Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Google is making some UI changes to the Digital Wellbeing app on Android.
- The app could replace the Dashboard with a new activity section and rename App Timers to App Limits.
- Google might also allow users to set a PIN to change App Limits.
Google is making several changes to its Digital Wellbeing app, which comes pre-installed on most Android devices and helps users monitor and control their smartphone usage. If you’ve used Digital Wellbeing before, you’ll soon notice some UI changes that could affect the usability of the app.
Android Authority contributor Assemble Debug spotted and enabled these changes after performing an APK teardown of the Digital Wellbeing app beta version 1.11.
An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release.
Assemble debug found the following code in the aforementioned version of Digital Wellbeing, detailing the upcoming changes.
Code
<string name="enter_pin_to_change_app_limits_dialog_title">PIN for app time limits</string>
<string name="pin_chip_description">If set, a PIN will be required
before changes to an app’s time limit</string>
<string name="pin_chip_title">App limits PIN</string>
<string name="set_pin_dialog_title">Set a PIN for app time limits</string>
<string name="set_pin_for_app_limits_page_subtitle">The PIN can be used
to prevent changes to app time limits</string>
<string name="set_pin_for_app_limits_page_title">PIN for app time limits</string>
<string name="set_pin_for_app_limits_toggle_description">PIN is required
every time a change is made to app time limiits on this device</string>These code strings indicate three upcoming changes to Digital Wellbeing that our contributor was able to activate.
“App Timers” are now called “App Limits” and are getting their own separate section within the app. Previously, the feature was part of the “Dashboard.” Apps with limits set by users will be filtered and placed at the top of the section. Google is also renaming the “Dashboard” on the Digital Wellbeing app to “View Activity Details.”
It’s also possible that Google will soon allow users to set a PIN to change app limits. Once set, a PIN will be required whenever a user wants to alter an app limit. This could be a valuable tool for parents to set up app limits for children.
It’s unclear when these new Digital Wellbeing changes will take effect, but since they have appeared in the app’s beta version, Google could roll them out soon.
