88 PCWorld APRIL 2019FEATURE ANDROID Q TWEAKS AND CHANGES
- YOUR DATA WILL BE
MORE SECURE
One of the biggest advantages iPhone users
lord over their Android-using friends is
Apple’s commitment to privacy. From apps to
data, Apple locks down iOS so developers
have little to no access to sensitive
information, far beyond what Google
demands in Android Pie. That’s changing with
Android Q. Among the changes Google is
bringing to the update is the ability to select
whether to limit an app’s permission to see
location to only when it’s in the foreground.
Users will also be able to control apps’ access
to photo, video, and audio files. And finally,
Google will be limiting developer access to
“non-resettable device identifiers,” which
include IMEI and serial numbers. - YOU’LL BE ABLE TO STAY
FOCUSED FOR LONGER
If you’ve ever had an app take over your
screen just because it needs to tell you
R
ight on schedule, the first
Android Q developer preview
has arrived, and there’s a lot to
unpack. As with the last few
releases, there aren’t a ton of user-facing
features just yet—those will likely be
reserved for Google I/O and the Pixel 4
launch in September. Nonetheless, the
changelog is still filled with plenty of
interesting tweaks and additions that will
make your phone better than ever once the
OS lands in late summer.
The biggest change is one that most
people won’t get to enjoy for years to come.
Google already previewed its new folding
interface (go.pcworld.com/gopv) with
Samsung’s ultra-expensive Galaxy Fold (go.
pcworld.com/gfld), but now it’s making
those new app actions—such as pause,
resume, and resizing when opening a
screen—available to all developers in order to
make sure apps are displayed properly on the
new crop of foldable screens.
But while a folding
phone is still an
unaffordable pipe dream
for most of us, there are
many features in Android
Q that will make non-
folding Android phones
better than ever. Here are
seven ways that your
phone will benefit from the
changes in Android Q.Some of the changes coming to Android Q include faster share sheets
(left) and stronger location privacy (right).