Peter Kostadinov

Google is working towards a bug-free Android 17 Feature Drop this fall. Google has just seeded the fourth beta of the Android 17 QPR1 feature drop, which gives us an early preview of everything that's set to arrive to the platform this September. The latest update is currently heavy on bug fixes and doesn't include any major new features, Which Pixels can try the latest beta? Currently, all recent Pixel phones can join the party aside from the Pixel 6 series.

Even in mid-2026, multitasking is one of Android's biggest strengths, and Gemini for Android is likely scoring a very useful feature that could immensely improve its utility. According to an APK teardown conducted by Android Authority, Android's now-standard Gemini assistant might soon become minimizable so that it can continue working in the background and not impede your browsing experience. Wait, isn't Gemini already minimizable? Well, not really.

Realistically, is that a feature you'd use more than once? Honestly, no. I think this will be a feature that most people, me included, will play around with once and immediately forget. After all, once you've set it to your liking, there's little logical reason to ever tinker with this slider ever again. But on the other hand, it clearly shows that Apple has heeded users' feedback on Liquid Glass, which is a great thing to see.