Android Q Features

Android 10 — the fresher than the fresh version of Google’s mobile operating system — is here. Well, the OS formerly known as Android Q has been in beta for months but now it’s officially rolling out first to Google’s own line of Pixel phones, then to everyone else.

First unveiled at Google’s annual developer conference I/O, Android 10 brings a native dark mode, enhanced privacy and location settings, support for foldable phones and 5G phones, and more. Here’s our rundown of all the best features you can expect to see in Android 10.

Live Caption

Automatically caption media playing on your phone.

With a single tap, Live Caption automatically captions videos, podcasts, and audio messages — even stuff you record yourself. Without ever needing wifi or cell phone data.

A feature that won’t be live at launch, sadly. By tapping the volume button and the icon below the volume slider, Live Caption will automatically add subtitles to videos, podcasts, and audio messages － even for audio that you record yourself. The real-time captions are created through on-device machine learning and will appear as soon as speech is detected, without the need for Wi-Fi or a data connection. The text box can be expanded, dragged and moved around the screen and will come in handy for people who are deaf or hard of hearing, or when listening to audio in a noisy environment.

Smart Reply

Take action right as you reply.

In Android 10, you get more than just suggested responses to your messages. You also get the recommended actions. So, if a friend asks you out to dinner, your phone will suggest you text “👍🏻”. Then, it’ll also pull up directions right in Google Maps. It even works in messaging apps like Signal.

In Android 10, Google’s Smart Reply feature as it we know it from Gmail will be available in third-party messaging apps such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Signal. This feature uses machine learning to suggest three short responses that might suit the message you received, such as a thumbs-up emoji. Basically, it’s anticipating what you’re going to say before you say it. The Android 10 version of Smart Reply can also anticipate actions and will, for instance, suggest opening up the address your friend sent you in Google Maps. Handy.

Also in messaging, there’s 65 new emoji including new “gender-inclusive” designs for haircuts, weightlifting, and the sauna.

Sound Amplifier

Hear what’s around you more clearly.

With Sound Amplifier, your phone can boost sound, filter background noise, and fine-tune to how you hear best. Whether talking to your best friend, watching TV, or listening to a lecture — just plug in your headphones and hear everything more clearly.

Gesture Navigation

Get around with a swipe and a pull.

Gestures are now quicker and more intuitive than ever. Go backward and forwards, pull up the home screen, and swipe up to see your open apps. All super smooth.

Google has come up with new gestures for Android 10 and slimmed down the navigation bar. In addition to using the usual three-button features in the navigation bar and Android Pie’s swipe gestures, you can now swipe up from the bottom of your screen to go home, from left to right to go back rather than tapping a button. Swipe up and hold to access recently opened apps.

It looks like Google may have taken some inspiration from iPhone X here — these new gestures will certainly make the transition from iOS to Android easier. To test the fully gestural navigation, enable them in system settings.

Wondering how to get to Google Assistant? Swipe diagonally from the right or left bottom of your screen and hold until it appears. Also, the assistant still has its own button on the home and multitasking screen.

Dark theme

Take it easy on your eyes. And your battery.

Android’s new Dark theme uses true black to keep your battery alive longer. Plus, it also changes how your Google apps look, like Calendar and Photos.

Users have long been asking for a dark mode, and Google has finally answered. You’ll be able to have the entire system in a darker hue and the idea is to make it easier on your eyes and save battery life, particularly on OLED phones. Turning on the dark theme is pretty straightforward: just pull down the Quick Settings tile or access the display section in the phone’s settings. Also, the mode will automatically activate when an Android 10 phone is switched to battery-saving mode.

At launch, this feature will likely be limited to Google’s own apps, such as Gmail, Calendar, and Photos, but the company is offering developers an API for enabling dark themes so they can make sure their apps follow the rest of the operating system.

The newest, game-changing devices

Foldables and 5G devices are only available on Android. So you get to experience the latest and greatest features on devices that fold, flex, and move faster than ever.

Keep your data private with more controls

With Android 10, you’re in control of your privacy. That’s because you get new, smarter controls that let you decide how and when data on your device is shared. So you can rest easy.

Android 10 features a new dedicated location section in your phone’s privacy settings giving users more control over the location data they share with apps. This means they can choose to share location data with apps only while they’re in use, all the time or not at all and receive reminders when an app uses their location in the background. There’s also an option to opt-out of ad retargeting and personalization and all privacy settings, including location, web and app activity and app permissions, are now in one place.

Get security updates faster

Android devices already get regular security updates. And in Android 10, you’ll get them even faster and easier. With Google Play system updates, important Security and Privacy fixes can now be sent directly to your phone from Google Play, just the same way all your other apps update. So you get these fixes as soon as they are available.

Digital Wellbeing

Quality time. It’s different for everyone. For some, it’s unplugging on the weekends. For others, it’s spending hours video-chatting with your best friend. Android 10 gives you the tools to find that balance.

Focus mode

Focus on what’s in front of you.

For getting in the zone and blocking out distractions. Focus mode lets you select apps to pause temporarily. So if you want to turn off a distracting app to get something done, all you have to do is tap.

Following last year’s release of its Digital Wellbeing suite of tools, Google is adding a new feature to help users focus without distraction. Focus mode, which is launching in beta with Android 10, allows users to select particular apps they want to avoid during a period of time, such as messaging or news apps. Those apps become paused, grayed out and notifications are hidden. Together with app timers, the do-not-disturb mode, and notifications controls, this feature will hopefully help you find some balance.

Family Link

Set digital ground rules and help make healthy habits.

Help guide your kids as they learn, play, and explore online. You can set screen time limits, view app activity, manage apps and content restrictions, and see where they are.

More Android 10 features

Check out the redesigned Android 10 page to see the full list of new features including support for streaming media and calls to hearing aids, real-time Live Transcribe transcriptions and a new Dynamic depth file format to store and share photos taken with the help of depth sensors, and AR content.

Thanks for the support!