A fresh approach to Android multitasking is coming soon — and you can experience its benefits right now.
It’s rare to encounter an interface enhancement so profound, so transformative, that it could entirely redefine how you interact with your phone.
While it might sound exaggerated, precisely such an improvement is indeed making its way to Android. After considerable hesitation and changes of direction, Google is finally revisiting its original Bubbles multitasking concept from seven years ago, aiming to deliver on the vision it previewed in 2019 but never fully launched.
The concept of having desktop-style floating-window applications on Android is now officially becoming a reality — truly! — as part of the upcoming Android 17 update.
However, you don’t need to await Android 17’s release to experience the convenience of Bubbles on your preferred Android device. As is often the case in the Android ecosystem, you can enable a similar feature immediately—if you know where to look.
Depending on your device and how adventurous you feel, it might only require some minor exploration and adjustment, or perhaps a bit of clever customization.
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The saga of Android Bubbles
Before diving into the steps for bringing Bubbles-like multitasking to any device, let’s briefly review the background for those less familiar with the specifics.
Back in 2019, Google first unveiled an Android multitasking concept called Bubbles, promoted as “a new method for users to multitask and re-engage” with applications.
The vision for Bubbles was to enable users to “carry an app’s functionality” with them, keeping essential information like notes, lists, and other relevant data visible on screen and instantly accessible. At the time, I suggested it could be a “mobile multitasking breakthrough.”
But then — true to form, Google veered off course. It became sidetracked by something new, lost interest, and ultimately failed to fully realize the initial vision. Bubbles, intended as a flexible on-demand multitasking solution, became a restricted, often inconvenient, and not truly on-demand feature for only specific conversations within the Android Messages app to appear as a bubbled window. And that was all. Disappointing.
However, last year saw the original Bubbles concept unexpectedly resurface as an experimental feature under development. By early this year, its inclusion in Android seemed even more probable.
Then, just a couple of weeks ago, Google released its second Android 17 beta, revealing the surprising news that — indeed — Bubbles is making a comeback, and will soon be available on demand with any app, at any time, as a key feature of this year’s major Android version.
While the system doesn’t yet appear fully active even in the latest beta, it’s rumored that the functionality first promised nearly six years ago is finally set to materialize as this Android update approaches its final release.
Android Bubbles today: 3 clever methods
Now for the exciting part: If you’re eager to experience that Bubbles-like on-demand multitasking capability right away, without waiting for Android 17 to be finalized and distributed to your device, you have several choices.
In this particular instance, Samsung’s extensive modifications to the operating system actually provide an advantage. However, regardless of your Android device or preferred setup, there’s a solution available for you.
On a recent Samsung Android device
First, if you own a relatively recent Samsung Android device, you have the simplest option, as Samsung has already integrated a similar feature directly into its software. It’s just not widely known or easily discovered by most users.
But it is there, indeed — and once you know where to find it, accessing it is quite straightforward:
- Begin by navigating to the Samsung Android Overview screen—either by tapping the three-vertical-line icon at the bottom-left of your display or by swiping up about an inch from the bottom and pausing, if you’re using the current Android gesture navigation.
- Swipe horizontally through your recently opened applications to locate the one you wish to open in a floating window.
- Press and hold your finger on its preview, then release it onto your home screen. The app will then appear as a floating window, ready to be positioned anywhere on your screen, over any other active application.
JR Raphael, Foundry
While there isn’t a literal “bubble” involved here, and you can’t minimize the app to an icon for standby as the full Android Bubbles system will allow, it achieves a very similar practical outcome. This is especially true given how straightforward it is to return an app to this floating state via the Overview menu.
On any Android device — the simple (yet more restricted!) method
Next: Regardless of your Android device, you can get a taste of on-demand app bubbling with a handy little application called Overlays.
Overlays has a limitation in that it only functions with Android widgets, not the complete applications themselves. However, given the abundance of useful Android widgets available and their extensive capabilities (such as viewing and interacting with notes in Google Keep, emails in Gmail, or your schedule in Google Calendar), this might be all you truly require.
Furthermore, it’s significantly simpler to configure than our final, more comprehensive option, which we’ll discuss next.
By default, Overlays provides a selection of its own compact widgets. However, its true potential lies in adding widgets from the Android apps you already use and depend on. To do this, tap the “Triggers” tab at the bottom of the Overlays configuration interface, then tap the red plus button in the screen’s lower-right corner. Choose “Manual,” then enter your desired name for the widget and tap the icon to select any icon you prefer.
Tap “Save,” then select “Widget” and locate your desired widget from the list. At this point, you’ll see a preview of the widget. Adjust its position or size as needed to control its exact appearance on your screen when summoned, then tap the arrow in the top-left corner to exit that interface. Finally, tap the name of your newly created widget on the subsequent screen to set its status to “Always on.”
And that’s all there is to it: Upon exiting the app and returning to your home screen, your new widget should immediately appear. Simply tap the small downward-facing arrow in its corner to minimize it into a bubble, which you can then long-press to move to any location your multitasking heart desires.
JR Raphael, Foundry
Overlays also allows for context-sensitive bubble-based widgets, meaning you can have something appear automatically when you connect to a specific Bluetooth device or Wi-Fi network. To explore these options, simply follow the same steps outlined above but choose “Event” instead of “Manual” when configuring the “Triggers” tab.
Overlays is free for these features, with an optional $4 in-app upgrade that removes some ads from the configuration interface and unlocks several advanced features (none of which are necessary for the functionality discussed here).
On any Android device — the advanced (but most comprehensive) approach
Finally, there’s an ingenious method to enjoy full Bubbles-like floating windows for any app on any device, offering exceptional ease of access despite requiring a slightly involved initial setup.
This method centers around a superb power-user Android app called Panels, which I consider one of the best productivity enhancements available. It performs exceptionally well once it’s configured, though its initial setup process isn’t entirely straightforward and demands some time and patience when you’re first getting started.
Once operational, however, you’ll be able to access all your applications with a single swipe from the side of your screen — as demonstrated:
JR Raphael, Foundry
And, with just a couple more quick taps, you can open any of those applications into a floating, resizable window. This window can then be positioned anywhere on your screen and used simultaneously with anything else you have open.
JR Raphael, Foundry
Pretty useful, right? Essentially, it’s a more adaptable, flexible, and robust alternative to Android’s standard split-screen mode. It offers a desktop-quality way to multitask and interact with two (or more!) applications without being constrained to the often clunky and restrictive side-by-side, full-screen grid. And once you’ve configured it, it’s incredibly simple to operate.
You can find comprehensive, step-by-step instructions for properly setting up Panels here. The initial setup will take roughly five minutes, and then your device will be equipped with effortless, on-demand freeform window multitasking moving forward.
Choose the method that best suits your needs, and you’ll gain the flexibility and enhanced productivity that comes with having your apps available as floating, movable windows — long before Google officially rolls out its own Bubbles feature.
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