Google’s Android L, which the search giant took the unprecedented step of launching at I/O this time around, offers a bunch of improvements over KitKat. Notably, it’s laden with an all-new “Material Design,” but aside from tweaking the aesthetics, there are plenty of enhancements on the functionality side of things. As it has just emerged, multi-user support is also in the offing for smartphones, and given how families and groups like to share devices, seems a natural progression that perhaps should have arrived much earlier.
As per Google’s issue tracker, smartphones running Android L will support multiple profiles, which would not only allow more than one person to use the same device with specific, tailored settings, but would also allow individual users to run separate set-ups dependent on the occasion or environment.
For example, if, like many folks, you have certain apps, contacts and services specifically for working hours, you could create a user / profile to serve you through these times. Likewise, for downtime, you could have all of your entertainment / trolling apps designed specifically for the purpose of enjoyment.
With Samsung having taken a step into the world of “Pro” slabs in recent times, the Galaxy maker has taken full advantage of the multi-user tablet support that has been prevalent since Android 4.2. However, whilst such a feature mightn’t be seen as critical in the world of smartphones, it’s still a necessary evolutionary option that many will doubtlessly take full advantage of.
Google has already explained itself in the past re multi-user support in smartphones – or the lack thereof – but rather than being an arbitrary choice decision, the delay has been due to the fact that the company couldn’t work out the kinks regarding calls and SMS messages.
But even though a smartphone tends to be a one-unit-per-consumer type of product, the aforementioned uses in separating different situations will certainly go down with the Android faithful, and having already seen the beauty of Android L’s new design, we cannot wait to try out the fully-fledged version when it does finally release.
Barring any delays, Android L should arrive this fall, and given that the whole experience is also expected to serve as a continuation of Jelly Bean’s Project Butter, we cannot wait to test out the slick new OS first-hand.
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