Android Pie: Google adds Digital Wellbeing controls By Leo Kelion Technology desk editor Published 6 August 2018 media caption WATCH: Android's Andrei Popescu shows off greyscale mode and other new features Android Pie - Google's latest version of its mobile operating system - has been released. The software introduces a new way to track usage of apps on a smartphone or tablet and lets limits be set, including the removal of colour from the screen at a chosen time of the day. The ninth edition of Android also offers more powerful notifications and promises to extend battery life. But Google continues to face issues with the distribution of its updates. According to its own figures, only about 12% of in-use Android devices were running the previous version - Oreo - as of a fortnight ago. Google says that it has worked with third-party device-makers to make it easier for them to check and deliver the updates than before. But for now, the new upgrade is only being made available to its own Pixel phones. Why Pie? Google always picks a dessert or confectionery-based nickname for its mobile OS, shifting one letter along the alphabet each time. image copyright Google image caption Google says other manufacturers should release updates to Android Pie in the autumn Past examples have included Jelly Bean, Kit Kat, Lollipop and Marshmallow. There had been speculation that the next name could be Pistachio Ice Cream, Pop-Tart or Pumpkin Pie. But the chief of Android's London engineering team explained that there had been a deliberate decision to keep things simple. "It hints at the same goals we have with Android in general," said Andrei Popescu. "We want to simplify the user interface, we want to make the usage simpler and more intuitive. "And I think that kind of resonates with a very simple and beautiful name like Pie." Will it really make me use my phone less ? image copyright Google One of the new software's headline features is its new Digital Wellbeing controls. These are in part a response to criticism that smart devices can be "addictive" and disruptive to our sleep patterns. A dashboard provides ways to see how much time the owner has spent using their device, with a breakdown of the hours and minutes dedicated to their most popular apps. Timers can then be set to limit usage of specific programs. When the limit nears, users get a warning - and when it is reached the app's icon becomes greyed out to prevent it from launching. The lockout can, however, be overridden. image copyright Google image caption The Dashboard provides owners several ways to visualise their device use Wind Down Mode is intended to act as a further prompt to put down the device at the end of the day. At a pre-selected time, the screen switches from colour to greyscale - meaning all imagery is seen in shades of grey. In addition, the Do Not Disturb mode is activated, silencing incoming calls and alerts. Apple is introducing its own Screen Time controls to iOS 12 with a similar goal. But one physiologist said adults and children alike must be educated about the benefits of the new facilities to ensure they are widely adopted. "These are good measures, but there are still going to be a lot of people who don't think they have a problem," said Dr Nerina Ramlakhan, author of Fast Asleep, Wide Awake. "So, there will still need to be a lot done to educate people about the pitfalls of becoming unhealthily dependent on the use of their phones and apps." How have notifications been improved? Pie adds images to the alerts - showing both a small picture of the person who contacted the recipient, when relevant, as well as previews of any photos or other media they may have shared. image caption More than 140,00 people volunteered to test the beta versions of Android Pie before its official release In addition, the operating system will now allow users to reply to received messages via the notifications themselves using a Smart Reply facility. This will attempt to predict and offer the desired response, allowing the owner to send it without having type it in themselves. How has Google boosted battery life? The tech firm has taken a two-pronged approach to the common complaint that devices run out of power too quickly. Firstly, it has attempted to take advantage of a common feature of modern mobile processors to minimise battery use when the display is turned off. Many CPU (central processing unit) chips now feature "big-little" architecture, whereby some processor cores prioritise speed while others focus on being more power-efficient. image copyright Google image caption The Adaptive Battery function uses machine learning to decide when apps can carry out background tasks Android Pie now schedules many of its background processes to run on the more efficient "little" cores in order to consume less power. The second approach involves trying to prevent what Google describes as "bad battery days". To do this, the system studies an owner's behaviour in order to anticipate when they will want to use certain apps. By doing this, it can stop unlikely-to-be-opened apps using the CPU and battery to carry out tasks that could be deferred until later when the device is recharging. Huawei already offers something similar in some of its phones using its own machine learning techniques. What else is new? image copyright Gogle image caption Slices lets users use apps without having to open them The other biggest innovation is Slices, which brings parts of an app's user interface to the fore without requiring the owner to open the program. For example, entering a taxi app's name into the search bar might bring up information about how far away the service's nearest car is and how long it would take to get the user home. However, this facility is not set to go live until later this year. image copyright Google image caption App Actions try to predict what the user will want to do next Other innovations that will be offered at launch include:<doc-sep>Google on Monday announced Android 9.0 Pie's name and availability. The latest flavor of Android is currently available to Google Pixel ( ) devices and will begin rolling out to more devices this fall. Now playing: Watch this: Android P: A slice of 'Pie' One feature Google left out of the final release is its Digital Wellbeing platform. Through the feature, Google hopes to educate and help users keep tabs on how much time is spent on a phone, and more specifically in a given app. Not all is lost, however, as Google is letting anyone who wants to help test the feature before a wider rollout later this year. What you need You will need to have a Google Pixel phone with Android 9.0 Pie installed in order to sign up and participate in the beta. Sign up Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET To help Google test Digital Wellbeing, you first need to sign up for the beta program on this website. You'll need to enter your Gmail address -- I tried, repeatedly, to sign up with a Google Suite account to no avail -- and check a box to complete the process. Install Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET After submitting your information, check you're inbox for an email from Google inviting you to take part in the beta. Follow the link in the email, then tap on the Become a tester button. You will find a link to view the app in the Play Store, where you are then prompted to update (read: Install) the app.