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Here Are The Features Android N “Borrowed” From iOS
The two operating systems “borrow” from each other A LOT.
Michael Grothaus
17:39, 10 Mar 2016
Google surprised everyone yesterday by releasing a developer preview of the next version of Android, dubbed “Android N”, well before its I/O conference kicks off in May. As we reported yesterday, “The firm’s VP of Engineering, Dave Burke, wrote in a blog post that the released build was ‘still in active development’ and a ‘work in progress’ likely hinting that much is still subject to change and this is nowhere near the final product – don’t expect it to be too polished, in other words.”
Still, feedback seems mostly positive for those that have played around with it. With Android N’s early preview, it also means people can get a jump start on comparing it to Apple’s latest iOS 9 operating system. From the looks of it, Android N is borrowing some of the most loved features of iOS 9 and earlier. We’ve rounded up those features below, but first want to remind fanboys on both sides to remain calm: yes, both operating systems borrow from each other. iOS has taken a lot of cues from Android and vice versa (and iOS should steal a bit more, by the way). That’s just the name of the game.
Got that? Good now here’s the features Android N has borrowed from iOS.
A public beta program
Okay, this isn’t technically a feature of Android N itself, rather it’s a new, early distribution method of the OS to consumers—and something Apple started doing with iOS 9 last year. Google has announced that—like iOS 9’s public beta program—Android N will offer a public beta program for consumers later this year.
“This initial preview release is for developers only and not intended for daily use or consumer use. We plan to update the N Developer Preview system images often during the Developer Preview program. As we get closer to a final product, we’ll be inviting consumers to try it out as well,” Android VP of Engineering Dave Burke wrote in a blog post.
It doesn’t matter that Apple offered a public beta first. This is a huge win for Android users as a public beta means more bugs will get caught early and fixed promptly so the OS has a smoother rollout when it is officially released later this year.
Split View aka Multi-Window Support
In iOS 9 Apple introduced Split View multitasking on iPads. Split View allows two apps to be run next to each other on the display at the same time. This same feature has made it into Android N under the name of “Multi-Window Support”.
However, there are some differences between the features, and Android N arguably has a better implementation. On iOS Split View only works on iPads and only separates apps on the left and right side of the screen. Split View also only allows the right app to be split into quarters.
With Android N, Multi-Window Support takes the iOS 9 features further by allowing apps to be split side by side or top and bottom. Multi-Window Support also allows apps on any side to be split into quarters. Finally—and best of all—Multi-Window Support is for both tablets AND phones.
Picture-in-picture
With iOS 9 Apple brought picture-in-picture support to the iPad (only). Picture-in-picture allows users to be working inside one app while the video player of another app is playing in a small window on the same screen. Android N brings a similar picture-in-picture feature to the OS, but only to Android TV devices and NOT to tablets.
Look, I don’t care who did picture-in-picture first. Neither Apple and Google are implementing it fully across devices, which is a mistake. It’s awesome that Android N is bringing picture-in-picture to Android TV, but why not tablets? Likewise with Apple, picture-in-picture is awesome on the iPad, but why does the Apple TV lack picture-in-picture?
If you guys are going to steal from each other, own it across all your devices.
Quick reply notifications
Android N adds interactive notifications across the OS. Specifically, users can now tap on a notification and get the option to act on it—such as replying to a text within the notification itself—or dismiss it. Android users will love this feature—just as iPhone users have for years. That’s because quick reply notifications have existed in iOS since version 8.0.
Night Mode aka Night Shift
The final thing Android N steals from iOS is Night Mode. On iOS 9.3 this is called Night Shift and it allows the color of a user’s screen to change depending on the time of day. As the night goes on, screens will take on more of an orange hue, blocking the blue light our devices normally emit, which can keep us up at night. I would call this a blatant rip off, but I can’t. Because Android N is actually stealing Night Mode from iOS 9.3, but iOS originally stole it from Android M.
What, what?
Yeah, that’s right. Night Mode was a beta feature in Android M, but it never made it into the final shipping build. It’s back around this time though, and given that Apple is giving this health feature top billing in iOS 9.3, it’s likely that this time Night Mode will make it into the final version of Android N.