Android 15 – Everything You Need to Know

Google has started rolling out its latest and most much-awaited iteration of Android OS for phones and tablet devices, Android 15. This fresh update not only brings new features for the majority of Android devices but also some exclusive Pixel-only features. In this comprehensive blog post, we will explore every new feature in the latest Android 15.

What is the Official Codename of Android 15?

Android 15 has a secret nickname: “Vanilla Ice Cream.” While Google teams and developers use this codename internally, it remains largely unknown to the public. For everyday users, it’s simply called Android 15.

If you want to know more about the story behind these unique codenames, then this short info is for you:

Since its debut in 2009, Android has captivated its users not only with its groundbreaking mobile operating system but also with a fun and delicious twist, naming each major OS release after a sweet treat. From Android 1.5 “Cupcake” to Android 9 “Pie,” these names became a trademark in the tech world. But in 2019, starting from Android 10, Google decided to retire this tradition of confectionary-themed codenames in favor of a simpler numerical naming approach.

What are the Release Dates and Timelines for Android 15?

Whenever Google begins to work on a new Android OS, it first begins with the testing phase, which happens through Developer Previews, Public Betas, and the finalization of Platform APIs. This is then followed by the release of Android OS source code. Once these phases are completed, Google then releases the stable version publicly.

Once the stable version has been released, it receives three major QPR (Quarterly Platform Releases) updates, all of which bring significant improvements, new features, Pixel drops, and, of course, some security updates.

Here are the timelines and release dates for Android 15 and its expected quarterly updates:

• Android 15 was publicly released on October 15th, 2024.
• Android 15 QPR1 was released on December 5th, 2024.
• Android 15 QPR2 is expected to be released in March 2025.
• Android 15 QPR3 is expected to be released in June 2025.

What’s New in Android 15?

New Pollen Tracker within the Pixel Weather App

Pixel Weather app now brings a new tracker that helps live track pollen and check current pollen index levels, pollen count, pollen types, and forecasts. It is a perfect addition for those worried about seasonal allergies and who want to keep themselves updated with the current situation before planning to go out.

At the time of writing, the pollen tracker data is available for only four countries: France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom.

Cast to Nearby Devices Feature Simplifies Media Transfers Between Devices

Casting to nearby devices now enables seamless casting between your Pixel devices, thanks to the ultra-wideband chip on Pixel Pro series devices.

All you have to do is bring your phone close to the other phone or tablet device, and whatever you are playing on YouTube Music or Spotify will seamlessly move over without any need to tap the cast icon.

Automatically Archive Unused Apps

App Archive has been added to Android 15 at a system level, previously exclusive to the Play Store. This will allow you to free up storage space by partially removing (archiving) the less frequently used apps while maintaining the user data for that specific app.

For those who aren’t aware, app archiving has been a Play Store exclusive feature since 2022, but with the release of Android 15, Google has made it a native feature of the operating system. Users now have the freedom to archive and unarchive apps directly from the Android settings as long as the app supports the app archiving API.

Pixel Camera App with a Dedicated Astrophotography Mode

Astrophotography is one of the most favorite photography modes, and it has now been featured as a dedicated mode within the Pixel camera app. This will allow you to quickly capture stunning photos of the stars using Night Sight on your Pixel devices.

To access this mode, simply open Pixel Camera, tap the Night Sight icon, slide to the Astro mode, and hit the shutter button. The app will give you five seconds to set the phone down facing the sky, and it will then begin capturing the beautiful night sky or even Aurora Borealis, aka the northern lights.

Night Sight for Instagram

The Instagram app can now use the Pixel Camera’s Night Sight feature to capture crisp, true-to-life, low-light photos without the flash.

Interestingly, Pixel devices use CameraX and Camera2 APIs for their state-of-the-art Night Sight algorithm. Instagram can also access the camera API and Night Sight algorithm to capture enhanced low-light photos.

Underwater Videography and Photography

Whether swimming or snorkeling, you can now capture your favorite under-the-sea moments in videos and photos using any waterproof case. The Pixel Camera has been enhanced to ensure the photography and videography have rich colors with the highest accuracy.

Pixel Thermometer App Now Supports Objects

Have you ever wondered about the actual temperature of any object or surface? The updated Pixel Thermometer app now has native support for objects and surfaces. You can use your camera to point at any item and use the viewfinder to see the live temperature readings. You can even capture and save the results for later usage or references.

