Google has finally unveiled the name of the next iteration of Android with Android 9 Pie or Android 9.0 today. Not just the name Google has also pushed the Final stable update of the Android 9.0 which will be soon hitting Pixel devices.
The new Android Pie update is already hitting the Google Pixel smartphones starting from today via OTA update. Google is also pushing the Android Pie update to Android One devices as well as Android Beta Program enrolled devices from brands like Essential, Nokia, Xiaomi, OnePlus, OPPO, Sony Mobile, and Vivo by end of this fall.
Google is also working with various partners to bring a few new devices with Android P or update the older devices but has not revealed the partner details. Currently, the Android Pie will not have the new feature Slice which will be updated later this year via OTA update.
Google also announced that with Android 9.0 Pie will focus more on AI which is “at the core of the operating system”. It has also added a few features like Adaptive Battery, Adaptive Brightness, and App Actions which are based on user usage and machine learning. Google will also add the Google Well Being feature later this year starting with Pixel devices. The digital well-being feature is already present on Android 9 Pie stable update for Pixel devices but it is currently under Beta Phase.
Currently, Android 9 Pie update is already rolling out to Essential PH-1 which adds Gesture-based navigation, Adaptive battery, Refreshed notification, Adaptive Brightness and Rotation suggestion.
Adaptive Battery & Brightness:
One of the main features of Android 9 Pie is the new Adaptive Battery and Adaptive Brightness. With the new Adaptive Battery feature, one can save some amount of charge automatically cutting down the apps which you don’t use on regular basis. Similarly, Adaptive Brightness will automatically increase or decreases the brightness on the screen based on your location and what are you doing on the device.
Slices:
Google has also added a useful feature called the Slices which was above to make its debut with Android 9 Pie. With Slices, the apps will be shown in the Google Search results so that one can directly launch from the browser. If you search for Ola in Google App, then Ola will show a slice of the option to go Home or work and book a cab directly from search results.
App Actions:
Another AI feature which is included is with the App Actions. The new App Action is being displayed on the Google Launcher based on user activities. So if you plug in the earphones you will be notified with action either to play music or to make a call to your near ones and will improve based on usage.
Overview Mode:
Android 9 Pie will also get the new way to navigate between the apps with iPhone X like Gesture-based navigation button which is now trimmed down to only two buttons. Simply swiping up will take you to Overview mode where one can jump between apps and can even copy the text without moving to the apps directly from Overview window via Smart Text Selection feature.
Notification panel icons are now more rounded and will have to expand long messages directly from the notification panel.
Digital Wellbeing:
The last feature which Google new Android 9 Pie will include is the new Digital Wellbeing feature which even Apple is launching on their version of the same feature on iOS 12 later this year. Digital Wellbeing is like tracking your daily usage like the number of time device was unlocked, time spent on Facebook or other apps and suggest one to close the app with the help of App Timers. The Wind Down mode which switches the Nightlights on and DND which grayscale the screen and ask user not to overuse the device. All these features are currently in Beta stage and can be enabled by signing up for the same on Google Play Store.
