Android 15 Hands-On: Top 5 Features!

Marques Brownlee
28 May 202411:26

Summary

TLDRIn this video, MKBHD explores the latest beta of Android 15 on the Pixel 8 Pro, highlighting its top five features. He notes a shift from massive overhauls to smaller, more refined updates that enhance user experience. The standout features include Private Space for secure storage, refined UI elements like rich widget previews, Bluetooth audio sharing, and an improved volume slider. Partial screen recordings allow focusing on single apps, while adaptive vibrations and notification management, although missing in the current preview, promise a smarter interaction with the device. The Easter egg reveals a playful space theme with a mysterious 'BODIES' counter, adding a touch of intrigue.

Takeaways

  • đŸ“± Android 15 introduces 'Private Space', a feature that allows users to create a separate, secure area for sensitive files and activities.
  • 🔄 The new Android version focuses on smaller, more nuanced improvements rather than massive overhauls, emphasizing refinement and usefulness.
  • 📊 'Rich widget previews' provide a live preview of the widget's content before it's added to the home screen, enhancing the user experience.
  • 🎧 'Bluetooth audio sharing' allows multiple headphones to be paired with the same audio source, making it convenient for shared listening.
  • 🔊 'High Quality Mode' for Android phones used as webcams and 'Bluetooth Auto On' are among the minor but significant enhancements to user convenience.
  • 🔉 A redesigned 'volume slider' interface provides a clearer, full-screen view of audio output and volume controls for various apps.
  • đŸ“č 'Partial screen recordings' let users record specific apps without capturing the entire screen or other activities, streamlining content creation.
  • 📳 'Adaptive Vibrations' use the phone's microphone and sensors to adjust vibration intensity based on the surrounding environment.
  • đŸš« 'Notification Cool Down' (not present in Dev Preview 2) was a feature to manage frequent notifications from the same app by reducing repetitive alerts.
  • 🔔 Developers can now customize individual vibration patterns for their apps, potentially allowing users to recognize notifications without looking at their phones.
  • 🌌 The Android 15 Dev Preview 2 refers to the version as 'Vanilla Ice Cream' with a space-themed Easter egg animation that turns into an interactive spacecraft game.

Q & A

  • What is the main theme of the video by MKBHD?

    -The main theme of the video is showcasing the top five features of Android 15 as seen on the Pixel 8 Pro.

  • How has the trend of Android updates changed according to MKBHD?

    -MKBHD mentions that previously there were huge new features and massive visual overhauls with each Android update, but now updates have stabilized with more small changes and nuanced improvements.

  • What is the 'Private Space' feature in Android 15?

    -Private Space is a secure area on the Android phone for storing top secret files, photos, and other sensitive content, accessible through a separate lock.

  • How can users access the 'Private Space' feature?

    -Users can access the 'Private Space' feature by going to Settings, then Security & Privacy, and selecting Private Space near the bottom.

  • What is the purpose of the 'rich widget previews' in Android 15?

    -Rich widget previews allow users to see live content that will be on the widgets before they are added to the home screen, providing a more refined experience.

  • What does the new volume slider interface in Android 15 look like?

    -The new volume slider interface in Android 15 is an almost full-screen overlay showing where the audio is playing and all the sliders for volume control on the phone.

  • What is the 'partial screen recordings' feature in Android 15?

    -Partial screen recordings allow users to record only a single app at a time, ignoring other activities on the phone, which is useful for creating focused tutorials.

  • How does Android 15's 'Adaptive Vibrations' work?

    -Adaptive Vibrations uses the phone's microphone and other sensors to determine the sound levels and surface type around the phone, adjusting the vibration strength accordingly to ensure it's always noticeable.

  • What was the 'Notification Cool Down' feature in the first Developer Preview of Android 15?

    -Notification Cool Down was a setting designed to manage a flood of notifications from the same app by tapering off alerts and preventing constant buzzing.

  • What is the Easter egg in Android 15's Developer Preview 2 called?

