A few days ago, Google released Android 15 beta 1 for Pixel devices. The company will reveal the Android 15 update and its full features at the Google I/O 2024 event in May. Ahead of the launch, Android Authority has learned that the Pixel Launcher will get a handful of new features in Android 15. The launcher will offer improved app animations, refined launcher recommendations, and improvements “recent screen” user interface.
Pixel Launcher will offer accelerated and improved app animation
According to the source, Pixel Launcher will offer a revamped swipe-up animation to return to the home screen. As you can see in the video below, the new animation seems to be faster and more responsive than Android 14. The new animation in the Pixel Launcher in the Android 15 version will highlight the background zoom effect better. It also seems to be more springy than the Android 14 version.
Categorized widget recommendations are coming to Pixel Launcher in Android 15
Then, the new version of Pixel Launcher in Android 15 will provide improved widget recommendations. Currently, when you proceed to add a new widget, the launcher shows random widget recommendations at the top. However, this will change in Android 15 as the launcher will feature a more comprehensive recommendation system. It will suggest widget recommendations categorized by type such as Essentials, Social, Entertainment, etc.
Some other categories in the widget recommendations will include News & Magazines, Health & Fitness, Your Relaxation Zone, Suggested for You, and Weather. Another improvement in the widget section will be the addition of a “+ Add” button to the Pixel Launcher in Android 15. This will make it easier to add new widgets to the launcher screen. Currently in Android 14 you have to press and hold and then drag the widget onto the screen.
Improvements to the “recent screen” UI are also in the pipeline
Furthermore, Google will offer improvements for “recent screen” user interface in Android 15. There will be changes in the methods of accessing the menu where there are options to open the app information page, split screen mode and pause the app. Right now you need to tap on the app icon in the “recent screen” UI to access these options.
However, it will have an on-screen pill that will feature an app info page, split-screen mode, and app pause buttons in Android 15. Users can easily miss these shortcuts entirely in Android 14. Notably, these options will be easily discovered in Pixel Launcher in Android 15.
The source suggests that the new features mentioned above are currently not available in the Android 15 beta 1 release. However, they are expected to be available in the stable version that will be available later this year.