Today, Google has officially launched Android 16, and it's rolling out to Pixel devices first. There are a couple of new features, such as Live Updates, accessibility improvements, stronger security, and windowed multitasking.
Live Updates, Hearing Aid Boost and Stronger Security
One of the first features that it mentioned is Live Updates. This feature will send notifications for things like ride-hailing and food delivery, plus grouped alerts to help declutter your notification shade.
Additionally, Google will enhance usability for those using LE Audio hearing aids. Users can now choose the phone mic for voice calls, resulting in clearer audio. There's also a new Advanced Protection mode, offering protection against harmful apps, unsafe sites, and scam calls.
Tablet/Desktop-Style Multitasking
Next, Android 16 debuts desktop windowing, enabling multiple resizable app windows and a dedicated taskbar on larger screens and tablets. Google is also expanding this to phones via external display support in the developer preview of QPR1 Beta 2. The stable version is expected later this year.
Material?3 Expressive and UX Preview
On the other hand, the new Material 3 Expressive UI features richer animations, vibrant themes, and refined icons. It is hinted at but not yet included in this release, which Google plans to ship later, likely during a Q3 feature update.
Developer-Focused Enhancements
Alongside the user-side features, Android 16 introduces improved camera and media APIs, performance profiling tools, expanded privacy sandbox, and support for 16KB memory pages. Developers also get predictive back navigation support and richer haptic controls.
What’s Next
According to Google, the company will fully release Material 3 Expressive, desktop mode and connected-display support in the third quarter of 2025. And as mentioned earlier, the Developer Preview (QPR1 Beta 2) is available now for Pixel users to test external-display desktop mode and visual refinements.
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