    -The Easter egg in Android 15's Developer Preview 2 is called 'Vanilla Ice Cream,' featuring an animated space-like theme and a mini-game involving a spacecraft.

  • What does the BODIES: 0 / 10 counter in the Easter egg game of Android 15 imply?

    -The BODIES: 0 / 10 counter suggests that there might be ten bodies or objects to discover within the Easter egg game's space environment, although the exact meaning is not clear.

Outlines

00:00

đŸ“± Android 15's Top Features and Changes

MKBHD discusses the latest beta of Android 15 on the Pixel 8 Pro, noting a shift from massive visual overhauls to smaller, more nuanced updates. He appreciates the focus on usefulness and refinement. The top five features include Private Space for secure storage, refined user experience with features like rich widget previews and Bluetooth audio sharing, an improved volume slider interface, partial screen recordings for focused content, and enhanced notification management with Adaptive Vibrations and the concept of Notification Cool Down, although the latter was missing in the second developer preview. MKBHD also hints at future AI-based features that could significantly impact phone usage.

05:01

🔒 Introduction of Private Space and Refined UI Features

Private Space is a new feature in Android 15 allowing users to create a secure area for sensitive files and photos, accessible through a secondary lock. The UI has been refined with features such as live widget previews, a smoother back animation, Bluetooth audio sharing for multiple devices, High Quality Mode for using the phone as a webcam, and Bluetooth Auto On for convenience. These small enhancements contribute to an overall improved user experience.

10:02

📊 Enhanced Volume Control and Screen Recording Options

The video script details an updated volume control interface that provides a full-screen overlay for managing audio output and volume levels, making it clearer and more user-friendly. Additionally, a new partial screen recording feature allows users to record individual apps without capturing other activities on the device, which is particularly useful for creating tutorials and focusing on specific content without distractions.

🔔 Advanced Notification Management in Android 15

Android 15 introduces advanced notification management features such as Adaptive Vibrations, which adjusts the vibration strength based on the phone's environment for better audibility. There was a mention of a feature called Notification Cool Down in the first developer preview, designed to manage rapid-fire notifications from the same app, though it was absent in the second preview. Also highlighted is the potential for individual vibration patterns per app, offering a way to customize and differentiate notifications without needing to view the phone.

🚀 Android 15's Easter Egg and Future AI Integration

The script wraps up with a description of Android 15's Easter egg, a space-themed animation that turns into an interactive asteroid game, hinting at a discovery element with a 'BODIES: 0 / 10' counter. MKBHD expresses excitement for future AI features that are expected to be integrated at the device level rather than the OS, potentially revolutionizing how users interact with their phones.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Android 15

Android 15 refers to the latest version of the Android operating system at the time of the video. It is the main subject of the video, with the host, MKBHD, discussing its features and improvements. The video's theme revolves around the evolution of Android's updates, moving from massive overhauls to more subtle, useful changes.

💡Pixel 8 Pro

Pixel 8 Pro is the specific smartphone model used by the host to showcase Android 15. It serves as the practical example throughout the video to demonstrate the new features and capabilities of the operating system, illustrating the real-world application of the discussed concepts.

💡Private Space

Private Space is a new feature in Android 15 that allows users to create a secure, separate area on their phone for sensitive files, photos, and apps. It is highlighted as one of the top features, emphasizing the importance of privacy and personalization in modern smartphones.

💡Rich Widget Previews

Rich Widget Previews is a feature that allows widgets to display live content before they are added to the home screen. This feature contributes to a more refined user experience by providing a preview of what the widget will look like, enhancing the customization process.

💡Bluetooth Audio Sharing

Bluetooth Audio Sharing is a feature that enables multiple headphones to be paired with the same audio source, provided they support Bluetooth LE. This feature exemplifies the video's focus on enhancing user convenience and improving the functionality of existing technologies.

💡Volume Sliders

Volume Sliders in the context of Android 15 refer to an updated interface for adjusting volume levels. The new design provides a full-screen overlay, making it clearer and more intuitive to manage audio levels for different apps and functions, which is a testament to Android's commitment to user interface improvements.

