What you need to know
- Android's power button menu will get built-in smart home controls with Android 11.
- Hints of the upcoming feature were spotted in developer documentation earlier in the year.
- New screenshots show us what the finished product might look like.
Google is continuing the revamp of Android's power button menu it started this year. With the second Pixel Feature Drop, it added Cards & Passes, a way to quickly access all your stored Google Pay cards. With Android 11, Google plans to add options for smart home controls.
Spotted at the initial drop of Android 11 by* XDA Developers*, the new quick controls area of the power button menu will plug into smart home apps and services. You'll be able to control devices like fans, coffee makers, AC units, Mowers, and radiators, among others, as long as they are compatible with the new "Controls" API on Android 11.
New screenshots show off what Google intends this to look like under ideal conditions. The new interface will also move the power, emergency, and lockdown shortcuts to the top of the menu from the side. The cards will remains s they are, and the new smart home controls will dominate the bottom.
Another image shows that live camera feeds can be shown here, though I bet it will only refresh very very slowly (or on demand whenever the Controls populates.)
H/t @Quinny898 for spotting this pic.twitter.com/I5oV0D1JSrAnother image shows that live camera feeds can be shown here, though I bet it will only refresh very very slowly (or on demand whenever the Controls populates.)
H/t @Quinny898 for spotting this pic.twitter.com/I5oV0D1JSr— Mishaal Rahman (@MishaalRahman) May 31, 2020May 31, 2020
While Google has yet to announce this feature, it presumably would have done so with the launch of the public beta. It's something that could potentially be one of the marquee features of the release, and one that we may have learned more about this week had the release of the operating system not been delayed this week.
- Android 11: Everything you need to know!
- Here's everything new and changed in Android 11 Developer Preview 3
- Android 11 is finally bringing a modern UI to some existing features
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