Stable Android 12 has been available for a couple of weeks now, whether you own an older Pixel smartphone or a new Google Pixel 6. There's a lot to like about it, from the new Material You design language and themes, to the new privacy and security settings. However, not everything is perfect, and some changes may be less than favorable for Pixel owners.
So how are you enjoying Android 12 so far? Is it what you hoped it would be?
There are a lot of new features with Android 12. For example, widgets are much cleaner and more functional. In addition, there are dedicated hubs for privacy and security, you can search for content within apps from the on-device search engine, there's finally a dedicated game mode, and so much more. So far, it seems to be a much bigger update than the transition from Android 10 to 11, and as mentioned before, there's a lot to like about the update.
However, nothing is perfect, and some of the changes can be quite divisive among users. For example, the new Internet tile that does away with the individual Wi-Fi and Data tiles in the quick settings menu. Some may like it while others prefer the old way of doing things, but it eventually got to the point of Google having to defend the change.
The quick settings menu has also been criticized for its redesign, with tiles taking up unnecessary space, limiting the number of visible tiles on a given quick settings page.
Google also got rid of the smart home dashboard from the Power Menu that it had previously introduced with Android 11, which some users may not like.
If you're a Pixel owner, you're one of the lucky ones to have access to the stable Android 12 build. However, OEMs of some of the best Android phones are participating in the beta and incorporating their own skin into the update. Unfortunately, that means these changes may not translate over to other devices, with OEMs incorporating their own version of Google's dynamic theming system, like Samsung with its One UI 4 beta.
If you're using Android 12, let us know what you like or don't like about the new update, whether you're on a beta or stable.
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