The Best New Android 12 Features: 'Material You' and More

At its virtual I/O 2021 developer conference today, Google outlined initiatives in search, quantum computing, security, scary AI chat bots, and more. And while today's keynote did not include any hardware announcements, we did see some cool new stuff in Android 12, which is now available as a public beta.

The splashiest news for the mobile OS is Material You, which replaces Material Design and gives the Android interface a bubbly redesign and new color options. But there’s plenty more, including new privacy options, ecosystem capabilities, and better performance and battery life.

You can download the new version by enrolling your eligible phone (the Pixel along with several other manufacturers are fair game, including Asus, OnePlus, Oppo, Sharp, and ZTE), but note that this is beta software and best for tech-savvy Android users.

Material You

Yes, this evolved version of Material Design allows more personal and customizable color palettes, but it also rethinks the shapes of interface elements and adds informative animations. Google’s announcements about the new design language emphasize that it’s as much about emotion as it is about design principles. Color palettes expand beyond the traditional Android blue and extend to other apps (Google apps at first) as well as the OS interface.

User interfaces are based on wallpapers, which guide the rest of the palette. Part of the concept is that the design has to work consistently in different devices with varying screen sizes—from a smartwatch to a TV—so they’ll sport responsive layouts. Another focus is accessibility, with aspects like object size and contrast being taken into account. Many have pointed out that iOS 14’s new widgets are more consistent than those in Android, so Material You aims to improve that. A “stretch overscroll” effect shows when you’ve gotten to the end of a scrollable area, and audio gets quieter if you navigate away from the app emitting the sound.

Material You will debut as a Pixel exclusive this coming fall.

All Your Life's Devices, Controlled by Android

Here’s one case of Google following Apple in mobile OS features—usually it’s the other way around. Android 12 will offer a digital car key, similar to Apple CarKey. Just like the iPhone feature, Android will let you unlock and start your car, or even share those capabilities with trusted friends. UWB technology will let you unlock the car by mere proximity, while NFC will let other users tap the phone on the car door (hopefully not leaving a mark on your new ride).

Other advances in in Android 12 include letting you more easily pair Bluetooth devices, use your phone as a TV remote control (something I can already do with Fire TV), and see recent photos from your phone on a Chromebook (something I can already do on a Windows 10 PC with the Your Phone app).

New Privacy Options

New privacy features in Android 12 include Privacy Dashboard, microphone and camera indicators, and microphone and camera toggles. The OS also puts apps you haven’t used in ages to sleep, and automatically revokes their privacy permissions. Apps that need to access Bluetooth will no longer require location info, and a new “approximate location” option prevents apps from knowing your exact location.

Better Performance, Better Battery Life

Google has made an effort to improve CPU usage—it's 22% more efficient for core system services and 15% for big-core usage in Android 12. Google is specifying performance class for manufacturers so that they’ll know what capabilities their devices will need in order to optimally run demanding media apps. App developers can query the device about its level and deliver better experiences on devices that pass muster.