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Get to know Android Nougat in 19 photos

Google's Android 7.0 software update is here. Take a tour with us?

Sean Hollister
When his parents denied him a Super NES, he got mad. When they traded a prize Sega Genesis for a 2400 baud modem, he got even. Years of Internet shareware, eBay'd possessions and video game testing jobs after that, he joined Engadget. He helped found The Verge, and later served as Gizmodo's reviews editor. When he's not madly testing laptops, apps, virtual reality experiences, and whatever new gadget will supposedly change the world, he likes to kick back with some games, a good Nerf blaster, and a bottle of Tejava.
Sean Hollister
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1 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

Google's sweet tooth knows no bounds. After snacking on Cupcake, Donut, Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread, Honeycomb, Ice Cream Sandwich, Jelly Bean, Kit Kat, Lollipop and Marshmallow, we're at Android 7.0 "Nougat" now!

Let's take a tour.

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2 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

At least, we're at Nougat if you've got a Nexus 6P or Nexus 5X smartphone -- it hasn't come to any other phones, or even the Nexus 6 yet.

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3 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

(You can get it on a Pixel C or Nexus 9 tablet, though.)

But I'm getting distracted. On with the tour!

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4 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

Here's the new Android Nougat homescreen. Other than the pink wallpaper, it's not much different, yes?

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5 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

But pull down your notification shade, and you'll find some much improved notifications! Each app bundles its notifications in a single item to save space -- though we did see a few misbehave.

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6 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

You can dive deeper, too. Swipe down on any bundle of notifications to expand it, and you'll see each individual text message or Gmail.

Plus, you can instantly reply to notifications without opening an app!

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7 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

Here's how easy it is to reply to a text message.

Though weirdly, this reply feature doesn't seem to work for Gmail. Pressing it opens the Gmail app.

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8 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

Swipe down even further from the top of your screen, and you can access a new quick settings menu -- one you can customize!

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9 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

There's a cool new feature in the actual Settings app, too: suggestions for settings you might like to change.

(You should really set up the fingerprint sensor on your Nexus 5X or Nexus 6P if you haven't already: they're great!)

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10 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

The most notable feature of Android Nougat is multitasking. You can multitask two ways: split-screen (see photo) or by double-tapping the Recents button to quickly switch between the two most recent apps.

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11 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

To activate split-screen multitasking, you hold down on the Recents button *from within an app* (don't tap it, and don't press it when you're on the homescreen.) Then, you can pin one of your other open apps beneath it.

Two caveats: it doesn't work for full-screen games, and some apps won't work properly (Google Maps) unless you tap on them.

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12 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

On tablets or devices rotated to landscape mode, you'll see split-screen apps open side by side, instead of above and below.

It's not a great aspect ratio for YouTube, but it works great for calendars and email!

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13 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

But Nougat's biggest features are ones you can't actually see: like Daydream, the company's big bet on building the Android of virtual reality.

Allegedly, many future Android Nougat phones will automatically be VR-ready, but Google hasn't launched the feature quite yet.

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14 of 19 Screenshots by Sean Hollister/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

Or a simple boost in speed. Our mid-range Nexus 5X definitely felt faster with Nougat than it did with Marshmallow. (We even went back to Marshmallow to check.)

While the Geekbench benchmark didn't reflect the change in speed, 3DMark (which measures graphics performance) consistently showed better scores (15,000 - 21,000) than Marshmallow (14,000 - 19,000).

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15 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

Here's an invisible feature you can sink your teeth into: battery life!

Slip your phone into a pocket or purse, and Doze 2.0 should automatically put your apps to sleep to save juice.

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16 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

We haven't finished testing how well Doze 2.0 works, but the flat portion of this battery life graph is a pretty good sign -- it suggests that the phone isn't eating much battery when it's idle.

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Android 7.0 Nougat

Oh, and there's one last hidden feature you might want to check out: the Nougat easter egg is a cat catching game that's like a mix of Tamagotchi and Pokemon!

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18 of 19 Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

And don't forget all of Nougat's new emoji!

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19 of 19 Josh Miller/CNET

Android 7.0 Nougat

The biggest thing we don't know about Nougat is when cellular carriers and manufacturers (you know, other than Google) will roll it out. We'd love for this whole table to be filled with Nougat-y new devices...but when? Stay tuned.

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