A future Android update might usher in Bluetooth battery level indicators

Whenever I hop over the fence to Android’s yard, one of the more frustrating aspects of Google‘s mobile operating system is the lack of any Bluetooth battery level indicator. Yes, there are third-party solutions like BatON, but they tend to be buggy and work with a limited range of devices. It looks like Google will remedy that problem, however, by baking those indicators into Android itself.

As XDA Developers originally reported, the future update will tell you how much battery your connected Bluetooth accessory has. For those with Samsung, LG, and OnePlus phones, this is not a new development – the feature is integrated into their Android skins. However, the update will integrate the feature at the system level, which means folks with stock Android will benefit the most. Keep in mind that the feature is already part of the Bluetooth standard and that Google only needed to integrate it on its end for these battery indicators to pop up.

As previously mentioned, there are hack-y third-party solutions that display your Bluetooth accessory’s battery level, but Google’s integration will allow developers to display specific battery percentages outside of the status bar. More specifically, you could see your Bluetooth accessory’s battery level as a notification or widget on your home screen.

The only bad thing about any of this is the waiting you will need to do – the update will seemingly not arrive for at least a few months, possibly even until sometime in 2018. When it does arrive, it will surely be welcomed by folks who stick to stock Android, since it’s one of those quality-of-life points that you grow to appreciate on a day-to-day basis.