Google’s most-awaited piece operating system is finally out with a bunch of exciting new features. And the name is “Pie, Android 9.0 Pie”. From extended battery life to a new gesture navigation, the new operating system marks to be one of the most cutting-edge until now. The interface looks more colorful, freer and bridled with a collection of new movement animations. It’s an epiphany that Pie is still as fast as Android Oreo, or at least on the Google smartphones.
First Honeycomb, then Sandwich, KitKat, later Marshmallow and now Pie, jokingly but evidently Google has always been introducing the smoother systems to Android in the form of updates. To everyone’s bombshell, Pie brings rounded-edges on almost everything in the newer version of the operating system. Artificial Intelligence makes the most of Android 9.0 Pie. But there is ‘n’ number of other features that need highlights. Let’s break it down.
Can your phone get it?
The newest version of Google’s Android is currently available in the Google Pixel Smartphones. But no despair, the devices that participated in the Beta programme, such as Sony Mobiles, Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo, will also acquire an update facility by the end of this fall.
If you receive a notification for the update availability, head straight to Settings > System > Advanced > System Update and hit the download option. Otherwise, simply click the “Check for Update” button, and you’ll know.
What’s new in The Android 9.0 Pie?
Well, the latest flavor has got all sorts of features, thanks to A.I., including a sophisticated interface and a heap of under-the-hood tweaks that aims to make Android 9, as the best Android until now. Also, over the years Android’s three traditional buttons have known to be dominating, but Pie reduced all three to one pill-shaped touch function in the favor of the gesture-based system. In fact, Android 9 Pie’s UI is an ultimate combination of taps and swipes and both. Generally, the interface and the number of buttons were becoming more of a hassle; so, reducing it to just one is a boon. I say it is a well-thought upgrade.
As for the theme, there is a drastic change that is more round and colorful. Compared to Oreo, the appearance and the visual changes are also radical. The new theme might take a time to get accustomed, but with the new gestures and updated animations, Pie has the smoothest UI like none before.
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Which are the new features?
1. Android Dashboard
Apart from the garnishing the Pie, Google has also introduced “Android Dashboard” viz. basically, a quick glimpse of all the activities in the past. It shows how you’re using your phone, all the stats, how many times you’ve unlocked the screen and all the number of notifications from each app, specifically. Now that’s some serious spy-skills, Google Holmes.
2. App actions
Based on the app actions, a smarter personal assistant will predict which app you’d use more during the day and during the night; hence, it especially displays those apps on the Home Screen. For instance, your most used social media and messaging app will be on one tile of the screen. If you use any Microsoft app for your work on a weekday morning, the app suggestion will be only on your Home Screen, accordingly. if Google Play Books or Google Play Music app is on your Home Screen during the weekends, it is probably because of the app actions.
3. App timer, DND, and Wind Down – Digital Wellbeing
“App timer” will allow the users to set their specific amount of time for the usage of a particular app. Say, for instance, you’ve spent xx hours on some app, the tools will automatically pull on DND and switch off the screen to a monochrome color palette. It is helpful with both, your productivity and silence from interruptions (especially during bedtime).
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4. A new system of navigation
The new navigation gesture is accessible right from your Home Screen. It is one-handed, comfortable and simplifies multi-tasking. Moreover, you can just swipe up to see a newly designed overview. When it comes to the three traditional buttons, there is no doubt that they are cut-down to a pill-shaped swipe, but the functions still remain the same. To go home, simply tap the pill-shaped home button. For viewing the recently used apps, Flick it up and up upwards twice. Or if you need the Google Assistant, the gesture for that is the same, i.e. ‘hold it down’.
The newer version of overview, gives users, a much larger view of the previously on-going apps or the background apps. It makes the process lot easier to see and resume the activity. Over and above, this also provides access to search, predicted apps, App actions and to all the other apps with just a swipe.
5. Adaptive Battery
Undoubtedly, the interface is the biggest improvement to the Android, overall. But using systems developed by Alphabet’s AI-outfit, the Adaptive Battery feature analyses the user’s usage pattern and accordingly drives power only to the apps whichever in need. Statistically, doing so will cause a 20% of net savings on day-to-day battery life. On the other hand, AI integration also leads to a relief from manual adjustments.
6. Rotation suggestion
Sometimes it is annoying either when the screen rotation automatically changes the landscape to portrait mode or it does not work when needed. The AI functioning drives the new feature that allows the rotation lock located on the top right of the screen.
This actually comes in handy, and it is inarguably one of the most needed changes. Well, suppose you are lying down in bed and you are reading something on your phone, but the phone would not rotate the screen, despite the lock. The little button on the navigation bar decides whether you actually want to rotate the screen or not. However, if you are watching a movie and you tilt the screen to landscape mode, the screen would automatically rotate.
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7. Smart Replies
Although Android Oreo also had the feature of instant reply, there was no feature for smart replying for all the messaging apps. Smart Replies enables the user to get access to messages and reply to messages directly from the notification bar, effortlessly. Google has dedicated a Smart Reply app for an instant texting.
8. Privacy
In the last few years, the cybersecurity threats have trembled on to the online platform. Thus privacy is in the limelight. Obviously, the concern is rising due to the way these malicious apps get an access. But Android 9.0 handles the background apps to better protect user privacy. The apps in the background will no longer have an access to the location, microphone, camera and the network status. This gives a tough blow to the rogue apps that spy on users, without batting an eye.
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So now you are aware of what all ingredients make this new Android 9.0 Pie. Enjoy operating your chores on the new and incredibly fast interface and let us know if there are some more sneaky elements, that needs highlights.
