5 ms·

This knee-jerk reaction is correct more often than not (see the terrible iOS redesign announced earlier), but in this case it seems like it might be incorrect?

This knee-jerk reaction is correct more often than not (see the terrible iOS redesign announced earlier), but in this case it seems like it might be incorrect? I looked through the highlights linked here and the full "What's New" page [0] and am pleasantly surprised to see a few new features but no major overhauls of existing ones. [0] https://www.android.com/16 https://www.android.com/16

microtonal 1y ago
Yep, I just installed on my Pixel 9 and it looks barely different from Android 15. Most of the changes seem to be in the plumbing. Material Design Expressive will only arrive in the next quarterly release.
- nsriv 1y ago
  Yeah I think this is being lost in this rollout (and a little bit in these comments). Expressive is in the next update, since this year is a big hike up in the calendar for phone release.
butlike 1y ago
The issue is this reaction never sticks. Everyone's up in arms, but would you really want to go back to Android KitKat or iOS 2? Probably not for more than novelty, right?
- FirmwareBurner 1y ago
  [flagged]
  - legitster 1y ago
    More and more features are getting added, so the UI has to get reorganized to accomodate for them. A lot of the changes for Android 16 are to accommodate wearables and folding phones and etc while keeping the controls more consistent between them.
    - FirmwareBurner 1y ago
      Cars have also gained new features, but the steering wheel, shifter, pedals, mirrors are still in the same places since >50 years. You don't need to get a new license and re-learn how to drive every time a new model comes out because they moved the steering wheel on the ceiling to install a 32 inch LCD screen.
      - kllrnohj 1y ago
        And my android phone still has "back", "home", and "recents" buttons in the exact same place they've been since they were literal hardware buttons. Core navigation (aka, "steering") is unchanged, no new drivers license required
        Izkata 1y ago
        Originally there was a 4th button, "menu". Android had a standard grid-shaped menu that apps could implement, that would pop up from the bottom of the screen. Also "recents" wasn't its own button, it was reached by long-pressing "home". The other button was "search".
        izacus 1y ago
        This hasn't been the case for literally decade though.
        int_19h 1y ago
        Last I checked you had to flip a switch in settings to have all those buttons back like that; it hasn't been a default in stock Android for some time now.
  - throw10920 1y ago
    > Bad faith argument. Citation needed, and you're violating the HN guidelines besides. > Assume good faith. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
    - FirmwareBurner 1y ago
      [flagged]
- layer8 1y ago
  I would really want to go back to something like the look of iOS 1-6, with clearly discernible UI controls vs. content and labels. Not the real-world-mimicry skeuomorphism, but the look of the standard UI controls.
  - Pxtl 1y ago
    Web ruined everything. Got everybody thinking that flag rectangles were cool and consistent ui frameworks were old fashioned.
- bigstrat2003 1y ago
  Yes, of course I would. Android UI has been horrible ever since 12.
- justsomehnguy 1y ago
  I can live another decade without an app what groups three options (one of it is "About") under a hamburger menu on a completely blank screen.
- pas 1y ago
  yes, who cares, let me launch apps and put widgets on the screen, what else? I like a lot of the new features, but the visual (mis)communication language is terrible.
- dzikimarian 1y ago
  While I like new notification management or control buttons on top of the drawer, I really wouldn't have problem using them in Holo design.
- unethical_ban 1y ago
  The interface of Kitkat and the UI design is fine! It looks like what Apple is moving to. Of course I want accessibility, security and technical improvements.
- timewizard 1y ago
  Seems fine to me. https://developer.android.com/about/versions/android-4.0-highlights https://developer.android.com/about/versions/android-4.0-hig...
- AndroidKitKat 1y ago
  If it was usable with the apps I need today, I would switch back to Android 4.4.2 or iOS 6.1.3 in a heartbeat. Not sure how long I would stay before the rose tint in my glasses returns to normal, but I would certainly love to try.
petee 1y ago
But thats also just what they're trying to advertise. They always make more changes than listed. And its the sneaky ones that get through...like when I upgraded to 15 my home button no longer exists when the screen is locked, which effectively makes google maps navigation stuck on the screen unless you stop navigation by pressing back repeatedly
- demosthanos 1y ago
  This is never how the marketing around the big UI overhauls that OP is worried about works. A sneaky UI overhaul that's launched with no fanfare doesn't get anyone promoted, so why bother? > like when I upgraded to 15 my home button no longer exists when the screen is locked, which effectively makes google maps navigation stuck on the screen unless you stop navigation by pressing back repeatedly Smaller things like this, sure. FYI, swiping up from the bottom will get into the lock screen and then once unlocked into the home screen.
  - petee 1y ago
    Its actually a big change, as swiping up just opens the Google Maps bottom menu. The home row replaces gesture nav (which I can't stand...another UI feature they've been slowing pushing) My current workaround is to trampoline off another program, like Spotify, or the BT settings, that has a constant notification then i can click that which opens the lock screen. But even a small sounding change can be significant. After the last Gemini push, the alarm clock now would "stop" on voice command, but it would activate for random noises you made, cancelling my alarm for work; the settings were hidden in another app, not the alarm. It wasn't even promoted so nobody knew. This release mentions even more Gemini integrations...
    - demosthanos 1y ago
      > Its actually a big change, as swiping up just opens the Google Maps bottom menu. On my phone there are two swipe zones at the bottom. The one that's actually on the screen opens the Google Maps menu. But if I swipe from off screen up it works as I described. Maybe your phone doesn't have enough surface area below the screen to distinguish the two?

