Android M: When Apps Are Too Powerful

Android M was announced today and it's available as a preview for developers. It brings some new features and makes some radical changes that improve battery life and user privacy.

The most significant change is a new permission model that's also used by iOS. Until now, users could only install an app by granting all the permissions requested by the app and couldn't revoke permissions. In Android M, the app requests permissions as it needs them and users can always grant or revoke permissions from the settings.

Android's backup and restore feature has always been way behind iOS and that's about to change in Android M. Google used to save device settings and the list of apps you've installed, but not their data and settings. "Automatic backups are enabled for all apps installed on devices running the Android M Preview. No additional app code is required," informs Google. For now, users can store up to 25MB per Android app and "backups occur every 24 hours, when the device is idle, charging, and connected to a Wi-Fi network."

Doze is a new feature that saves battery life. "If a device is unplugged and left stationary with the screen off for a period of time, it goes into Doze mode where it attempts to keep the system in a sleep state. In this mode, devices periodically resume normal operations for brief periods of time so that app syncing can occur and the system can perform any pending operations," informs Google. A lot of features are disabled in the Doze mode: network access (except for high priority Google Cloud Messaging tickles), wake locks, WiFi scans, syncing.

Another power optimization feature is app standby. "The system may determine that apps are idle when they are not in active use. Your app is considered idle after a period of time, unless the system detects any of these signals: the app is explicitly launched by the user, the app has a process currently in the foreground, the app generates a notification that users see on the lock screen or in the notification tray or the user explicitly asks for the app to be exempt from optimizations, via Settings. If the device is unplugged, apps deemed idle will have their network access disabled and their syncs and jobs suspended."

Android Pay addresses Google Wallet's failure by creating an open platform for mobile payments. This time, Google partnered with 3 major US mobile carriers (AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon), in addition to banks, payment processors and retailers. After Softcard's demise, Android Pay will replace it. Google acquired Softcard technology a few months ago. It's worth pointing out that Android Pay is an app that requires Android KitKat or later, so it's not clear why it was announced as an Android M feature.

Google Now will also work inside Android apps. Tap and hold the home button and Google Now will show relevant information, including links to other useful apps. Say "OK Google" followed by a question and Google's answer will use the app's context. For example, you can ask "What's her latest album?" when listening to Mariah Carey in your favorite music app and Google will know that "her" refers to Mariah Carey.

Android M brings native support for fingerprint sensor, simplified volume controls, easy word selection with floating clipboard toolbar.

Google Inbox for Everyone

It's not like it was hard to get an invitation for Google Inbox, but now you no longer need one. Google Inbox is available for everyone.

Google also added some new features to the services. Trip Bundles group all the emails about a trip and show important details like flight times.

Undo Send is now available in Google Inbox and it also works on mobile devices. If you change your mind after sending an email, you can click or tap "Undo" and Google no longer sends it.

Google Inbox now lets you make "Delete" the default swiping action instead of "Mark as done". There's also a setting for custom signatures.

Google Keep reminders will appear in the inbox and Google will suggest creating reminders for messages that include to-dos.

Google Photos: Google+ Not Required

Google has a new standalone service for photos - it's called Google Photos and it's available as a desktop web app and 2 mobile apps for Android and iOS. Google Photos doesn't require Google+ and it aims to be "one home for all your photos - organized and easy to find".

Google Photos brings most of the features that were already available in Google+ Photos (which will continue to exist). There are some improvements: for example, Google now maintains the original resolution up to 16MP for photos, and 1080p high-definition for videos if you want to store your photos and videos for free. Another improvement is that Google Photos does a better job at organizing and grouping photos by people, places, things, types.

"The app can also help you quickly enhance photos and combine them in new ways to help you relive your life's moments. In one tap, get instant adjustments tuned to the photo's color, lighting, and subject to make each photo look its best. Press the + button to create your own collages, animations, movies with soundtracks, and more," informs Google.

Auto Awesome is now called Assistant and it suggests new animations, collages and stories created using your photos and videos. You can dismiss them, edit them or share them with your friends.

Sharing works much better, even if you're not using Google+. You can select some photos and quickly get a link you can share with other people. "The recipient can see what you shared without a special app or login, then immediately save the high-quality images to their own library with a single tap."

Mobile apps for Android and iOS will be available later today, but you can try the desktop web app at photos.google.com right now.

Updated UI for Google Account Settings and Web History

There's a new interface for Google Account Settings that does a better job at organizing all the different sections that are available. There's a sidebar that lets you quickly navigate to a different section and Google offers more information about the settings.

Google Web History also has a new interface, which uses more colors and a hamburger-style menu that lets you switch to other activity pages. Google includes "the content you've browsed in Chrome and other apps" if you've enabled this option.

{ Thanks, Laura González. }