One of the reasons that so many people moved to custom ROMs in the past is because our stock ROMs were frankly kinda trash. But, this has been changing for a while now and Android Q may be the first version of stock Android to truly erase the need for custom ROMs. So, let's check it out!

More Hardware Support

https://youtu.be/FgXVd60f02o

Numerous manufacturers lately, including Samsung, have been working on developing and releasing foldable devices. A foldable device allows you to use your phone as you would normally do while it's folded and as a tablet while it's unfolded.

Though, that being said, the foldable devices that we've seen till now look much more like foldable tablets rather than foldable phones. There is a bit of a difference there.

And what does that have to do with Android Q? Well, you see, at the moment, manufacturers who are experimenting with foldable phones need to develop their own modified software for their devices to work.

Android Q promises to deliver Screen Continuity. And from the looks of it, this will make it easier for manufacturers to implement foldable functionality in terms of software while also offering a smoother, seamless experience to users.

If you looked at the video above, the demo showcases that gameplay moves from one screen to another immediately without any interruptions. If we can truly manage to do that, then the future definitely looks bright.

And with that being said, there's a good chance that foldable devices will one day become the new standard. After all, with performance getting better, prices getting lower, and with huge manufacturers like Google helping out, we hope for the best.

Other than that, Google has also mentioned that they are working towards improving the gaming experience and augmented reality.

Android Q Features

https://youtu.be/YL-8Xfx6S5o

One big new feature of Android Q that is most likely going to be a huge deal for people with hearing loss (about 466 million people according to Google) is Live Caption.

When speech is detected, Live Caption will show subtitles for the video or audio for any kind of format in any kind of app. Up till now, that was only available on YouTube. So, that's good news for people who are either deaf or have hearing problems.

One more feature that is kinda helpful is Smart Reply. Smart Reply can predict and offer recommendations for what you're about to type next so that you won't actually have to and it can also suggest actions.

For example, if it detects that an address is included in the message, you'll get the option of pressing on it and instantly moving over to Google Maps. We all know that typing kinda sucks on phones. So, definitely looking forward to this one.

Now, this obviously raises a few privacy and security concerns. After all, at least a small amount of data will be needed for this feature to work effectively. But, no need to worry. Google has you covered. More on that later.

Digital Wellbeing isn't a new feature. It originally came out with Android Pie and is now receiving some serious improvements.

Apart from the fact that you can now set a limit for how long you're going to use an app and parental control features, you also get Focus Mode. Focus Mode silences only very specific apps that you find distracting and you can activate it at times when you need to, well, focus.

Screen Recording is somewhat of a big deal for some people, especially content creators. But, for the rest of us? We can live without it.

Desktop Mode, Dark Theme, And Wi-Fi Share

Android Q

While this is not exactly official yet, there is this kinda hidden feature in Android Q which suggest that Google is working on a dedicated desktop mode for their OS. According to our sources, it will automatically launch when your device detects that your device has connected to a secondary display.

And from the looks of it, this is very similar to what Samsung offers with Samsung Dex. The main difference is that now pretty much everyone who has Android Q will be able to use it. Assuming, of course, that your phone's hardware supports it.

At the moment, this is obviously not a big deal. After all, most of us won't be able to take advantage of it. But, it's likely a very huge step forward for the future as manufacturers won't have to worry too much about developing their own dedicated software for this kind of thing.

Other than that, there is also a new feature that allows you to share your Wi-Fi password with your friends which should come in handy in case that you've forgotten it or you are just too bored to type it time and time again.

That works with a QR code that you can scan to instantly connect to a Wi-Fi. Again, not a huge deal. But, every little bit helps.

Last, but least, most of us have been asking for a universal dark theme and now we'll get it. It's already available in the beta version and while there have been a few minor issues, we're expecting that it'll be perfected by the time that Android Q hits the stable version.

Security And Privacy Improvements

Android q

On the security aspect, Android is already very good - at least for the most part. With the (mostly) secure Google Play Store, it's really tough to complain.

However, it's no secret that privacy concerns have been plaguing numerous users for a while now. And features like Smart Reply only make things worse. Thankfully, Google has announced that they are working on more than 50 privacy and security related features for Android Q.

One of the most important ones is the privacy section where you'll have numerous privacy-related in one single place. That should make it easier to know and control what information you're giving away.

We assume that this is similar to what Windows 10 has done. But, we won't really know until the OS comes out fully completed. So, let's just sit patiently for now.

Android Q Customizability

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvzbOcwGlZk&t=222s

One of the numerous reasons that custom ROMs were super popular was customization. After all, stock Android really gave you no room for extra features and customization back then while custom ROMs had everything from audio equalizers to custom boot animations and status bars.

This is slowly changing for the better with each version of Android and this is no exception for Android Q as it brings a bunch of new customization options. To mention some of them:

  • You can now change the accent color which used to be blue by default. At the moment, you can select between black, green, and purple in the beta and there is a good chance that more options will come up soon.
  • When it comes to icon shapes, you get to choose between circular, squares, and teardrops. 3rd party launchers already give you plenty of options like this. But, it's nice having them by default as well.
  • Dynamic depth is a sort of feature which allows you to edit and customize your picture's depth AFTER you've taken a photo. While some phones already include this, it's nice to generally have it on Android Q. Just do keep in mind that your hardware needs to support this. Most likely, you just need a depth-sensor and nowadays, most phones come with that anyway.

Wrapping Up

Every new version of Android seems to be getting closer to the perfect stock OS. And when that day comes, custom ROMs will no longer be needed. Now, we don't know if that's a good thing or not. So, we'll leave the decision up to you.

Though, with that being said, as long as manufacturers keep on adding bloatware and modded skins that only make the phone slower, custom ROMs will always be in need.

Regardless of that, Android Q brings numerous new features, customization options, along with security and privacy improvements. Overall, it already looks like a big step forward compared to Android Pie and we're barely close to seeing the stable version.

While we are at it, Android Q is already available in beta for every Pixel user out there. Just do keep in mind that betas aren't exactly the most stable versions that you can get. That's why they are called betas.

What do you think? Are you ready to give up your custom ROM for stock Android Q? Why? Why not? Let us know about it.

Feel like we forgot to mention something important? Got something wrong? Then let us and everyone else know about it in the comments section down below!

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SOURCES: TECH QUICKIE, GOOGLE, XDA DEVELOPERS

View Comments

What's my model number?

There are several ways to locate your model number:

Option 1
On your device, go to Settings, then "About device" and scroll down to "Model number"
Option 2
Often times you can view the model number inside the device, by removing the battery
Option 3
Using Samsung's model/serial number location tool

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