Although Google I/O 2024 is getting little attention, Android 15 will be replaced soon. Android 15 beta 2 was released yesterday. September or October this year will likely see the final release. While Android 15 doesn’t see any major improvements, it has some amazing new features that we can’t wait to try. Here are some of the best additions to look forward to when Android 15 hits your Android smartphone this fall.
Every day, we hear about incidents of phone theft. Google is introducing Theft Detection Lock, a new feature in Android 15 that uses AI to determine when your phone has been taken by a thief, to combat this. This function determines if your phone has been stolen using information from internal sensors such as the gyroscope and accelerometer. Your phone will lock as soon as theft is suspected, and only you or your fingerprint can unlock it.
Theft protection
The theft detection lock will work with Android phones running Android 10 and higher, which is good news. However, factory reset protection is a feature that is limited to Android 15. If a criminal tries to reset and reset your Android smartphone, Factory Reset Protection will prevent them from doing so unless they have your Google Account login credentials.
Private Space
Private Space, which was initially seen with Android 14 QPR2 beta 1 last month, is now part of Android 15. This feature lets you create a hidden area for programs that you want to keep private, as the name suggests. Not only will these applications not appear on the home screen or app launcher, but their alerts won’t work either. On a compatible Android 15 device, enable it by going to Settings → Security and privacy → Private space.
App archiving
App archiving will become a native feature of Android 15. Similar to uninstalling an app, this functionality saves some user data on the device. If you reinstall the application, you can continue where you left off. Tapping the archived app’s grayed-out icon takes you to the Google Play Store, where you can download it. To save storage space, the new Android version will also have an option to automatically archive apps that you don’t use often.
Partial screen recording
Android has always included screen recording, but with Android 15, it gets a helpful new capability. Now you can share or record an app window instead of the entire screen of your smartphone. This will prevent you from forgetting to turn off alerts or inadvertently switching to an app you didn’t want to record.
Improved continuity feature for foldable
Foldable devices that resemble passports, such as the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5, include a large internal screen that can be used to read books or watch movies. On the other hand, the internal display usually locks and turns off when the screen is folded. With Android 15, you can swipe up on the outer screen after folding your phone to resume activities from the inner screen. Yes, you are right – this feature is taken from OnePlus Open. However, you can modify the settings of how the external screen works to suit your preferences.
Satellite connectivity support
Since Android 14, Satellite Connection has been a component of the operating system. However, as of Android 15, this is becoming a system-level function. Applications can modify their data usage using APIs to identify whether the phone is connected to a satellite network rather than a cellular network or Wi-Fi. Additionally, contrary to Apple’s approach, Android 15’s satellite isn’t just for emergency services. It also allows SMS, MMS, and RCS messaging to work over satellite connections.
