Pollen counter and new search bar found in most recent Google beta APK teardown

Android users who have joined Google’s Android beta program are well aware of continuous updates.

This time in an APK teardown of the latest update, coding for a new search bar and a pollen counter has been uncovered, according to Android Police. Beta testers don’t have access to either of the updates and furthermore, Android O developer preview users can’t access these new updates either.

The APK teardown shows that Google is currently moving the search bar between the quick setting tiles and the notification panel. It is unknown whether the search bar is for an internal purpose like searching for apps or settings, or just another version of the Google search bar. The bar would be redundant as Pixel users have a search option at the top of the device’s display, while other Android users have a search bar that can be placed anywhere on the display.

The next update found in the APK teardown is a pollen counter. A pollen counter tells users the amount of pollen in the air and is useful for Android users who suffer from allergies. The counter is likely to work like a severe thunderstorm warning or similar or a standard weather update on Android devices.

Code and features found in an APK teardown doesn’t always mean Google will include them in an upcoming official update to the company’s Android operating system.

Source: Android Police