Android M vs. Android Lollipop: Do Not Disturb Mode in Developer Preview Shows Google's Not Done Tweaking Interruptions Yet
It's simultaneously one of the most promising new features of Android 5.0 Lollipop and one of the most confusedly designed, but the Android M developer preview shows signs that Google is taking another crack at its infamous "interruptions" system.
While we still don't know the exact release date for the new iteration of Google's Android mobile OS, nor do we know what "M" will eventually stand for (my money's on marshmallow), since the Android M developer preview was released, we do know that "Interruptions" on Android could get a lot more user-friendly.
It also appears Google will change the feature's name to "Do Not Disturb," according to Android Central's tour through the Android M preview -- though why Google would want to mimic Apple that closely in the final consumer release of its next OS is a bit baffling. (There's still time to tweak the name though, or for that matter, change anything about "Do Not Disturb," so don't take these details as the full and final gospel.)
In any case, Do Not Disturb looks a lot less cryptic in the various notifications settings available. In place of Android Lollipop's "none", "priority" and "all" labeled modes in Interruptions, Android M has "priority only", "alarms only", and "total silence," which you'd think Google would just straight-up label "mute."
If you noticed there's no replacement for "all" mode, it's because unlike Interruptions, with Do Not Disturb -- like so many other smartphone settings -- can be toggled completely on or off.
Google has fleshed out its "priority" mode in Do Not Disturb. For example, you can set starred contacts only, contacts only, or no one for priority mode, and choose whether to include event alarms or reminders as well.
It seems "downtime" is gone and instead replaced with the customizable default actions of automatic rules -- allowing for different default actions depending on whether it's the weekend or weeknights, and other custom rules for specific contexts that you can set. The "alarms only" setting, meanwhile, replaces downtime in the same way Android 5.1 Lollipop works but only when users manually toggle it on.
Another smart addition is that Do Not Disturb on the "priority only" setting can let an otherwise-blocked call to come through if you receive two calls within a 15 minute period from the same source -- finally allowing for the possibility of emergency situations, which was a cause for anxiety under Android Lollipop's system.
As mentioned, these features are still very much under development, so a lot could change. But judging from the tweaks so far, it looks like Google could finally get this particularly tricky Lollipop feature right, come last 2015 when Android M is released.
* This is a contributed article and this content does not necessarily represent the views of latinpost.com