According to reports the Android 15 update has added a surprising new feature called “Notification cooldown.” This feature will gradually lower the volume of successive notifications for a time.
The Notification cooldown option is found at the bottom of the notification settings section, where it is possible to set it to either set it to apply a cooldown to all notifications, a specific conversation, or not at all. It's a simple enough feature to add, but one that might be hugely popular with people who are inundated with notifications but can’t risk putting their phone on silent.
However, it should be noted that this will not completely mute the sound of new notifications, nor stop them popping up on the screen. Instead the feature works by lowering the volume of successive notifications. The theory is that this volume change will make the users aware of where certain notifications are coming from and allow them to ignore long-running conversations consciously.
There is, in addition, an unknown cooldown timer that will reset after a while as well. Once this reset occurs the notifications will come through at full volume, regardless of if they are from the same app or conversation. It does not appear that there is an option for users to adjust this timer yet, but it might be a feature that is added in the full update.
Android 15's other features
Thanks to known tipster Mishaal Rahman we have a good idea of a few of the other additions on offer for the Android 15 Developer Preview as well. These include the addition of a new "keyboard vibration" toggle and even haptic feedback when you adjust the brightness through the Quick Settings slider which is enabled by default.
Here's what's new in Android 15 Developer Preview 1 🧵 pic.twitter.com/VFfjbF2yF1February 16, 2024
Many of these features already existed in some form in prior updates, but the biggest change appears to be that many of them are now enabled by default. We likely won't know more features until at least the Google I/O in May.
A feature like Notification Cooldown seems to be quite a small addition, but it is the kind of thing that will easily become a staple in OS changes. It offers users more customization in how their phone affects their lives, which can only be a good thing, however, it does need a few tweaks to make it perfect. We should see those, and be able to test them ourselves when Android 15 is released, possibly later this year.