microtonal 1y ago

Yep, I just installed on my Pixel 9 and it looks barely different from Android 15. Most of the changes seem to be in the plumbing. Material Design Expressive will only arrive in the next quarterly release.

nsriv 1y ago
Yeah I think this is being lost in this rollout (and a little bit in these comments). Expressive is in the next update, since this year is a big hike up in the calendar for phone release.

butlike 1y ago

The issue is this reaction never sticks. Everyone's up in arms, but would you really want to go back to Android KitKat or iOS 2? Probably not for more than novelty, right?

FirmwareBurner 1y ago
[flagged]
- legitster 1y ago
  More and more features are getting added, so the UI has to get reorganized to accomodate for them. A lot of the changes for Android 16 are to accommodate wearables and folding phones and etc while keeping the controls more consistent between them.
  - FirmwareBurner 1y ago
    Cars have also gained new features, but the steering wheel, shifter, pedals, mirrors are still in the same places since >50 years. You don't need to get a new license and re-learn how to drive every time a new model comes out because they moved the steering wheel on the ceiling to install a 32 inch LCD screen.
    - kllrnohj 1y ago
      And my android phone still has "back", "home", and "recents" buttons in the exact same place they've been since they were literal hardware buttons. Core navigation (aka, "steering") is unchanged, no new drivers license required
      - Izkata 1y ago
        Originally there was a 4th button, "menu". Android had a standard grid-shaped menu that apps could implement, that would pop up from the bottom of the screen. Also "recents" wasn't its own button, it was reached by long-pressing "home". The other button was "search".
        izacus 1y ago
        This hasn't been the case for literally decade though.
      - int_19h 1y ago
        Last I checked you had to flip a switch in settings to have all those buttons back like that; it hasn't been a default in stock Android for some time now.
- throw10920 1y ago
  > Bad faith argument. Citation needed, and you're violating the HN guidelines besides. > Assume good faith. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
  - FirmwareBurner 1y ago
    [flagged]
layer8 1y ago
I would really want to go back to something like the look of iOS 1-6, with clearly discernible UI controls vs. content and labels. Not the real-world-mimicry skeuomorphism, but the look of the standard UI controls.
- Pxtl 1y ago
  Web ruined everything. Got everybody thinking that flag rectangles were cool and consistent ui frameworks were old fashioned.
bigstrat2003 1y ago
Yes, of course I would. Android UI has been horrible ever since 12.
justsomehnguy 1y ago
I can live another decade without an app what groups three options (one of it is "About") under a hamburger menu on a completely blank screen.
pas 1y ago
yes, who cares, let me launch apps and put widgets on the screen, what else? I like a lot of the new features, but the visual (mis)communication language is terrible.
dzikimarian 1y ago
While I like new notification management or control buttons on top of the drawer, I really wouldn't have problem using them in Holo design.
unethical_ban 1y ago
The interface of Kitkat and the UI design is fine! It looks like what Apple is moving to. Of course I want accessibility, security and technical improvements.
timewizard 1y ago
Seems fine to me. https://developer.android.com/about/versions/android-4.0-highlights https://developer.android.com/about/versions/android-4.0-hig...
AndroidKitKat 1y ago
If it was usable with the apps I need today, I would switch back to Android 4.4.2 or iOS 6.1.3 in a heartbeat. Not sure how long I would stay before the rose tint in my glasses returns to normal, but I would certainly love to try.

petee 1y ago

But thats also just what they're trying to advertise. They always make more changes than listed. And its the sneaky ones that get through...like when I upgraded to 15 my home button no longer exists when the screen is locked, which effectively makes google maps navigation stuck on the screen unless you stop navigation by pressing back repeatedly

demosthanos 1y ago
This is never how the marketing around the big UI overhauls that OP is worried about works. A sneaky UI overhaul that's launched with no fanfare doesn't get anyone promoted, so why bother? > like when I upgraded to 15 my home button no longer exists when the screen is locked, which effectively makes google maps navigation stuck on the screen unless you stop navigation by pressing back repeatedly Smaller things like this, sure. FYI, swiping up from the bottom will get into the lock screen and then once unlocked into the home screen.
- petee 1y ago
  Its actually a big change, as swiping up just opens the Google Maps bottom menu. The home row replaces gesture nav (which I can't stand...another UI feature they've been slowing pushing) My current workaround is to trampoline off another program, like Spotify, or the BT settings, that has a constant notification then i can click that which opens the lock screen. But even a small sounding change can be significant. After the last Gemini push, the alarm clock now would "stop" on voice command, but it would activate for random noises you made, cancelling my alarm for work; the settings were hidden in another app, not the alarm. It wasn't even promoted so nobody knew. This release mentions even more Gemini integrations...
  - demosthanos 1y ago
    > Its actually a big change, as swiping up just opens the Google Maps bottom menu. On my phone there are two swipe zones at the bottom. The one that's actually on the screen opens the Google Maps menu. But if I swipe from off screen up it works as I described. Maybe your phone doesn't have enough surface area below the screen to distinguish the two?