Google announced a new experience called Ambient Mode for Android devices back in September at IFA 2019. The company seems to have started rolling the new feature out to select devices, and it’s expected to hit the majority of the supported devices by next week.

The new Ambient Mode is available to devices running Android 8.0 or newer, but it’s only available to a small number of devices. In fact, the new device is only apparently supported by Sony, Nokia, Xiaomi, Transsion, and two of Lenovo’s tablets.

That means Google’s own Pixel devices won’t have the new Ambient Mode just yet, and users will continue to get the Pixel Stand UI on those devices. As for the new Ambient Mode, it’s actually much better than what we have seen on the Pixel Stand UI. Google released a new video explaining the functionalities of the new mode, and it’s similar to what we have seen before, just better. Google is calling it a “proactive Google Assistant” experience.

“The ultimate goal for proactive Assistant is to help you get things done faster, anticipate your needs, and accomplish your tasks as quickly and as easily as possible. It’s fundamentally about moving from an app-based way of doing things to an intent-based way of doing things,” the company said. The new Ambient Mode gives users access to their notifications, and access to quick actions such as Do Not Disturb pretty quickly. You can see it in action below:

Tagged with Ambient Mode, Google Assistant