💡Partial Screen Recordings

Partial Screen Recordings is a feature that allows users to record only a specific app's activity instead of the entire screen. This feature is highlighted for its utility in creating focused tutorials or demonstrations, without capturing unwanted or sensitive information.

💡Adaptive Vibrations

Adaptive Vibrations is a feature that uses the phone's microphone and sensors to adjust the vibration strength based on the surrounding sound levels and surface type. This innovative aspect of Android 15 demonstrates the operating system's advanced capabilities in context-aware interactions.

💡Notification Cool Down

Notification Cool Down is a setting designed to manage the frequency of notifications from the same app, preventing the user from being overwhelmed by a flood of alerts. Although it was present in an earlier preview and not in the final version discussed, it represents Android's efforts to refine notification management.

💡Custom Vibration Patterns

Custom Vibration Patterns is a feature that allows developers to set unique vibration patterns for their apps. While not directly available to users in the current version, it hints at potential future personalization options for notification management, aligning with the video's theme of subtle yet impactful improvements.

💡Vanilla Ice Cream

Vanilla Ice Cream is the codename used for Android 15 in the developer previews. It is part of a playful tradition where Android versions are named after desserts. The Easter egg animation associated with this name in the video adds a layer of whimsy and branding to the Android experience.

Highlights

Introduction of Android 15 beta on Pixel 8 Pro with a focus on smaller, more nuanced features.

Trend of Android updates moving from massive overhauls to more refined, useful tweaks.

Top five features of Android 15 being akin to past .0.2 updates, indicating smaller but well-considered updates.

Private Space feature for secure storage of sensitive files and photos.

Setup of Private Space through Settings, Security & Privacy, and its accessibility.

Guest Mode and Private Space as separate sections with a second lock for privacy.

Refinement of Android experience through small, quality-of-life improvements.

Rich widget previews for live content representation before adding widgets.

New back animation for smoother navigation through settings.

Bluetooth audio sharing feature for multiple headphone pairing.

High Quality Mode for Android phone use as a webcam.

Bluetooth Auto On feature for automatic Bluetooth reactivation.

New volume sliders for clearer audio control and visibility.

Partial screen recordings for focused app recording without background interference.

Adaptive Vibrations using phone's mic and sensors for context-aware vibration strength.

Notification Cool Down feature for managing repetitive notifications from the same app.

Developers' ability to customize individual vibration patterns per app.

Easter egg in Android 15's settings with a space-like animation and a mysterious spacecraft.

Anticipation for AI-based features expected to significantly impact phone usage.

Transcripts

00:00

(light music)

00:03

- Hey, what's up, MKBHD here and I've got the latest beta

00:07

of Android 15 on my Pixel 8 Pro right here.

00:10

So a lot of you know,

00:11

I've done these videos for a long time.

00:11

Like I've made a video on the best features

00:14

of the latest version of Android

00:16

for I don't know how many years in a row now,

00:18

since they were naming 'em after desserts.

00:20

And if you've been watching all of these,

00:21

then you've noticed a trend,

00:23

which is there used to be huge new features

00:27

and massive like visual overhauls and all sorts

00:30

of crazy gigantic things changing with Android.

00:32

But now things have stabilized, I would say.

00:35

It's a lot more small changes

00:37

and more nuanced things here and there.

00:38

So it's gotten to the point where these top five features

00:42

of Android 15, back in the day,

00:44

this would've been like a .0.2 update.

00:47

Like, these are smaller and smaller

00:50

new features with each new version.

00:51

But on the other hand, that actually feels like it is...

00:54

They're a little more well considered.

00:56

They're more about usefulness,

00:57

they're more about little tweaks here

00:59

and there to make actually using

01:00

and owning your phone a little bit better.

01:02

So I can appreciate that.

01:03

And I will also say it, it's felt like

01:05

in videos in the past, I've said that,

01:07

you know, this is a version that's only gonna show up

01:08

on the Pixel for at least a year

01:10

and you may never get to see the newest version of Android,

01:13

but I feel like with a lot of the newest companies

01:16

actually promising a good amount

01:17

of software updates into the future,

01:19

hopefully more people will actually

01:21

see these couple of things.

01:23

So I'm just gonna jump right in.

01:25

These are the top five best features

01:27

I've found in Android 15.

01:29

So number five is called Private Space and it's,

01:33

yeah, it's exactly what it sounds like.

01:35

It's a private space on your Android phone

01:38

for your top secret files and photos

01:42

and whatever else you got in there.

01:45

So to turn it on, you go to Settings

01:47

and then Security & Privacy

01:49

and then Private Space is near the bottom.

01:51

So you confirm it's you and you pick a Google account

01:54

and a new lock if you want.

01:56

Then this Private Space is set up

01:58

and basically you can always find it all the way

02:00

at the bottom of your app drawer,

02:02

like that's where it lives.

02:03

So obviously, if you were to like give someone your phone

02:05

to borrow for a while, you could put it in Guest Mode

02:07

and it would just basically be a brand

02:08

new phone for them set up.

02:10

But yeah, Private Space is different.

02:11

It's more of just a separate section

02:14

under a separate lock underneath the phone

02:16

that you're already logged into and signed up for.

02:18

So it's basically a whole new little section

02:20

of your phone hidden away behind a second lock

02:23

for your top secret activities,

02:26

apps, files, photos, whatever you want.

02:30

And when you wanna hide it away again, you just hit Lock.

02:33

You could put whatever you want in there, totally up to you.

02:36

Then number four, so I'm kind

02:39

of combining a lot of these things.

02:40

I've done this in videos in the past.

02:41

It's just a whole bunch of the little things

02:43

that sort of stack up to feel

02:45

like a more refined experience.

02:46

So number four is the little things.

02:48

Like, one of them is rich widget previews,

02:51

which obviously is not a huge thing

02:52

'cause how often are you actually adding

02:54

new widgets to your home screen?

02:55

Not very much.

02:56

But when you do now, the widgets

02:58

that support this will actually show you content

03:00

that will actually be on them before they get added

03:04

and they're in live and real time

03:05

and represent real things on your phone.

03:07

This could have maybe been higher on my list,

03:09

but at this point it's so new

03:10

that it's basically only like two of Google's apps.

03:13

Like, it's just the clocks and widgets around that.

03:16

But it would be nice to see more Google apps

03:19

and even more third party apps adopt this.

03:21

Like, I want to see, in the example widget before I add it,

03:25

like one of my actual notion boards instead of a made-up one

03:28

or one of my actual contacts instead of a random person.

03:32

Another one is this new back animation

03:34

when you move backwards through like settings

03:36

or anything with multiple layers that you can back out of.

03:38

I think it's a little bit smoother, a little nicer.

03:40

Another one is Bluetooth audio sharing.

03:42

You can have multiple headphones paired

03:44

to the same Bluetooth audio source

03:46

as long as they support Bluetooth LE,

03:47

which most new headphones do.

03:49

Another one is High Quality Mode

03:51

when you use your Android phone as your webcam.

03:53

Another one is Bluetooth Auto On.

03:56

So if you turn Bluetooth off on your phone,

03:57

then the next day it automatically gets turned back on again

04:00

so you don't have to remember to.

04:01

And there's just a whole bunch more little things like that.

04:03

It feels like every year Google pays attention

04:06

to the little things about the way we use our phones

04:08

and then can add stuff to help us there.

04:11

But speaking of little things,

04:12

I'm making number three by itself one

04:15

of those little things, which is the new volume sliders.

04:18

So right now when I hit Volume,

04:19

it looks the way it normally does,

04:21

the Auto Live Caption button is still there on the Pixel,

04:24

totally underrated feature,

04:25

and then your mode switcher at the top.

