Android 10 should have included the bubbles notification feature, but for some reason it didn’t make it to the latest version of Android.
Although the bubbles notification feature was put through a lot of testing in the beta versions, the Bubbles API is still being developed, meaning we should see it in a future version of Android. Google is testing it in the Google Messages app and it is now available for all users if they activate the Developer Options to see how it works.
Floating Bubbles Tested in ‘Developer Options’
If you would rather not activate Developer Options, we will shortly describe it for you. The bubbles notification feature is similar to the Facebook Messenger chat heads.
XDA Developers tested it on the Google Messages app and saw that when you receive a message, you get a bubble at the edge of the screen with the photo of the one sending the message. There is also a preview of the message.
If you do not tap on the bubble, the preview will disappear and you will see a notification dot instead.
If you choose to tap the bubble, you will see a new window open where you can quickly reply to the sender. This way, you do not need to open the Messages app to read the message.
You can dismiss or move the bubble notification by tapping and dragging it on the screen or to the X icon at the bottom of the screen.
For those that do not really like this feature, there is a setting to turn it off.
Floating Bubbles Feature Release Date
When will the final build of the Bubbles feature gets officially released for Google Messages app or when the API gets to Android devices?
Unfortunately, we do not know yet. However, if we got you curious and you do decide to try the feature for yourself, you can go to Settings > Developer Options > Bubbles and play around with it. Google intends on having developers try this feature so maybe they integrate it in other products.
