First of all, the updated menu "Settings" is striking. It is now decorated in black and white and looks very stylish. The handy side navigation menu introduced in Android Nougat is gone. In addition, some of the settings have been reversed.
2. Limit background processes to save battery
Increasing autonomy has become one of the main tasks that the developers set themselves when working on. To do this, they completely redesigned the Doze function, which originally appeared in Marshmallow. The list of actions that applications can perform in the background has also been revised. New, more stringent restrictions can significantly extend the battery life of gadgets.
3. Quiet mode for individual notifications
In the latest versions of Android, you can turn on Quiet Mode so that you won't be disturbed for a while by notifications, calls, and messages. In Android O, it will be possible to activate this mode for individual applications. To do this, you need to move the notification to the side and click on the clock icon.
4. New features of the fingerprint scanner
For the first time in smartphones, it became possible to perform some actions using gestures on the fingerprint scanner. However, in the new version of Android, this feature will be further developed. Most importantly, the new API will allow you to use vertical and horizontal swipes, long and short taps on the scanner in third-party applications.
5. Navigation bar settings
Android Marshmallow first introduced a hidden menu called System UI Tuner, thanks to which the appearance of the elements of the operating system is customized. In the new version, its capabilities have been significantly expanded. The best part is that you can now change the look and functionality of the buttons on the bottom navigation bar.
6. Application shortcuts on lockscreen
In Android O, it will be possible to place in the left and right corner of the lock screen not only buttons for launching the dialer and camera, but also any other applications.
7. Picture-in-Picture Mode
The multi-window mode from Nougat has been further developed. Now it will be possible to place the video in a separate floating window and watch it on top of all other applications. This feature will be especially useful on tablets.
8. Improved battery usage statistics
The energy efficiency settings section has received more than just visual changes. You will finally find out which tasks are the most draining of your device's battery. With a named indication of the names of processes and applications.
9. New autocomplete feature
Everyone knows roughly how the autocomplete feature works in a browser. You enter your data once, and then they can be substituted in the required fields with one click of the mouse. Now the same opportunity will appear in Android O. The developers promise that all important personal data will be reliably protected at the operating system level, so there is nothing to worry about.
10. Dark theme
After eight years of existence, Android finally has a dark theme.
11. Notification channels
The notification system in every new version of Android is getting better and better. In Android O, apps will be able to create channels that post notifications related to the same topic. For each channel, you can set your own display parameters.
12. Responsive icons
Older versions of Android used free-form icons, Nougat recommends round icons, and many third-party firmwares prefer square ones. Thus, in order for the application icon to look organic on any Android-based system, developers have to embed icons in them for all occasions. Android O solved this problem. Now the operating system will make sure that the icon of any program looks beautiful.
13. Hi-Fi Bluetooth Codecs
Bluetooth has always been criticized for its poor sound quality compared to wired headphones. Fortunately, Google has added new codecs to Android O for streaming and playing audio over Bluetooth, including Sony's LDAC. This should significantly improve the audio quality on compatible Bluetooth devices.
14. Improving the display of colors in applications
In Android O, AdobeRGB and Pro Photo RGB color profiles can be used in applications to make image editing easier. This means that what you see in the photo editor on the smartphone screen will look the same on any other displays.
15. Wi-Fi Aware
This is a promising new technology that allows two devices running Android O to communicate with each other even if they are on different Wi-Fi networks. It is not yet very clear how this will be used in practice. Perhaps for file transfer or media streaming.
16. Display the number of unread notifications on icons
Many third-party launchers have been able to do this for a long time. Now support for the function of displaying the number of unread notifications appeared at the operating system level. If the appearance of the three-digit number of unread letters on the icon annoys you, then you can disable this function in the settings.
Of course, this is not an exhaustive list, since we did not mention some minor visual changes and those functions that are hidden too deep in the bowels of the operating system.
In addition, do not forget that we have before us only a development assembly, which will be refined and changed. But Android O already looks very attractive, so it's worth the wait.
The final release of Android O is slated for Q4 2017.
