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Android 15 is another major Android update from Google, and like its previous versions, it packs a wide array of features. While it boasts standout features like partial screen recording and app archiving, I’m more excited about these underrated features.
1Private Space
Private Space is one of myfavorite Android 15 features. As the name suggests, it allows you to create a separate, secure space for more sensitive data. Think of it as a place to hide your sensitive apps like banking, digital wallets, and payment processing apps. you’re able to also use the space to store critical files like identity documents.
Two factors make Private Space exciting. First, you’re able to select a dedicated Google account to use so files in this space can’t sync and show up outside the space. Second, you can use a different lock than the one you use to unlock your device, which means even if someone has your screen lock, they can’t access your Private Space.
Samsung users might find this feature familiar, as it’s similar tothe Secure Folder feature on Galaxy devices.
2Loudness Control
On Android, when you switch from playing media in one app to another, you may need to adjust the volume to appropriate levels. This is because some apps have higher loudness levels while others have lower.
You may find that playing media in one app at medium levels is louder than playing on another. This has been a daunting experience for me, especially when using headphones.
Thankfully, in Android 15, Google is finally taking care of this by providing a standard way for app developers to avoid such variances by adopting the newly added API.
With this, app developers will be able to delegate loudness levels to a standard controller, which will ensure that even if you switch from playing media in one app to another, the loudness levels stay the same.
3App Pairs
If you’re a fan of using apps in Android’s split-screen mode, Android 15 has an additional feature to enhance the experience. While you canuse split-screen on Androidin earlier versions (from Android 7.0 Nougat and later), Android 15 has added a new feature called app pairs. With app pairs, you’re able to save your favorite split-screen app combinations for quick access.
This is possible because after setting up an app pair, your device automatically adds the pair’s icon to the Home screen. Then, all you need to do is tap the icon to launch the two apps in split-screen mode. This is especially handy for large-screen Android devices like tablets, but it’s also available on Android phones.
For instance, if you love using YouTube to learn and a specific note-taking app, you can save the two as a pair so you don’t have to manually go through the usual process to display them in split-screen mode. Instead, you just tap the pair’s icon on your Home screen to launch.
4Audio Sharing
Audio Sharing is another feature I’m stoked about. It solves one of my biggest pains in life: listening to audio together. Bluetooth mainly works between two devices, a source and a destination. However, using theBluetooth Low Energy standardand Auracast (a Bluetooth capability that enables audio casting), your Android 15 device can broadcast audio to multiple nearby devices over Bluetooth LE.
The feature creates an audio cast that other devices can pick up to connect wirelessly or by scanning a QR code. Within range, you can connect multiple speakers, headphones, earbuds, and even phones, as long as they support the Bluetooth LE standard.
While the feature appeared in the second developer preview of Android 15, it’s currently inaccessible. Early versions of the feature limited the number of connected devices to two.
5Predictive Back Animations
Predictive back is specific toAndroid’s gesture navigation system. While Google first added this feature in 2023, and you couldenable predictive back animations in Android 14, it was tucked away in Developer options. Thankfully, the feature is finally making a system-wide debut in Android 15.
It uses built-in animations to tell you where you’ll head to once you swipe back before you perform the action. In other words, you can see where the back gesture will take you instead of blindingly swiping back, as has been the case in the past without the feature.
The feature comes in handy when you’re buried deep within menus, like in the Settings app, allowing you to know where exactly you’ll end up before fully committing the action.
6Notification Cooldown
Android already provides a solid system for managing notifications. Available controls are so fine-grained that you canchange notification settings for individual text conversations. Besides the available notification management features, Android 15 is adding a new notification cooldown feature.
As the name suggests, it aims to control apps that bombard you with constant notifications daily. The feature gradually lowers the notification volume if you receive many successive notifications from the same app.
This way, you’re still informed when a new notification is received from the same app, but you aren’t bombarded with your notification sound at maximum volume.
7Privacy and Security Enhancements
With each new version of Android, Google adds a couple of security and privacy features, and Android 15 is no exception. One of the key security features is theft protection, which will automatically lock your device if it detects an abrupt motion that could indicate theft. It will also lock down the device after it goes offline to protect your data.
Google is also enhancing security against malicious apps. First, it’s adding a new sensitive notifications feature that prevents one-time passcodes from being read by such apps. Second, Android 15 adds new restrictions that stop malicious apps from hijacking tasks run by trusted apps.
Android 15 packs many new features and tweaks that enhance the overall user experience. While there are a few changes to the interface, I’m more excited about these incremental improvements in the upcoming update.
