Google steals iPhone X gestures for Android P

During the keynote this morning kicking off its annual developers conference in Mountain View, California, Google showed off iPhone X-style gestures and navigation in Android P.

Android P enables navigation right from the Home screen (stop me if you’ve already seen this elsewhere). Like on iPhone X, users can swipe up from the bottom edge of the display to get to a redesigned app switcher with full-screen previews of their recently used apps.

They’re calling this Overview and it also supports Android’s Smart Text Selection feature that recognizes the meaning of the text you’re selecting and suggests relevant actions.

In Google’s own words:

Changing how you navigate your phone is a big deal, but small changes can make a big difference too. Android P also brings a redesigned Quick Settings, a better way to take and edit screenshots (say goodbye to the vulcan grip that was required before), simplified volume controls, an easier way to manage notifications and more.

Android’s new system navigation is an acknowledgment that Apple’s notch design and system-wide gestures on iPhone X have set the trend for others to follow.

Other key improvements in Android P include:

  • Adaptive Battery—Prioritizes battery power for the apps and services you use the most and learns how you like to set brightness given your surroundings.
  • App Actions—App-specific smart recommendations based on what you like to do the most anticipate your next action. For instance, if you connect headphones to your device the operating system will display an action to resume your favorite playlist. These smart actions show up throughout Android in places like the Launcher, Smart Text Selection, Play Store, the Google Search app and Assistant.
  • Slices—Get a deeper look into your favorite apps. If you search for “Lyft” in Google Search, you can see a Slice that gives you the price and time for a trip to work. And because it’s interactive, you can quickly order the ride.
  • ML Kit—Cross-platform APIs for developers bring on-device text recognition, face detection, image labeling and other machine learning powered features to apps.
  • New Dashboard—See how you’re spending time on your device, like time spent in apps, how many times you’ve unlocked your phone and how many notifications you’ve had.
  • App Timer—Set time limits on apps and Android P will notify you when you’re close to the limit and even gray-out the icon to remind you of your goal.
  • New Do Not Disturb mode—This new mode silences the phone calls, notifications and any other visual interruptions that may appear on the screen. To enter the enhanced Do Not Disturb quickly, turn your phone facedown on the table.
  • Wind Down—This feature will switch on Night Light when it gets dark, turn on Do Not Disturb and fade the screen to grayscale at your chosen bedtime.

Other enhancements and under-the-hood tweaks in Android P are highlighted on the Android blog, like DNS over TLS, encrypted backups, Protected Confirmations and more.

Android P is set to launch this fall.

What’s your favorite new feature in Android P so far, and why?

Let us know by leaving your comment below.