Why simply wait for Google when you possess the power to unlock valuable new capabilities for yourself right now?
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</div>In the Android ecosystem, continuous evolution is a given, extending beyond just major operating system updates.
For years now, Google has strategically modularized Android, extracting OS-level components into standard applications. This approach allows for rapid and frequent updates that reach all users instantly, regardless of their device or carrier. Consequently, even older Android phones receive multiple updates annually, each comparable to an entire iOS operating system rollout.
This represents a significant advantage for Android users, yet it often goes overlooked and underappreciated.
Incidentally, as is frequently the case, we currently have several intriguing new features in development. With only one exception, these features are linked to app-associated updates that are soon to be released, rather than a completely new Android version.
Furthermore, and also typical of Android, you don’t have to wait to gain similar advanced functionalities. With a small amount of creative thought and clever customization, you can experience all these upcoming enhancements immediately, on any device you own, regardless of its manufacturer or age.
Allow me to demonstrate what’s on the horizon and how you can get a head start by implementing these concepts today.
[Don’t stop here: Make sure to subscribe to my complimentary Android Intelligence newsletter for three fresh tips in your inbox every Friday — plus a special welcome bonus: my Android Notification Power-Pack!]
Android feature #1: Improved Message Selection
Despite the numerous convenient options available in Google’s Android Messages app, a notable absence is the ability to select specific portions of a message for copying or sharing.
You’re familiar with this, aren’t you? When attempting to copy text from a received message, your only current choice is to select the entire message—all of its text—and then copy it. If you desire a more limited selection, you appear to be out of luck. Or so it might seem.
Recent code discoveries indicate that Google is developing a method to allow partial message selection and copying. But why postpone its use?
You actually have three distinct ways to achieve this now, provided you know how:
- Firstly, on any recent phone equipped with Google’s Circle to Search, activate Circle to Search by pressing and holding your finger on the bottom-center area of your screen. Then, simply use your finger to highlight the specific text you wish to copy.
JR Raphael, Foundry
- Specifically for Pixel users, you can also navigate to your Overview area by swiping your finger up about an inch from the bottom of your screen and pausing. From there, locate the “Select” option to effortlessly choose any desired text.
JR Raphael, Foundry
- Regardless of your Android device type, you can always capture a screenshot and then instantly share it to Google Lens (which is free and available for installation as a shortcut for everyone). Once in Lens, utilize the text selection tool that appears within that interface.
JR Raphael, Foundry
Regardless of your chosen method, you have several effective options at your disposal, and none requires you to await an upcoming update still under development.
Android feature #2: Download Backups
Android’s integrated backup system has significantly advanced over time, yet a peculiar omission persists: your phone does not automatically back up files downloaded to your device.
Google appears poised to address this. The Google Play Services app, which is updated universally outside of formal Android releases, is in the process of acquiring an option to automatically save all downloaded content to Google Drive, ensuring easy accessibility from any other device at any time.
However, you’re here! You’re an astute and discerning reader of Android Intelligence. (And I must say, you’re looking quite well today.) There’s no need for you to wait.
All you need to do is download the excellent (and free for these purposes) Autosync for Google Drive app. Set it up to synchronize your Android device’s “Downloads” folder with a corresponding folder you create within your Google Drive storage.
JR Raphael, Foundry
This will require less than five minutes for a one-time setup, and from that point forward, it will operate automatically without any additional intervention or effort from your side.
Android feature #3: An Enhanced Search Bar
Our final forthcoming Android feature—and the sole item on this list tied to an actual Android operating system update—is the long-awaited capability to customize and control your home screen search bar with your own chosen shortcuts.
This is most directly pertinent to Pixel device owners, as that’s where the currently less customizable search bar resides. However, the benefits of transitioning to a superior home screen search setup would undoubtedly be appreciated by users on any Android device.
The solution is a straightforward and completely free small app I introduced last month, called Pixel Search. (Despite its name, it is equally valid and useful on any Android device, Pixel or otherwise.)
Pixel Search empowers you to create your own fully customized home screen search widget, providing a single-tap entry point to:
- Search Gemini, Perplexity, or any other LLM chatbot service.
- Access your *previous* web searches, conducted through the app.
- Browse your contacts, then call or text any of them with one additional tap.
- Search through files you’ve downloaded or transferred to your device’s local storage and execute various actions on any found file.
- Locate and quickly open installed applications.
- Find and swiftly open specific app *shortcuts* to jump directly to actions *within* the apps you use.
- Search within Google Maps, YouTube, the Google Play Store, and other available services.
- Perform calculations in your system calculator and view instant solutions to problems and equations.
JR Raphael, Foundry
And you can achieve all this from a search bar styled precisely to your liking.
JR Raphael, Foundry
In essence, it’s an even superior version of what Google is preparing to deliver, and once again, you can implement it yourself without any delay, now that you know where to find it.
Such is just another typical day in the Android world. It’s truly rewarding to have the autonomy to control the device you own as you see fit, and to possess the tools to do so on your own timeline, isn’t it?
Continue receiving valuable Google-related insights by subscribing to my free Android Intelligence newsletter — offering three practical tips every Friday, along with my Android Notification Power-Pack as a complimentary welcome gift.
