? Yes. The feature is called Android Auto Wireless. You will need at least Android 11, an active data plan, 5GHz Wi-Fi support, and a supported car/stereo to use Android Auto Wireless.

Is Android Auto better than just using my phone? The answer to this question depends on what you define as better. Android Auto is definitely safer, as it is designed to cut down distractions and reduce physical interaction with the screen. This will help you keep your eyes on the road. As a result, though, the experience is significantly cut down. There are a lot of apps and features you can’t access on Android Auto.

Does my car support Android Auto? There is now a long list of Android Auto-supported car makers, models, and stereos. You can check out Google’s full list of compatible cars and stereos to find out.

Can I add Android Auto to my car, if it doesn’t support it? If your vehicle has no Android Auto support, you can always buy a third-party stereo system that has Android Auto compatibility. Here’s a full list of Android Auto-compatible stereos from Google.

Google switched things up with Android 15 when it decided to decouple the platform update from the Pixel 9 series. That decision gave both the software and hardware their own breathing room and independent timelines. After cooking for months, Android 16 is now finally out in the stable branch for Pixel devices, with other Android OEMs expected to release their stable platform updates very soon. Google has also released Android 16 QPR1 betas for Pixel devices, but features within will come to the broader Android platform only with Android 17, so stay tuned for that. Here’s what we know about Android 16, its confirmed features, and leaked features that didn’t make the cut to the stable release.

Android 16: Name

Rita El Khoury / Android Authority

Google used to name Android versions with dessert codenames, but it strayed away from that tradition with the release of Android 10, choosing to stick with only the version number for all future releases. Consequently, Android 16 will be known simply as “Android 16,” with no dessert codename officially used.

However, Google still uses the dessert codename internally. Android 16’s internal codename leaked recently as Baklava. This is interesting because Android 15’s codename was Vanilla Ice Cream, so you’d think Android 16 would be known as something that starts with a “W” (“Waffle” would have been a good one). So why did Google jump from “V” all the way back to “B?” It’s a bit complicated, but it mainly involves big changes to Android’s backend.

Google

When Android 16’s release timeline was officially announced, Google only gave vague windows for release. Still, aligning with this schedule, Android 16 reached the Platform Stability milestone with its Beta 3 release in March 2025, while the Beta 4 release in April 2025 is its second Platform Stability release. Finally, Android 16 was released in its stable form on June 10, 2025, marking the culmination of this release cycle.

This preponed timeline is a stark departure from Android’s history, as Google usually releases major versions of Android in Q3 or Q4 of each year. But nothing was forcing Google to follow this timeline — the company was merely following a release cadence it had settled into over a decade.

Moving the major release forward to Q2 lets Google “better align with the schedule of device launches across [its] ecosystem, so more devices can get the major release of Android sooner.” This will hopefully mean the Google Pixel 10 series will launch with Android 16 instead of Android 15, for example. For more information, you can check out our articles to learn more about how Google was able to move Android 16’s release date and how Android’s faster release schedule will affect apps.

Further, Google has also mentioned its intentions of releasing more minor updates to the Android OS. For this, Google has planned a minor release in Q4 2024, i.e., for Android 16, presumably taking the shape of Android 16 QPR2. This might be marketed as Android 16.1, but we’re unsure about the name.

Android’s 2025 release timeline overview

If you own an Android 16-supported Pixel device, you will get an OTA update to Android 16, but you can always sideload and install the update on your own, too.

Google is also shifting Android OS development to its internal branch in an effort to streamline its development process. This move has little effect on end users or app developers, but you can learn more about its effects on platform developers.

Android 16: Easter Egg An Easter Egg is a message or feature that’s playfully hidden from users. As a tradition, Google has been sneaking in fun Easter eggs into Android, ranging from minigames to tools that highlight some capability of that year’s Android release.

Android 16’s Easter Egg is largely similar to Android 14 and Android 15’s Easter Eggs, all of which are a spaceship minigame that explores the vastness of space. You can find it in Settings > About phone, and tap on the Android version repeatedly till you see the Android 16 logo floating in space. Press and hold on this Android 16 logo to launch the spaceship minigame.

Google has added some new functionality to Android 16’s Easter Egg. With Android 16 Beta 3, we spotted two changes, which are live with Android 16’s stable release. It is now possible to manually engage the autopilot system in the game when you are playing it yourself, with the new “AUTO” button in the bottom right-hand corner. Previously, this only engaged when you set the game as your screensaver.

With the autopilot engaged, the Easter Egg now displays a progress-centric notification, which is a key part of the new Live Updates feature in Android 16.

Live Updates isn’t fully enabled in Android 16’s stable release, so you will only see the new progress-centric notification in the stable release. Other changes, like the status bar chip, prominent display on the notification panel and lock screen, and always-on display, are not present in the stable release.

Adamya Sharma / Android Authority

With Android 16, Google is introducing Live Updates, a new class of notifications that helps users monitor and access important ongoing activities. They help prevent these critical progress-tracking use cases from being lost among other less-timely notifications, give them a prominent home on the lock screen, and provide a more consistent user experience.

Live Updates will look and feel similar to iOS’ Live Activities feature. One point of difference is that Google suggests Live Updates for ride-sharing, food delivery, and navigation use cases since these Live Updates’ notifications are treated with high priority.

Despite the hype around Live Updates, note that the first stable release of Android 16 only brings the new “progress-centric” notification style. This new notification style shows the progress of something like a rideshare pickup, a food delivery dropoff, or the distance until the next turn.

As the notification’s name implies, progress-centric notifications show more information in the notification, alongside a progress tracker. This will let you get most of what you need without re-opening the parent app.

There is more to Live Updates, but these changes aren’t present in Android 16’s first stable release. Instead, they are destined to come later, possibly with Android 16 QPR releases or even with Android 17. These changes include the Live Update chip in the status bar, letting you view certain critical information without pulling down the notification.

With later Android releases, Live Updates will also give such high-priority notifications a consistent look and experience across the lock screen and even the Always On Display. This way, you always have all that you need to know right at your fingertips, without needing to dig through apps and other notification clutter.

Live Updates are currently restricted to delivery, rideshare, and navigation apps. We’ve already shown you Live Updates in Google Maps, and later this year, you can expect to see them from other top players in these categories too.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

Live Updates are important as these progress-centric notifications will be displayed more prominently on the lock screen. Google is working on a new compact notification shelf on the lock screen for Android 16, and when that is enabled, notifications are collapsed into a shelf that you have to tap to expand. Progress-centric notifications, i.e., Live Updates, likely won’t be collapsed into this shelf along with other notifications. But as mentioned, we’ll have to wait for future Android releases to get the full Live Updates experience.

Force group notifications Android 16 automatically groups notifications from the same app. This means that all alerts from a single app will be bundled together, which you can then expand or collapse with a simple tap.

Google

Before Android 16, notification grouping was optional for app developers, but the new update removes the choice to offer users a more organized notification experience.

Notification cooldown Google added the Notification Cooldown feature to Pixels with the March 2025 Pixel Feature Drop, but it’s also coming to the wider Android platform with the stable Android 16 release.

When you get a burst of notifications from the same app, Android 16 will gradually lower the alert volume for up to a minute instead of repeatedly playing it at full blast. This “Notification Cooldown” feature is on by default and can be toggled in Settings > Notifications.

Power button shortcut for wallet apps With Android 16, you can now set a double-press of the power button to open Google Wallet instead of the camera. You can choose between these two options in Settings > System > Gestures.

HDR screenshots With Android 16 Beta 2, Google implemented support for true HDR screenshots. Screenshots of HDR content will be saved in HDR format, namely as PNG files with HDR gainmaps embedded in them. Viewing these screenshots will brighten the screen to allow the HDR highlights to pop. These gainmaps allow the screenshots to appear as HDR when viewed on Android 16 devices but as SDR on other devices.

New emojis from Unicode 16.0

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority Left: Emoji 16.0 page viewed in Android 15 QPR2 Beta 2. Right: Emoji 16.0 page viewed in Android 16 DP2.

Android 16 includes an updated emoji font file with seven new emojis that are a part of Unicode 16.0: Face with Bags Under Eyes

Fingerprint

Leafless Tree

Root Vegetable

Harp

Shovel

Splatter

Embedded photo picker With Android 16 Developer Preview 1, Google added new APIs related to the photo picker. These new APIs allow app developers to have more creative control over how the photo picker appears for the user. This makes it feel like the photo picker is more a part of that app while still keeping the same security and privacy safeguards.

With Android 16 Developer Preview 2, Google added new APIs to enable searching from cloud media providers in the Android photo picker. Search functionality in the photo picker is then said to be “coming soon.”

For reference, the photo picker is the pop-up menu you see when uploading media to an app. Years ago, adding media to an app would require that app to gain access to your entire media library, which is obviously not great. The photo picker allows you to select just the photos and videos you want to upload, preventing the app from “seeing” anything except what you give it.

Health records With Android 16 Developer Preview 1, Google updated Health Connect to support certain health records. This allows Health Connect to both read and write Electronic Health Records (EHRs) in the Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) standard, likely the same standard your doctor, dentist, and other healthcare providers use.

Due to the sensitive nature of this feature, though, Google is limiting it within an early access program, forcing developers to apply for access before playing around with it.

With Android 16 Developer Preview 2, Google added a new ACTIVITY_INTENSITY datatype, which is defined according to WHO guidelines for moderate and vigorous activity. Each record requires the start time, the end time, and whether the activity intensity is moderate or vigorous.

Better Adaptive Refresh Rate (ARR) support Adaptive Refresh Rate (ARR) was introduced in Android 15, and it went live for the Pixel 9 series with the Android 15 QPR1 release. It enables the display refresh rate on supported hardware to adapt to the content frame rate using discrete VSync steps. This reduces power consumption while eliminating the need for potentially jank-inducing mode switching.

With Android 16 Developer Preview 2, Google added new APIs to make it easier for app developers to take advantage of ARR, so you can expect better support for the feature in future app releases.

Better app adaptability

Android 16 is phasing out the ability for apps to restrict screen orientation and resizability on large-screen devices like tablets, foldables, and beyond. Google notes that this feature is similar to features that OEMs have added on such devices, allowing users to run apps at any window size and aspect ratio. With Android 16, APIs and manifest attributes that restrict orientation and resizing will be ignored for apps (but not games) on large-screen devices.

Android 16 allows app developers to opt out of this change, but the Android release in 2026 (i.e., Android 17) will make this change mandatory. So, app developers should start working on making their apps adapt to different screen sizes and aspect ratios.

APV codec support Android 16 Beta 1 added support for the APV 422-10 Profile, which provides YUV422 color sampling, 10-bit encoding, and target bitrates of up to 2Gbps.

Advanced Professional Video (APV) codec is a new “professional” video codec that aims to provide “perceptually lossless video quality” while using 20% less storage than the existing “conventional professional video codec” formats.

Google mentions that the APV codec has the following features: Perceptually lossless video quality (close to raw video quality)

Low complexity and high throughput intra-frame-only coding (without pixel domain prediction) to better support editing workflows

Support for high bitrate range up to a few Gbps for 2K, 4K, and 8K resolution content, enabled by a lightweight entropy coding scheme

Frame tiling for immersive content and for enabling parallel encoding and decoding

Support for various chroma sampling formats and bit-depths

Support for multiple decoding and re-encoding without severe visual quality degradation

Support multi-view video and auxiliary video like depth, alpha, and preview

Support for HDR10/10+ and user-defined metadata

Ranging with enhanced security With Android 16, Google is adding support for robust security features in Wi-Fi location on supported devices with Wi-Fi 6’s 802.11az. Thanks to this, apps can now combine the protocol’s higher accuracy, greater scalability, and dynamic scheduling with security enhancements, including AES-256-based encryption and protection against MITM attacks. This allows it to be used more safely in proximity use cases, such as unlocking a laptop or a vehicle door.

Predictive back upgrades Android 16 Developer Preview 2 added new APIs to help app developers enable predictive back system animations in gesture navigation, such as the back-to-home animation.

Earlier in the year, we spotted Google working on bringing predictive back support to three-button navigation in Android 16. With Android 16 Beta 1, Google indeed did so for apps that have correctly implemented predictive back. With three-button navigation, long-pressing the back button will initiate a predictive back animation, giving users a preview of where the back button takes them. This behavior applies across all areas of the system that support predictive back animations, including the system animations.

Privacy Sandbox on Android Android 16 Developer Preview 1 incorporated the latest version of the Privacy Sandbox on Android.

Android 16 Developer Preview 2’s documentation includes a new Writing Tools API that seemingly lets apps out of having AI rewrite text for you. The documentation notes that “toolkits can optionally disable [AI writing tools] where not relevant, e.g., passwords, number input, etc.”

The logic behind this new Writing Tools API would be to allow app developers to disable AI writing tools where it doesn’t make sense to have them. It will be up to the keyboard app to respect the new API. Even if both the apps play nice with each other, a user could always just generate text in another app and then insert it into the text field where it was supposed to be blocked.

Generic ranging APIs Android 16 Beta 1 included the new RangingManager, which provides ways to determine the distance and angle of supported hardware between the local device and a remote device. RangingManager supports a variety of ranging technologies, such as BLE channel sounding, BLE RSSI-based ranging, Ultra-Wideband, and Wi-Fi round-trip time.

