The New Updates to Android’s Notification System

Android’s new operating system, known as Nougat 7.0, was released last year for Pixel and Nexus. But now that Nougat is finally rolling out to other Android devices — the first of which are Samsung — software updates are already being released for existing Pixel and Nexus users. With these updates comes the ability to respond to messages within the notification menu, as well as bug fixes and new mandatory requirements for Android developers. (Crucial security patches were also released with this update.) The update will improve the Android experience for new users as well.  First up will be Samsung devices, then newer LG phones, Motorola, HTC phones, and others — though a few of these manufacturers’ models have already received the new OS. If you have an unlocked smartphone, you should be able to download the Nougat OS for most newer phone models.

Read More: Android’s New Security Upgrade Misses a Key Mark

New Notification Requirements for Nougat Update

Google recently released a new requirement for Android devices running the latest Nougat update (7.1.1): Manufacturers are no longer allowed to change Android’s new notification system. Manufacturers are also required to properly bundle and update notifications, and must allow users to “mute” or “block” certain unwanted alerts. This is an important announcement in light of issues that Android users have had in receiving their notifications in prior versions. Furthermore, this requirement will add a more consistent notification experience across Android devices for all users.

Notification System Updates

The crucial update that’s finally arrived on Android Nougat is relatively simple, and largely consists of a more robust notification system. You can now reply to a message within the notification menu, as well as avoid major bugs fixes including the infamous disappearing “quick reply” option when receiving a new message.

These direct reply notifications will work beyond Google Hangouts, but other messaging apps have been slow to make their services fully compatible with the new update. Fortunately, WhatsApp is leading the way, and recently announced that the latest version of its app will support the new Android notification system. The update includes notifications of all messages (not just the newest message), bug fixes related to Quick Reply, and notification fixes on Android Wear devices.  Though this WhatsApp update is still in beta, the next version will be fully compatible with Android’s most convenient and user-friendly notification system yet.