Google I/O was where the new features and upgrades were unveiled. So far, Android 13 appears to be a minor update to Android 12. That’s fantastic news because Android 12 has proven to be one of the greatest – if not the best – incarnations of the platform to date.
Animations are smoother, Material You is more polished, QR codes are simpler to read, alerts are better handled, the suggested applications function is back, and display/text size may be changed in the same place as before in Android 13 Beta 1.
Global search in Pixel Launcher in Android 13 Beta 2
If you have a Pixel phone, you’ll be relieved to see that the global search option has been partially restored. This function, which lets you search your device from the permanent Google search bar on the home screen, was included in the launcher in Pixel 12, but it was deleted from the first beta of Android 13.
With Android 13 Beta 2, the global search feature has been restored, but only to search for installed apps on your device. Hopefully, in the next months, this whole functionality will be restored — possibly with many more functions.
Android 13 Beta 2 has a scheduled dark mode.
This feature will delight anybody who has ever woken up in the middle of the night to use their phone only to have to squint at the glaring glare. You may set a pseudo-dark to switch on automatically at bedtime with Android 13 Beta 2. Open the Digital Well being app and then select Bedtime Mode.
How to put Android 13 Beta 2 to the test
Remember that this is the second beta version of Android 13, so expect additional adjustments, additions, and improvements in the future. Go to the Android Beta Program and enrol one of your devices if you want to try out the beta version of Android 13 (I don’t advocate doing this on your daily driver).
More updates and improvements in Android 13 Beta 2
There are a few more tweaks and enhancements to be found, but none of them are really impressive.
- The minimum Battery Saver level has been raised from 5% to 10%.
- If you don’t have any Bluetooth devices connected, the battery Level widget has been adjusted to solely show your Pixel battery level.
- The animations have been improved, and a new pulsing in-display fingerprint scanner symbol has been added.
- Some controls (such as rapid skip forward and backward) have been shifted to the right side of the player, and the ability to conceal the media player has been improved.
- Split-screen mode is now easier to reach from programmed in the dock. In the popup menu, long press one and you should see a split-screen icon. Note that, despite upgrading my Pixel 5 to Beta 2, this functionality has yet to show on my device.
- A new picture picker gives you even more control over the images that may be viewed by different apps, including the ability to share particular file types with specified apps.
- After a “brief duration,” the clipboard history is now automatically removed.
- The settings categories no longer “pop” in when tapped, but instead glide in.