04:27

But then when you hit the three dots to expand,

04:29

you get this whole almost full screen overlay showing

04:34

where you're playing audio to

04:35

and then all of the sliders for volume

04:37

of everything happening on your phone.

04:38

And this is something, you know, that's been smaller

04:41

and in various other forms and previous versions of Android,

04:44

but I like this big one.

04:45

Just makes it super clear what's going on

04:46

and how loud each individual thing is going to be.

04:50

So then now we're getting to the top.

04:52

Number two is partial screen recordings.

04:56

So I think normally when you do

04:59

a screen recording on your phone,

05:00

you just expect to see everything, right?

05:02

You just start it, it's your home screen,

05:05

it's every single app you switch between,

05:07

everything happening on your phone.

05:09

That's a normal screen recording.

05:11

But I've been playing with screen recordings here

05:12

on the Pixel with this dev preview

05:14

and it's a lot smarter about only showing

05:17

if you want individual single things

05:20

happening on your phone.

05:21

So when you go to initiate a screen recording,

05:23

you can either do the entire screen,

05:25

which is normal, or a single app.

05:28

So check this out, if I do single app

05:29

and then start recording, it gives me a picker

05:31

to choose which app I want to record.

05:34

I'll pick one of the ones I already have open,

05:36

Relay Reddit, just for this example.

05:38

The countdown starts at the top

05:40

and then it's recording this Reddit app.

05:42

So I can scroll around, just use it as usual,

05:45

but now watch, if I go home

05:47

and then open another app like Photos

05:49

and then scroll around in here,

05:50

and then go back home, go back to the Relay app,

05:54

then scroll some more, that's the screen recording.

05:56

Now check this out, when you go

05:58

to watch the screen recording, it looks normal,

06:00

but then the moment I go home and then go to Photos,

06:04

see, that doesn't show up in the screen recording.

06:06

It's still just recording the Reddit app

06:09

even though it's in the background now.

06:11

And then you can see when I get back to it

06:13

and starts scrolling some more,

06:14

it picks up where it left off.

06:15

So it's only specifically showing what I want you to see.

06:19

And this is super useful.

06:20

I think this is my new default for screen recordings.

06:22

You don't have to see, you know,

06:24

a random text message I have coming in

06:26

or me copying and pasting a security code

06:28

from another app or anything like that.

06:30

It's just me giving you a tutorial

06:32

on like one exact thing that I wanna show you.

06:35

That's pretty cool.

06:36

But then number one, this is one of those things

06:38

that Android has been really good at

06:40

and had the edge at for years,

06:42

which is just better notifications

06:44

and notification management.

06:46

And so far with these two previews,

06:48

it's even better in specifically a couple of ways.

06:51

There's Adaptive Vibrations,

06:54

there is Notification Cool Down, there is custom vibrations,

06:57

there's a whole bunch of stuff, so I'll walk through each.

06:59

So Adaptive Vibration is fascinating.

07:02

It kind of just seems like another one

07:03

of those magic-feeling Google things,

07:05

but you go into Vibration Settings and just turn it on,

07:08

there's no further settings.

07:10

But it basically says it's using your phone's mic

07:13

and other sensors to determine the sound levels around it

07:16

and potentially even what type of surface it's on

07:19

to set the strength of vibration

07:21

so you can always feel or hear it.

07:23

So the idea is if your phone is on like a desk somewhere

07:25

or a hard surface, it doesn't have

07:27

to rattle the thing at maximum strength

07:29

to be heard, it can turn it down.

07:31

But then if it's on a couch or something softer,

07:34

it will pick that up and it will vibrate more loudly

07:37

or more firmly so you can actually still hear it, clever.

07:41

And then there's another thing in Dev Preview 1 at least

07:43

that was called Notification Cool Down,

07:46

which is literally just a setting

07:48

to be able to help you manage

07:49

when you get a ton of notifications

07:51

from the same app over and over in a row.

07:54

'Cause we've all been in that group chat that's going nuts

07:56

or the Slack channel that won't shut up,

07:58

or Asana or whatever,

08:01

something that's just constantly pinging you over

08:03

and over with the same app.

