Taskbar comes to phones with Android 15

Google is working on an important innovation for the Android operating system. The company plans to develop a feature similar to the taskbar on Android tablets. According to the information shared by Android expert Mishaal Rahman on Android Authority, this new taskbar will be integrated into Android phones with Android 15 version. Currently designed only for large-screen devices, the taskbar will allow users to switch between applications faster.

The taskbar first arrived in 2022 with the Android 12L version. This version was developed specifically for large-screen devices and offered a constantly visible taskbar at the bottom of the screen. This bar, which shows the application icons on the users’ home screen, could remain visible at all times, thanks to the large tablet screens. However, this was not the case with devices with foldable screens. That’s why, with the second Quarter Platform Release (QPR) of Android 13, Google changed the taskbar to be briefly visible on foldable displays.

Major changes to the taskbar with Android 15

Starting with Android 13, users had to swipe up from the navigation bar to see the taskbar on book-style foldable devices. This situation changes with Android 15. The new Android version adds a button at the bottom of the screen to quickly bring back a larger taskbar. Google is trying to optimize the taskbar to make it visible on smartphones, while aiming to prevent other elements of the screen from shrinking.

Currently, the taskbar can appear on phones using Android 15 Beta, but this requires making some changes. Mishaal Rahman discovered a feature in Android 15 Beta 4 where users will have the option to display a taskbar at the bottom of the screen at all times. This feature can be used without changing the scaling of the screen. However, this feature is not yet ready to be made available to the end user.

Users who want to see the taskbar in Android 15 Beta can make some changes to the display settings. For this Settings > About phone They can enable developer options by going to and tapping “Build number” six times at the bottom of the screen. Next Settings > System > Developer options inside, Drawing under the title smallest width They can tap and change the value from 411 dp to 600 dp. With this change, the taskbar will appear at the bottom of the screen.

Although this workaround allows users to experience the taskbar, the readability of the screen may be reduced. Therefore, it may make more sense to wait for the taskbar to be introduced with the official version of Android 15. This new feature from Google will improve the user experience and make it even easier to switch between applications. With the release of Android 15, users are waiting with great curiosity to see how this new feature will work.

The integration of the taskbar on smartphones with Android 15 can be seen as part of Google’s efforts to increase the functionality it offers for mobile devices. This innovation will allow users to multitask more effectively and improve the overall user experience. Bringing the taskbar to Android phones can significantly improve productivity and ease of use on mobile devices.