Apple might soon have some copycats on its hands.
Google is developing a new version of its Android operating system that will work with a rash of smartphones featuring the “notch” design like that in Apple’s iPhone X, Bloomberg is reporting, citing people who claim to have knowledge of its plans. Google believes that if it can develop software that does a better job of working around the notch at the top of the smartphone’s screen, it can attract iPhone users to Android handsets.
Apple last year unveiled the iPhone X, a smartphone that comes with thin bezels around its screen. At the top of the display is a black strip called the “notch” that houses the handset’s earpiece and front-facing camera. It’s also an eyesore for some who don’t like that it takes up so much screen space.
So far, few developers have taken full advantage of the iPhone X’s screen. Many apps use the notch edge as a stopping point for the software, leaving nothing to be displayed on either side of the notch. That effectively makes a part of the iPhone X’s screen useless.
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According to Bloomberg’s sources, Google expects more companies to develop smartphones with a notch, mimicking the iPhone X’s design. The feature allows those companies to offer bigger screens with slimmer bezels but still keep key features like the earpiece and front-facing camera in place. By developing an improved Android that would offer software features that utilize the notch instead of stray from it, Google thinks it can attract iPhone users, according to Bloomberg.
To further enhance Android’s appeal, Google is also working on features that would improve the software’s effects on smartphone battery life, according to the report. Google also wants to ensure the operating system will work with new smartphone designs, including those that come with foldable screens. Samsung is said to be working on a new handset that would come with a foldable display. It could be released later this year.
Google did not immediately respond to a Coins2Day request for comment on the report.