08:05

And so Notification Cool Down, when you enable that,

08:07

will just sort of taper that off and keep you updated

08:10

on when a bunch of new stuff comes in, but not

08:12

just buzz you over and over. (fingers tapping)

08:15

Now that was in Dev Preview 1

08:17

and then this is Dev Preview 2

08:19

and it's not in this one, it's gone.

08:21

I'm not sure why, but I hope they bring that back.

08:22

I hope they keep it 'cause that's pretty sick.

08:24

And then there's even more subtle one that's,

08:26

'cause it's basically hidden to users,

08:28

this is something developers have seen,

08:29

which is individual vibration patterns per app.

08:34

'Cause see, some of you aren't old enough to remember

08:36

when smartphones had LED notification lights on them,

08:40

multicolor lights that would actually

08:42

have a different color light up based on

08:44

what app you were getting a notification from.

08:46

So I could know, without waking up my phone,

08:49

if I had a blinking blue light happening,

08:51

oh, that's a Twitter notification, I can ignore it.

08:54

Or if it was a blinking green light,

08:56

then it's a new Gmail notification and I can ignore it.

08:59

But if it's a new blinking red light,

09:01

then it's a new missed call and I can ignore it.

09:05

But then phones all got rid of these lights.

09:06

So now we wake up our phones

09:07

every time I wanna check on something.

09:09

And if you have it always on display, that can be useful.

09:11

But in a surface shown to developers,

09:15

they have the ability now to customize

09:17

their own vibration pattern specific to their app.

09:21

So I think that's pretty sick.

09:23

I'm kinda hoping, and this is totally just hoping,

09:27

but I hope that they surface that to users as well.

09:30

I hope, just like I've been able to pick

09:32

between a bunch of different weather icon apps

09:34

for my one app that does weather,

09:36

I hope they let me choose

09:37

between a couple custom vibration sounds

09:39

or vibration patterns for apps

09:41

because I would love to customize

09:44

and feel that I've gotten a Twitter notification

09:48

and that I can still ignore it.

09:49

Now for those wondering, since we check every year,

09:51

when you go into Settings,

09:52

it doesn't actually say Android 15,

09:55

it says Vanilla Ice Cream for this Dev Preview 2.

09:59

And when you click into it, this is the animated Easter egg,

10:02

which looks nothing like vanilla ice cream,

10:04

but for what it's worth, it's a little more space-like.

10:06

But now here's the thing, if you hold it down long enough,

10:09

it speeds up all the way and then snaps

10:12

and turns into this, this sort of random spacecraft

10:16

in the middle of what seems like a nearly infinite canvas.

10:20

Kinda reminds me of that asteroids game

10:22

from back in the day.

10:23

But you don't shoot anything,

10:24

you just kinda fly around using this thrust vector

10:27

and explore this gigantic space.

10:30

The only thing that worries me is that in the corner,

10:33

it says BODIES: 0 / 10.

10:36

So I think if people explore this thing long enough,

10:40

they're gonna find bodies, whatever that means.

10:44

But yeah, like I said, a bunch of subtle things,

10:46

some new notification stuff here and there,

10:48

some new management usage of your phone type stuff.

10:51

It's nuanced, it's subtle.

10:54

I'm still excited for some of the bigger AI-based features

10:57

to drop because that's the stuff that we're expecting

10:59

to make a big difference the way we use our phones.

11:01

It's just not built into Android anymore.

11:05

It's the AI stuff that your phone is capable of

11:08

that's not in the OS. (soft music)

11:10

It's still good to see good OS features too.

11:12

Lemme know what your favorite one is

11:14

or if you agree with my order

11:15

of the top five in the comments section below.

11:17

Thanks for watching, catch you in the next one, peace.

11:21

(soft music continues)

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Tags associés
Android 15Pixel 8 ProBeta ReleaseMobile OSSoftware UpdateUser ExperiencePrivacy FeaturesNotification ManagementScreen RecordingTech Review
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