In the Android space, we spend an ungodly amount of time thinking about what’s coming next. I don’t know if we’re all deeply unsatisfied or curious or a mix of both, but focusing on the future has been the Android way of life for more years than I can count.
We know what’s coming in stable Android 17 after several beta updates have landed on Pixel phones. We’ve also seen a preview of the next big update following that, thanks to Android 17 QPR1 beta builds in circulation. But what about the next wave of features that could join at some point between now, then, and after?
In the latest Android Canary update, we know that Google is introducing a bunch of new theme color options that I think we’ll all enjoy.
Shared on Twitter by Googler Mishaal Rahman, we get a preview of an “experimental” change coming to Pixel phones. As you can above, Google is testing a new color slider for its Material 3 Expressive theme that will essentially let you choose any color of your liking to takeover your phone’s theme.
We previously saw this in a leak from a few weeks back, but the source of that was in question. We now know that this feature has at least graduated to Android Canary.
Another cool change can be seen here, where we have a new set of style options for Neutral, Soft, Bright, and Bold. Each style sets the tone before you get into color selection.
The examples provided shows the subtle differences between each in the Quick Settings area, as well as in the widget picker. I feel like the widget picker really brings out the identity of each, with Bright looking like my style – I love a color pop in a phone’s theme.
The Android Canary posts shared to Twitter also suggest more blur to more parts of the Android UI, as well as a new Quick Settings shortcut for switching keyboards.
While Rahman was careful in reminding us that Canary builds are experimental and there is no guarantee for these features to show in a beta or stable version of Android in the future, I can’t exactly see why else he would be highlighting them if they aren’t on the way.
We need these new colors options now, right?
