Almost all major Android smartphones, including those from Xiaomi and OnePlus, use the Google Phone app as the default dialer. Samsung is the only company that has stuck with its in-house app. In recent years, Google has continually improved its dialer app with features such as call recording, smarter spam blocking, audio emoji, and a sleeker design. It appears that the company is testing a new incoming call screen UI for its Phone app that takes inspiration from the iPhone.
Google is Testing a New Look for Its Phone App
We heard that Google is testing a new look for how incoming calls look on its Phone app. The new design takes ideas from how the iPhone shows calls. Right now in the Google Phone app, you swipe up on the phone icon to answer a call. You swipe down to reject the call. iPhones and Samsung phones use buttons instead. These phones show green and red buttons when a call comes in.
The New Design Uses Buttons Like iPhones
The test version of the Google Phone app will move to buttons too. Leaked screenshots show a green “Accept” button on the right side of the screen. A red “Decline” button will be on the left side. Tapping the green button answers the call. Tapping the red button rejects the call. Buttons like this may be easier for new Android users. It will be clearer which button does what without swiping.
The Change Could Make Calls Simpler
Dedicated accept and reject buttons may help users pick up or hang up more quickly. Sometimes it takes a second to remember you need to swipe down to reject a call. Buttons could make the options more obvious at a glance. In the future, Google may also make the caller’s picture bigger during calls. This update aims to simplify how we handle calls on Android phones. We’ll need to wait and see if Google rolls out this iPhone-style redesign more widely.