- Work continues on Android beta
- Android 16 may have new notification tricks
- For now it’s called “Rich Continuation Notification”
Now that Android 15 is rolling out to Pixel smartphones, we can start looking at what Android 16 has in store. A closer look at the operating system’s latest beta code reveals a dynamic island-style notification system.
According to Android Authority’s Mishaal Rahman, the feature is called “Rich Oncoming Notices.” This gives you some idea of what’s involved. A persistent notification that appears in the status bar at the top of the screen.
Newer iPhone models have a dynamic island notification bar that expands to display information such as sports scores, media being played, and taxi arrival times. Rich Oncoming Notices appears to offer similar functionality.
Evidence of tweaks to notifications have been found in the Android 15 QPR1 Beta 3 release, but as with any beta, there is no guarantee that this feature will make it into the final release or in its current form.
phone chip
Here’s how it works: Apps will now be able to place notification alerts or “tips” in the status bar with custom text and a custom background color. The chip will be able to display raw information, such as the arrival time of a plane, for example.
For now, the rich continuous notification feature is not enabled, but Rahman was able to get it working and create some mockups to show how the chip actually works. (you can see one of them embedded above).
This definitely has a Dynamic Island feel to it, but Android Authority’s report doesn’t say these chips are present since Android 12, although they’ve been limited to call handling so far. Ta.
Extending this functionality to all types of apps and notifications means more flexibility for both developers and users when it comes to getting important information on screen. This is something to keep an eye on in 2025 ahead of the launch of Android 16.
