It took Google years so as to add this Android 15 function, and it is nonetheless half-baked

If there’s one function I’ve had on the highest of my Android wishlist for almost a decade now, it’s notification sync throughout gadgets. I notice my use case is excessive since I’ve a number of Android telephones on my desk proper now and lots of extra in my gadget drawer, however there was a time after I simply had one cellphone and one pill and I nonetheless obtained bored with seeing duplicate notifications throughout each of them.

However notification dismissal throughout telephones is right here now, lastly, as a part of Android 15! Properly, uh, scratch that. It’s right here in case you have a Pixel 6 or newer, as a result of it’s solely rolling out as a Pixel-exclusive possibility. That’s one of many first limitations of the choice for me. The opposite is extra… sophisticated.

Sure, turning off duplicate notifications is on the market throughout my Pixel 9 Professional, Pixel 9 Professional Fold, Pixel 7 Professional, and Pixel Pill, however all the things else is neglected. My Galaxy S24 Extremely, Nothing Cellphone 2, and some different check gadgets don’t play alongside. So the avalanche of notifications is there each time I decide them up or flip them on, and I’ve to attend for a minute or two whereas they catch up earlier than I do anything. It doesn’t matter if I’ve dismissed these already on my Pixel gadgets; they’ll nonetheless be there for me on my different telephones.

And look, as soon as once more, I do know I’m a fringe case, but when I solely had a Pixel cellphone and a Galaxy Tab or a OnePlus cellphone and a Pixel Pill, I’d nonetheless be in that messy scenario the place one machine desires to sync its notification state whereas the opposite can’t, and the entire function can be ineffective to me. You actually should be all-in on nothing however Pixels to get the profit.

One would hope that Google is now boosting its personal Pixel model by conserving the function unique, however it ought to roll it out to extra Android telephones later. Properly, no less than that’s what occurred already with a few different Pixel exclusives and I feel it’ll be the case right here.

Even when the setting made its approach throughout your entire Android ecosystem quickly, there’s one other limitation that’s irking me simply as a lot. The choice to sync notification dismissal is restricted to 1 Google account, and I can’t discover Google’s documentation to know what that precisely means.

I’ve three Google accounts — a private one, a piece one, and a joint account with my husband. All of them serve completely different functions and have separate electronic mail communication, calendars, bookmarks, map locations, and so forth. I even ensure that to obtain apps from the best Play Retailer account when putting in new Android apps (Asana and Slack from my work account, Instagram from my private one, Amazon and Uber from the joint account — you get the gist).

So, what precisely am I getting or not getting by deciding on one account or the opposite? Frequent sense says it shouldn’t matter which account I select: So long as it’s the identical one and it’s linked to all of my Pixel telephones, it ought to work throughout all the telephones, apps, and notifications. Proper?

Properly, to this point, I’ve seen duplicate notifications nonetheless pop up on my Pixel Pill after I’ve dismissed them on my cellphone, even from Google’s personal apps, that are signed in with the identical account. So both the function will not be absolutely rolled out (we’ve seen this earlier than with cross-device sync, the place the setting confirmed up weeks earlier than the function actually began working) or there’s some account-based limitation at play that I’m not conscious of.

I’m afraid, although, that this account picker means one thing else. Possibly it solely syncs notification dismissal for the emails, calendar occasions, missed Meet calls, Photographs reminiscences, and so forth. of that very same Google account. So, if I choose my private electronic mail, I’ll nonetheless get duplicates of my work and couple’s electronic mail notifications. Huh. Even worse, perhaps it solely works for apps the place I’m signed in with my private Google account or apps tied to my private Google Play Retailer. Possibly it doesn’t work with third-party apps even — I don’t know!

It’s clear that Google wants to clarify this function higher, what we must always count on of it, and why we now have to select a Google account. Is it only a approach to hyperlink your entire notifications of the 2 telephones collectively or is it selecting and selecting what notifications to sync and which of them to maintain dupes of? And if it’s speculated to be purposeful, then one thing is off and never working. Or, if it’s not reside nor purposeful, then it’s time the devs shunned surfacing settings for options that don’t work simply but lest they get confused folks like me questioning why one thing isn’t doing what it’s speculated to.

And perhaps all of those hiccups are why we haven’t seen the function come to all of Android simply but. So sure, as soon as all the points are ironed out, I’d like to see this roll out extensively throughout the ecosystem. Till then, right here goes one other unhappy sigh for a promise not absolutely delivered.