Android’s been getting a lot of love, especially when it comes to visuals, thanks to Google’s efforts with Material 3 Expressive. The Android 16 QPR1 update officially hit Pixel phones just last week, bringing Google’s new design language to more devices. It’s probably one of the best visual updates to Android that we’ve seen in a very long time.
More importantly, Google has gone to great lengths to update its plethora of apps with the same visual look in order to keep things consistent. Of course, there are a lot of things that could still change, and it appears that Google isn’t quite done tweaking the visuals of Android, as it appears that it is now working on the smaller elements of the OS, which could also see new updates sometime in the near future.
A small but welcome change
The news comes from Android Authority, sharing details about a new volume slider that could find its way to the OS in a future update. While this isn’t a huge change, there’s the possibility that the volume slider could be repositioned to the top center section of the screen, making it easier to access when adjusting the volume when the device is in landscape orientation.
The detail was found in the Android 16 QPR2 Beta 1 release, but could not be activated. Again, this is something that was just in code, so there’s no telling when and if this feature will arrive in a future update. But it is something to be aware of, especially because a quality-of-life update like this could be a big deal for some.
If you’re currently using a Pixel phone, we recommend updating to the latest version of Android in order to experience the visual overhaul. Or if you just purchased a Pixel 10, you’ll already have the visual update straight out of the box. Although visual elements aren’t always talked about, this one, in particular, is quite important.
Material 3 Expressive brings a new visual style to Android that we haven’t seen before on the OS, along with Google’s most important apps and services. This is a new look and feel that we’re going to have to interact with for years to come, so hopefully things only get better from here.
