3 Android 16 adjustments that simply do not impress me in any respect

Upfront, I am going to admit that I am on report as preferring iPhones lately. My every day driver is an

iPhone 16 Pro
. However I’ve owned a number of Android telephones over time, and I nonetheless recognize the platform to at the present time. There are issues that it does higher than iOS — corresponding to voice instructions — and I like the truth that it is open-source, even when {hardware} makers haven’t got a lot alternative however to license Google companies. It might be unusual to purchase an Android telephone with out Gmail able to go, in any case.

I am trying ahead to making an attempt units with

Android 16
pre-loaded. Nevertheless, the interface impresses me as a lot as

iOS 18
did — which is to say, not very a lot. Enhancements are all the time welcome, but based mostly on what Google’s proven to date, its newest OS nonetheless appears like a minor evolution. Let’s speak about a number of examples of what I imply.

1

Materials 3 Expressive

A brand new coat of (physics-based) paint

Hyperlink Picture

Android 16 definitely seems good. There are up to date dynamic colour themes, new font types, and much more interface animations, together with bounces and ripples for actions like swiping away your notifications. New aesthetics are literally one among my favourite issues about updating any OS, since I get pleasure from personalizing my telephone as a lot as doable — with out critical modding work, anyway.

My grievance is simply that, for all of the hype round Materials 3 Expressive, it isn’t a radical leap past what you see in Android 15. If something, what issues extra are Google’s sensible interface adjustments, corresponding to the power to each resize and reorder Fast Settings icons (a la iOS 18’s Management Heart), or monitor deliveries and rideshares by way of Dwell Updates (one other factor borrowed from Apple). A yr from now, individuals are going to care much more about checking how quickly their

Uber
goes to reach than what widget colours they’ve obtainable.

I might be stood corrected down the road. Generally, not less than, these kinds of interface adjustments have a cumulative impact that may’t be conveyed by movies or screenshots. If Android 16 feels genuinely higher to make use of day-to-day on account of its visible tweaks, that can depend for one thing.

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2

Discover Hub private location sharing

Helpful in concept, however how about in apply?

Google

As an entire, I approve of the Discover Hub, a rebrand/redesign of Android’s Discover My Gadgets app. One among its signature options is best sharing of your real-time location with different individuals, in concept, serving to family and friends reunite after they get misplaced, or examine in on one another’s security — say if somebody’s doing a sundown jog or coming again late from a highway journey. Sharers can select to time-limit this monitoring or depart it on indefinitely.

I am positive some individuals will profit enormously, however that is one other function copied from Apple, particularly the Discover My app. And let me say — on my iPhone, my spouse and I virtually by no means use Discover My for following one another, despite the fact that I am out on the gymnasium three nights every week, and our travels typically take us to the alternative aspect of North America. A telephone name or textual content message is often a pleasant method of updating somebody on what you are doing, and a few individuals are inherently uncomfortable with sharing their exact location over the web, irrespective of any Google assurances about encryption. To actually benefit from Discover Hub, you may additionally want the individuals you are sharing with to have it, too.

Paradoxically, I feel Discover Hub’s expanded merchandise monitoring is an even bigger deal. Help for UWB (ultra-wideband) will make some units and tag equipment less complicated to seek out, and Google is increasing its associate checklist, as an illustration, including the power to share Bluetooth tag information with choose airways, beginning in 2026. That is one other transfer copied from Apple.

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3

Gemini coming to extra units

The place’s my Google Nest help?

Google

Gemini does belong in additional locations, significantly vehicles. Generally it is tough sufficient to decide on music or a preset vacation spot whereas driving, by no means thoughts the stuff you’d usually do in your telephone. With Gemini,

Android Auto
(and the confusingly-named

Android Automotive
) will allow you to use your voice for duties like unearthing an handle buried in Gmail, or finding an EV charging station that additionally has a restaurant close by. When you’re bored or curious, you can ask questions on every little thing from the Grand Canyon to the Spanish Inquisition.

The AI assistant is coming to Put on OS, Google TV, and

Android XR
as nicely, however I am skeptical of the way it’ll work on these platforms. Smartwatches typically really feel underpowered for what they’re already operating, and I do not know that I belief Gemini for film and present suggestions, not to mention answering questions by displaying me YouTube movies. Even well-meaning YouTube channels typically get their info mistaken.

Android XR, in the meantime, is an unknown amount, since there are not any appropriate glasses or headsets obtainable to the general public but. After they do arrive, Gemini goes to should show wonderful object recognition to be helpful, and that is on prime of minimizing the “hallucinations” (botched solutions) it typically gives. Google suggests utilizing Gemini on Android XR for duties like house enchancment — however there’s some critical hazard potential if it makes errors about issues like electrical energy or plumbing.

I wish to like Gemini, however I am not going to be impressed by its wider footprint till I see it in real-world conditions. And Google has but to replace any of its Nest audio system or shows with the expertise, which you’d suppose could be a pure match. It might be an easier method of making sensible house automations, and a dialog is lots simpler with out having to carry a telephone or distant in entrance of your face.

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