On January 9th, Google released the new Android 13 QPR2 Beta 2. Pixel 4a and higher owners can already download the pre-release version as long as they participate in the beta program. It offers more than the official update information suggests. Because in the pre-release, an interesting option has now been found that the community has been wanting for a long time.
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App-Icons passend zum Material You-Design
Android expert and Twitter user Mishaal Rahman took a closer look under the hood of the new QPR2 beta update. He found a function with which monochromatic app icons can be created that are displayed on the home screen to match the Material You design.
link to Twitter content
What is special about this function? This setting results in a uniform overall picture on the home screen. So far, many third-party apps have stuck with their default icons, which combined with the monochrome setting, made for an inconsistent overall look. The new feature enforces the monochromatic app icon.
How did Mishaal Rahman turn on the feature? A corresponding flag must be set in the system for this option. For now, this setting appears to be only accessible with root access. If you turn on the »ENABLE_FORCED_MONO_ICON_ « flag, all app icons (including those from third parties) switch to the monochrome style.
Notice: With root access, the guarantee of your Android smartphone expires. Furthermore, the process of this access can lead to your cell phone being »bricked«, i.e. it becomes unusable and you can (or have) dispose of it. So be sure of yourself.
What else is behind the beta update?
Another new feature is a sharing menu for sharing or recording an app. This function apparently contains a scrollable overview of compatible applications.
link to Twitter content
Android expert Mishaal Rahman was also able to locate a library called “aoc_audio_stereo_spatializer_”. In his estimation, Google could prepare a function for spatial audio via the smartphone’s speakers. Exactly how this feature will work remains to be seen.
Since Android 13 it has been possible to control your own smart home devices directly from the lock screen. With Beta 2, a notification will now appear to enable this feature. Also added to the update Unicode 15 emojis.
Google’s own app is already on your smartphone without a beta update. Do you know all the hidden features of this application? We name 15 of them:
The Google app on your Android phone can do more than you think – Here are 15 hidden features
What do you think of the option to uniformly adjust the app icons to the overall picture of the home screen? Would you use this function or is it just a visual gimmick? What features do you want for the Android smartphone? Write it to us in the comments!
