Android 15 Review: A Solid Upgrade With Room To Grow

Seasoned Android users would know the joy of trying out new major Android releases. New Android versions are usually exciting but the same cannot be said for the last three major updates. Although Android has matured in the last few years, the overall impression is that Google is no longer making significant changes or adding features to major Android versions. That statement still holds some weight but we believe the Android 15 release brings many small changes that may seem insignificant at first but bring a huge difference to the user experience. Here’s my Android 15 review with everything I like and dislike about the release.

I’ve been using Android 15 since its first Developer Preview, all the way till the latest Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2. While we’ve prepared a comprehensive list of Android 15 features if you’re instead looking for a brief opinion on how Android 15 fares against Android 14, you’ve come to the right place.

Android 15: Things I Like

Android 15 brings lots of nitty-gritty improvements that contribute a huge deal to the user experience. Here’s everything I like about the update.

Solid Stability and Performance

Right off the bat, I can’t help but notice how stable the Android 15 release is in contrast to Android 14 last year. I presume this is all thanks to the extra sweet time Google took to release the update much later compared to last year. While the late release may have upset some people, I think Google did the right thing by delaying the update. Android 15 is stable and performs well, even on my three-year-old Pixel, almost as if I just unboxed the phone and started using it.

It’s common for users to face a placebo effect after a major update. While I was under the impression that I was experiencing the same, after comprehensively trying out Android 15, I can say that the performance and smoothness of transitions have improved a great deal.

The animations are slightly more delicate, a touch bouncy, and I haven’t seen them break or jump like in a few instances on Android 14. Switching between apps and going back via gesture navigation, making an impromptu swipe to open quick settings, and going back to the app, it all feels much more alive and makes the whole experience feel a bit mature. Oh, and did I tell you about how nice the subtle addition to the lock screen clock looks when you tap to wake the device? Pretty cool, Google.

Updates to the Android Dynamic Performance Framework, SQLite database, and others could be a few reasons. Although not implemented yet, enabling support for 16 KB page size on Android should bring an additional 10% performance boost. Google says it’s working with OEMs for the same.

UI Improvements

Users love to see UI changes in new releases, and although Android 15 doesn’t bring many, it brings small changes that make a pretty significant impact starting with the Predictive back gesture.

The predictive back gesture animations are great. It combines your device’s haptics and subtle animations in the app’s borders on the screen to let you know when the back gesture is triggered. All of this while showing what’s behind the page you’re trying to exit. Predictive back gestures work across pages and even pop-ups like the keyboard and Circle to Search are a great touch.

Although Pixel-only, the new Volume Panel looks excellent with the ability to switch audio playback devices right from the panel. The sliders for various media volumes are now in line with the latest material design. Not only that, the panel also shows you the media you’re playing alongside the ability to control ANC, Spatial Audio, and Live Captions.

We’re not sure if the ANC and Spatial Audio controls are exclusive to Pixels and Pixel Buds but considering the APIs are open, technically any OEM should be able to implement these controls, if they use this volume panel layout, that is. Still, the addition of the new panel is a nice touch and is something that should’ve been here much earlier. Better late than sorry, I guess.

There are improvements to the wallpaper setup menu too. It’s nothing amazing to write home about but a welcome change nonetheless. Similarly, Bluetooth settings now have an auto-turn-on toggle. This is to improve the new Find My Device experience, so you can track lost devices easily. Pretty cool.

A Step Closer to Feeling Less Stock Android

The argument that Pixel UI still lacks features is still true but less so after the Android 15 update. Sure it’s still not close to the Samsung’s OneUI and OnePlus’ OxygenOS but we’re getting closer. Here’s a features dump of some of the most significant additions to Android 15:

Partial screen recording allows you to choose which app you want to record. Also, when sharing your screen on apps like Google Meet, screen-sharing protection kicks in and blocks notifications from appearing on the recipient’s screen. It’s already been extremely helpful for me in many situations.

Private Space hits three birds with one stone. You can essentially clone, lock, and hide apps using just one feature. This is great because all the features are under one roof instead of being scattered across the Settings like in some UIs. Besides, Google also rolled out a few other features that will help you avoid getting scammed. Some of them are Android 15-exclusive, some aren’t but they’re worth mentioning.

Notification cooldown slowly lowers your phone’s notification chime when there’s a barrage of continuous messages from your best pals or family. On the other hand, Android finally has a pop-out Bluetooth menu to help you switch Bluetooth devices on the fly. Took Google long enough but it’s finally here.