<doc-sep>Google has announced that the final, shipping version of the newest Android update is available for all Pixel phones today. And, as usual, it has announced a name to go along with the over-the-air update: “Android 9 Pie.” Android 9 Pie’s headline features are the same ones that we revealed back in May: a “Digital Wellbeing” dashboard, a new gesture-based navigation system, and other AI-enhanced improvements to the UI. It also received many subtle improvements to the overall look of the software, including a new status bar that’s designed to work better with notches. However, the official release will not include all of the features that Google announced at Google I/O. The main things that will be missing are the Digital Wellbeing features, including the usage dashboard, app times, and a “wind down” setting for when you go to bed. Instead, those features will be offered as a beta for Pixel users right away. The actual release will come in the fall; Google says “Android One and other devices coming later this year.” One can assume that among the “other devices” will be the new Pixel 3 phones. The signup for the beta will be at this link. The other missing feature is “slices,” which allows apps to surface some of their functionality into search. For example, if you typed “Lyft” in the main search, you’d get a button to call a ride without opening the Lyft app. Google says that feature will also launch in the fall. As usual, Android 9 Pie is coming first to Pixel users and will arrive for other Android phones later. However, Google has the potential to finally show progress in its efforts to get other Android manufacturers to update quickly this year. Several manufacturers participated in the Android P beta program, including Sony, Xiaomi, Nokia, Oppo, Vivo, OnePlus, and Essential. If any of them are able to release Android 9 Pie updates quickly, that would be a good sign. In fact, in its blog post today, Google claims the devices that were in the Android P beta program will receive the Android 9 Pie update in a timely manner: Devices that participated in the Beta program from Sony Mobile, Xiaomi, HMD Global, Oppo, Vivo, OnePlus, and Essential, as well as all qualifying Android One devices, will receive this update by the end of this fall! We are also working with a number of other partners to launch or upgrade devices to Android 9 this year. The new gestural navigation feature has been polarizing Most of the features in Android 9 Pie have been well-received in the beta. The system has a more advanced battery management system, which Google says is powered by AI. App actions surface common app actions as buttons in the main Android launcher. Text selection has significantly improved with a magnifier and smart text selection. But the new gestural navigation system has been more polarizing. Early betas of Android P had significant “jank,” which is to say moving UI elements around felt choppy and not at all fluid. Things have improved significantly in later betas, but the swiping still feels a little less intuitive than the iPhone X’s gestures to many users. There’s an option to turn it off and go back to the traditional Android three-button setup if you don’t like it. As for the name, well, “Pie” is not really a shock. It was the obvious choice, and Google went with it. The extra emphasis on the version number is interesting, though: Google refers to it as “Android 9 Pie,” and the URL for the OS is simply android.com/9. If you have a Pixel phone, over-the-air updates should begin rolling out today.<doc-sep>The latest version of Google’s mobile operating system aims to take a lot of the swiping and tapping out of the user experience through AI-based suggestions, faster app access – and even getting you to put your phone down<doc-sep>
It isn’t enough to have great new devices, apps, and games — you also have to know how to use them. Here at The Verge, we offer step-by-step how-tos for experienced and new users who are working with online, macOS, Windows, Chrome OS, iOS, and Android apps, services, phones, laptops, and other tools. From simple instructions on how to install and use new devices, to little-known strategies on how to take advantage of hidden features and the best methods for adding power or storage, we’ve got your technological back. The various Digital Wellbeing features that Google revealed last spring — a dashboard to show your smartphone usage habits, app limit timers, and a “wind down” mode to help you focus on going to sleep — are not included in today’s release of Android 9 Pie. But if you have a Pixel device and you’ve already installed the latest OS update on it, you’ll be able to try out those software tools ahead of their official launch sometime this fall. The beta starts right now. Google says that trying out these Digital Wellbeing features does not require joining the Android beta program; you can continue running a stable version of Android 9 Pie while testing the Dashboard, app timers, and wind down. So that’s pretty great. To get started, follow these steps: Install the Android 9 Pie update when it’s available this afternoon Go to Google’s Digital Wellbeing Beta website Enter your email address and select “yes” on the “Do you have Android Pie on your Pixel?” question Soon after, you’ll get an email with an invite to begin testing digital wellness. Click the link in this email to accept the invite and begin testing. Google will ask you to download the Digital Wellness (beta) app from Google Play. (Note: this link will only work after you’ve gone through the signup steps. Within 24 hours of joining the beta, you’ll see digital wellness appear in your Android settings menu. Note that Digital Wellbeing is in beta until the fall, so you might run into some bugs and encounter some snags every now and then. According to Google, these software tools were designed with the goal of “giving you a complete picture of your digital habits and helping you disconnect when you want to.” Apple is also integrating similar features into its upcoming iOS 12 update, and social media platforms including Facebook and Instagram are also working on adding new sections to their apps that transparently show how much time we all spend using them. 2018 is certainly the year of technology self-reflection. But ultimately, these companies are just giving you the data; it’ll be up to you to make changes and adjust your device usage if you’re alarmed by what you see. Digital Wellbeing will launch first on the Pixel lineup this fall before expanding to Android One and other devices “later this year.”