Android 15 could finally take me from Motorola Razr to Galaxy Z Flip

The second Android 15 Developer Preview is now available for eligible Pixel phones, and the software gives us another look at what we can expect when the full update rolls out. While there’s a lot of excitement about official satellite connectivity, the return of the old taskbar for large-screen devices and other features, an addition to Android 15 that I’m excited about aims to bring to more flip phones cover screen experience. deserve.

According to Google, a new property in Android 15 will allow developers to declare that their app can be used on smaller screens like those used for flip phone cover screens. Google says this should be at least 1.5 inches for the shortest dimension and at least 2.4 inches for the longest dimension.

“These screens are too small to be considered compatible targets for Android apps to run on, but your app can choose to support them, making it available in more places,” says Dave Burke, Google VR engineer. This means that more flip phones should potentially be able to run full apps on their cover screens, a fairly limited feature on most flippers outside of the Motorola Razr Plus.

If you’re a fan of flip phones, like me, it’s not hard to see why this is exciting for the form factor’s immediate future.

Samsung dropped the ball

I’ve been using the Motorola Razr Plus as my daily driver since the phone launched in June 2023. There’s a lot to like about the phone, but the biggest appeal for me is the fact that I can run almost any app on it. the big screen. 3.6 inch cover screen. This means I can spend less time on the more power-hungry main screen when responding to texts, watching videos, and even playing games without needing to open my phone. It’s a great experience and one that I hoped Samsung would build on when it launched the Galaxy Z Flip 5 a month later. Unfortunately, this was not the case.

I’ve written before about my disappointment with the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and why I chose to stick with the Motorola Razr Plus when Samsung’s phone has a better chipset, better battery life and better cameras. It’s no secret to those who know me that I love One UI, and I would much rather use the Z Flip 5 for this very reason. However, the cover screen experience is quite lacking and the Razr Plus far outperforms other flip phones I’ve used, like the rather impressive OPPO Find N3 Flip. The Razr Plus may not be perfect, but it’s the only thing that gets it right, and to me, that’s the most important thing. It works.

Meanwhile, Samsung forces users to jump through hoops to get apps to work on the cover screen, and even then the experience still feels lacking. Out of the box, there are only a handful of unofficially supported apps that you can access through the somewhat hidden Labs setting and which have apparently been optimized for the Cover screen.

However, if you want to use more apps, you will need to download Good Lock, install a mod, enable a feature in that mod, and then select the apps you want to view. It’s a bit much, and I’ve had to explain this process to friends who ended up buying the phone and didn’t know it was possible.

Samsung has apparently worked with some developers to offer optimized versions of the apps on the cover screen, which is why the selection is quite limited. Samsung also suggested that more apps could be available through Labs in the future.

The problem is that Samsung hampers its large cover screen by not really managing to take advantage of it like Motorola does. It’s not entirely clear why the company chose to only allow certain apps on the Cover screen aside from trying to offer a so-called “curated” experience, but with this new feature in Android 15, Google is removing a potential obstacle, and Samsung – and other OEMs – have the opportunity to give us the cover screen experience we deserve.

After all, while it’s nice to have apps optimized for the cover screen, I’d much rather have them available than not or avoid having to dig through apps and menus to achieve this. Optimization can take place later.

Open the floodgates

Right now, the Razr Plus is really the only flip phone I know of that takes full advantage of its cover screen like this. However, this new feature in Android 15 has the potential to open the floodgates for more OEMs to offer a similar experience. This is great for me as a fan of modern flip phones, but it also means that Motorola would lose one of its main advantages over other devices.

After all, if I can get a Galaxy Z Flip 6 or 7 with Android 15, a decent camera, and a better cover screen experience, then I’m sold. Of course, app developers and OEMs like Samsung still have to sign up to support this feature, but I can’t imagine companies not wanting it when Google is practically handing it to them.

This change in Android 15 may also give us a glimpse of Google’s plans for a potential Pixel Flip. The company hasn’t shared its plans for a flip phone that would follow the Pixel Fold, but given the form factor’s popularity over larger foldable phones, it’s likely Google will consider building one in the future. That said, if that’s the case, I imagine Google will want to offer a similar cover screen experience to the Razr Plus and might even work with developers to further optimize apps for smaller screens.

The global foldable market is growing and the latest figures show that Motorola is gradually catching up with Samsung, thanks to its new Razr models and tougher competition in the space. However, it’s only a matter of time before more companies like Google and even OnePlus introduce their own flip phones, which means Motorola will have to give me another reason to keep using the Razr. he wants to stay competitive.