App archiving is the Android equivalent of iOS’ offloading apps feature. It helps you free up some space from apps you no longer use. It does so by keeping the app data and yanking the base APK out of your phone storage. I still can’t believe the Quick Settings layout didn’t get this much-needed change until now. It now appears a lot more accessible in landscape mode.

Finally, App Pairs, as the name suggests, will let you save a pair of apps on the home screen which you can later launch in split screen when you tap on the shortcut. This could work as a quick multi-tasking shortcut if you often use two apps at the same time.

Lots of Security Features

Android 15 is all about privacy and security and there are many additions in the department. Take the Next Gen Call Screening for example which is now expanding to the UK and Japan. It helps users counter spam calls by letting Google Assistant speak on their behalf.

Then there’s Theft Protection, which isn’t exactly Android 15 or Pixel-exclusive but is now rolling out to most Android devices. Theft Protection detects abrupt motion and automatically locks your Android device. This may come in handy in case a thief snatches and tries to get away with your phone.

Similarly, the Remote Lock feature could come in handy if your device is stolen and you want to lock its screen. All you need to do is go to Android.com/lock, enter your phone number, and click Lock device.

Lastly, as soon as I installed Android 15 via the Android Flash Tool, I was asked to enter the credentials of the Google account I had when I force reset the device. This is courtesy of the improved Factory Reset Protection which Google introduced in Android 15. We’ve explained it comprehensively in the article linked above. TL;DR, it protects your device from thieves when they try to steal your device and force restart it.

Android 15: Things I Don’t Like

While Android 15 hits many sweet spots; however, there are things that I wish Google would’ve added or improved. Here’s everything I dislike about Android 15.

The Dreadful Quick Settings Remains

I’ve tried to love the Quick Settings panel Google introduced in Android 12 and failed to do so. The huge tiles take up lots of unnecessary space. This could’ve been useful for adding more tiles, thereby defeating the purpose of “Quick” settings tiles.

I love Nothing’s recent implementation of Quick Settings tiles in Nothing OS 3.0, and a few reports have suggested that Android 16 may bring revamped quick settings. Still, I would’ve preferred to see Google revamp Quick Settings in Android 15.

Where is the Revamped At a Glance?

One of the things that I’ve been looking forward to in Pixel UI and Launcher is the rollout of the new and revamped At a Glance widget combined with the ability to hide the widget. Google has shipped none of those features despite testing them internally for a while.

I was looking forward to it. The current widget which is a part of the Google app still feels incomplete. Even if I wanted to use it, two “At a Glance” widgets on the home screen would look awful. The Pixel launcher remains the most ignored Google app ever.

No Lockscreen Widgets

Although Android 15 adds Lockscreen widgets to tablets, Android phones aren’t getting them. The idea of having widgets on the lock screen just like Nothing OS would immensely help users do things or glance at stuff without unlocking the device. I wish Google worked on bringing lock screen widgets on phones and I’m now hoping Android 16 does it.

Material You Inconsistences

We have had three major versions since Material You first came out and there are still inconsistencies surrounding the same. Although the UI has received good improvements in Android 15, I cannot ignore the fact that themed icons still aren’t fully adopted by app developers and Google hasn’t mandated the same.

There are still many icons, including a few Google apps ironically, that still lack support for themed icons. Pixels were also supposed to get a “Force themed icons” toggle but there hasn’t been an update on the same or when it will arrive.

No Battery Health Still

It feels like I’ve been waiting for the Battery Health feature for eternity. Google was found testing the feature back in Android 13 Beta, and while the APIs are ready and can be accessed by third-party apps, there’s still no official way to check the battery health percentage on Pixel UI. OEMs like OnePlus already have the feature in place, so I wonder what’s taking Google so long to add it to Android.

The Component Health feature, although available in Android 15 QPR 1 Beta, hasn’t made it to stable yet. So things such as storage and battery health aren’t here still. We hope the feature makes it in future releases.

Android 15 Verdict: Small Additions, Big Impact

Having used Android 15 since the first Developer Preview, I can definitely say the latest update packs improvements worthy of being called a major upgrade. The version comes with plenty of features overshadowed by the way Google typically goes about releasing features (i.e., gradually).

While I was hoping to see features like Battery Health, Lockscreen widgets, and a redesigned Quick Settings panel, I can conclude that additions like Private Space, App Pairs, Partial Screen Recording, and App archiving make it a pretty good release.

What’s your review of Android 15? What features would you have loved to see Google add to future versions of Android? Let us know in the comments.