That is not all. The viewfinder can see and recognize the type of object you are pointing the thermometer at, and it will show you the closest name below.

Dismissed Notifications now Syncs between Pixel Devices

If you have multiple Pixel devices, you will be happy to know that notification dismissals are now synced between all your devices to give you a more unified and clutter-free experience. So, if you dismiss a notification on your phone, it will be automatically dismissed on your tablet as well.

To enjoy this newly added dismissed notification management feature, you must enable it from the settings and be connected to WiFi as well.

Privacy and Security Enhancements

Private Space

We all have apps on our phones that store sensitive information, and keeping them private is crucial. Private space helps, as it allows you to create a separate space to store those apps you don’t want anyone else to see. As this space uses a separate user profile, you can protect this section with a totally different PIN or a fingerprint.

Interestingly, the apps you have added in the private space are located within the launcher but shown in a separate container. For added privacy, when the private space is locked, the apps stored there and their data will not be visible in the recent section, settings, or notifications and will be hidden from other apps.

Enhanced Call Screen to Answer Phone Calls Smartly

The call screen feature has been further enhanced and now supports smarter replies through Gemini Nano. The AI generates suggestions for even better contextual, easy-to-tap replies that will appear on your screen. Since the whole call will be transcribed, you can even choose to either pick up and talk to the person or decline at any time during the call screening session.

For those who aren’t aware, the Call Screening feature allows you to use AI to pick up a random call for you and respond without having to take the call yourself. This is a helpful feature, especially in situations when a delivery person is calling to deliver your package. You can use the call screen to ask relevant questions or simply answer their yes or no questions.

Theft Protection with Failed Authentication Lock

Theft Protection has been updated to enhance security and add support for the new Failed Authentication Lock feature. This feature is designed to lock down your device the moment the operating system detects multiple failed unlocking attempts. It uses the BiometricPrompt API, which is available only on Android 15.

Google has overhauled the Theft Protection feature and added it to every Android device running Android 10 and above. One should enable it on all their devices from the phone’s settings. However, selected features are available on Android 15, and one of those is the Failed Authentication Lock.

Automatically Turn on Bluetooth

If you have turned off the Bluetooth radios on your phone, they will now automatically turn on the next day. A new toggle has been added to the Bluetooth settings page, allowing you to turn this feature on/off.

This change in Bluetooth connection is linked to the enhanced Android Find My Phone network, as the service now uses Bluetooth to locate other nearby devices, which actually improves its efficiency in actively tracking devices.

To ensure this feature continues to work as intended, Google has added the Bluetooth auto-on feature, which automatically turns on Bluetooth radios the next day if you have disabled them temporarily. So, apart from contributing to Find My Phone’s network, the feature itself is helpful if you forget to turn Bluetooth back on.

Accessibility Features

Adaptive Vibrations and Haptics based on Environment

There are moments when you want your phone’s vibrations to be more subtle, for instance, in a quiet environment like a library or office. But then there are instances when you want your phone to vibrate at its max, especially in a noisy environment where you might not hear your phone ringing.

Interestingly, Android 15 brings adaptive vibrations, which automatically adjust your phone’s vibration intensity to the appropriate levels using the combination of your phone’s microphone and other sensors to determine the sound level of the environment. Once enabled, it will adjust the vibration settings of notifications, ringtones, and even haptics.

Open Your Favorite Apps in Split Screen with One Tap App Pair Shortcuts

This new productivity and multitasking enhancement feature, targeted towards tablet and foldable devices but working on regular phones too, helps you quickly and effortlessly launch your favorite selection of app combinations with just a simple tap.

This feature actually allows you to create a personalized shortcut, also known as app pairs, tapping on which will quickly open both apps in a split-screen mode so you can begin working immediately without spending any time finding and opening apps individually.

Predictive Back Swipe Gesture Animations with Previews

Predictive back gesture is now a part of Android 15 by default. It allows you to see a preview of where the back swipe gesture will take you, whether it is a home page, another app, or the previous screen. Once the preview is visible, you have a choice to either let go of your finger to complete the back gesture or swipe left to stay within the same app or screen.

