Google might give Android 15's desktop mode a much-needed overhaul

What you need to know

• The latest Android 14 beta contains information regarding Google's development of a desktop mode overhaul for Android 15.
• The overhaul would fully revamp its freeform mode, giving users more agency over how to manage multiple windows.
• Other Android 15 news involves additional features for its "Private Spaces" and a potential new status bar later this year.

More of what Android 15 could have in store surfaces as a discovery shows Google is preparing some long-awaited improvements to desktop mode.

As detailed by Mishaal Rahman with Android Authority, Android 14 QPR3 Beta 2.1 shows that Google plans to implement a new multi-window experience. From the demonstration video, apps in full-screen now feature a navigation bar-style tab at the top. Tapping it produces a drop menu featuring the app's name and a few options: full-screen, split-screen, and freeform mode.

Split-screen functions like any other Android device. It places the app on half the display, giving users a chance to open another. Freeform mode lets users decide the window's size by dragging its rounded corners.

Moreover, testing showed that the apps gain a thick title bar featuring the app's name, a maximize button, and a close button. Tapping its name will produce the previously mentioned menu full of window options.

Rahman adds that users can drag a window in freeform mode to either side of the display to "snap it" into split-screen mode.

This desktop mode revamp is likely for Android 15; however, it's not clear exactly when it will roll out. The changes seem to make Android's OS seem a little more refined, but as Rahman noted, it still doesn't support keyboard shortcuts for window management or offer a polished launcher.

It seems that Google has been mulling over improving its Android desktop mode for a while, even during the early days of the Pixel 8. It was then discovered that the Pixel 8 series launched with full display output support. Despite Google disabling its functionality on the software side, its hardware hid nothing, as users could attach a USB-C to HDMI cable to get things started.

The discovery was on functionality alone, as the Pixel 8 didn't showcase a proper desktop mode. The device's display was mirrored vertically onto a desktop monitor, but it was a positive sign of more to come — even more so now with the latest discovery.

These discoveries stem from Android 14 QPR3 Beta 2.1, which started rolling out on Monday (Apr. 1). The beta contains a host of bug fixes for some severe problems, and it features information about Google's continued development of Android 15's "Private Spaces." This feature would be a profile where users could download or lock previously installed apps behind.

Similar to Samsung's Secure Folder, users could safeguard sensitive data by locking certain apps behind a PIN or other password method.

Elsewhere, Google is seemingly working on a status bar revamp for Android 15. Haptic feedback could arrive for Quick Settings alongside a new battery icon.