Android 13

Android 13 QPR1 adds animation to Quick Settings toggles

Damien Wilde | Sep 9 2022 - 1:43 am PT

The brand-new Android 13 QPR1 Beta 1 update comes with a number of key refinements, the most notable being the addition of animation to common Quick Settings toggles.

A neat addition that has been almost long overdue given the attention to detail within Android 13, a number of the Quick Settings toggles now have unique animations when activated. For instance, when tapping the Auto-rotate toggle, the dual arrows will flip to indicate that you have enabled the function.

The Battery Saver mode toggle is the most delightful with small “+” icons animated in to presumably show that less power is being consumed while the mode is enabled. Most are simple animations such as the small airplane icon sliding out of view but lacking the old OnePlus landing animation when disabled. When selecting the Location, Camera, or Mic access toggles, a line will strike through the mini icon to indicate that access has been removed in an inverse fashion. Tapping the Do Not Disturb toggle will see the no access sign or “no entry” glyph spin 180 degrees.

Not all have dedicated animations, including the Flashlight/Torch, which simply turns on/off as it did previously. The same can be said of the One-handed mode Quick Settings toggle, which has no animation either. You can see this in action below:

It’s also worth noting that there is no animation when you deactivate or disable selected device functions from your Quick Settings panel. Third-party toggles will be devoid of animation, and this is extended to those that have a further menu or panel. The Wi-Fi, Screen record, Screen Cast, Home, Nearby Share, Wallet, Calculator, Live Transcribe, and QR code scanners are examples of this.

Google has also added a persistent floating pane at the bottom of your display to indicate when Focus Mode has been enabled. When you toggle the app-blocking mode from the Quick Settings panel, the full notification will slide in from the bottom your screen allowing you to access the “Take a break” and “Turn off now” options available. This is the only such toggle to do this in QPR1 Beta 1 but is cohesive with the added Quick Settings animations, given it’s a Digital Wellbeing tool for blocking app access.

Given the improved easing and overall attention to animations within Android 12 and Android 13, this is a neat quality-of-life addition that might not make all that much difference but is nice all the same. When Apple is often praised for having such slick animations and smooth interactions, it comes as no great shock that Google would want to do the same for Pixel phones.