At long last, Android 15 is officially rolling out to supported Google Pixel phones (i.e. Google Pixel 6 and newer), meaning many of the features that have already been shown off in various Android 15 betas are now available on its final form.
Strictly speaking, Android 15 was released via the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) on September 3, but this is the first time the update is available to real Android users (in this case, Google Pixel users). , instead of just developers. and manufacturers. Pixel devices are first in line, and Samsung phones and other Android devices will benefit from Android 15 “in the coming months.”
Even more confusing, the full release of Android 15 coincides with the release of a separate Google Pixel feature, which includes some Android 15-specific updates as well as a handful of more general Pixel improvements.
In any case, below we've rounded up five of the best Android 15 features, all of which are coming to non-Pixel Android phones soon.
Private Space
If you want to keep certain pieces of mobile content away from prying eyes, Android 15 introduces Private Space: a new password-protected area to store your sensitive files, apps, and even notifications. In essence, the feature is similar to Samsung's Secure Folder, although the latter can only store files, while Private Space can function as Fort Knox for many different types of content.
By the way, Private Space is coming to Pixel phones as part of Google's aforementioned latest Pixel release, although the feature is technically an Android 15 tool, meaning it'll be coming to other Android phones soon.
Theft detection lock
We've been hearing about Google's theft detection lock feature since May, and it actually debuted in Brazil some time ago, but it's now rolling out to Android users worldwide as part of Android 15.
Basically, the theft detection lock uses AI to detect if your phone has been stolen and automatically locks it if it thinks that's the case. Google says the theft detection lock will look for “common movements associated with theft” (presumably things like a quick movement from one hand to the other) and “proactively protect your data on the device.”
Predictive back 2.0
An updated version of Predictive Back, which lets you preview the result of a gesture navigation action before performing the action itself, debuted in the second beta of Android 15 and is now rolling out successfully to Pixel devices .
The 'update' here is that Predictive Back is now available to all users; In Android 14, it was an optional feature for developers. Gesture previews will now occur by default (in supported apps) when triggering actions including return home, cross-task, and cross-do. Still confused? Take a look at the images above for a visual illustration.
Improved multitasking
This applies exclusively to large-screen devices like tablets and foldable devices, but Android 15 brings Pixel 9 Pro Fold-level multitasking capabilities to other compatible Android phones.
Specifically, you can now save pairs of apps on your home screen or taskbar into a single icon that, when tapped, opens both apps simultaneously in split screen. This should make multitasking a little easier: if, for example, you use your tablet for work, you can now open Slack and Google Sheets at the same time, or perhaps Google Drive and Gmail. It's a small change, but a welcome one.
Additionally, you can now also pin the taskbar to the bottom of the screen when apps are in use, eliminating the need to swipe up and hold to access the taskbar outside of the home screen (the taskbar of course, will still disappear when you view multimedia content).
Partial screen recording
Android 15 adds the ability to partially record screen content. Essentially, tapping on the native screen recording tool will give you the option to limit your recording to certain apps, regardless of whether you navigate outside of those apps.
This should be particularly useful for creators who film tutorial content but want to prevent their private information (such as email and Wi-Fi details visible in Settings) from being mistakenly captured and shared as part of a screen recording.
