Back in 2017, with Fast Pair’s launch, pairing a Bluetooth device has become as easy as just bringing your Bluetooth accessory near your headset. It reduces the manual work and lets users pair headphones with just a tap. Since its launch, the process started with a standard notification that’d include a thumbnail of the Bluetooth accessory. But now, it looks like Android is trying to copy iOS when it comes to ‘Fast Pairing of Bluetooth devices on Android smartphones. Google has recently updated Fast Pair UI that now looks quite similar to the one on iOS.
Earlier, the pairing process popped a notification at the top of your screen that required a simple tap to initiate the pairing and then provide a confirmation. However, now, Google has quietly updated the setup experience that now features a tall sheet sliding up from the bottom. According to a report from 9to5Google, the name of the accessory appears centered above its bigger picture. Below the picture of the Bluetooth accessory, there appears a “Connect” button, that once paired, displays an option to continue “Setup” or “Close.”
Updated Fast Pair UI on Android
According to 9to5Google, Google quietly introduced Android’s new Fast Pair interface in November (or earlier). Said to take after iOS and AirPods, the new UI imitates iPhone’s Bluetooth pairing interface as it now also pops up a tall sheet sliding from the bottom. Notably, a user is less likely to miss or swipe away a bottom sheet as compared to the notification at the top. Here’s how the UI will work and appear on your Android handset.
The improved Fast Pair UI for Android appears when you start setting up a new Fast Pair accessory with your phone for the first time. When you tap the “Connect” button, it pairs your Bluetooth accessory with your smartphone. However, Android still uses a compact notification to show the battery status of each item. On the other hand, iOS brings up the entire sheet to show battery percentage.
The report also notes that a smaller alert is leveraged for re-pairing accessories too, especially on phones and tablets with a signed-in Google Account.
