May 01, 2024
Android 15 may be bringing some tablet-inspired optimisations to certain user interface (UI) elements on phones used in landscape orientation, Android Police reported.
The report said that Mishaal Rahman, a certified Android expert, while writing for Android Authority, revealed that Android 15 may reorganise the "Quick Settings" panel and lock screen on phones to make better use of the wide canvas available when the device is in landscape mode.
The expert revealed that this would allow for more information to be displayed in the same area with less wasted space.
Currently, when accessing the Quick Settings panel on phones running Android 14 while in landscape orientation, the menu appears stretched and takes up more horizontal space, making it look awkward and difficult to use.
On Android 14-based tablets, the Quick Settings panel is arranged in a side-by-side layout, with Quick Settings on the left and notifications on the right.
However, Rahman has noted that a Quick Settings interface like the existing one for tablets is in development for phones and may be released with Android 15 this fall.
He also noted that the implementation of this feature is currently unfinished and buggy.
According to Rahman, a new landscape lock screen interface, seen in Android 14 QPR1 Beta 1 could also be added to Android 15.
Currently, the lock screen and unlock controls are only displayed in portrait orientation in Android 14, but in Android 15, they’ll reorient to fit a landscape display.