OnePlus runs a neat ‘IDEAS’ program where the company solicits new feature ideas from users to implement in its Oxygen OS software that runs over top Android. The China-based phone maker just announced the top seven most liked ideas from Round 2 of its IDEAS program.
These new idea will go to OnePlus’ OS team to review and evaluate. The team will reply to each of the seven ideas on November 6th detailing if the idea will get implemented in Oxygen OS. If your idea didn’t make the cut, OnePlus also announced that Round 3 is starting. Users can head to the Community Ideas site to submit their ideas.
Below are the seven proposed ideas being considered by the OnePlus OS team:
- Separate volume control for each app / dual media playback: This idea hopes that OnePlus will allow users to individually control media playback on a per-app basis and manage multiple media outputs. For example, this could allow someone listening to music to hop on Instagram and watch a funny video without pausing or interrupting the music playback.
- Lock screen customization: This proposal asks OnePlus to add customization features to the lock screen, letting users pick different clock faces and shortcuts, or perhaps display information like weather on the lock screen.
- Back Tap gestures: Taking notes from Apple, this idea wants to add back tap gestures to Oxygen OS. For those unfamiliar with Back Tap, it’s a feature added to Apple’s iPhones in iOS 14 that lets people add a shortcut that can be activated by double-tapping the back of the phone. Google already toyed with the idea in an Android Developer Preview, and it could be a neat shortcut to add to OnePlus phones.
- Subtle Pixel Shifting: Some smartphones already employ pixel shifting, which slightly moves things around on the display to prevent burn-in. For example, some Samsung devices have used pixel shifting on the navigation buttons to prevent burn-in, while other phones use it to move the always-on display around. It’d be a nice addition to OnePlus devices, especially since the company has used OLED displays on most of its phones for a while now.
- Wireless file transfer to/from PC: This idea hopes to have OnePlus implement some sort of wireless interface for transferring content between computers and OnePlus phones. While a good idea, I have my doubts about it becoming a feature. For one, it’d require some level of partnership with PC makers like Microsoft, Apple and Google. Plus, several apps already handle this type of behaviour, namely Microsoft’s Your Phone app for Windows PCs.
- Customizable battery charge level: This proposal also takes a page from Apple’s playbook, but improves on it. A while back, Apple added a feature to iOS that ‘learns’ users’ charging behaviour. The feature should help reduce battery degradation by pausing charging at 80 percent and then finishing the charge close to when users unplug the iPhone. While similar, the proposed charging idea for OnePlus phones would allow users to set a custom stop point for charging. For example, users could set the phone to charge until 90 percent and then stop.
- Dual Bluetooth audio: Finally, the last idea requested the ability to stream media to two Bluetooth devices simultaneously — for example, two Bluetooth headphones so friends could listen to music together. It’s a neat idea, and a feature available on some other phones.
Those interested in learning more can check out the full list of OnePlus IDEAS here.
