Summary
- Native app icon shapes: choose from 5 styles (circle, squircle, clover, bubbly-pentagon, half‑round).
- ART garbage collection is more efficient — less cleanup, lower battery use and a smoother device feel.
- Health Connect auto-tracks steps and logs weight, set-index and RPE. New dev verification and OTP delays boost security.
Android 16 has been officially available for a few months now, but the beta program is still going strong. The second beta for the upcoming quarterly release (QPR2) has just been released for Pixel phones, and it has some cool goodies.
What’s New
One of the biggest user-facing changes is the ability to change app icon shapes. If you’ve ever wanted to switch up your home screen without a third-party launcher, this is for you. You can now choose from a list of five different shapes that will apply to all your app icons. You get the standard circle, squircle, clover, bubbly-pentagon, and a half-round. This is the first time that this functionality has been added to native Android.
Under the hood, there are some changes that you might not see, but you should feel. The garbage collection process in the Android Runtime (ART) has been made more efficient. This means your phone will spend less time cleaning up old data and use less battery in the process. If you have that classic “feels faster” moment after installing the beta, it could be this.
For those who use Health Connect—you should if you aren’t—the app now automatically tracks your steps using your phone’s sensors. You’ll no longer have to rely on a separate app or wearable to get a basic step count. Apps can now also record and read weight, set index, and Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) for exercise segments.
Finally, in the security realm, they’ve added a new requirement for developer verification, making it harder for scammers to spread malicious apps. And to combat OTP hijacking, the delivery of certain SMS messages will be delayed to give you time to notice any suspicious activity.
How to Get It
If you’re already in the Android Beta Program, you should see the update appear on your eligible Pixel device soon. The update is available for a wide range of devices, including the new Pixel 10 series, which was just added this week. If you’re not in the beta, you can easily opt in to the Android Beta Program, or manually sideload an OTA image with the Android Flash Tool. The final public release of Android 16 QPR2 is scheduled for December.
Source: Android Developers