Early look at Samsung’s Android 10 beta reveals new gestures and volume controls

Samsung’s beta for Android 10 has officially begun rolling out in some countries, and it carries a number of improvements to go along with One UI 2.0. PhoneArena got its hands on the new software already and found a number of changes.

First up is the expected gesture navigation from Android 10, which, oddly enough, seems to be heavily modified from Google’s gestures in a key area. For the time being, and this may change in the final version, there is no way to quickly swipe between apps by swiping left or right on the bottom of the screen. That’s a big bummer for gesture fans who love their multi-tasking.

A new one-handed mode can be used when gestures are enabled, which shrinks the screen down to a friendlier size via a quick swipe-down on the bottom of the screen. Also friendlier is the inclusion of an always-on fingerprint icon for the lock screen. This will display the fingerprint icon at all times and makes it far easier to use the Galaxy S10’s finicky fingerprint scanner, but you can always disable it if you don’t want to see it while the phone is locked.

Samsung is adopting the granular volume controls from Android 10 in a way that more stylistically resembles iOS or MIUI, but operates like Google’s default ones in Android 10. These can be found when pressing the volume buttons and provide quick ways of toggling all types of volume, from media to ringer, and provide quick ways to switch between ringer and vibrate modes.

Media controls from the notification shade have also adopted the more granular nature from Android 10, giving direct media scrubbing from the notification shade, as well as volume control for each app and output.

Lastly is a greater control over your battery and your digital wellbeing, as Samsung has continued to adopt the important controls from Google. Digital Wellbeing now includes more options like a grayscale Wind Down mode after hours, and different focus modes for only allowing certain apps to notify you while at work or school. This also includes new battery stats with more detail, like how often you’ve used certain apps throughout the week.

Parents will be happy to know that enhanced parental controls are also present, helping to prevent overuse or misuse of a device by your kids. This is all done through Google’s Family Link for Parents app found on the Play Store.

Galaxy S10 owners should check their Samsung Members app to see if they qualify for the Android 10 beta.

Android 10: Everything you need to know!