While waiting for Apple’s WWDC, tech fans were able to attend Google I/O, Google’s developer conference.
Each year, the American presents its new software there and gives an overview of the next version of Android. The 2022 edition is no exception, so Google has unveiled the outline of Android 13 Tiramisu. We therefore invite you to discover its 13 main novelties.
Refined interface
With Android 12, Google inaugurated a major redesign of Android. Material Design has therefore given way to Material You, a highly customizable interface adapted to each user.
With Android 13, the design is refined in small touches here and there making the experience even more intuitive.
This new Android will have more customization options, especially in terms of the lock screen clock. Application icons can also benefit from their own theme adapted to Material You.
Other aesthetic novelties include: the new media player, more attractive than ever. These changes will of course be visible initially on Pixels. It is then up to each manufacturer to adapt it to its own overlay. Some may even ignore graphic elements.
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A more secure phone
© Presse-citron.net
Every year Google and Apple improve the security of their mobile OS. Apart from the usual security patches, Android 13 will bring new features to protect your privacy even more.
Among the most useful are the targeting of permissions granted to applications. From now on, an application will have to ask precisely what type of multimedia content it wishes to access (audio, photo, video, etc.) and not put everything in the same basket.
Similarly, location information will no longer be needed if you want to locate other nearby devices connected to the same WiFi network.
The management of notifications will also be more precise. Now, on every install, users will be asked whether or not they want to allow an app to send notifications. Like on iOS.
Improved autonomy
© Presse-citron.net
It’s no longer a secret that the autonomy of a smartphone does not depend exclusively on the capacity of its battery. As proof, the latest iPhones do not have the most impressive batteries, yet they are undoubtedly the most enduring smartphones on the market (who would have thought?).
What matters is optimization. Google is therefore working on a new feature called TARE to “The Android Resource Economy”.
Thanks to it, the system will be able to learn how the applications work and will be able to authorize or not to carry out certain tasks in the background. For now, this optimization is not visible in the latest Android 13 betas, but we hope it will arrive in time.
Without it, autonomy will still be improved since Android 13 will allow some apps to bypass PhantomProcessKillera barrier against applications requiring too many resources, introduced with Android 12.
The problem with this process is that it was causing some applications to malfunction. By authorizing the circumvention, Google should improve the autonomy of smartphones.
Better gaming experience
© Oppo
The smartphone gaming experience may have improved from year to year, but it is still far from optimal. Among the areas for improvement, the rise in temperature of the terminals with certain games can be a problem.
Thanks to Android 13, this tendency to overheat should become rare. In effect, Google has developed algorithms capable of optimizing the gaming experience.
Rather than soliciting the processor throughout the game session, the system will require a surplus of power when launching the game to download all the elements necessary for its proper functioning.
Thus, during the gaming session, the resource requirements will be lower, which reduces the heating, especially with poorly optimized games.
Google Wallet: the digital card holder
This is one of the main big new features of Android 13. Google Wallet takes over the principle of Apple Wallet. We can therefore find in this digital wallet all his bank cards but also loyalty cards, plane or train tickets, car or hotel keys, or even vaccination certificates. In countries where it is allowed, Google Wallet may also store IDs.
According to the images shared by Google, its Wallet will look like two drops of water to that of Apple, with a graphic charter in Google sauce. We won’t complain as Apple’s wallet is practical on a daily basis.
QR Codes more easily accessible
© Unsplash / Claudio Schwarz
Since the health crisis, the QR Code has been part of our daily lives. And yet, it is not always easy to scan a code with an Android smartphone.
Unlike Apple, Google does not offer automatic detection of the code from the camera. We must therefore use a third-party application or look for a well-hidden option in the photo application (for certain overlays).
To facilitate handling, Google will therefore integrate a quick shortcut (in the quick options bar therefore) to the QR Code scanner. Hallelujah!
New flashlight
Adjusting torch intensity on an iPhone. © Lemon Squeezer
As strange as it may seem, Android’s flashlight does not allow you to adjust the lighting power. You can only turn it on or off.
With Android 13, that’s history. Certainly, many manufacturers have added this functionality in their overlays, but Google did not offer it by default.
Finally a true silent mode
Yes, it may sound amazing, but the stock version of Android didn’t have a true silent mode. Until now, when we activated the silent mode on an Android smartphone (without manufacturer overlay), we were actually in vibrate mode.
In early developer builds of Android 13, a true silent mode, without any sound or vibration, was readily available. Disappeared since in the public beta versions, we hope to find it in the final version of Android 13.
Spatial audio, like Apple
© Lemon squeezer
Today, to enjoy spatial sound, an Android smartphone must have Dolby Atmos certification.
Google wants to make this audio quality accessible to as many people as possible and is therefore developing spatial audio managed directly by Android.
During the conference, the company did mention this novelty for Android 13. However, we do not know which devices will be able to inherit it. The latest Pixels should of course benefit from it, but who else?
The more intuitive copy-paste
© Drop / StackOverflow
This is a function that may seem trivial and yet we use it daily. Sharing links or text by simply copying and pasting will improve on Android 13.
From now on, when we copy an element, il will be stored in a small floating bubble in the upper left corner of the screen. This little bubble is none other than the clipboard. By touching the bubble, you can preview the copied content. You can even modify it before pasting it.
Better language management
Android 13 will allow users to choose a language for each application. Until now, we had to settle for a single language for the entire system.
This has several advantages. Users will be able to communicate with their relatives and/or colleagues via applications mainly used in certain countries. For example, Asians will be able to configure messaging apps like WeChat in their native language.
Then, it allows to circumvent the problems of translation. Some applications are indeed incomprehensible in French because of a bad translation. If you are proficient in Shakespeare’s language, it may be better to configure it in English.
Simplified home automation
© Unsplash / BENCE BOROS
If you have started to equip your home with connected devices, you must also hate having to unlock your smartphone to adjust certain parameters (turn on a light, change its color, lower the volume of a speaker, etc.).
To facilitate these manipulations, Android 13 will allow control of home automation functions directly from the lock screen. Rather not bad.
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Android 13 for tablets: finally an attractive interface!
The latest novelty does not concern smartphones but tablets. For the first time in its history, Android 13 will display an interface adapted to the tablet formatTo our delight.
Because until now, we can’t really say that Android is suitable for tablet use. According to the first images unveiled by Google, Android 13 for tablets is strongly inspired by Chrome OS. And we won’t complain.
Thus, an icon bar will group a selection of applications at the bottom of the screen. The notifications bar and the quick settings bar will each cover half of the screen. Above all, Google was inspired by the iPad for multi-windowing. Again, we can’t blame him.
Google also took the opportunity to completely redesign a dozen of its in-house applications so that they are more suitable for tablet use.
It remains to be seen now which tablets will host Android 13. Google has announced its first product of its kind (a Pixel Pad?) for 2023. We can’t wait!
These are essentially the new features of Android 13. Of course, like every year, the number of new features is counted in the hundreds. But those exposed above will undoubtedly be the most visible to you on a daily basis.
