Google has now started rolling out the latest Android 6.0 Marshmallow update
for its Nexus devices. Although the OTA update is now live, but it will still
take a couple of days more to reach every Nexus devices.
Android 6.0 Marshmallow update is currently rolling out for the Nexus 5,
Nexus 6, Nexus 7 and Nexus 9 users. Along with the OTA update, Google has also
released the factory images. So, if you want to do a clean install then you can
go ahead and download the latest Android Marshmallow factory images from
Google’s website.
While the non-Nexus device owners are still waiting for the update, we
though to list up the top Android Marshmallow features. So, here you go:
Google Now on Tap
The new Android 6.0 Marshmallow comes with a new feature called Now on Tap.
As the name hints, Now on Tap is linked to Google Now and it works on what it
sees. So, for example if your friend has messaged you about dinner at a
restaurant, you can long tap the home button and Google Now on Tap will show
the reviews for that particular restaurant, options to contact them or even
book a reservation. The most amazing thing is that Now on Tap works on every
app screen. So, whether you are browsing the web on Chrome or chatting with
your friends via SMS, you can just long tap the home button to get all the
important details.
Isn’t that great?
App Permissions
One of the most waited feature is finally live. Android Marshmallow allows
users to choose the amount of access they want to grant to a specific app. So,
for example if they don’t want the Camera app to access their location, they
can simply disable that from the permission list. Now they don’t have to grant
full access to all the apps. They can select what they want to share and what
they don’t
Everything works on tap. So, just tap and it will grant the permission and
tap again to turn it off.Better Battery
Google says that it has added two new Battery specific features in Android Marshmallow.
Both of these features will help you to improve your phone’s battery backup
life.
The first one is Doze, which uses your phone’s accelerometer to identify
whether your phone is at rest or not. So, for example if you are not doing
anything on your phone and you have kept it on your tablet, Doze will
automatically identify that your phone is at rest and will then enable the deep
sleep mode. This deep sleep mode will shut down all the background activity
until you tap on the display.
The second feature is App Standby, which basically disables the app which
you rarely use. So, for example if you don’t use Sheets app much, it will
automatically add it to the App Standby list.
New App Drawer
Google has updated the app drawer in Android Marshmallow. The first thing
which you will notice in this new app drawer is the search option. And just
below to that there is a list of apps which you frequently use.
It also now scrolls up and down instead of left and right.
File Explorer
There is a new file explorer feature in the Android 6.0 Marshmallow. You
will find it in the Settings page and it basically categories all your phone’s
data in different categories. Like Apps, Songs, Videos, Documents and more. So,
that you can easily browse through all your data.
There are many other improvements too. But you will only notice them if you
spend most of your time playing with your phone.