By Android 16 is set to be released to the general public in the next months, and we now have solid evidence of a big design revamp for Google’s mobile operating system, which will update many different aspects of its user interface.
This new appearance was discovered and enabled by Android Authority while buried in the code for the newest Android 16 beta. At this point, it’s unclear whether the UI makeover will be released alongside Android 16, but it appears to be nearly ready.
First, we get a redesigned look for the status bar at the top of the screen, with new status bar icons (for Wi-Fi, battery level, and aeroplane mode, for example), as well as an adjusted font for the status bar clock.
The second notable change is coming to the alerts and Quick Settings panel. This panel appears to be getting a number of changes, including a blurred background, a revised brightness slider, and icon segmentation.
Third, there are visual changes to the lock screen, including a more smaller notification shelf, the addition of dynamic colours, and some widget reordering, which we previously discussed.
A fourth modification occurs in the UI for the volume sliders. The slider bars will be thinner, with prominent handles at the ends, and a variety of other changes – not significant variations, but they will result in a cleaner, more modern look overall.
Fifth, the Settings app is getting more “expressive”, with coloured icons, thinner menu headings, and arrows indicating sub-pages. The idea is that settings will be easy to find and change on your Android phone.
There are also small adjustments, such as alterations to the icons’ design and more blurring across the UI. Google hasn’t publicly announced the update yet, but it may do so at the Google I/O 2025 event, which begins on May 20.
Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, applications, and the online world for over 20 years. He is based in Stockport, England, and writes about news, features, and reviews for TechRadar, focusing on phones, tablets, and wearables. Working on weekends to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business, David has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci, and a few other places, as well as many years of experience editing PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.
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