Android M: All the little things

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(Image: Google)

21 July 2015

It isn’t the massive, top-to-bottom overhaul that Lollipop was, but it has plenty of features and enhancements.

Bolder lock screen text

The lock screen received a slight refresh in Android M: The text used for the clock is bolder than it was with Android Lollipop. It’s a very minor change, but you may find the heavier text to be easier to read at a glance.

New lock screen notification panel behaviour

The notification panel on the lock screen was a little wonky with Android Lollipop, as Computerworld’s JR Raphael noted—it basically showed you what you were already looking at on the lock screen itself. Android M improves on things somewhat—instead of merely showing another instance of your notifications, it’ll open the quick settings panel instead. Your notifications will slide down and appear below the quick settings panel.

Google Now voice search from the lock screen

Google apparently realised that people don’t make phone calls as much as they used to: The dialler shortcut on the lock screen has been replaced with a shortcut to Google Now’s voice search functionality. Simply swipe from the lower left corner to start a voice search.

Redesigned app drawer

The app drawer gets an overhaul in Android M. First off, it’s now a scrollable pane rather than a series of pages. Also, apps are grouped by which letter of the alphabet they start with, which makes it a little easier to find the app you’re looking for. These changes may be a bit jarring for long-time Android users, but they’ll make finding apps that much easier for everyone else.

In Developer Preview 2, the letter groupings are gone. We’re not sure what Google will decide to go with for the final release.

Quick access to frequently used apps

The app drawer has another pair of tools designed to make finding apps easier. The first is a quick-access bar that shows your four most frequently used apps. This panel also appears when you use the search box on the home screen or Google Now screen.

App drawer search box

Also new is a search box in the app drawer, so you can quickly and easily go to the app you want to use without having to scroll through the list.

Uninstall apps without leaving the home screen

Uninstalling an app on Android M no longer requires you to go digging through Settings: Simply drag an app to the home screen, then to Uninstall. Similarly, you can view app info or remove an app from a folder by dragging an app’s icon to the appropriate command.

Separate volume levels for ringtones, alarms, and media playback

How often have you wanted to temporarily lower your ringtone and notification volume, but still keep blaring your music at full blast? Android M now comes with separate volume control sliders for media playback and notifications. You used to have to set these individually in the Settings menu.

Retooled share menu

The Share menu gets a new look in Android M. Instead of a traditional list of menu items, it now displays sharing options in a grid of icons.

Google Settings and Settings are now one

Have you ever found yourself puzzled as to why Google Settings—where you would go to change your preferences for various Google services—lived in a separate app instead of, you know, in the Settings app? Under Android M, Google Settings live within the Settings app: Just go to Settings > Google.

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