Things to look out for in Google’s Android Q OS

While we (Android users) are earnestly waiting for the Android Pis update to be rolled out into our phones, folks ar Google HQ are hard at work to make it happen. At the moment, there has been no official statement but XDA-Developers have apparently managed to get a hold of an early build, which they have tried on a Pixel 3 XL. The install confirmed the rumours of a potential Dark Mode

Though in recent weeks the rumour about the Dark Mode was revealed by Android Police, Lukassz Zbylut of Chromium bug tracker says of the feature: “Dark mode is an approved Q feature […] The Q team wants to ensure that all preloaded apps support dark mode natively. In order to ship dark mode successfully, we need all UI elements to be ideally themed dark by May 2019.”

And according to XDA-Developers, “Once enabled, the Settings, Launcher, Launcher settings, and Files app all gain a dark grey tinge. The volume panel, Quick Settings panel, and notifications all turn black. Even third-party notifications like download notifications from Google Chrome are themed black.”

When is Android Q likely to be released?

No release date has been stated yet but following history’s pattern, the beta for the public is usually released by March then the full update released by August of the same year. Google Pixel and Android One devices are always the first set of smartphones to get an update before it is gradually roll out to other phone makers and mobile operators. Not all existing smartphones will get the upgrade, and it’s typically flagships released in the past year or so that make the grade.

What will Android Q be called?

Google is known to always name their OS with sweet names, right now no one knows what the name of the new OS will be called but it definitely will be in alphabetical order like the older ones. So far we’ve seen:

• Android Donut (v1.6)
• Android Eclair (v2.0)
• Android Froyo (v2.2)
• Android Gingerbread (v2.3)
• Android Honeycomb (v3.0)
• Android Ice Cream Sandwich (v4.0)
• Android Jelly Bean (v4.1)
• Android KitKat (v4.4)
• Android Lollipop (v5.0)
• Android Marshmallow (v6.0)
• Android Nougat (v7.0)
• Android Oreo (v8.0)
• Android Pie (v9.0)

So who knows what Google might come up with next. Meanwhile, some Android enthusiasts are having fun trying to guess a like name for the upgrade. Some of the names suggested in a poll included some exotic sounding desserts that get one mouthwatering. Check out the result of the poll here.

A version of this story first appeared on the Tech Advisor website.