This is a gesture-based navigation feature that has been in Android since Android 13 but is hidden within the developer options listed as predictive back animations. However, Android 15 has been added as the main feature for all the compatible apps that have opted for predictive back gestures.

Pixel Launcher Adds Option to Show Full App Names

Pixel launcher has always automatically truncated the full names of apps with longer names, replacing the last letters with ellipses on both the home screen and the app drawer. The latest Android update provides a fix: Pixel launcher now adds a new toggle for “Show long app names.”

Enabling this toggle will now at least show you the full app names within the search and apps list. This toggle will force the launcher to show long app names on two lines without replacing the ending letters with ellipses.

Customization Features

Magic Eraser Tool with Background Audio Remover

Google Photos app has been receiving quite a lot of updates lately, and one of the latest ones is the magic eraser tool, which now includes the background audio remover. This is a power feature that allows you to independently adjust specific voices and sounds like wind or background noise.

Let’s suppose the video you are editing contains the voices of three different people. The tool will recognize each voice along with the background noise and let you control each one individually. Adjusting these will help you enhance your video significantly, giving better clarity to the audio in your video.

Improved Widgets with Categorization and Realtime Previews

Android 15 brings a revamped widgets interface featuring real-time generated previews. The previews in the Widget Picker are now even more personalized and relevant to the content available on your phone.

Previously, widgets had a static resource, and the user could not figure out how exactly the widget was going to look until they placed it on the home screen.

Make Text and Buttons Standout with Color Contrast

A fresh new addition to the color contrast settings menu allows you to adjust the contrast settings to make sure the text, buttons, and icons stand out by setting them up with higher contrast. You can opt for the settings that look best to you.

There are three variations to choose from, including high, medium, and the default contrast modes. Another option that you can toggle to increase text contrast is to add a black or white background around the text.

Which Devices are Compatible with Android 15?

Since the very first beta release of Android 15, Google Pixel devices have been the first ones to receive the updates. However, as per Google’s promised update policies, Android 15 will be compatible with all Pixel phones launched and made available on the Google store after September 2021. This means the Google Pixel 6 series is the oldest to be eligible to receive this OTA update.

Google Pixel phones that support Android 15

• Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL, Pixel 9 Pro Fold
• Pixel 8a
• Pixel 8 and 8 Pro
• Pixel Fold
• Pixel Tablet
• Pixel 7a
• Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro
• Pixel 6a
• Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro

Samsung Galaxy series phones that support Android 15

• Galaxy S24, S24+, S24 Ultra
• Galaxy S23, S23+, S23 Ultra
• Galaxy S23 FE
• Galaxy S22, S22+, S22 Ultra
• Galaxy S21 FE
• Galaxy S21, S21+, S21 Ultra
• Galaxy Xcover 6 Pro
• Galaxy Xcover 7
• Galaxy Z Fold 6
• Galaxy Z Flip 6
• Galaxy Z Fold 5
• Galaxy Z Flip 5
• Galaxy Z Fold 4
• Galaxy Z Flip 4
• Galaxy Z Fold 3
• Galaxy Z Flip 3
• Galaxy A55
• Galaxy A54
• Galaxy A53
• Galaxy A73
• Galaxy A35
• Galaxy A34
• Galaxy A33
• Galaxy A25
• Galaxy A24
• Galaxy A16 5G
• Galaxy A15
• Galaxy A15 5G
• Galaxy A14
• Galaxy A14 5G
• Galaxy A13
• Galaxy A04s
• Galaxy A05s
• Galaxy A05
• Galaxy A06
• Galaxy F55
• Galaxy F54
• Galaxy F34
• Galaxy F15
• Galaxy F14
• Galaxy M55
• Galaxy M54
• Galaxy M53 5G
• Galaxy M44
• Galaxy M35
• Galaxy M34
• Galaxy M33 5G
• Galaxy M23
• Galaxy M15

Nothing phones that support Android 15

• Nothing Phone (2a) Plus
• Nothing Phone (2a)
• Nothing Phone (2)
• Nothing Phone (1)

How to Update Your Phone to Android 15?

To update your phone to the latest Android 15, simply follow these steps:

1. On your phone, go to Settings.
2. Tap System > Software Update.
3. Check the status and see if the update is available.
4. Follow the on-screen instructions to download and install the latest OTA update.

If the update is unavailable, you may need to wait for the manufacturer to release the Android 15 officially via OTA.