Android 16 Introduces AI-Powered Wallpaper and Lock Screen Customization
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Android 16 adds AI-powered weather effects that can make it rain on your photos
Wes Davis is a weekend editor who covers the latest in tech and entertainment. He has written news, reviews, and more as a tech journalist since 2020. Google's latest Android 16 beta adds a bunch of new wallpaper and lock screen options for Pixel phones, including live-updating weather animations and a feature that automatically frames subjects of photos within a variety of bubbly shapes. When you select an image to use as a wallpaper in the beta, you can tap the sparkly collection of starbursts that has become the de facto symbol for AI features to access the new effects. One of them, "Shape," washes your screen in a solid color, with a punchout frame in the middle centered on the subject of your photo, be it a person, animal, or object. You can choose from five different shape options: a slanted oval, rounded rectangle, an arched opening, a flowery shape, and a hexagon. It's a little like the iOS "Depth Effect" feature that partially obscures the clock on your lock screen with a person's head. Right now, your phone picks what part of the image should be the subject, with no option to resize or reposition it. In a picture of two cats that my colleague Dominic Preston tried, the phone automatically centered the frame on one of the cats, with no option to use the other instead. A new "Weather" option interacts with the subject of your photo, like by pelting them with raindrops or wrapping them in fog. The default choice, "Local," changes the effect depending on nearby weather conditions, but you can pick fog, rain, snow, or sun if you'd rather use one persistent effect. These options join the previous "Cinematic" wallpaper mode that automatically creates a parallax effect, moving your subject around the background of the image when you tilt your phone. That feature is now activated with a toggle labeled "Add 3D motion to this photo" and produced slightly different results when I tried it out with the same image. Google is also testing updates to the lock screen, including offering more control over what notifications appear there. For instance, the beta now has a toggle for "Show seen notifications" that, when turned off, will hide notifications you've already seen. Finally, 9to5Google spotted that a blog post from Google's I/O conference offers a look at its "Live Updates" feature, which, like iOS's Live Activities, presents live-updating lock screen elements showing you when, say, your Uber driver is arriving. In the GIF above, you can see what aspects like its progress bar and time estimates will look like.
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Google Pixel adding wallpaper shape and weather 'Effects' in Android 16 QPR1 [Gallery]
Google Pixel phones are picking up a new customization option for wallpapers, with "Effects" in Android 16 able to turn a wallpaper into a specific shape and color style, as well as applying weather effects on top. Available by default in the first beta release of Android 16 QPR1, Google is adding support for new "Effects" on top of any image you choose to be a wallpaper on your Pixel device. After selecting a photo, an "Effects" button appears at the bottom of the display, with a ✨-like icon that implies that the feature is powered by AI. Once you enter the "Effects" section, your picture can have one of three different effects applied. The first is "Shape." This effect isolates the subject of your wallpaper and fits it into one of five different shapes, usually with a portion of the subject being cut out and extending outside of that shape. Samsung has been offering a similar option on Galaxy phones for a while now. A color is also applied around the shape, which is themed to match the color palette of the image itself. A slider allows you to adjust the intensity of that color to suit your preferences. The next effect is "Weather." This leaves your wallpaper in its default setting, but applies an animated weather effect on top. Supported overalys include: The default setting is "Local," though, which changes the overlay based on your local weather conditions. The "Effects" page is also the new home for Pixel's "Cinematic" wallpaper option, which applies 3D depth effects to your wallpaper. These new wallpaper "Effects" make up just one of the many new customization options found on Google Pixel devices in Android 16 QPR1. We're still digging through the update to detail everything that's new, so stay tuned for more! More on Android 16:
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Google's latest Android 16 beta brings advanced AI-driven features for wallpaper and lock screen customization, including weather effects and smart subject framing.
Android 16 Beta Unveils AI-Powered Wallpaper Effects
Google's latest Android 16 beta is pushing the boundaries of smartphone customization with a suite of AI-powered features for wallpapers and lock screens. The update, currently available for Pixel phones, introduces innovative ways to personalize device aesthetics and improve user interaction
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.Smart Shape Framing and Color Adaptation
One of the standout features is the new "Shape" effect. This AI-driven tool automatically identifies the subject in a photo and frames it within various geometric shapes, including slanted ovals, rounded rectangles, and hexagons. The feature goes beyond mere framing by intelligently extending portions of the subject outside the shape, creating a dynamic visual effect
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.The AI doesn't stop there; it also generates a complementary background color based on the image's palette. Users can fine-tune the color intensity to their liking, ensuring a harmonious overall look
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.Weather Effects: Bringing Your Wallpaper to Life
Source: The Verge
The "Weather" effect adds another layer of dynamism to wallpapers. This feature overlays animated weather conditions onto the user's chosen image. Options include rain, snow, fog, and sunshine. What sets this apart is the "Local" setting, which automatically adjusts the weather effect to match real-world conditions in the user's area
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.Enhanced Lock Screen Functionality
Android 16 isn't just about aesthetics; it also brings functional improvements to the lock screen. Users now have greater control over notification display, with options like hiding already seen notifications. Google is also testing a "Live Updates" feature, similar to iOS's Live Activities, which can display real-time information such as ride-sharing ETAs directly on the lock screen
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Cinematic Wallpapers and AI Integration
The update relocates the existing "Cinematic" wallpaper option to the new Effects menu. This feature, which adds a 3D parallax effect to images, now sports a more intuitive toggle labeled "Add 3D motion to this photo"
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.Notably, Google has chosen to denote these AI-powered features with a sparkle icon (✨), making them easily identifiable within the interface
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.Competitive Landscape and User Experience
These new features position Android, particularly on Pixel devices, more competitively against other platforms. The shape framing effect, for instance, bears similarities to features already available on Samsung Galaxy phones and iOS devices
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.However, the current implementation has some limitations. Users cannot manually adjust the framing or subject selection, which may lead to suboptimal results in some cases. In a test with a photo containing two cats, the AI automatically centered on one, with no option to switch focus to the other
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.As Google continues to refine these features, they represent a significant step forward in smartphone personalization, leveraging AI to create more engaging and dynamic user experiences.
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