New findings show that Google is working on a redesign for the “Now Playing” widget on Google Pixel devices, adding more functionality and information to the lockscreen.
Since its launch on the Pixel 2, the “Now Playing” feature has been able to show music playing around you on the lockscreen. The small UI element shows the name of the song and the artist, but that’s about it. On the one hand, it’s subtle in a good way but, on the other, it’s certainly due for a new look.
That’s what Google appears to have in the works.
The folks over at Android Authority spotted a new design for “Now Playing” in the latest Android System Intelligence update. The new UI isn’t live yet, but it works when manually enabled, and is a pretty big update. The new design shows the song and artist names as before, but in a new widget-like design that includes album art and a “Favorite” shortcut. It looks a lot like Android’s media player.
It’s unclear when Google might roll out this change, but it’s one we’re certainly looking forward to. Meanwhile, Google has added a “Now Playing” option to the lockscreen shortcuts in the first Android Canary release.
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