This should theoretically lead to better device tracker support in the OS, as your Android device will soon be able to pinpoint the tracker’s distance and angle.

Night Mode Camera extension API Google introduced a new Night Mode Indicator API with Android 16 Beta 1. This API helps apps automatically adjust to low-light environments when capturing images or recording videos.

Vertical Text support Android 16 Beta 1 added low-level support for rendering and measuring text vertically to provide foundational vertical writing support for library developers. This is particularly useful for languages like Japanese, which commonly use vertical writing systems.

App Functions API: Gemini Extensions This is curiously mentioned in the release announcement for Android 16 Beta 1, but it was not a part of Android 16 Beta 1 right away. Google highlighted that Samsung launched new Gemini Extensions on the Galaxy S25 series, showing off the new ways that Android apps can integrate with the power of Gemini. These Gemini extensions are pretty much the “app functions” feature that we spotted long before the official announcement.

Google says it is working to make this functionality available to more apps with more OEMs on more devices across more form factors. However, the company stops short of providing more details, technical or otherwise, in the first announcement.

With Android 16, Google is introducing a new App Functions API that lets developers expose their app’s key features to the phone’s default assistant, which can then execute those functions on the user’s behalf. For example, a restaurant app could use the API to create a function for ordering food, allowing Gemini to place an order directly with that app.

However, this API isn’t exclusive to Android 16. Google has created a backward-compatible version to encourage developers to integrate their apps with Gemini. Even more curiously, Google hasn’t publicized this feature, presumably because it still needs some work despite being available.

Measurement system customization

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority Android’s upcoming settings for changing your region and preferred measurement system.

We predicted that Android 16 would let you set your preferred measurement system and region independent of the system language. With Android 16 Beta 2, Google announced that you can set your preferred measurement system in System > Languages & region. We didn’t hear more on the regional preferences feature, though.

With Android 16 Beta 2, Google added new hybrid auto-exposure modes to the Camera2 API. This allows third-party apps to manually control specific aspects of exposure while letting the auto-exposure (AE) algorithm handle the rest. With that, apps can allow users to control ISO and AE or exposure time and AE, providing greater flexibility compared to the current approach, where you either have full manual control or rely entirely on auto-exposure.

Android 16 Beta 2 also added camera support for fine color temperature and tint adjustments to better support professional video recording apps.

Android 16 Beta 2 also added a standard Intent action for capturing and displaying Motion Photos.

It also added support for Ultra HDR images in the HEIC file format, in addition to the existing JPEG format. Google says it is also working on AVIF support for Ultra HDR.

Android 16 Beta 2 also added additional parameters to Ultra HDR, including the ability to get and set the colorspace in which gain map math should be applied and support for HDR-encoded base images with SDR gain maps.

Mandating edge-to-edge apps With Android 15, Google revealed that apps would display content edge-to-edge by default. However, to help developers with the transition, Google added an API to allow apps to opt out of this change.

With Android 16 Beta 2, this transitionary API has been deprecated. Apps that target the latest Android version will have to display app content edge-to-edge, and there’s no longer any means for apps to opt out.

Advanced Protection Mode Google already has an Advanced Protection Program, which, when enrolled in, forces users to use a security key or passkey to sign into their Google account, prevents downloading files that Google Chrome marks as harmful, and blocks unapproved (by Google) apps from accessing their Google account data. On your Android device, Google Play Protect will stay enabled, will block you from installing apps from outside the Google Play Store or other preinstalled apps, and will even warn you about apps on the Play Store that haven’t been approved by Google. The program targets users at an elevated risk of getting hacked, like IT admins, journalists, activists, business executives, and politicians.

With Android 16, Google is integrating the Advanced Protection Program into Android with the new Advanced Protection Mode. The mode is a one-click solution that can bolster the security of phones running Android 16. When enabled, it toggles various security features within the OS and first-party Google apps to protect against threats from malicious third-party apps, external attackers, and harmful websites.

There’s also an Advanced Protection API, which allows third-party apps to check if the mode is active and enable their own security measures, further enhancing your security when using them.

You must have an Android phone or tablet running Android 16 to enable Advanced Protection. Then, open the Settings app, find Google settings, and look for the Advanced Protection page under the Personal & device safety category, as shown below. Finally, toggle “device protection” to enable the Advanced Protection mode on your Android device. You can also tap “account protection” to open the enrollment page for Google’s Advanced Protection Program, which you should enroll in if you want to safeguard your Google account.

Advanced Protection settings page in Android. Advanced Protection settings page in Android (continued).

Here is a list of every security feature that Advanced Protection enables in Android 16: Security Investigation: Intrusion Logging

Device Safety: Theft Detection Lock Offline Device Lock Inactivity Reboot USB Protection

Apps : Google Play Protect Unknown Apps Memory Tagging Extension (MTE)

: Networks : 2G Network Protection Disable Auto-Reconnect to Insecure Networks

: Web : Android Safe Browsing Chrome Browsing Javascript Protections

: Phone by Google : Caller ID & Spam Automatic Call Screen Scam Detection for Phone by Google

: Google Messages : Spam & Scam Protection Unsafe Links

: You can read more about these in our Android Advanced Protection deep dive article.

Automatically hiding sensitive notifications from lock screen Android 15 added a feature where the OS blocks untrusted apps from reading sensitive notifications with two-factor authentication codes, even if the app has permission to read all notifications. Android 16 extends this feature by redacting the notifications before displaying them on the lock screen. This redaction will only occur in “higher risk scenarios,” such as when a user’s device is not connected to Wi-Fi and has not been recently unlocked.

Android 16 DP1 no longer displays the contents of notifications that Android System Intelligence deems to be “sensitive.” So far, we’ve observed this to be the case for notifications with OTP codes in them, but it’s possible that other types of content might trigger this behavior.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority Sensitive notification on lock screen of Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1 (left) vs Android 16 DP1 (right)

Android 16 automatically hides the content of these sensitive notifications even if you enable the “sensitive notifications” option under Settings > Notifications > Sensitive notifications. That option, when disabled, hides the title and summary of all notifications on the lock screen, though you can still see what apps have posted notifications. A separate option on the same page named notifications on lock screen lets you control whether to hide all notifications entirely, only hide conversation notifications, or to show all notification content.

By automatically redacting sensitive notifications with OTP codes, Android 16 protects you from accidentally leaking that information, regardless of your lock screen notification choices.

Anti-scammer safeguards during phone calls With Android 16, Google has introduced new anti-scammer safeguards, especially during phone calls. Android 16 will detect when a phone call is active and prevent the user from enabling the sideloading permission. This would prevent scammers from trying to walk their victims through sideloading malware apps.

Android 16 also blocks the enabling of certain sensitive permissions, such as accessibility access, during active phone calls. Granting accessibility access allows an app to read the screen and perform actions on your behalf — a powerful combination that could give malicious software complete control of your device.

Ambient volume controls for Bluetooth LE Audio hearing aids Android 16 has added the ability for users of Bluetooth LE Audio hearing aids to adjust the volume of ambient sound that is picked up by the hearing aid’s microphones. This will be helpful in places where background noise is either too loud or too quiet.

Android 16 also added the ability for users of LE Audio hearing aids to “switch between the built-in microphones on the hearing aids and the microphone on their phone for voice calls.” Google says this can be helpful in noisy environments or in other situations where the hearing aid’s microphone may not perform well.

Auracast Broadcast audio support With Android 16 Beta 3, Google officially supports Auracast broadcast audio with compatible LE Audio hearing aids on Pixel 9 devices. Auracast enables compatible hearing aids and earbuds to receive direct audio streams from public venues like airports, concerts, and classrooms. The setting is hidden, but you can enable it with a Developer Options toggle.

With this, Google is also indirectly confirming that the Bluetooth Audio Sharing feature that went live in Android 16 DP1 will be part of the upcoming Android 16 release. You can find the audio sharing feature under Settings > Connected devices > Audio sharing.

Outline text for maximum text contrast

Google

With Android 16 Beta 3, Google introduced outline text, which replaces high-contrast text by drawing larger contrasting areas around text to greatly improve legibility.

Vulkan, the official graphics API for Android

Google announced in March 2025 that Vulkan is the official graphics API for Android. Android already supported Vulkan graphics API since Android 7.0 Nougat in 2016, but only a small percentage of active devices supported it back then. The situation is now significantly different, hence the change.

According to Google, this change enables developers to add more immersive visuals to their games. Vulkan allows developers to capitalize on the performance of modern smartphone GPUs to unlock features like ray tracing in games or multithreading.

What does it actually mean for Android to make Vulkan its official graphics API, though? Essentially, Google aims to establish Vulkan as the GPU hardware abstraction layer (HAL) for Android, requiring all apps and games utilizing the phone’s GPU to do so through Vulkan. This includes: game engines, middleware, and layered APIs like Android’s HWUI, Skia, WebGPU, and ANGLE.

Starting with Android 16, Google says that “more devices will use Vulkan to process all graphics commands.” Specifically, Android 16 will require some newer devices to use ANGLE for some applications (meaning, only applications on an approved list will use ANGLE).

Further, Google introduced Vulkan Profiles for Android (VPA) last year to improve consistency in Vulkan feature availability across Android devices. VPA defines a set of Vulkan features that GPUs must support to pass Google’s certification testing for a given Android release.

VPA 16, aimed at next-generation chipsets launching with support for Android 16, will require support for Host Image Copy, a feature that’s part of the core Vulkan 1.4 specification that one Google engineer calls a “game changer for games on Android.” This feature allows games to copy image data, such as textures, using the device’s CPU instead of the GPU. Host Image Copy will prove particularly useful for Android games, as it enables faster app loads, reduces stutter, and lowers GPU memory usage.

iOS-like App Settings with SettingsPreferenceService API Android 16 adds a new API that lets apps integrate their own settings with the Android Settings app, similar to what we already see on iOS, albeit it’s not widely adopted there, either, outside of Apple’s own apps. If this API becomes broadly adopted on Android by third-party apps, it could transform Android Settings into a one-stop shop for both device and app settings.

In-process software audio codecs Android 16 adds support for in-process software audio codecs, a feature that allows media codecs to run within an app’s process instead of within the usual sandboxed media codec process. The in-process operation, though potentially risky, is deemed safe because the codec’s software implementation is written in a memory-safe language like Rust.

While Android 16 supports this feature, it’s not in use yet, as the respective vendors will need to rewrite the media codecs in Rust. Thus, while Android 16’s new in-process software audio codecs feature should theoretically bring better performance and battery life when playing back media, it’s likely we won’t see these benefits for quite some time.

Cloud compilation for app installs Android 16 now supports cloud compilation, a new feature that could speed up new app installs. The goal of cloud compilation would be to avoid running the dex2oat tool during app installations by offloading compilation to the cloud.

Identity check coming to more phones With Android 16, more Android phones will be getting access to Android’s Identity Check feature.

Currently, only Pixel and Samsung phones have this feature, as it requires changes to an underlying biometric prompt code. Since this is part of a non-updatable OS component, the feature requires an OS update to arrive on more devices.

Customizable keyboard shortcuts Android has many keyboard shortcuts for system actions and launching apps. In past releases, these were not customizable. Android 16 now lets you edit them, so for example, you could add “Meta + Shift + B” as an alternative key combination to launch the Chrome browser.

Pixel: Battery Health page Google has added a new battery health screen to Android 16 Beta 3, and the feature is live for Pixel devices with Android 16 stable release. This screen attempts to quantify exactly how good your phone’s battery health is.

It not only displays your estimated battery capacity as a percentage of what a new battery for your phone is capable of, it also surfaces some actionable insights to help you get the most out of it. This feature is available on Pixel 8a and newer, but not on the Pixel 8 series and older due to “product limitations.”

Standardized picture and audio quality framework for TVs Android 16 offers a set of standardized APIs for access to audio and picture profiles and hardware-related settings on TVs. This allows streaming apps to query profiles and apply them to media dynamically. For example: Movies mastered with a wider dynamic range require greater color accuracy to see subtle details in shadows and adjust to ambient light, so a profile that prefers color accuracy over brightness may be appropriate.

Live sporting events are often mastered with a narrow dynamic range, but are usually watched in daylight, so a profile that prefers brightness over color accuracy can give better results.

Fully interactive content wants minimal processing to reduce latency and wants higher frame rates, which is why many TVs ship with a game profile. The API allows apps to switch between these profiles, thus letting users enjoy the benefits of tuning supported TVs to match the content.

Android 16: Leaked and upcoming features

Rita El Khoury / Android Authority

Google has shared some details about Android 16 through its official announcements, but we’ve spotted a ton of changes in Google’s QPR updates that help paint a more complete picture of the changes we can expect to see in the final Android 16 release.

Google’s QPR updates and what they tell us about future Android releases The Android platform follows an annual release schedule, which OEMs and the world at large have access to. Google also follows a second public release schedule for its Pixel devices in the form of QPR updates. QPR refers to Quarterly Platform Release, which is an update track where updates are released once every three months (quarter). So, we generally get an annual Android platform update on Pixels, followed by three QPR releases, and then the next annual Android platform update.

While the features included in the Android platform update are final and available to the world, features released in the QPR updates are available to Pixel devices until the next Android platform update incorporates them. Further, Google also runs a separate beta program for the QPRs months in advance.

This gives us situations where we can try out new features coming to Android 16 (by checking them out in Android 15 QPR1 betas) before the stable Android 16 update is even launched! Later QPR betas give us even more features that can be chalked up to the next platform release.

As a result, we have a list of features that are coming to upcoming Android 15 QPR releases for Pixel devices, which are also likely to be added to the next Android platform update, Android 16. Let’s check them out!

Local Network Protection Android 16 Beta 3 officially adds the ability to test the upcoming Local Network Protection feature, which Google says is planned for a future Android major release.

Essentially, any app with the “INTERNET” permission can communicate with the Internet worldwide and with devices on the user’s local network. Local Network Protection will eventually require apps to request specific permission to access the local network. With Android 16 Beta 3, Google is giving app developers a chance to test if their apps are affected by this upcoming change.

Intrusion Logging Google announced Intrusion Logging as a new feature in Android 16 that will help users detect if their device has been compromised. Intrusion Logging collects “activity logs” which include details such as USB connection events, network info like browsing history, app installs, Bluetooth connections, lock screen info, and Wi-Fi connections. Your activity logs are encrypted using your Google account password and device lock screen, ensuring only you can view them. These logs are stored in a “private and encrypted Google Drive,” providing further protection against unauthorized access.

While the API is already available in Android 16, Google hasn’t yet integrated Intrusion Logging into Google Play Services. Consequently, the feature will roll out later in the year, possibly as part of an Android 16 QPR rather than with the launch of Android 16.

Improvements to Factory Reset Protection At The Android Show: I/O Edition, Google announced that Android’s existing Factory Reset Protection mechanisms will become even more powerful later in the year. While Android already has several mechanisms to deter bypassing the setup screen after triggering a factory reset, these new protections will restrict all functionalities on devices that are reset without the owner’s authorization.

Google

Android will likely detect if someone bypassed the setup wizard (to bypass previous factory reset protection mechanisms), and will thus force another factory reset cyclically, preventing unauthorized use until the user proves ownership.

Since these upgrades are coming later in the year, they will not be part of the first stable release of Android 16. Instead, we expect this update to come with the Android 16 QPR1 update.

Material 3 Expressive Google has officially announced Material 3 Expressive as the next evolution of Material Design. This UX update is set to arrive with Android 16, but not the first stable release. Instead, it will come with Android 16 QPR1 to Pixels, meaning most non-Pixels will get access to this with Android 17, albeit individual apps could have their own redesign on Android 16.

“So, the updates for Material Expressive are going to be available on Pixel devices first later this year, but it’s not going to be part of the public release in June,” confirmed Allen Huang, Google’s Director of Product Management for Pixel and Android system UI.

This sweeping UI update is a significant step in Google’s ongoing effort to make Android and Wear OS more visually engaging, emotionally resonant, and interactive. Some of its highlights include: Springier, natural-feeling animations that enhance touch interactions

New icon shapes and refreshed typography

Background blur effects for depth and focus

Updated color themes

Home screen and Quick Settings enhancements for a more dynamic layout

Visual redesigns for many Google apps, bringing them in line with the new expressive aesthetic You can learn more about Material 3 Expressive in our deep dive article.

Android’s big UI overhaul

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority Old vs new app drawer UI in the Pixel Launcher

This change is so big that it deserves its own section. With the above-mentioned Material 3 Expressive changes, Google is also planning a big UI overhaul for Android and expressive animations to accompany it. These changes were spotted and activated within Android 16 Beta 4, but they are unlikely to be available with the Android 16 stable release. Instead, they could come with a future QPR release or Android 17 and beyond.

As part of the UI overhaul, we expect changes across several important areas, like status bar icons, clock font, combined notifications, Quick Settings panel, cleaner lock screen with collapsed notifications, and so much more. The changes are quite voluminous to list here, so do check out our original coverage for the whole scoop.

Desktop windowing We’ve talked about desktop windowing before as a leak, but Google officially introduced the feature in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 for the Pixel Tablet. Google’s announcement doesn’t mention the release timeline, but we expect to see the feature in the wider Android 16 release.

Desktop windowing allows users to run multiple apps simultaneously and resize app windows, just like we’re used to doing on conventional desktops.

Google has fixed the taskbar’s position to the bottom of the screen. It can now show running apps and apps pinned by the user. There is also a new header bar, which houses window controls.

In addition to the announced feature, there’s a new hidden toggle called Enable desktop mode on secondary display, which replaces the old Force desktop mode toggle.

Further, in Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1, we also managed to activate the button for “multi-instance property,” which is likely referring to a new window button in the drop-down menu. The button launches a new instance of the app in another window.

The header bar now has a minimize button, which we spotted and activated in Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1 and subsequently became available for all with Android 16 Beta 3. Tapping the minimize button minimizes a window.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

When an app’s window is minimized, it can be reopened by tapping the app’s icon in the taskbar.

Calculator and Files by Google both open Calculator window minimized while Files by Google is open

Similar to conventional desktop platforms, the bar underneath the app’s icon turns gray and shrinks when an app is minimized. When every app window is minimized, Android exits desktop windowing mode.

Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1 release has also introduced an “app-to-web” feature for desktop windowing.

For select apps like Google Photos, an “open in browser” option will appear in the dropdown menu. Tapping this opens the website associated with the app. You can also tap the settings cog to choose whether to open web links in the app or in your browser.

With Android 16 Beta 3, Google added the ability to put apps like YouTube into picture-in-picture mode and the ability to drag a Chrome tab to open it in its own window.

Redesigned Settings homepage with Expressive Settings Android 15 Beta 3 included clues for a redesigned Settings homepage, but the changes didn’t go live in later betas. The new settings layout did go live in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2, indicating that it is possibly on track for an Android 16 release.

Redesigned Settings home page in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2

On the left is an example of how the top-level page looks on Android 14 and the right image shows the new layout in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2.

Beyond this, Google is working on an even bigger redesign. We spotted Expressive Design for the Settings app in Android 16 Beta 3 and activated it to give you an early preview.

This Expressive Design for the Settings app features newer Material You switches with an X or checkmark icon in the handle. Each item in Settings will be placed in separate, visually distinct cards. Small arrow icons will indicate when an item in Settings has a subpage. Finally, most pages will display the header at the very top, allowing for more items to be shown at first glance.

With Android 16 Beta 4, the Expressive Design for the Settings app gained colorful new icons for each entry, as you can see in the images below:

This Expressive Settings will live alongside the main Settings homepage redesign, as that remains unchanged. Further, Expressive Settings have not rolled out with the main Android 16 release, but will likely make it to future Android 16 QPR releases.

Redesigned volume slider and volume panel We managed to activate a new volume panel UI in Android 16 Developer Preview 2. This volume panel ditches the thick, pill-shaped sliders in favor of thinner, continuous sliders with handles.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

Google is also working to update the volume slider to match this new design. As you can see below, the volume slider in Android 16 will be less rounded and will have a thin rectangular handle. The icon indicating the current volume stream that’s being controlled will sit at the bottom of the slider instead of at the top. The three dots at the bottom, which open the full volume panel, are slightly smaller in the new design.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

While the volume mode icon at the top has remained the same, the mode selector has been tweaked to show other modes in discrete rounded rectangles.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

It’s possible that Google is merely testing this design and could abandon it in the future. So we will have to see if it makes it to the stable version of Android 16.

New status bar icons With Android 16 Beta 3, we spotted some changes to status bar icons as a carryover work from changes that were spotted before Android 15 but never made it to release. Now in the new status bar icons, the Wi-Fi signal strength icon displays three segments instead of five.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

More significantly, though, the battery level icon shows a dynamic color scheme depending on the battery status.

When the battery is sufficient and not charging, the background color is solid white. When the battery is low and not charging, the background color turns red. Finally, when the device is charging, the background color turns vivid green. The battery level percentage is also bolder, and the icon is also flipped.

There’s no guarantee Google will roll out these new icons. If they do, they might appear in a quarterly Android 16 release or in next year’s Android 17 update.

Force dark mode Despite dark themes in apps gaining popularity when the feature was launched, many apps have not bothered implementing one. We spotted a “make all apps dark” feature back in Android 14 QPR2 Beta 2 that forced every app to go dark, even if the app didn’t have its own dark theme. The feature didn’t go live in the subsequent stable Android 15 release, though.

In Android 16 Beta 1, the feature continues to show signs of development.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority Hidden “make more apps dark” toggle in Android 16 Beta 1

It is now renamed “make more apps dark” and is a hidden setting in Settings > Display & touch > Dark theme. The feature’s description says that it “automatically convert[s] light-themed apps to dark theme.”

Tiny taskbar for phones With Android 15 Beta 4, we spotted mentions of a “tiny taskbar” feature for phones, which we managed to activate to show off the experience:

With Android 16 Beta 4, Google fixed the duplicate navigation handle that appeared when the tiny taskbar was enabled. Google also upgraded the tiny taskbar’s multitasking by adding a button that opens a carousel showing the six most recently opened apps.

Curiously, this recent apps carousel isn’t available on tablet’s taskbar. Despite the progress in the feature’s functionality, it’s not ready for prime time yet, and may arrive in future Android releases.

“Even dimmer” display brightness Google has been testing an “even dimmer” display brightness option for Android. As the name suggests, this setting toggle would allow your phone’s display to go dimmer than usual. This feature could work alongside adaptive brightness, going even dimmer than usual when the ambient lighting is super low but automatically returning to normal brightness when the ambient lighting is high.

Settings > Display Settings > Accessibility

The key difference between Android 12’s Extra Dim accessibility feature and the upcoming Even Dimmer feature is that Even Dimmer is meant to be toggled and forgotten as the adaptive brightness will take care of the dimming, while Extra Dim is a manual toggle for going lower in brightness. Because Even Dimmer basically accomplishes the same thing as Extra Dim, the latter feature will disappear when the former rolls out. Android will even remove the Extra Dim shortcut from the Quick Settings panel to get you to migrate to the new feature.

Normally, the brightness bar’s lowest value sets your device’s screen to the lowest brightness level allowed by its hardware, but with Even Dimmer enabled, the OS will apply an additional dimming layer when the brightness bar is at its lowest value. Disabling Even Dimmer just requires you to slide the brightness bar to the right, which you probably do multiple times a day already, making it much more likely you won’t accidentally keep it enabled. Unlike Extra Dim, you won’t have to remember to turn Even Dimmer on when you’re in the dark or turn it off when it’s no longer dark around you — otherwise, your phone’s screen will be dimmer than it should be during the day.

With Android 16 DP1, Even Dimmer was available on the Pixel 9. On the other hand, Android 16 DP2 introduced a new version of Extra Dim on the Pixel 9 that no longer needs to be manually toggled. Instead, it is built into the brightness slider

Rich Ongoing Notifications As we learned from clues within Android 15 QPR1 Beta 3, Android 16 could introduce Rich Ongoing Notifications, a new API that lets apps show more than just an icon in the status bar. The API will let apps create chips with their own text and background color that live in the status bar, sort of like the new screen recording chips (mentioned in the later parts of this article). It’s likely that tapping these chips will open some sort of dialog provided by the app that shows more information about the ongoing notification.

For example, here’s a gallery that shows what the Rich Ongoing Notifications API could be used for in Android 16, using mock notifications for various apps like Uber, the United Airlines app, and the Clock.

The feature appears inspired by iOS’s Dynamic Island, but it predates the feature. Android 12 added an API that lets dialer apps show the duration of an ongoing call in a status bar chip a full year before Apple introduced its Dynamic Island feature. Android 16 opening up status bar chips to all apps would be a major expansion of the feature.

Bundled notifications In Android 15 QPR2 Beta 2, we managed to activate a hidden page for Bundled notifications, which is present at Settings > Notifications.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

The description on the page says that “notifications with similar themes will be silenced and grouped together for a quieter experience. Bundling will override an app’s own notification settings.” The bundled notifications feature will likely be powered by the Android System Intelligence app under the hood, which already processes notifications to hide sensitive content from the lock screen and from untrusted notification listeners.

Blocking old notifications People who own and use multiple Android devices can relate to the notification flood that arrives whenever they boot up the less frequently used device. Right at boot, after the device establishes its internet connection, you’ll receive all notifications that weren’t delivered to this device, even if you have checked out the notifications from your other device.

Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 changed the way Android handles these older notifications. The system now rejects notifications that are more than two weeks old. These older notifications will only show some details to let you know which apps or contacts to check up on, but they will no longer alert you with a sound or vibration, or even show the full notification contents.

13 day old notification 14 day old notification

Compact heads-up notifications If you are bothered by just how large the heads-up notifications can be when watching full-screen content, then Google is working on a solution. We spotted clues for compact heads-up notifications in Android 15 Beta 4, and the feature became more widely available with Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2.

You can see the compact layout in the second set of notifications below.

Most of the text in the notification is truncated, and any embedded images are hidden by default until you tap the dropdown arrow to expand them. However, the notification icon, notification title, and reply button are still shown for messaging apps like Telegram.

Semi-transparent notifications We spotted Google working on a new semi-transparent notifications feature in Android 16 Beta 3 and managed to activate it. Specifically, heads-up notifications and notifications shown on the lock screen were now semi-transparent, whereas notifications in the notifications panel were unchanged.

Given that these semi-transparent notifications make content harder to read due to the lower contrast, there’s a low chance that Google will actually roll out the design in any future release of Android, let alone Android 16. However, Google could choose to add some transparency to other areas of the UX.

Notification summary We’ve found strings within Android 16 Beta 3 that hint at a new “notification summaries” page. This “notification summaries” page will be positioned between the existing notification history and the upcoming notification bundle options under Settings > Notifications. The new page will have a single toggle to enable the feature, labeled “use notification summaries.”

The feature’s description states that it will “automatically summarize conversation notifications from apps.” Only messaging apps correctly categorize their notifications as conversation notifications, so only those would be AI summarized. The system will also let you exclude apps from having their notifications summarized.

It’s not clear when the feature will arrive on Android. It might come through on an Android 16 QPR release or even on Android 17.

Gemini-powered Notification “Magic Actions” In 2018, Android 9 released Smart Reply, which provides suggested replies as tappable chips beneath a notification for quick responses. Android 10 expanded this with Smart Actions, offering contextual actions based on notification content. This Smart Actions feature powers the “Open Maps” chip when a notification includes an address. Smart Replies and Smart Actions are powered by on-device machine learning models, but are limited to short, canned replies that might not fully appreciate the context.

We’ve spotted evidence with Android 16 that suggests Google is developing a more advanced version of Smart Actions, dubbed “Magic Actions.” When the Magic Action feature is enabled, Android will hide Smart Actions and instead prominently display a new Magic Action button. This button is slated to receive “special visual treatment,” possibly indicating a custom animation when it appears or is tapped. Speculatively, the feature could tap into Google’s Gemini model to generate more personalized and powerful actions.

New screen recording and casting chips Android 16 could improve the screen recorder and screen caster indicator chips. We spotted and activated the change in Android 15 Beta 4.2, and the chips became more widely available in QPR1 Beta 2, which gives us hope for it arriving on Android 16.

Starting with the changes, the new chips for screen recording and screencasting will give you a timer right in the status bar.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

They will also let you stop the screen recording or screencasting session without needing to pull down the status bar. Tapping on the chip will open a dialog that will let you stop the session.

There’s also a different icon now to indicate when a third-party app requests to record or cast the screen. The dialog more prominently asks you whether you want to “share your screen” rather than “start recording or casting.”

The experience is fairly functional, so we’re hoping to see it go live for the wide platform with Android 16.

Quick Settings changes: Dual shade design, Categories, Resizing, and more Quick Settings is in for an overhaul with Android 16. Starting off, Google is testing a new dual shade design for Android 16 that separates the Quick Settings panels from the notification shade, which we managed to activate in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2.

Pulling down the status bar once still brings down the notifications panel like before, but the panel now takes up about a quarter of the screen rather than the entire thing. While you can’t see any Quick Settings tiles anymore in the new notifications dropdown, you can see the app that’s underneath the panel.

Pulling down the status bar a second time no longer brings down the Quick Settings panel. Instead, the Quick Settings panel is accessed by pulling down the status bar with two fingers.

After pulling the Quick Settings panel down, you can swipe left or right between pages to see all your tiles. The brightness bar still appears at the top, but now has a text label and shows the brightness level as you adjust it, similar to the new volume sliders in Android 15. Most Quick Settings tiles have been made smaller so more of them can fit on one page, which is a welcome change.

Here’s a video that demonstrates the new notification and Quick Settings panels described above:

Flexiglass is the internal codename for the rearchitecting that Google is doing to SystemUI to make it more stable.

With Android 16 Beta 3, we managed to activate the dual-page panel UI to give you a fresher demo of it:

This build fixes several deficiencies present in previous builds. For instance, the media player is prominently present at the top. There are also two new ways to switch between the Notifications and Quick Settings panels. First, you can simply tap the chips at the top left and right to open the respective panels. Second, swiping down on the left side opens the notifications panel, while swiping down on the right opens the Quick Settings panel.

Google also made the Quick Settings panel vertically scrolling, allowing you to fill up the entire screen with tiles. It also added clear plus and minus buttons to each tile in the edit menu, making it easier to add or remove tiles from the panel.

Further, you’ll notice that the clock is much larger in the new beta. This clock also follows the same style that is set for the lock screen clock, changing as you change it.

With Android 15 QPR1 Beta 3, we spotted other changes. When the in-development Quick Settings panel is enabled, the Quick Settings tiles become resizable. You can tap on any tile while in the editor view and then drag the dot left or right to shrink or expand it. Tiles can be either 1×1 or 2×1 in size, allowing you to fit as few as eight or as many as 16 tiles on a single page. You can resize any tile, even ones provided by third-party apps, though obviously, not every tile will have a useful description when it’s expanded.

For comparison, here’s an image that shows the default Quick Settings layout in Android 15 vs Android 16:

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

And here’s an image that shows some more Quick Settings panel layouts you’ll be able to make thanks to this feature:

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

Here’s a short video that demonstrates how you’ll be able to resize Quick Settings tiles in Android 16:

With Android 16 Beta 2, Google is making it more explicit that the Quick Settings editing interface isn’t merely for resizing and rearranging icons. Large plus and minus symbols are now present to make it abundantly clear that you can add and remove Quick Settings tiles.

In addition to these changes, the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Quick Settings tiles could once again become one-click toggles. If you notice in the screenshots above, the tiles for these two settings aren’t fully filled in for background color like the other tiles were. That is for a reason: tapping the icon would toggle the respective setting as it did in Android 14 while tapping the rest of the tile would open the panel as it does in Android 15.

Android 15 QPR1 Beta 1 also includes a new animation when you long-press on the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Quick Settings tiles.

Alongside, Android 16 will also organize the Quick Settings tiles into categories. We spotted strings within Android 15 QPR1 Beta 3 that suggest the Quick Settings panel will organize tiles into at most seven different categories. These categories include Accessibility, Connectivity, Display, Privacy, Provided by apps, Unknown, and Utilities. They will appear in the Quick Settings editor, similar to what you can see below:

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

The system won’t show categories for which you have already added the available tiles.

The revamped Quick Settings panel was earlier reported to require a two-finger swipe down to reveal it. With the release of Android 15 QPR1 Beta 3, Google has seemingly dropped this plan, letting you pull down the revamped Quick Settings tile from the right side of the status bar with a single finger instead of two fingers.

However, there’s no way to swipe between the notifications and the Quick Settings panel.

Further, Google is also considering changes to the expanded behavior of the Internet and Bluetooth tiles, going back to behavior found in relatively early Android versions. We managed to activate the change, wherein the Internet and Bluetooth tiles no longer popped out into floating panels but rather expanded to fill up the area within the Quick Settings panel, similar to how things worked in Android 5.1 to Android 8.1.

However, the feature is clearly still in development, as evidenced by the duplicated text and lack of data in the expanded tiles.

Google has confirmed several parts of this extensive Quick Settings redesign, including the resizable tiles, one-click toggles for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, updated brightness slider, blurred background for the Quick Settings and notifications panel, and the updated tile editor. You can see the confirmed changes in the video below:

New “Video Chat” panel for video call effects Android 16 Beta 4 includes strings for a new Quick Settings tile called Video Chat. The strings show that Android will support effects like background blur (which blurs your background environment), portrait relighting (which improves the lighting on your face), portrait touch-up (which retouches your face to remove imperfections), and studio-style mic (which suppresses background noise). For background blur, you’ll have the option to apply a light blur or a full blur to the background. The portrait relighting, portrait touch-up, and studio-style mic effects are simple on/off toggles.

We managed to activate the Video Chat Quick Settings tile and panel, and here’s what it looks like:

These effects don’t work yet. However, we expect these effects to work in any video chat app, as there would otherwise be little point in creating a dedicated Quick Settings panel for them.

New “switch users” widget With Android 16 Beta 2, Google has added a new multiuser widget called “switch users.” As the name implies, this widget lets you quickly switch users. It features large buttons that prominently show the user’s profile picture, and there’s also a button on the top right to open Android’s multiuser settings page.

Lock screen widgets Android used to allow lock screen widgets in its early days, but the feature was removed in Android 5.0 Lollipop in 2014. Google has been working on bringing back lock screen widget support, and Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 finally adds them for the Pixel Tablet.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

To access them, swipe inward from the right edge of the lock screen. Then, tap the “customize” card to open the widget editor, where you can add, remove, or reorder your widgets.

With Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1, we managed to activate a feature that lets you resize any lock screen widget to take up an entire column. This will allow certain widgets to show more information at a glance, as demonstrated in the video embedded below:

These widgets are currently intended for tablets only, not phones. However, if you are curious, lock screen widgets will indeed come to phones, too. Google has mentioned that lock screen widgets will be available in AOSP for tablets and mobile with the release of Android 16 QPR1, slated to arrive in late Summer 2025.

The feature isn’t yet live, but we managed to activate it on Android 16 Beta 2.1 for a demo:

As you can see in the video above, lock screen widgets on phones will work differently than they do on tablets. The 2×3 grid seen on tablets is too wide for the narrow displays of most phones, so Google’s solution is to display one column of widgets at a time. More importantly, the “glanceable hub” isn’t accessed by swiping inward from the right edge of the lock screen, as it is on tablets. Instead, it’s accessed by triggering the screen saver by placing the phone on a charger or docking it and, in the future, by placing it upright on a stand.

Google says that OEMs can customize the mechanism that triggers the lock screen widget experience but not the interface itself.

Lock screen minimalism We spotted a new feature within Android 15 QPR2 Beta that lets you declutter your lock screen without forcing you to unlock your phone to see your notifications. This feature is called lock screen notification minimalism and, when it goes live, can be found under Settings > Notifications.

The lock screen notification minimalism feature seems to hide everything but the icons for notifications. Here’s a comparison of what the lock screen looks like before and after the lock screen notification minimalism feature is enabled:

Without lock screen notification minimalism With lock screen notification minimalism

When this setting is enabled, however, only the app icon is shown in a small pill below the clock. Tapping this pill expands the notifications panel so you can see the entire content of each notification. While this lock screen notification minimalism feature does make it slightly less convenient to see your notifications, it significantly declutters your lock screen so you can see the beautiful wallpaper you set for it.

This lock screen notification minimalism feature has been removed from the Android 15 QPR2 Beta 3 build. In its place is a new “compact” notification layout option for the lock screen. This new setting can be found in the Settings app under the Notifications on lock screen settings. Previously, notifications on the lock screen were a dialog that lets you choose whether to show all notification content, hide all notification content, or show sensitive content only when unlocked, but Google is turning it into a page with more options.

On the new page, you can choose to have new notifications collapsed into a shelf on your lock screen (the “compact” option) or shown in a full list (the “full list” option). The description for the full list option, which states that it’s the “current default placement,” suggests that Android 16 won’t force the new compact layout on users.

Compact notification shelf Full list of notifications

Gemini button on the lock screen We’ve spotted a flag within Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 that possibly enables another way to invoke Gemini, this time through a lock screen button. This flag controls the presence of a button on the lock screen that, when tapped, doesn’t do anything right now but could likely trigger the AI assistant (given the sparkle icon).

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

The button is pill-shaped and sits right below the fingerprint reader. It’s larger than the two lock screen shortcuts at the bottom and has a sparkle icon in the middle.

Since this change was spotted with Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 intended for Pixel devices, it could be incorporated into future versions of the Android platform.

Lock screen note-taking Google has long been working on a feature that would let you jot notes through Google Keep on the lock screen of Android tablets. This feature was expected to arrive with Android 15, but it didn’t.

More recently, with Android 16 Developer Preview 2, Google has made Keep a system app, meaning users cannot easily uninstall it. While Google could have other reasons for doing so, this change could also be a step forward for the lock screen note-taking feature.

Redesigned lock screen In addition to all the above features, Google is also working on a redesigned layout for the lock screen, which looks cleaner than the current one when populated.

Here’s what the current lock screen looks like:

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

Here’s what we managed to activate in Android 16 Beta 4:

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

Primarily, this lock screen redesign relocates the At a Glance widget’s complications. The date and weather complications move below the clock when it’s centered and to the right of the clock when it’s at the top. The informational complication is now separate, sitting at the top when there are no notifications and below the clock when notifications are present.

Stash notification bubbles Google introduced the Bubbles API with Android 11 in 2020, allowing messaging apps to open conversations in a floating window. The floating window sits on top of other apps so you can quickly see or respond to messages from your favorite contacts. When you’re done chatting, you can minimize the floating window, which turns it into a small, floating icon that you can later tap to restore the window.

Bubbles are either always fully visible or hidden, with no in-between state. We managed to activate a third state in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2, referred to as “stashing.” Bubble stashing lets you stash these notification bubbles to the side of the screen when they are not in use.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

This partially minimizes the bubble icon, so it takes up less space on the screen. Since this change was spotted with Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 intended for Pixel devices, it could be incorporated into future versions of the Android platform.

Open any app in a floating bubble While the Bubbles feature mentioned above is great, it only works for conversation notifications and can be opted out, so many apps don’t support it. However, in theory, most Android apps should work just fine when placed inside a floating window. Code within Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 suggests Google is testing this theory, as it includes references to a “bubble anything” feature.

Once activated, the Pixel Launcher adds a “bubble” button to the context menu that appears when you press and hold on any app on the home screen. Tapping this button opens the app — no matter what it is — in a floating bubble, as you can see below.

Here’s a video demonstrating what Android’s new “bubble anything” feature combined with the upcoming bubble bar will look like on tablets:

Since this change was spotted with Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 intended for Pixel devices, it could be incorporated into future versions of the Android platform.

With Android 16 Beta 4, we spotted Google working to bring the bubble bar to phones:

The bubble bar on phones will allow users to switch between more than two apps. The expanded bubble bar only shows the five most recently opened bubbles, though the bubble overflow menu does list other, previously opened bubbles. Google is also developing different categories of bubbles: chat, note, app, and shortcut. These categories will determine whether an app badge is displayed.

Do Not Disturb mode changes, introduction of Priority mode, and renaming to Modes Google is working to supercharge Android’s Do Not Disturb mode with a new Priority mode. We spotted extensive clues within Android 15 QPR1 Beta 1, indicating that Google is planning to rename the Do Not Disturb mode entry point, tweak its UI, add a new Quick Settings tile, and introduce many other customization options.

The new DND mode UI that we activated has new toggles to enable grayscale mode, disable the always-on display, dim the wallpaper, and enable the dark theme. These four options take advantage of the new ZenDeviceEffects API.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

The scheduling options from DND mode are being transferred to a custom Priority Mode. This new Priority Modes menu lets you create a fully custom DND mode schedule with its own name, icon, activation trigger, display settings, and notification settings.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

If you’re worried about DND taking two taps to activate, we’ve spotted clues in Android 16 Beta 4 that indicate that Google is also working on a new, dedicated Do Not Disturb mode tile specifically for toggling it. This new tile looks and functions exactly like the original one did before Android 15 QPR2 introduced the Modes panel. Importantly, this new dedicated Do Not Disturb tile will exist alongside the current Modes tile. This means users can choose to add the new dedicated Do Not Disturb tile, keep the existing Modes tile, use both, or use neither in their Quick Settings.

There’s also a new Quick Settings tile for the Priority Mode, which co-exists alongside the DND mode tile.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

With Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2, Google changed some behaviors related to Priority mode and also gave us a deeper look. The Quick Settings tile opens a dialog that lets you quickly choose which Priority Modes to enable and tells you how many are enabled, if any.

The updates to the Priority Modes menu in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 starts with the new intro screen for the preexisting modes, Event and Sleeping. Currently, though, the graphic used for each intro screen is a placeholder, but Google will likely update these in a future release. Another change to the menu in QPR1 Beta 2 is the new UI for customizing the activation trigger and notification settings. In addition, the mode icon now lights up when it’s turned on.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

Google has also added many new icons to choose from when creating a custom Priority Mode. While you can’t upload your own icon, Android now offers 40 icons to choose from in QPR1 Beta 2.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

In Android 15 QPR1 Beta 3, “Priority Modes” has been rebranded to just “Modes.” Google also added an icon in the status bar, lock screen, and AOD to correspond to the current mode that is enabled, making it much easier to tell at a glance.

Google also slightly tweaked the UI for the dialog that appears when you tap the Quick Settings tile. Modes are now displayed in a single-column, vertically scrolling list instead of a dual-column list.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

Another small tweak is that the Quick Settings tile itself now displays the icon of the first mode that you enable. It also shows the name of the first mode but switches to the number of modes active if more than one is enabled. Speaking of which, if you ever have more than one mode enabled, then only the first one’s icon will appear on the status bar, lock screen, and AOD.

Since this change was spotted with Android 15 QPR1 Beta 1, Beta 2, and Beta 3 intended for Pixel devices, it will be incorporated into future versions of the Android platform.

Time zone change notification Your Android phone can automatically adjust the time when you enter a new time zone. However, you are not notified of such a change.

In Android 16 Beta 1, we spotted strings for a new “time zone change” feature that will appear under Settings > System > Date & time. The description says that the feature will let you “receive a notification when your time zone is automatically updated.”

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

The notification’s title will explain that “your time zone changed,” and the body will include exactly what time zone you’re now in.

Better split-screen multitasking on phones Android’s split screen feature lets you display two apps side-by-side, either in a 50:50 ratio (i.e., divided evenly in half) or in a 70:30 ratio. With the release of Android 16 DP2, Google quietly updated the code for Android’s split-screen mode to support a 90:10 ratio.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

We managed to activate the 90:10 split-screen mode to give you a demo:

This change has the potential to offer several benefits. The 90:10 ratio is ideal for focusing on one app while keeping another open for quick reference. Tapping the smaller app window instantly enlarges it. While the existing 70:30 split offers similar functionality in theory, on smaller Android phone screens, the 70% portion can still feel cramped, while the 30% portion might be larger than necessary. Having a 90:10 option just adds greater flexibility.

Three-way split-screen multitasking on tablets In Android 16 Developer Preview 2, we spotted code for an in-development “flexible” split-screen mode and managed to activate it partially for the preview below:

This mode could work similarly to OnePlus Open’s Open Canvas feature, which lets you run up to three apps side-by-side. Two apps share 90% of the screen, and the third occupies the remaining 10%.

The genius of Open Canvas is that, while the third app is usually far too small to be usable, it can be quickly enlarged by tapping anywhere on the app window. Tapping like that shifts the screen so that the leftmost app now takes up 10% of the screen while the middle and rightmost apps take up the remaining 90%. You can swap app positions, change apps by dragging and dropping from the taskbar, or view all three apps by performing a four-finger pinch gesture.

It remains to be seen if Google implements all the gestures as Open Canvas.

More improvements to the screen recording system Android 16 could improve the screen recorder and screen caster indicator chips. We spotted and activated the change in Android 15 Beta 4.2, but the changes could arrive on Android 15 in a future QPR release and, thus, on the wider platform with Android 16. The chips also became more widely available in QPR1 Beta 2, indicating a probable release for the QPR update and then on Android 16.

For one, the new chips for screen recording and screencasting will give you a timer right in the status bar.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

They will also let you stop the screen recording or screencasting session without needing to pull down the status bar. Tapping on the chip will open a dialog that will let you stop the session.

There’s also a different icon now to indicate when a third-party app requests to record or cast the screen. The dialog more prominently asks you whether you want to “share your screen” rather than “start recording or casting.”

The experience is fairly functional, but it remains anyone’s guess when it actually arrives. With Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2, the system stops screen shares initiated by third-party apps when you lock the device.

App switcher during partial screen sharing Android 15 introduces a more private screen recording system that lets you record or cast a single app instead of your entire screen. However, if you need to change the app you are recording or casting, you have to end the current session and start a new one.

We spotted a flag within Android 15’s source code that enables a “task switcher feature for partial screen sharing.” After enabling this flag, when you start screen recording or screen casting an app and then switch to a different app, a new notification appears.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

This notification informs the user that “sharing pauses when you switch apps.” The notification has two buttons: “Share this app instead” and “Switch back.” Tapping “switch back” launches the app with which the screen recording or casting session was started. Tapping “share this app instead” does nothing, though, as it appears the task switcher feature for partial screen sharing isn’t fully functional yet. It’s possible that this feature could get activated for Android 16.

Redesigned media output switcher With Android 16 Beta 4, we found code for a redesigned media output switcher. This panel pops out when you tap the chip in the top right of any media playback notification.

Below is the current UI for the media output switcher, as seen in Android 15 on a Pixel device:

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

In contrast, here’s the new UI for the media output switcher that Google is experimenting with in Android 16 Beta 4:

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

The “connect a device” button has moved from the bottom of the list to just below the media info at the top. Second, the slider controlling the volume for the current output device has been tweaked. Instead of a thick, pill-shaped slider with the device name enclosed within, it’s now a thinner, continuous slider with the device name placed above the handle. The slider also shows a more appropriate icon for connected devices — in this case, a pair of earbuds. Lastly, the large pill enclosing each device under “Speakers & Displays” is gone, the only downgrade in this redesign.

Android has long allowed you to back up your contacts to your Google account, but Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1 includes code that indicates Google could be working on adding a dedicated Contacts Storage page to centralize the setting. This page will contain toggles to choose which account to sync contacts to, a button to add an account, and a toggle to disable contact syncing entirely.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

Corner swipe gesture for invoking the default assistant With the introduction of Circle to Search, Google hijacked the long-press home button gesture (when using the three-button navigation system) from invoking the default assistant and made it launch the Circle to Search feature instead. Even if you disabled Circle to Search, you won’t get the gesture back on the three-button navigation system.

Android 15 QPR1 Beta 3 includes code for a new corner swipe gesture that will let you invoke the default assistant even when using three-button navigation.

As you can see, you will have to swipe diagonally inwards from the corner to launch your device’s default assistant.

Keyboard shortcut menu in the side navigation rail Android lets you navigate its UI using keyboard shortcuts. Because there are so many keyboard shortcuts available, Android also has a dedicated menu listing them.

To help make the keyboard shortcut menu easier to use on tablets, Google could add the menu to the side navigation rail. We found code for this in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2, and here’s what it would look like:

The redesigned keyboard shortcut menu should thus be easier to use on tablets since the shortcut categories will be closer to the left edge of the display. Since the change was spotted in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 intended for Pixel devices, it could be incorporated into future versions of the Android platform.

Touchpad gesture tutorial We spotted a new tutorial for touchpad gestures in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2. Google has created custom animations that explain how some of Android’s touchpad gestures work. These animations simulate the gesture used to go back (swiping left or right with three fingers), the gesture to go home (swiping up with three fingers), and the gesture to open the app drawer (pressing the action key on the keyboard).

It also created a notification that appears when the user connects a touchpad for the first time, inviting them to try the gestures.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

Although Android also supports gestures to open the recent apps screen (swiping up with three fingers, then holding), open the notifications panel (swiping down with three fingers), and switch between apps (swiping left or right with four fingers), the tutorial in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 doesn’t mention all of these. It’s likely that Google isn’t finished with this tutorial just yet and that it will be updated in a future beta.

Since the change was spotted in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 intended for Pixel devices, it could be incorporated into future versions of the Android platform.

PC-like external display management features Google is testing new external display management tools in Android 16 that bring Android closer to other desktop OSes. Android has a few issues when extending the screen from an Android phone to an external display — the mouse is fixed to one screen and can’t be moved between displays, and Android doesn’t let you switch between mirroring the screen and extending it, forcing you to tweak developer options and then reconnect the phone to change display modes.

To address the first issue, Google is enabling mouse cursor transitions across connected displays and adding the ability to rearrange them. The solution to the second issue is to add a toggle that switches between mirroring the built-in display and extending it. We managed to enable both of these PC-like external display management features in Android 16 Beta 2.1:

We’ve also spotted a new ‘Enable desktop experience features’ option that will soon appear in developer options to let you enable Desktop View on secondary displays. These desktop experience features can likely be enabled on secondary displays only or on both the device and secondary displays. We managed to enable the button in Android 16 Beta 3 but couldn’t get the feature itself to work.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

With Android 16 Beta 3, Google also added the ability to screen record the external display when your Android phone is connected to an external monitor.

Android’s Desktop Mode With Android 16 Beta 4, we managed to activate Android’s desktop mode. Given the feature’s unfinished state, we expect it to arrive either with a later Android 16 QPR release or with Android 17.

Compared to the current, barebones desktop interface that appears when you connect a Pixel device to an external display, Android’s new desktop mode actually displays the taskbar and status bar. The taskbar is a big addition, as it provides access to your pinned apps and a better version of the app drawer. The taskbar can also show recent apps while in desktop mode, making it easier to multitask.

It’s also possible to launch multiple apps in floating windows simultaneously using the new desktop mode. Further, you can freely move, resize, or snap windows to the side, just like on desktop operating systems. This makes it easy to drag and drop content from one app to another, provided the apps you’re using support drag-and-drop.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

There’s more work to be done on this feature, so we expect to learn more in the coming months.

“Postured” trigger for screen saver Android offers two ways to trigger the screen saver: while charging, or while docked and charging. The first option activates the screen saver whenever the device is charging, regardless of how or its physical state. The second option activates it only when the device is both charging and docked.

Android relies on the dock itself to pass along the docking state information, but unfortunately, many charging stands aren’t recognized as docks. Users have to thus use the charging trigger, which also gets triggered when the device is laid flat on a bedside dock, for example.

With Android 16, Google could introduce a new screen saver trigger called “postured,” which requires the device to be sitting upright, not flat. This would solve the problem of the screen saver triggering when the device is charging while laid flat on a table, as the screen saver will basically only activate when the device is upright and charging on a stand.

Trade-in mode for ADB Trade-ins can take a lot of time, partially because every phone that has been traded in needs to be inspected. Non-functional devices are easy to inspect since they either have cracks that disqualify them or do not boot up, but functional devices need to be booted up and run through a series of tests to confirm that they are functioning properly. In order for the tests to run, the device needs to go through the setup screen like a brand-new phone and then enable ADB debugging, which is buried deep in the Settings menu. While most of these screens can be skipped in the setup, it still adds up time, but enabling ADB debugging cannot be avoided.

Android 16 could add a new trade-in mode to ADB, which would allow a very limited version of ADB to be available to Android devices right on the first screen of the setup wizard. This will make it easier for technicians to run automated diagnostics for device inspections.

The setup wizard will enable ADB trade-in mode and will disable it after setup has been completed. The technician can use ADB trade-in mode to put the device into an “evaluation mode” and bypass the setup, but it will also force a factory reset on the next boot. Alternatively, another command can be run to retrieve diagnostic information about the device and see if it passes an attestation challenge.

Secure Lock We spotted a new permission in Android 16 related to a new feature called Secure Lock. Secure Lock is an enhanced security mode that can be activated remotely. In this mode, unlocking the device requires both your primary lock screen credential and your biometrics. Additionally, features such as app notifications, widgets, Quick Settings, and the digital assistant are restricted to prevent sensitive data leaks.

This Secure Lock system permission is likely going to be granted to the Google Play Services app, which contains Google’s Find My Device service.

New Terminal app to run Linux apps in a virtual machine Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1 added a new “Linux development environment” toggle in Developer Settings, that lets you “run [a] Linux terminal on Android.” After enabling this option, a new Terminal app appears in the app list.

The Terminal app will download, configure, run, and interface with an instance of Debian (a popular Linux distribution) in a virtual machine. This will seemingly let developers run Linux apps on their Android devices through a virtual machine. We’ve played around with the feature and even managed to run Doom on Android 16’s Linux Terminal. With Android 16 Beta 4, Google uncapped the disk resize slider in the Linux Terminal app’s settings, letting users resize the disk to occupy most of the host device’s storage. We’ve even managed to improve memory availability since the app is limited to 4GB of RAM, which can be insufficient for developers.

Dedicated “Supervision” page for certain parental controls Google offers the “Family Link” parental control suite that makes it easy to create a managed Google Account for your child with explicit content filters enabled in Chrome and Google Search. The Family Link app provides a centralized hub for managing your child’s online activities, and you can easily access it either through the dedicated Android app or within Android’s Digital Wellbeing settings.

With Android 16 Beta 4, we managed to activate the dedicated “Supervision” entry within the Settings app.

To enable device supervision, you must enter a new PIN for the supervised account. Once you enable supervision, you can then activate web content filters for that account. By default, the system allows all websites and search results, but you can change these settings to block explicit sites in Chrome and explicit images, text, and links in Search. While these content filters won’t block all explicit content, they should effectively hide most inappropriate material on the web.

Parallel Module Loading Google is making a change that speeds up an early part of the Android OS’s multi-stage initialization process. The stage in question happens after the Linux kernel is loaded, and it sets up the basic environment necessary for the later stages of the boot process to take place.

During this stage, Android loads essential kernel modules, which are pieces of code that extend the kernel’s functionality and which can be loaded and unloaded on demand. Google is proposing a change called Parallel Module Loading to tweak how Android loads these modules. This would remove a bottleneck that previously existed, resulting in a noticeable improvement in module loading times. It remains to be seen how much of this improvement users will be able to experience in boot times, if at all they are noticeable.

Pixel: Redesigned Pixel wallpaper app Android 15 QPR1 Beta 1 includes clues around a redesign of the Pixel wallpaper app, aka the app called Wallpaper & Style on Pixel devices.

Here’s a video that compares the Pixel wallpaper app’s current UI to the in-development one we enabled.

For starters, the tabs to switch between customizing the home screen and customizing the lock screen are now gone. Instead, to switch from customizing the home screen to customizing the lock screen (or vice versa), you now simply swipe from one to the other in the carousel underneath where it says “Wallpaper & style.”

The next big change is to how lock screen clock customization is handled. Instead of swiping left or right to cycle through the available lock screen clock styles, all the available options will be shown in a bottom sheet. The lock screen clock color and size customization settings are also contained within this new bottom sheet, albeit in separate tabs.

Likewise, the lock screen shortcut customization UI is now part of a bottom sheet instead of a separate page. With this change, you no longer need to scroll to see all available lock screen shortcuts, as up to 10 shortcuts can fit on the sheet (only nine shortcuts currently exist for phones).

The same is true for the new system color palette picker, which shows two rows of palette options instead of one. Selecting a color palette causes the home screen preview to zoom in, allowing you to better preview the changes to your icons. The option to toggle the dark theme also appears when the preview zooms in, so you can quickly preview how your home screen looks with the dark theme enabled, too.

Note that the in-development UI is far from finished, so many features and assets are missing. Still, this early look gives us a good idea of what to expect from the new version of the app when it goes live in a future update.

Pixel: New lock screen clock options and customization With Android 15 QPR2 Beta 2, we spotted that the Pixel Wallpaper app has new clock style options.

Google is also preparing to add a new page for customizing the lock screen clock size, one that lets you tweak the weight, width, roundness, and slant. This page will be accessed by tapping a new pencil/edit button shown on top of each lock screen clock style card. While we weren’t able to get this pencil/edit button to appear, we were able to manually launch the new lock screen clock size page, as shown in the video below:

Pixel: Customize the shapes of home screen icons The Pixel Launcher in Android 11 used to let users customize the icon shapes for home screen icons, but this functionality was removed in Android 12. Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1 brings back the ability to customize the icon shapes for home screen icons, indicating the feature could make an appearance in the stable branch in a future stable release.

The in-development version of the Pixel wallpaper app (aka Wallpaper & Style) now contains a new “app shape & layout” menu in Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1. This menu has two tabs: Shape and Layout. The Layout tab has familiar options for changing the layout of the home screen grid, while the Shape tab has six different options for changing the shape of home screen icons.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

Pixel: Recent apps in taskbar On Pixel foldables and tablets, the Android taskbar currently shows six apps pinned to the dock and two suggested apps. Although the Pixel Launcher suggests apps based on your recently used apps, they’re also based on those you most frequently use and your “routines.”

Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 includes code that suggests that Google could swap the app suggestions on the taskbar with recently used apps.

In the above video, you can see the two suggested apps getting replaced with the two most recently used apps.

Since this change was spotted with Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2 intended for Pixel devices, it could be incorporated into future versions of the Android platform. Many Android manufacturers already highlight recently used apps in the taskbar, so this change will benefit the Android platform at large.

Pixel: Manually set 80% charging limit Google Pixel smartphones have an Adaptive Charging feature that monitors your charging habits and limits charging to 80% until about one hour before the system predicts you’ll unplug your phone. This feature could be updated to add an option to manually cap charging at 80%.

The feature was spotted in Android 15 Beta 4.2 and rolled out more widely with Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2, so it will likely reach Pixel devices in a future QPR update or with Android 16.

Pixel: Screen-off fingerprint unlock With Android 16 Developer Preview 2, Google added a new setting for Pixel 9 devices that allows users to use the fingerprint sensor without switching on the display. This new setting is called “Screen-off Fingerprint Unlock” and is present under Settings > Security & privacy > Device unlock > Face & Fingerprint Unlock > Fingerprint Unlock.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

The Screen-off Fingerprint Unlock feature is quite straightforward and works exactly as described on Pixel devices with an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor. Here’s a short video demonstrating it:

With the release of Android 16 Beta 3, Google expanded the compatibility of this feature to all Pixel phones. However, with Android 16 Beta 4, Google mysteriously removed the feature, albeit users who activated it previously could still use it.

Pixel: Hide launcher widgets behind a menu Android 16 Developer Preview 2 includes code that suggests Google is preparing to tweak the Pixel Launcher so that its widget list does not show all available widgets by default. The widget list will add a new button to show all widgets, which will help clean up the menu if you have many apps or widget apps installed.

Pixel: Double tap to turn off screen In Android 16 Beta 4, there’s evidence that Google is working to add a gesture to turn off the screen with a double-tap on the lock screen, and we managed to activate the gesture for a first look.

With this new gesture, you can double-tap on an empty spot of the lock screen to turn off your Pixel phone’s screen.

With Android 16 QPR1 Beta 1, we also managed to activate its Settings menu entry. When it goes live, the feature will be in Settings > System > Gestures.

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

Many Android phones already have this feature on their skins, but it would be the first time Pixels get it. The feature could also come to the broader Android platform.

Pixel: Pixel Thermometer app shortcut Android 16 Beta 4 includes code that indicates that Google could add a “Thermometer” option to Android’s lock screen shortcut customization page, intended for use with the Pixel Thermometer. We activated the feature to give you a look:

Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority

Pixel: Robust open/close detection The fourth beta of Android 16 has brought a new display setting to the Pixel Fold and Pixel 9 Pro Fold. This setting, called “robust open/close detection,” is said to help your Pixel foldable more accurately tell whether it is open or closed. However, the feature increases battery usage.

tmartin on Discord

Even though the feature has surfaced, it’s not immediately clear if it is functional yet.

Pixel: Pixel phones get Linux kernel 6.1 update With the release of Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1, Google pushed out a major Linux kernel version upgrade to all its Tensor-powered Pixels, unifying the kernel version across Tensor devices.

The Pixel 6, Pixel 6 Pro, Pixel 6a, Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, Pixel 7a, Pixel Tablet, and Pixel Fold are all being upgraded from Linux kernel 5.10 to 6.1, whereas the Pixel 8, Pixel 8 Pro, and Pixel 8a are being upgraded from Linux kernel 5.15 to 6.1. Meanwhile, the Google Pixel 9 series was already running Linux 6.1, so there aren’t any changes for these devices.

This Linux kernel bump for Pixel devices will go a long way toward the Longevity GRF program.

Android 16 for TVs With the release of Android 16, Google is also apparently moving the TV-based Android TV operating system to a bi-yearly release schedule. This means that smart TVs on Android TV 14 could skip Android TV 15 and directly get the Android TV 16 update. Google’s I/O 2025 schedule mentions “preparing for Android 16 for TV,” so it’s coming for sure.

Note that the Android TV operating system is quite different from the conventional Android operating system, so the changelog for the Android TV 16 update will be different from the platform changelog for the Android 16 update for smartphones.

Android 16: Leaked Pixel-exclusive features coming with Android 16 QPR releases As mentioned earlier, Google releases QPR updates for Pixel devices, which tend to pack in features before they make their way to the subsequent Android platform update. However, if the feature is Pixel-exclusive, it won’t be coming to the Android platform update. Thus, these Pixel-exclusive features can be deemed to arrive on the base Android platform itself instead of a subsequent release.

For example, generic features spotted in Android 16 QPR1 betas will be coming to the wider platform with Android 17. However, if Pixel-specific features are spotted in Android 16 QPR1 betas, they will likely arrive on Pixels when the betas graduate to the stable branch, or in subsequent Android 16 QPRs.

Pixel: Pixel Themes In Android 16 QPR1 Beta 1, we managed to act

The Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro were highly anticipated releases in late 2022. Despite their iterative natures, it’s great to see Google pick a direction and stick with it for at least two years. The Pixel 7 series brought key updates, with better cameras, a more refined design, and plenty of software upgrades. The Pixel 7 series isn’t as prone to bugs and glitches either, which is a welcome change compared to the Pixel 6 series and older Google smartphones.

They are far from perfect, though, and complaints about bugs and issues are increasing as more people get their hands on the phones. Here’s a look at some common Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro problems and how to fix them. There’s also a chance that these solutions may work for the Pixel 8 series, but check out our list of Pixel 8 problems and fixes if that’s what you’re looking for.

Editor’s note: It’s important to remember that not every Pixel 7 and 7 Pro will have these problems. In fact, you might not come across any issues at all.

Problem #1: Calls automatically drop after a couple of seconds

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

Some Pixel 7 and 7 Pro users have issues with calls automatically dropping after a few seconds. They aren’t able to call back without the problem continuing to occur.

Potential solutions: Some users say that toggling Airplane Mode on and off seems to do the trick, but temporarily. Henrik Ewaldsen, a Pixel owner, has created an automation flow using the Automate app that toggles Airplane Mode on and off every hour. Pixel 7 users who have used this method have posted positive results. You can download the automation flow here or create your own using the Automate app. Or remember to manually toggle Airplane Mode every hour or so or before you make a call.

If your SIM supports VoLTE and Wi-Fi Calling, a few users have reported that disabling VoLTE temporarily fixes the problem. Some say that disabling 2G helps. Go to Settings > Network and internet > SIMs > Allow 2G and disable the setting.

and disable the setting. This is a network issue that Google will hopefully fix quickly in an upcoming software update.

Problem #2: Not receiving text messages on the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro

Rita El Khoury / Android Authority Pixel 7 Pro

Quite a few users report not receiving text messages on their phones.

Potential solutions: Users who have upgraded to the Pixel 7 from an older non-5G phone face this problem. You will need to upgrade your SIM card or set up your eSIM again with the help of customer service.

Pixel 7 owners on AT&T and Verizon report this issue. AT&T customers have fixed the problem by manually setting up the APN using the 5G settings mentioned here. A Verizon customer on Reddit says that calling Verizon technical support and asking them to resync messaging service fixes it.

Other users say enabling or disabling Chat features on the Messages app helps. Open the Google Messages app, tap the profile icon at the top right corner, go to Manage Settings > Chat features, and enable or disable Chat features to see which option works for you.

Problem #3: Network connectivity (or lack thereof)

Robert Triggs / Android Authority

Unfortunately, Google doesn’t seem to have fixed all the network issues plaguing the Pixel 6 series. This can manifest in slow transitions from the 4G network to 5G, or offering weak coverage even in areas where it should be strong. Here are a few things you can try: Wait for a software patch. Unfortunately, most common Pixel 7 problems require an update to fully fix the issue, and this is one of them.

Reset your network settings. This is about as close to a fix as you can get when you’re in a hurry. Head to the Settings app, then go to System > Reset > Reset Mobile, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth .

. Try a different SIM card. There’s always a chance that your issues are related to a flawed SIM, in which case it may help to get a fresh, new card. Of course, if your SIM came preinstalled, this may not be a great solution.

Problem #4: Lag, stutters, and erratic behavior when scrolling

Robert Triggs / Android Authority

Some Pixel 7 and 7 Pro owners are having problems with lag or stuttering when scrolling through apps or the Google Discover page.

Potential solutions: Some users say that reducing the touch feedback sensitivity helps. Go to Settings > Sound and vibration > Vibration and haptics and reduce the Touch feedback settings to level 1 or 2.

and reduce the settings to level 1 or 2. You can try disabling Graphic driver preferences to help the problem. You’ll need to enable Developer Mode to do so. Go to Settings > About Phone , scroll down to the build number, and tap it seven times until you see the You are now a developer pop-up. Then, go to Settings > System > Developer options, scroll down, tap Graphics driver preferences , and toggle it off.

, scroll down to the build number, and tap it seven times until you see the pop-up. Then, go to scroll down, tap , and toggle it off. Some users say that disabling the Smooth Display setting works, but this will revert the refresh rate to 60Hz. Go to Settings > Display and toggle off Smooth display .

and toggle off . The workarounds seem to help the problem, but the only real option is to wait for a software update to address the issue.

Problem #5: Pixel 7 and 7 Pro display problems

Rita El Khoury / Android Authority

Apart from the scrolling issues, users report multiple display problems with their Pixel 7 and 7 Pro. These range from software bugs, like a touch recognized as a long press, to hardware issues, like white lines appearing on the screen.

Potential solutions: Some users say their phone recognizes a tap or touch as a long press. Go to Settings > System > Accessibility and adjust the Touch and hold delay setting to medium .

and adjust the setting to . You might see yellow, blue, or green tints or washed-out colors on the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro. Go to Settings > Display > Colors and toggle between the three options (Natural, Boosted, and Adaptive) to see if any fixes the problem. Also, ensure that you don’t have Night Light enabled. Go to Settings > Display and toggle off Night Light.

and toggle between the three options (Natural, Boosted, and Adaptive) to see if any fixes the problem. Also, ensure that you don’t have Night Light enabled. Go to and toggle off Night Light. If you see white lines on your screen or if the tint doesn’t go away, it is likely a hardware problem. Your only option is to pick up a replacement.

Problem #6: Issues making payments with Google Wallet

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

Google Wallet/Pay is an excellent way to make payments on the go. However, users are facing various problems using Google Wallet on their phones. Payment failure because of Face Unlock : This widely reported issue causes a payment failure if you’ve unlocked your phone using the Pixel 7’s Face Unlock feature. For now, the only option is to remember to unlock your device using the fingerprint scanner before making a payment.

: This widely reported issue causes a payment failure if you’ve unlocked your phone using the Pixel 7’s Face Unlock feature. For now, the only option is to remember to unlock your device using the fingerprint scanner before making a payment. Google Wallet disappears from the app drawer : Even if you’ve set up Google Wallet during the initial setup process, you might not find the app on your phone. A Reddit user found that clearing the cache for the Google Services Framework app fixed the problem. Go to Settings > Apps > Google Services Framework (you might have to enable Show System apps) > Storage and cache and clear the cache.

: Even if you’ve set up Google Wallet during the initial setup process, you might not find the app on your phone. A Reddit user found that clearing the cache for the Google Services Framework app fixed the problem. Go to (you might have to enable Show System apps) and clear the cache. Card authorization failure when paying: Google Wallet transfers your stored card information when you sign in with your account on a new device. However, some users find that making a payment doesn’t work. This is a tokenization issue, where the bank has linked your card and wallet on the older device. Contact your bank to generate new tokens for Google Wallet. You can also use the bank app to remove the authorization for the wallet and set up Google Wallet from scratch. Adding your cards like new ones will re-authenticate them for your new phone.

Problem #7: Fingerprint scanner issues

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

The Pixel 7 and 7 Pro’s fingerprint scanners are an improvement over their predecessors. There have still been a few complaints about sluggish performance, the sensor requiring multiple attempts, or not working at all.

Potential solutions: Google has acknowledged problems with fingerprint sensor performance, so you can expect a software update to fix the issue soon.

Adding the same fingerprint twice seems to do the trick. Go to Settings > Security > Fingerprint unlock and add the same fingerprint again.

and add the same fingerprint again. Your screen protector is likely causing problems with the fingerprint sensor. Check out Google’s list of approved screen protectors (in the Issues with screen protector section) if you need a new one. Try increasing touch sensitivity if the scanner works intermittently with your current screen protector. Go to Settings > Display and toggle on Screen protector mode.

Problem #8: Media controls missing on the lock screen

Robert Triggs / Android Authority

Some Pixel 7 and 7 Pro owners say that while media controls appear in the notification dropdown, they don’t appear on the lock screen. Google has acknowledged the problem with the lock screen media player widget and will fix it in an upcoming software update.

The Face Unlock feature might be causing this issue. Go to Settings > Security > Fingerprint and face unlock and toggle off Skip lock screen.

Problem #9: Pixel 7 and 7 Pro audio problems

Robert Triggs / Android Authority

The latest Pixels suffer from their fair share of audio issues. Users complain about poor audio quality for the external speakers, low volume from Bluetooth earphones, and distorted audio during hands-free calls.

Potential solutions: Try changing the Bluetooth AVRCP setting in the Developer options to fix the problem with low volume through Bluetooth headphones. Enable Developer Options by going to Settings > About phone and tapping the build number seven times. Go to Settings > System > Developer options , search for Bluetooth AVRCP and change it to the other options to see which works for you. AVRCP 1.6 works for some users. You can also try enabling Disable absolute volume in Developer Options.

to fix the problem with low volume through Bluetooth headphones. Enable Developer Options by going to and tapping the build number seven times. Go to , search for and change it to the other options to see which works for you. AVRCP 1.6 works for some users. You can also try enabling in Developer Options. Users say adjusting the equalizer settings on Wavelet (for headphones) and Flat Equalizer (for phone speakers) improves the phone’s audio quality.

Using the Adaptive Sound setting helps with the quality of the external speakers. Go to Settings > Sound and vibration > Adaptive sound and enable it.

and enable it. Distorted audio during hands-free calls over Bluetooth seems to be a network issue. Go to Settings > Network and internet > SIMs > Allow 2G and disable it.

Problem #10: Charging issues

Robert Triggs / Android Authority

Users say the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro don’t charge even though the phone says it’s connected to the charger. This happens with both wired and wireless chargers.

Potential solutions: The Pixel 7 series supports the USB Power Delivery 3.0 PPS (Programmable Power Supply) standard. Users say the phone doesn’t charge with older chargers that don’t support the standard, even though it is supposed to, albeit comparatively slowly. Google’s USB-C charger is the safest option if you need a new charger. Check out our guide for the best Pixel 7 chargers for other third-party options.

Some say that a USB-A charger and USB-A to USB-C cable don’t work either. Once again, you’ll need to buy a compatible charger and a USB-C to USB-C cable.

Problem #11: Can’t transfer files from a PC

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

A few users have trouble transferring files to their phones from a PC.

Potential solutions: This problem affects users using a USB 2.0 port. File transfers work with a USB 3.0 or higher port. You might need a USB hub if your computer doesn’t have a built-in USB 3.0 port.

The phone might not have enabled the file transfer setting automatically. After you connect the phone to a PC, tap Charging this device via USB notification in the dropdown, and select File transfer under the Use USB for options.

Problem #12: Android Auto issues

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

Problems with getting Android Auto to work are common on most new phones, and the Pixel 7 series is no exception. Google has already fixed a major Android Auto issue where nothing would appear on the car screen, so make sure you update the app.

Potential solutions: Android Auto connection problems are common if you’ve transferred your settings from an older phone. Go to Settings > Apps > Android Auto > Storage and cache and tap Clear cache and Clear storage to reset the app.

and tap and to reset the app. Hardware problems might cause frequent disconnections. Test the cable with other phones to see if you need to replace it.

Android Auto Wireless can be spotty initially. Set up Android Auto in your car using a wired connection first. Android Auto Wireless seems to work as expected after that.

Problem #13: App issues and random reboots

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

A few Pixel 7 and 7 Pro owners face problems with apps crashing or freezing, as well as the device randomly restarting.

Potential solutions: Clear the cache for apps that are freezing or crashing. Go to Settings > Apps > (app name) > Storage and cache , and tap Clear cache . If that doesn’t work, you can also tap Clear storage. This will reset the app, so you lose any stored app data.

, and tap . If that doesn’t work, you can also tap This will reset the app, so you lose any stored app data. A rogue app is likely causing random reboots. Boot the phone into Safe Mode (the instructions are in the Guides section below) and see if the issue persists. If it doesn’t, the problem is a recently installed or updated app. Uninstall any recent apps and see if the problem goes away.

Problems where the only option is to wait for a software update

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

The Pixel 7 and 7 Pro have a few bugs or glitches that don’t have simple workarounds. Google has acknowledged some of these bugs, and a software update should help fix them. The camera app keeps crashing: If you keep getting the Camera app is stopping error when you use the phone’s rear camera, you need to update the Google Camera app in the Play Store. The update is already available, and users say this fixes their camera app problems.

If you keep getting the error when you use the phone’s rear camera, you need to update the Google Camera app in the Play Store. The update is already available, and users say this fixes their camera app problems. No network or No SIM errors: The Pixel 7 and 7 Pro don’t suffer from the major network connectivity issues faced by their predecessors. However, a few users are still seeing their network connections drop. When setting up the phone with a physical SIM, others get a No SIM error. Google has acknowledged both issues, and a fix is in the works.

The Pixel 7 and 7 Pro don’t suffer from the major network connectivity issues faced by their predecessors. However, a few users are still seeing their network connections drop. When setting up the phone with a physical SIM, others get a error. Google has acknowledged both issues, and a fix is in the works. Camera issues : There have been numerous complaints about the camera quality. Users say that the front-facing camera takes blurry and grainy photos and is low-quality during video calls. Others see a distorted, grainy video when recording with 4K HDR. Some have found that the problems go away when using other camera apps.

: There have been numerous complaints about the camera quality. Users say that the front-facing camera takes blurry and grainy photos and is low-quality during video calls. Others see a distorted, grainy video when recording with 4K HDR. Some have found that the problems go away when using other camera apps. Quick Tap Toggle Flashlight gesture not working : The Quick Tap gesture lets you double tap the back of the phone to perform functions like taking a screenshot, pausing media, toggling the flashlight, and more. The flashlight option doesn’t seem to work anymore, but a fix is in the works.

: The Quick Tap gesture lets you double tap the back of the phone to perform functions like taking a screenshot, pausing media, toggling the flashlight, and more. The flashlight option doesn’t seem to work anymore, but a fix is in the works. Can’t sideload certain apps: If you sideload older versions to retain removed features or for other reasons, you can do so on the Pixel 7 only with 64-bit apps. The Pixel 7 and 7 Pro are the first 64-bit only phones and don’t support 32-bit apps anymore.

Guides: How to factory reset, how to boot into Safe Mode

Robert Triggs / Android Authority

Safe Mode If the phone is on Press and hold the power button.

Touch and hold the power off icon. A pop-up message will give you the option to reboot to Safe Mode. Tap OK. If the phone is off Press and hold the power button.

When the animation starts, press and hold the volume down button. Keep holding it until the animation ends to boot the phone in Safe Mode. Exit Safe Mode Press the power button and tap Restart . The phone should automatically revert to normal mode.

. The phone should automatically revert to normal mode. You can also press and hold the power button until the phone restarts.

Factory Reset Reset with the phone on Go to Settings > System > Advanced > Reset options.

Tap Erase all data (factory reset) and select Reset phone .

and select . Enter your PIN or pattern and tap Erase everything. Reset with the phone off or if it’s unresponsive Press and hold the power and volume down buttons simultaneously until Fastboot mode (image of a triangle with an exclamation point) appears.

If you see No command , press and hold the power button. While holding the power button, press the volume up button and release both.

, press and hold the power button. While holding the power button, press the volume up button and release both. Go to Recovery mode using the volume keys. Press the power button to make your selection.

using the volume keys. Press the power button to make your selection. Use the volume keys to go to Wipe data/factory reset .

. Select Reboot system now once the phone is reset.

Apple developers this week were alerted to the release candidate version of iOS 18.3, the next version of the software powering the iPhone. The RC is usually — but not always — the last version to appear for testing to find any last-minute bugs.

From what we’ve seen so far, this update won’t be as significant as iOS 18.2, which brought new Apple Intelligence features to the iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 16 or iPhone 16 Pro that were teased for months. These include visual intelligence, which is one of the key features of the new Camera Control button, and the ability to experiment with Genmoji and generate images in Apple’s Image Playground. If you haven’t yet installed this release, learn how to grab it now (and make sure to create a good backup first).

Now that the RC has rolled out for developers, when can we expect to see the release for everyone?

Watch this: Does Apple Think We’re Stupid? Apple Intelligence Ads Say Yes 06:15

When will iOS 18.3 be widely released?

Since the iOS 18.3 RC is out, Apple’s engineers are likely working through any last-minute glitches that invariably crop up with every major release. Fortunately, that work isn’t entirely behind closed doors: The first iOS 18.3 Public Beta was released in late December. Apple seeds its prerelease versions first to developers and then, when the code seems pretty stable, to the Public Beta programs.

We can, however, look at last year’s iOS 17 schedule for guidance, since iOS 17.2 arrived in the same time period one year ago as iOS 18.2 did. Based on that timing, it’s a good bet that iOS 18.3 will arrive in as early as January 27.

James Martin/CNET

Which devices will run Apple Intelligence?

Remember that Apple Intelligence will work only with the following models that are equipped with the A17 Pro or later (iPhone and iPad Mini) and M1 or later (Mac and iPad) processors:

iPhone 15 Pro

iPhone 15 Pro Max

iPhone 16

iPhone 16 Plus

iPhone 16 Pro

iPhone 16 Pro Max

iPad Mini (Late 2024)

iPad Air (M1 and later)

iPad Pro (M1 and later)

iPad (M1 and later)

Mac computers with Apple Silicon (M-series)

If your devices are on that list, remember that you need to jump through a couple of hoops to activate Apple Intelligence.

Read more: Make sure you know about these 9 hidden iOS 18 features and how to remove annoying banners and other distractions in Safari.

Eric Zeman / Android Authority

The Samsung Galaxy S22 series is still some of the best Android phones you can get. But, like with any smartphone, users have reported a few Galaxy S22 bugs and glitches over the past few months that will hopefully be fixed with workarounds and future software updates. So in this article, we’ll look at some common Samsung Galaxy S22 series problems and how to fix them! Editor’s note: The Galaxy S22 was replaced by the Galaxy S23 series in 2023, but we will continue to update this guide to reflect the most common problems affecting Samsung’s former flagship smartphones.

Problem #1: Missing features in Samsung’s Google Messages app

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

Users have noticed that Samsung has a skinned version of Google Messages on the Galaxy S22, even though the name and the Google Play Store link are the same as what you’d see on a non-Samsung phone. Apart from the different layout and colors, the biggest complaint is that the Galaxy S22 messaging app is missing features like the ability to see emoji text reactions from iPhones and the option to send high-resolution photos with a Google Photos link.

Potential solutions: There’s no way to revert to the original version of Google Messages without relying on downloading and installing the non-Samsung version.

Open the Google Play Store, search for and open the Google Messages app page. Tap on the three vertical dots at the top right corner and toggle off Enable auto-update. Go to the Google Messages app settings and tap on Clear data and Clear cache. You will have to manually download the Messages APK file. Download and install the apk file on your phone. You should now see the regular version of Google Messages. Keep in mind that if you update the app through the Play Store, it will go back to the Samsung-skinned version again.

Problem #2: Android Auto problems

Adamya Sharma / Android Authority

Users have reported facing lots of problems getting Android Auto to run with their Samsung Galaxy S22. Users sometimes only see a blank screen in the car, and Android Auto takes a few minutes to appear. The issue is more common for those trying to use Android Auto Wireless on the Galaxy S22.

Potential solutions: Android Auto connection issues are common if you’ve used Smart Switch to set up your new Galaxy S22. The best option is to find the app in the Google Play Store and uninstall and reinstall it. You can also go to Settings > Apps > Android Auto and tap on Force Stop . Tap on Storage and select both Clear cache and Clear data .

and tap on . Tap on and select both and . It’s also a good idea to go through the setup process again. Delete the device connection on your phone and the car and re-connect to Android Auto. If you’re having trouble connecting to Android Auto Wireless, set up a wired connection first by plugging in the Galaxy S22 with a cable. After establishing a wired connection initially, some users find that Android Auto Wireless works as expected the next time.

If you’re using a wired connection, the phone should automatically detect it and change the setting accordingly. If it still doesn’t work, tap on the Android System notification in the drop-down panel and check or change it to Transferring files/Android Auto .

. You can report any software issues to Samsung by going to the Samsung Members app and tapping on Get help > Send feedback > Error reports.

Problem #3: Galaxy S22 Fast charging or fast wireless charging not working

Robert Triggs / Android Authority

One of the more common Samsung Galaxy S22 problems users face is that the phone’s fast or wireless charging isn’t working as expected. Luckily, Samsung’s Super Fast Charging protocol is based on the open USB Power Delivery PPS standard so you can use many third-party adapters too. However, you might face slow charging using older adapters that don’t support PPS specifically.

Potential solutions: The Samsung Galaxy S22 phones don’t come with a charger in the box. Using an older Samsung charger or the wrong third-party wired or wireless charger seems to cause the problem. Even though it might have the correct charging speed, you need a USB PD PPS adapter to get the full fast charging rate on the Galaxy S22 series. Check out our list of the best chargers to fast-charge your Galaxy S22 for the best options available.

Problem #4: Notifications not showing as expected on Galaxy S22

Ryan Haines / Android Authority Galaxy S22 Ultra

Samsung Galaxy S22 owners find that certain app notifications aren’t showing up until they open the app. This is most common with notifications from WhatsApp, Gmail, and other communication apps.

Potential solutions: The Galaxy S22’s battery optimization settings are likely causing a notification delay. Go to Settings > Apps and tap on the three vertical dots at the top right corner. Next, tap on Special access and select Optimize battery usage . Uncheck the apps you are not receiving notifications from. If you don’t see the entire app list, look for the Apps not optimized section at the top of the page and tap on All .

and tap on the three vertical dots at the top right corner. Next, tap on and select . Uncheck the apps you are not receiving notifications from. If you don’t see the entire app list, look for the section at the top of the page and tap on . Go to Settings > Apps > WhatsApp > Storage and tap on both Clear cache and Clear data. Be warned that this will delete all of your chats and you will have to log into your account again. Moreover, if resetting the app doesn’t work for you, you might want to uninstall and set up the app again.

Problem #5: Galaxy S22 fingerprint scanner not working

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

Some users reported having issues using the fingerprint scanner on Galaxy S22 devices. The scanner fails to recognize a fingerprint often and requires multiple attempts.

Potential solutions: The screen protector installed on the Galaxy S22 may cause touch-related problems. If you can live without it, I’d say the best option is to remove the screen protector altogether, and the fingerprint scanner should work as expected. Otherwise, read the reviews of screen protectors you should consider buying to make sure that they are compatible with the sensor. A tempered glass layer can be especially problematic, so you might want to opt for TPU or hybrid screen protectors instead.

After removing or changing the screen protector, or if you’re having fingerprint scanner issues in general, delete any existing fingerprints and go through the setup again. You can try adding the same finger a couple of times as well.

Increase the touch sensitivity of the phone. Go to Settings > Display and scroll down to the Touch sensitivity setting and enable it. If you do so, you might want to also enable the Accidental touch protection setting. Keep in mind that this may increase battery drain.

Problem #6: Freezing apps

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

Some Galaxy S22 users are running into frozen apps or laggy and slow performance.

Potential solutions: Check whether another app is causing the problem. Boot the phone into Safe Mode (the instructions are in the guide section below) and see if the issue continues. A recently installed or updated app is the cause if it doesn’t. Uninstall any apps that have been installed or updated and see if the performance returns to normal. You can also try wiping the cache partition.

You can clear the app cache and data. Go to Settings > Apps and find the problem app. Go to Storage and tap on Clear cache and Clear data. If nothing works, uninstall and reinstall the app.

Problem #7: Galaxy S22 Wi-Fi connection drops frequently

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

A few users face frequent Wi-Fi connection drops on Galaxy S22 series phones, including Android Authority’s Joe Hindy. It seems to affect those using Wi-Fi 6 routers.

Potential solutions: A router setting seems to be causing the problem. The settings might be in a different place depending on the router you have, but you want to disable the Fast Roaming setting. On a Linksys router, log in to the router settings page, go to Privacy, and disable the Fast roaming (802.11r) setting.

Problem #8: Camera issues with Galaxy S22, Galaxy S22 Plus, and Galaxy S22 Ultra

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

There are a couple of Samsung Galaxy S22 camera problems users face. First, some users can’t open the camera settings (clicking on the gear icon on the viewfinder). It opens for a second before automatically closing. Other users are seeing the “camera failed” error.

Potential solutions: If you have trouble opening the camera settings, you need to change a setting in the Developer options . Go to Settings > Developer Options and look for Don’t keep activities . Disable the setting, and everything should work as expected.

. Go to and look for . Disable the setting, and everything should work as expected. Clear the app data and cache. Go to Settings > Apps > Camera > Storage and tap Clear data and Clear cache. Confirm the action when prompted.

Problem #9: Intermittent Wi-Fi connectivity issues on some Galaxy S22 phones

Joe Hindy / Android Authority

It’s not quite as common as other issues, but many have reported intermittent Wi-Fi connectivity issues. It’s diagnosable as shown in the screenshots above. You’ll remain connected to your router, but the phone will say that it’s not getting Internet. The phone will drop back to mobile data until the hiccup corrects itself or never, depending on how unlucky you are. It’s almost certainly a software issue that Samsung may fix in a future update.

Potential solutions: First and foremost, make sure your router is running its latest firmware. When we tested this issue, it almost entirely disappeared when I updated my router. This won’t work for all folks, but it worked for us.

The quick and easy method to temporarily fix the problem is to disconnect and reconnect your Wi-Fi. Some users have used airplane mode to do this and rebooting the whole phone also performs this task. Either way, disconnecting and reconnecting can sometimes temporarily solve the issue.

Go into Settings , then General management , and then Reset network settings . Resetting network settings has been shown to fix the issue for a bit longer, but it is not a permanent fix.

, then , and then . Resetting network settings has been shown to fix the issue for a bit longer, but it is not a permanent fix. The most permanent solution so far is turning off fast roam in your router settings. It may be called something else depending on your manufacturer. Some Reddit users have found that this solves the issue about 90% of the time. It’s also not permanent but we went days without having the issue after doing this fix.

Problem #9: Screenshot shortcut not working on Samsung’s Galaxy S22 phones

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

Some users have found themselves unable to capture screenshots on their Galaxy S22 series devices, even when using the correct shortcut (Power + Volume down buttons). This problem may occur if you’re using a corporate or school-issued smartphone with admin device policies preventing you from capturing on-screen content. But if you’re seeing this issue on your own personal device, the problem may lie somewhere else. As a temporary workaround, you can try using a voice assistant like Google Assistant or Bixby to capture a screenshot. Just bring one of them up and say “Take a screenshot”. Alternatively, you can enable a palm-based screenshot gesture via the following steps: Open the Settings app on your Galaxy S22 series smartphone. Look for the Advanced features sub-menu. Select Motions and gestures. Turn on the Palm swipe to capture toggle. Now, you can take a screenshot by swiping your palm across the screen, starting from the left edge.

Problem #10: Battery drain and bad battery life on Galaxy S22 devices

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

If you’re suffering from poor battery life on your Galaxy S22 series device, you’re not alone. The problem may be worse depending on where you live as Samsung shipped the line with one of two different chipsets. To top it off, neither chipset was particularly efficient compared to next year’s Galaxy S23 series, which boasts some of the best runtimes on the market.

Owners of the smallest device in the Galaxy S22 family may experience bad battery life the most given the tiny cell. Over a year of daily use means that you’re likely also dealing with battery degradation. That said, you can try factory resetting your device to see if a rogue app was to blame for poor battery life.

As your phone approaches the three-year old mark, we’d recommend getting a battery replacement if you don’t foresee an upgrade in the near future. You’ll end up spending a lot less than a new phone.

Problem #11: Unable to download Android updates on Galaxy S22 phones

Eric Zeman / Android Authority

Samsung has promised to deliver four years of software updates to the Galaxy S22 series, which means all three devices in the family will get updated to Android 17.

However, the latest Android version updates may take a few weeks or months to become available on your device even if you manually check for pending updates. This is because Samsung will prioritize updates for newer models first and tends to slowly roll out updates to certain countries first. This strategy allows the company to detect issues with the update before it can reach every single smartphone. Your carrier may delay things even further, although this won’t apply to unlocked devices. Unfortunately, there’s no real fix to this problem other than to wait a few weeks until you receive the update.

Guides: How to factory reset, boot into Safe Mode, wipe cache partition on Galaxy S22

Eric Zeman / Android Authority

Note: To enter the recovery menu to factory reset the phone or to wipe the cache partition, you must plug your Galaxy S22 series phone in. You can connect the phone to your PC, but some users have also found success by plugging in USB-C earphones into the port. Also, keep in mind that it might take a few attempts to get into the recovery menu as the timing of pressing the buttons can be difficult to get right.

Factory reset Galaxy S22 To factory reset the Galaxy S22, first turn the phone off.

Press and hold the volume up and power buttons and release them when the Android logo appears.

Use the volume down button to navigate this menu. Move down to Wipe data/factory reset .

. Press the power button to select the highlighted option. Finally, use the volume button to choose Yes – delete all user data . Use the power button again to confirm your selection.

. Use the power button again to confirm your selection. Tap the power button to select Reboot system now. Boot Galaxy S22 into Safe Mode Turn the phone off.

Press and hold the power button until the phone’s model name and number appear on the screen.

Once the Samsung logo appears, release the power button and press and hold the volume down button. Hold the volume down button until the phone fully restarts.

You will see Safe Mode at the bottom left corner of the screen. Wipe cache partition on Galaxy S22 Turn the phone off.

Press and hold the volume up and power buttons and release them when the Android logo appears.

Press the volume down button multiple times until you reach the Wipe cache partition setting and press the power button to confirm your selection.

setting and press the power button to confirm your selection. Press the volume button until Yes and press the power button to confirm.

and press the power button to confirm. Restart the device once you see Reboot system now. What Galaxy S22 problems have you encountered? Be sure to let us know in the comments below. We’ll do our best to help.