What you need to know
- Code discovered in the beta version of the Digital Wellbeing app reveals that Google is planning to introduce new “mindful nudge” alerts.
- The alert is described as delivering “occasional reminders” detailing the time spent in the app.
- It’s unclear when Google plans to roll out this update. However, the company was recently discovered to be developing notifications similar to Apple’s Dynamic Island.
As health management extends to the digital world, Google could improve Android’s capabilities.
Alongside famous X tipster AssembleDebug, Android Authority claims that the Digital Wellbeing app on Android is set to roll out “mindful nudges.” The discovery was reportedly made while searching for the latest beta version of the app (v1.19.6881). The splash screen detailing Google’s Mindful Nudge feature says it will send you “occasional reminders” to show you how long you’ve used the app.
Initial notifications appear to be brief. Additional details state that the alert is interactive and can be tapped to display additional relevant information. Google’s splash page also states that users can also disable such notifications when they tap on an alert. However, this may be able to be turned off from settings as well.
Tipsters have discovered a few lines of code that indicate additional features of Mindful Nudge. According to the code, the primary alert seems to deliver an “announcement”. Additionally, another string in the code reads, “I used X (app) for Y (amount of time).” When enabled, this last string appears to be displayed to the user when the nudge appears as an alert.
Another set of strings suggests that the Wellbeing app Mindful Nudge has limitations. This supposed limit appears to be on the number of apps that can track usage. The tipster showed that the app can tell users to “delete some apps” to continue tracking other apps.
It’s unclear when Google plans to roll out this update. Although most of it appears to have materialized, no more solid evidence of its functionality has been presented, meaning there is still work to be done.
Google released Digital Wellbeing on Android in 2018, and it continues to be an integral part of the company’s tools. Users can now see a graph of their total screen time and a breakdown of where that time is spent. There is also a “disconnect” option, which allows users to set sleep mode, Do Not Disturb mode, DND (Do Not Disturb), etc. This “Mindful Nudge” is like an upgrade to the existing “App Restrictions” option.
Android 15 was released on October 15th, and while it’s not the flashiest OS, it’s focused on improving the software experience. Google has added features to improve multitasking on larger screens, smoother animations, and UI tweaks. Additionally, Google’s series of “anti-theft” features, which give users peace of mind, attracted attention.
Android is reportedly continuing to be developed to create a seamless and smooth OS that can keep users engaged, like “continuous notifications.” This may come with Next OS; however, early research suggests this could be Google’s version of Apple’s Dynamic Island. These alerts can appear as a chip between the clock and selfie camera in the UI. It includes an app icon and useful information such as food delivery times and flight reservations.
