Android 14’s QPR2 Beta 2 is now out there for the Pixel 5a, Pixel 6 and newer, and Android skilled Mishaal Rahman, writing for Android Police has gone by way of the replace to flag a number of the most fascinating adjustments.
The steady model of this replace is predicted subsequent yr, so you might be ready just a few months earlier than you may attempt these out for your self. However for beta customers on the lookout for new toys to play with, or anybody eager to know what to stay up for after they have the ultimate replace themselves, here is what’s new.
Android 14: Scanning for misleading apps
Scanning for misleading apps is a brand new function positioned within the Extra safety and privateness choices web page, and acts as safety in opposition to apps making an attempt to phish to your knowledge. The function runs in your system privately however will in fact ship a report back to Google if it detects something suspicious to hopefully stop others from falling for a similar rip-off.
Personal area
Personal Area lives beneath the Safety and privateness settings, and permits the creation of a separate profile in your cellphone the place you may hold sure apps separated from the remainder of your cellphone. You’ll be able to lock these behind the identical credentials you usually use to guard your cellphone or a separate set, so in idea solely it is possible for you to to seek out the apps — even when you hand your unlocked cellphone to another person. The notifications and different related settings for these apps are hidden too until you’ve got acquired Personal Area open, making certain they’re completely hid.
A locked space for sure apps and recordsdata is already an possibility in some Android variations, equivalent to Samsung’s One UI or Xiaomi’s HyperOS, however the addition of the function to primary Android means extra cellphone makers can use the function or simply add extra to it. Nevertheless, this might be an Android 15 function present process early testing according to Rahman. So if Personal Area does not make it to the steady model of Android 14 QPR2, you will know why.
Notification and Fast Settings redesign
The newest Android 14 beta affords a brand new Bluetooth switching pop-up (through Rahman and AP) when tapping and holding the related Fast Settings tile. So now along with providing a speedy option to disable Bluetooth, it is simply as fast to change paired gadgets or open the Bluetooth settings so as to add a brand new system or handle an current connection.
Talking of Fast Settings, there’s now a Share Wi-Fi shortcut possibility (through 9to5Google) you may add to the toolbar, a speedy option to generate a QR code to simplify organising a brand new system in your community.
One other appreciable change to this a part of the Android UI is the brand new notification panel structure that seems when holding your cellphone in panorama mode. As a substitute of losing area with an enlarged model of the usual notification shade, the shade now seems alongside the fast settings, which is a far smarter use of area when holding your cellphone sideways. It may show invaluable for Android tablets too, since these are primarily utilized in panorama orientation.
App archiving, notification cooldowns and extra
Assist for app archiving is one thing Google Play Retailer apps have been in a position to provide for just a few months, permitting you to partially uninstall apps to avoid wasting on-device storage when wanted. The Android 14 QPR2 beta provides assist for this, which means now you can archive an app from the cellphone’s personal settings somewhat than needing to do it by way of the Play Retailer app.
To maintain you sane when the group chat begins popping off, the QPR2 beta provides a Notification cooldown possibility, both for simply your conversations or for all apps. Enabling this may stop successive notifications from pinging you each time, with the choice to show off vibrations when the cellphone’s locked on prime of that.
Circle to look through Google Lens is a fun-sounding addition that allows you to spotlight one thing on display screen to look by dragging your finger round an on-screen object, saving you a replica/paste you probably have a sudden itch to find out about one thing you are taking a look at. However contemplating this gesture is at present hidden within the developer menu, this might not be out there within the full QPR2 launch.
Two extra small adjustments to say out of the at present found beta updates: Now you can change your time period of handle as a part of the Regional preferences menu, which lets you set how overseas languages with totally different grammatical genders seek advice from you throughout all of your apps. There’s additionally a devoted choice to disable keyboard haptics, to cease the cellphone from buzzing if you hit the keys.
As we talked about above, with out the beta you’ll have to wait months for these adjustments to reach in your cellphone. It could even be longer if a few of them get held again for Android 15, or in case your cellphone maker’s only a bit gradual adapting the replace to your handset. However it is a robust crop of upgrades that can assist make one of the best Android telephones, and particularly Google Pixels, even higher.