14 DAY TRIAL // Google is expected to add an Always On feature on the next-generation Pixel smartphone, as evidence discovered in the latest developer preview of Android O seems to indicate that the search company is already testing out this feature internally.
XDA came across a reference to the new feature in the SystemUIGoogle.apk file available on a Google Pixel running the latest Android O Developer Preview 3, with a source code line pointing to a feature called “doze_always_on.”
The aforementioned source says doze does not refer to the battery saving mode, but to Ambient Display, and could represent a toggle that allows users to enable Always On on the new Pixel.
Seeing Google going for such a feature on the new Pixel is not at all surprising, especially because Always On appears to be well received by users who purchased devices with such functionality.
Not working just yet
Always On was introduced a long time ago by Nokia as Glance screen, but was later adopted by other companies as well, including Motorola. Samsung is the one that made Always On modern and more widely-adopted, and Google is now likely to continue the series of companies offering the feature on their devices.
For the time being, however, only little is known about this rumored version of Google’s on Always On feature, but there’s a good chance the search giant would adopt technology similar to Samsung to prevent burn-ins. This involves having the displayed content, such as time, date, and notifications, moving around by a few pixels in order to avoid screen issues due to worn out pixels.
Even though it’s integrated into the latest developer preview of Android O, the feature cannot be enabled just yet, and it’s pretty obvious that Google doesn’t want testers to be able to run it for the time being. Though it’s not clear if the new Always On feature is in a working state or not, more information should land in the coming preview builds, ahead of the new Pixel’s official launch in the fall this year.