Every year, Google launches a succeeding Android OS with a slew of features onboard. The list of features naturally stretches with every iteration without fail and yet, there are a lot more features that users request almost on a daily basis. With that being said, True-Tech decided to bring together a list of features that we and users, in general, want to see in the upcoming Android 14 and future iterations. Of course, the listicle doesn’t include features that Google has confirmed but rather a ‘wanted’ features list culminated by users like you and me.
Better Camera Quality on Third-party Apps
Okay, I am quite sure that anyone who has used both iOS and Android will understand the vast difference in camera quality over social media and other third-party apps. Android users face the biggest problem here and that is retaining the image and video quality after uploading it.
Although you will find tips on how to upload high-res images and videos, there’s no straight out-of-the-box solution for it. Google’s CameraX which could have brought some camera improvements failed but Google never revived it and neither tried working with developers to fix such a glaring issue that needs all the limelight until the search engine giant considers working on it. Isn’t that one of the features on the wishlist for 2023?
Stacked Widgets
If you have never used an iPhone before (like really), you wouldn’t know what I am talking about right here. Obviously, Android had widgets years before iPhones got it but the latter improved it a bit. The screen of real estate is limited. I mean you only get a window ya big to accommodate those app shortcuts on Android. Of course, you can create multiple home screens on Android but you can’t cramp more widgets on them.
Stacked widgets allow you to literally stack widgets on top of each other. For instance, iOS allows up to 10 widgets to be stacked. It means you are using 10 widgets while consuming space for just one widget. Call them a genius idea and I wouldn’t deny it.
Battery Health Indicator
The next time you buy or use an iPhone, check for its battery health. Depending upon how you use it, the battery health might differ. The general rule is, the battery health deteriorates a bit every time you charge the phone and discharge it completely before recharging it.
Unlike Android, iOS devices have a dedicated battery health indicator that shows exactly how much the battery has deteriorated. If it’s 80%, it means after going through the various life cycles over a period of time, the battery has dipped from 100% (full usage when you bought a new device) to 80% (where it deteriorated 20% meaning you only have 80% battery left to use). Android 14 should come up with the battery health indicator as well, don’t you think so.
Pick Apart a Subject From A Photo
At the moment, if you want to isolate a subject from a photo or remove the background, you need a photo editing tool to do so. However, if you are an iPhone user, you can simply pick apart the subject from a photo and paste it anywhere just like that. Well, the feature is intuitive and native which makes a lot of sense, especially for those who edit images a lot let’s say for graphics, social media, and so on.
With that being said, getting this built-in feature would make things much easier on Android devices. All you have to do is isolate the subject from an image, drag and paste it somewhere, or copy it for use. That’s all. Isn’t this one of the coolest features the upcoming Android 14 could pick up?
Better Lock Screen Customizations
Android has always been synonymous with choices and customizations that put it ahead of iPhones in many ways. However, iPhones have started catching up in terms of customizations, and the lock screen has been a focal point. With Android 14 in the works, tipsters like Mishal Rahman mentions the inclusion of Pixel Clocks that will be a part of Pixel devices soon.
It will have custom clock options although exactly how many are available. There’s customization related to 3D wallpaper generation, monochrome color style, forced-themed icon generation, and a few more things onboard. Unlike what the headline says, this particular feature is actually looking to make its splash with Android 14.
Breakthrough conversation using AI
You are working on a story or simply want to talk about something deeper or hypothetical but don’t have anyone around. What would you do? Google’s LaMDA is a great spot for all your conversations. Based on Transformer neutral network architecture that powers GPT-3 and BERT, the LaMDA analyses words and their meaning in the context to give a befitting reply.
No, it doesn’t just copy-paste the answer from Google but instead, it predicts the context of what’s going on and its responses. It can even describe your imagination such as how it would feel watching the rings on Saturn or watching a volcano eruption up close. Although Google already showcased the feature, we are yet to get it publicly so that’s something I am waiting for.
Bring Back the Titan – Third-party Launchers
Third-party launchers are great. It allows users to customize their Android devices by trying something new. However, ever since Android 10 kicked in, Google actually downgraded the privileges for third-party launchers. It gave the built-in launcher much higher and deeper privileges while revoking some from the third-party ones making the latter less customizable.
If that wasn’t enough, these launchers are too heavy and with inconsistent animations. For now, you can either choose a consistent pre-installed launcher with less customization while the third-party ones have higher customization but the animations can run aground at times. So, what do you think if Google brings back third-party launchers with better customizability?
Dynamic Island – Buzz the Android
The world was blown away during the iPhone 14 Series launch especially due to Dynamic Island. It is a feature designed by Apple to hide the front camera punch-hole graciously as it can offer an unobstructed view that a notch or a punch-hole cut-out would produce.
Dynamic Island offers a breathtaking view into background activities be it timer, Google Maps, and notifications that you will receive on your iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max. It goes without saying that in case Apple gives third-party developers the chance to explore time-limit islands on their apps, that won’t be any boundaries for possibilities. You can see a lot of apps on the Play Store that gives you a chance to venture into Dynamic Island on your Android. These are third-party apps and will not work properly in most cases.
Wrapping Up
It’s not me as an Android enthusiast and a tech blogger but there is a huge subset of users who are waiting for at least one of the features mentioned above. As Android 13 is here, we can’t really think Google will get any of these features on board but we can still hope for the best with the upcoming Android 14. The next-gen OS is slated to arrive officially in August although the early beta version will arrive in February itself.
It goes without saying, some features might get on board while some will be postponed for Android 15. Let’s keep our fingers crossed and wait until the Android 14 early beta arrives when we will get to know the preliminary list of features included.
