Android 7.0 Nougat begins rolling out to the Moto G4 and G4 Plus - here's what's new

Last month, Motorola confirmed that it would release the Android 7.0 Nougat update for its Moto G4 family sometime in the fourth quarter of this year. There's good news today for owners of the G4 and G4 Plus, as the company has announced that the rollout has now begun.

The company has been testing Android 7.0 on the G4 Plus in Brazil in recent days, but availability of the full and final release for both the G4 and G4 Plus appears to be limited to India for now. However, with the rollout now underway, it seems likely that owners of the two handsets in other markets won't have too long to wait until they get a taste of that delicious Nougat goodness.

Motorola's release notes explain what to expect from the Android 7.0 Nougat update on its G4 devices:

ENHANCEMENTS

Android™ 7.0 Nougat improves your mobile experience with new multitasking features, more efficient notification controls and improved data saver and battery features.

After installing the software update you may notice changes that include:

Productivity

Quick switch between apps: Multitasking in your phone just got even easier. Double tap the overview/recent apps button to switch between your two most recently used apps.

Multi-window view: Android Nougat supports multi-window view, so you can run two apps side by side in your screen. For example, reply a text message while watching a video, or browse the internet during a video call. Activate multi-window view by long-pressing the overview/recent apps button while in a compatible app. Important: the developer of the app needs to enable multi-window view.

Work mode: For Android for Work users, Android Nougat comes with a new work mode toggle, which allows you to conveniently turn on and off your device's work apps and related notifications for a better work-life balance.

Performance

Data saver: Data saver helps reduce cellular data usage. When Data saver is on, apps running in the background won't be able to access cellular data. An app you're currently using can access data, but may do so less frequently. You can also choose which apps have unrestricted cellular data access. To turn Data saver on, open Settings from the app tray and go to "Data usage", then tap on "Data saver". To adjust data access for individual apps, got to "Unrestricted data access".

Doze on the Go: Android Nougat comes with an improved Doze mode. Now your device goes into lower power usage when you are not using it and the screen is off, even if you're on the move.

JIT compiler: The new JIT compiler improves runtime device performance, helps reduce the amount of storage space required for apps, and helps make app and system updates much faster.

Stability improvements: Includes changes that address bugs and help improve the stability of your phone.

Notifications

Notification direct reply: Android Nougat lets you quickly reply to messages right from the notifications. When you receive a message, swipe the status bar down and tap "Reply" on the message notification. Then type and send your response, all without opening the app. Works on compatible applications.

Bundled notifications: Get more information at a glance! In Android Nougat, multiple notifications from the same app are bundled together into a single notification group. Drag the status bar down and tap the group to expand it and see or take action on individual notifications.

Notification controls: You now have more control over notifications. Just press and hold on a notification to toggle the settings. You can silence or block future alerts from an app in the notification itself.

Usability

Custom quick settings: Android Nougat lets you rearrange the quick setting tiles, so you can find your commonly used settings faster. Just swipe the status bar down with two fingers, then tap "Edit" at the bottom of the quick settings panel.

Quick settings bar: A new settings bar was added at the top of the notification shade, so you can conveniently access your quick settings when reading your alerts.

Improved settings navigation: Find the right setting faster with an updated navigation menu in Settings.

Settings suggestions: Android Nougat gives you meaningful suggestions for how to get more out of your device. Find them at the top of the Settings menu.

Lock screen wallpaper: You can now have different wallpapers on your phone's homescreen and lockscreen. To set the wallpapers, long-press on an empty space in your home screen, then tap "Wallpapers". Once you select an image, tap "Set wallpaper" at the top of the screen, you will be prompt to set the selected wallpaper for the home screen, lock screen or both.

Improved system backup coverage: Android backup covers more device settings in Android Nougat, including accessibility settings, run-time permissions for apps, Wi-Fi hotspot settings and Wi-Fi network restrictions.

New and updated emoji: Do you speak fluent Emoji? Bring your words to life with all-new emoji, including redesigned human emoji with multiple skin tones.

Emergency information: Emergency Information lets you add information such as name, blood type, allergies, and an emergency contact so that emergency responders can view this information through your device's lock screen. To add or edit emergency information, open Settings from the app tray, scroll down to "Users", then tap on "Emergency information".

Accessibility

Accessibility settings in initial setup: Now you can configure accessibility features for your phone during the setup tutorial. Set magnification gesture, font size, display size, and TalkBack right out of the box.

Accessibility mono output: Assists users with hearing loss in one ear by combining stereo left and right channel output to a single mono stream. To turn Mono audio on, open Settings from the app tray, then go to "Accessibility" and scroll down until you find the "Mono audio" switch.

Variable text to speech: Allows setting a wider range for speech speed and pitches. Open Settings from the app tray, then go to "Accessibility" and scroll down to "Text-to-speech output". Use the sliders to adjust the speech rate and pitch.

Size of display elements: In Android Nougat not only can you change the font size, but also the size of the display elements, like icons and images. To adjust the size of your display elements, open Settings from the app tray and tap "Display", then scroll down and select "Display size".

Authentication

Trusted face improvements: Unlocking your phone with Trusted face is easier than ever. Trusted face, a part of Smart Lock, has new facial recognition, which is less sensitive to conditions like lighting, facial decorations and how you hold your phone.

Call screening: Allows the default phone app to screen/block incoming calls.

Internationalization

Multi locale language support and preferences: Now you can add multiple languages in your device settings to customize experiences for you, like showing search results in multiple languages and not offering to translate webpages in a language you already know. You can even sort your language preferences so that apps can pick the right keyboard & text for you.

Locales by language: We added the option to select locales for commonly used languages. When you add a new language, you will be prompted to select the locale (if supported for the selected language).

Moto experiences

New Moto action: We added a new Moto action to your phone: Swipe to shrink the screen. To learn more about this action, open the Moto app from the app tray, then go to "Actions" and tap "Swipe to shrink the screen".

Fingerprint sensor for screen lock (Moto G Plus only): We added a new setting to disable and enable locking the screen when the screen is on and you touch the fingerprint sensor. To access this setting, open Settings from the app tray, scroll down to "Security", then tap on the screen lock gear icon.