While everyone has been busy picking on Apple for its laid-back stance on adding new features to its devices, there are some quite nifty iOS 14 additions we’d love to be included in the next iteration of the android operating system. And don’t get me wrong, Android has lots of features that aren’t yet available for iOS – that’s a fact, but we’d love to see more. Before you’re up in arms, I’d suggest you read on and give your own judgement – I’m a full time iOS user, there’s no doubt about that but I also carry along my android phone, mostly for business and social as I find the ecosystem better in that segment.
Truth be told, there are some things we find best optimized or just works as expected from the two smartphone operating systems. I for example, considers Apple’s security approach more sensible than android. I’d give anything to find the kind of iCloud’s security approach on an android phone. Let’s face it, smartphone theft probably has fallen compared to the days of yore, but It’s discouraging that someone can easily steal your beloved android phone, flash it, probably temper with IMEI and use it as if nothing happened – and this is done completely via software!
Here are iOS 14 key features we’d love to see on Android.
- APP Clips
This is a feature that Google unveiled way back in 2016 dubbed “Instant Apps”; they are basically smaller versions of iOS apps, under 10MB in size, that are transient on the phone. Google’s implementation was generally vague without some important features we really yarned for. On the other hand, iOS 14’s take is more polished and features something we’re really looking forward to – the “discovery feature”. App clips can be triggered by scanning a QR code, or by scanning an NFC tag. This essentially enables places like restaurants or offices to onboard users more efficiently.
- Using your Smartphone as a Car Key
This should probably have been the first feature on our list, when Apple showcased how iOS users would convert their mobile devices into car keys, I was definitely one of the optimistic fans at that point. It was like freedom was finally achieved and a sigh of relief was felt looking forward. Apple is utilizing it’s current CarPlay feature to unveil a decent addon that would finally substitute physical car keys. This is something we didn’t really knew we needed until Apple happened. This is something Google should definitely be keen to introduce in future android devices. Car keys are stored securely within the Apple wallet and even makes it easy to share with others virtually. Although some android phones from the likes of Huawei already support such a feature, we’d love to see it go mainstream at some point and at this point, Huawei has a lot to deal with revamping the AppGallery.
- Privacy indicator for microphone or camera
Although android has made some commendable strides in this sector, the approach is a bit unrefined as the software has completely blocked background apps from accessing your microphone or camera but there’s no clear indication that these apps are actually using your camera or mic. However, with iOS 14, users are notified with an icon near the top of the screen if an app is actively using the camera or the microphone.
- Nicer Widgets
Before you aim, please hold your fire to the end. Widgets have been available on android forever. And over the years, we’ve seen some great refinements on how widgets work on devices. However, Apple is known to perfect on something before release and their approach is more interesting than what we currently have on android. We’d love to see more on widgets than just the fact they do exist, what Apple showcased resonated with the average consumer rather than leaving everything to power users. iOS 14 handles widgets as mediums of information rather than an after-thought of utility. Apple’s touch comes in the form of “widget stacks,” which can hold multiple widgets in the same space with a swipe-able area.