- Android 15 is adding new accessibility features that make physical keyboards easier to use.
- These include new sticky keys, slow keys, and bounce keys settings.
- The update also adds preview screens that help visualize different physical keyboard layouts.
Although the Android operating system can run on far more than just Android phones, the OS is most optimized for the traditional, touchscreen-enabled slab phone. In the last few years, though, Google has dramatically accelerated its efforts to enrich the Android experience on other form factors, such as smartwatches, TVs, cars, and tablets. One area that’s seen significant improvement in recent releases is physical keyboard support, which benefits not only tablets but also phones operating in desktop-like environments.
In Android 14, Google made several changes to improve physical keyboard support. These changes include modifier key remapping, touchpad gesture support, keyboard backlight support, and expanded shortcut availability. With the upcoming release of Android 15, Google will add a few new settings that make physical keyboards easier to use. For example, when you connect a keyboard to your device in the latest Android 15 Developer Preview 2 release and open Physical Keyboard settings, you’ll find that there’s now an Accessibility section with three features that are disabled by default. These include:
