Android 16 Review: Stock Android with Personality

For years, the stock flavour of Android has been criticized for its lack of visual flair compared to Samsung's One UI and OnePlus' Oxygen OS. Android 16 changes that perception, as it brings a refreshed look that feels nothing like you've seen before. I've been exploring every corner of this new update on the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL since the very first beta, and after months of use, here are my complete thoughts on what I like and what I don't in this review of Android 16. 

I am in love with Material 3 Expressive 

Android 16 introduces us to Google's new design language called Material 3 Expressive. It brings a bold new refresh to the blandness of stock Android, with tons of colours that are more prominent in the UI. It feels different enough for you to sit up and notice, but it doesn't feel out of place like RCB's jersey in every IPL season. 

Android 16 gets rid of solid backgrounds. Instead, Material 3 introduces a blur effect throughout the system UI, giving everything a modern, layered look. I know some of you might call it a knock-off of Apple's Liquid Glass, but that's not the case. It isn’t just for aesthetics, as it lets you peek at what’s happening in the background while checking notifications or juggling apps, making the interface feel more dynamic.

Material 3 also adds a liveliness to Android with colourful and bold themes, large buttons, and bouncy animations that move in response to your touch. For example: Toggle a switch, and it might morph from a circle to a square; swipe away a notification, and the others spring into place with a playful animation. These subtle touches give Android 16 a lively personality that was missing in Pixel devices before.

Improved Quick Settings

Raise your hand if you’ve never liked Android's default quick settings. Yeah, me too, and that is why I couldn't use a Pixel for long. But finally, Google changed it in Android 16, allowing you to customise quick settings by resizing toggles, like on Nothing OS. This means that you can now have up to 16 toggles in a page, up from the 8-toggle limit before. 

The brightness slider also got a much-needed makeover as it is rectangular now with a handle, making it more convenient to adjust brightness at a whim. And the “Clear All” button? It is now at the centre, making it more obvious to find. So, I hope my mom will finally be able to clear notifications instead of letting them clutter her phone. 

Lock screen that's livelier than ever

The lockscreen has also been updated with the Material 3 charm. Now you can change the thickness and size of clock styles, and there is a new option to show notifications in a compact way. This allows me to hide some "private" messages when handing my phone to someone else. 

There are also two new lock screen Live effects under "Wallpapers and Styles". The first one, called Shape, allows you to pick from five different frames to go with your photos. It will add a dynamic effect with the subject of the background standing out, which looks really cool in my opinion, and adds another level of immersion when transitioning from the lock screen to the home screen of your phone.  

Then there's the Weather effect, which shows animations of current weather conditions like rain, fog, snowfall, and sunshine. Seeing the ongoing monsoon season in Noida, I applied the infamous image of sad Vegeta with the Rain weather effect to bring the popular meme to life. With later updates, Pixel users will be able to add widgets on the lock screen, allowing them to glance at important things without unlocking the device. 

My Pixel feels more clicky 

Android 16 also improves on system haptics that feel sharper, more clicky, and are very well implemented throughout the OS. Similar to OnePlus' Oxygen OS, every tap and interaction is accompanied by a tactile response. This is thanks to the new Richer Haptics API in Android 16, which allows apps to adjust the amplitude and frequency curves of vibrations.  

Whether it is changing the volume, moving around icons on the home screen, scrolling through settings, or even using the Weather app, you will feel a satisfying vibration everywhere. 

One-stop solution for all my privacy needs

Another highlight of Android 16 is Advanced Protection Mode. Think of it like the master switch for everything privacy-related on Android. Once you turn it on, all security features on your phone, like Theft detection, Factory Reset protection, USB and network intrusion protection, will be enabled. It will also activate privacy features such as Spam detection in compatible apps like Google Phone and Messages.

I am glad that Google is simplifying ways to secure Android phones, making it easier to explain how to turn on certain features to your not-so-tech-savvy family members and friends.

Pixel Launcher is still meh

Despite all the big changes in Android 16 with Material 3, the Pixel launcher remains unchanged. With every other UI adapting options like removing app labels, increasing icon and folder size, and supporting custom icons, Google remains adamant on using the same old launcher without any big improvements. 

In the same manner, the Always-On display on the lock screen also remains pretty flavourless, with no option to customise it. Google, I have given you a free pass throughout this review for taking notes from others. Could you please do the same for the launcher?

No AI love for India 

For all the UI changes that Android 16 brings to the table, we are still missing out on a lot of AI goodness in India, even with this update. This is quite embarrassing when Google is pushing its AI features so hard to consumers lately. These missing AI features include: 

Some of these features like Scam detection or call screening can be quite helpful in the region, but it is still unclear why Google is gatekeeping them only to the US. I was hoping for Android 16 would finally bring these additions to India, but that's, of course, not the case. 

Bottom line: Android 16 is more than a fresh coat of paint

When Android 15 launched, it left me feeling underwhelmed. But Android 16 feels like the much-needed modern refresh the OS desperately needed. Material 3 Expressive is a proper evolution of the colourful path Google started with Android 12’s Material You design.

Changes like the new UI and Advanced Privacy Protection tackle real-world concerns for users, and overall, the system feels noticeably more responsive. The excitement of a new Android update had started to fade because we already knew what to expect. But Android 16? This one actually brings the hype back.

Pixel users in particular are going to enjoy all the fresh changes packed into the OS. Sure, some might disagree with me, but that’s fair. Personally, I really like Android 16, and aside from a few quirks, it’s one of the better Android updates we’ve seen in years.