Android Q ‘Multi-Resume’ Will Let Apps Run Simultaneously In Split-Screen

Google officially brought multi-window functionality to Android with Nougat. It was the first uniform implementation of this feature that had existed on Android in different forms and manifestations prior to Nougat. There is one major limitation, though. Apps can be opened in split-screen but Android doesn’t run the two apps simultaneously. This will change with a new feature called “Multi-Resume” which will come with Android Q.

As smartphone displays have become larger, they’re more than capable of allowing users to have two apps open at once. Android lets them do this but even though it allows for two apps to be on the screen at the same time, it actually retains one as active and pauses the other one.

This means that users have to manually swap app states between the two by interacting with the app they want to use. There’s no way for them to have both apps running simultaneously when open in multi-window.

Now that Android is officially supporting foldable smartphones, Google will bring a new feature with Android Q called “Multi-Resume.” It will make it possible for multiple apps to be open and active at the same time. It will be possible to make this happen on Pie as well. However, the device manufacturer and app developers will have to opt-in for Multi-Resume. That won’t be the case with Android Q as it will have support for this feature by default.

Manufacturers will be capable of keeping all apps active in multi-window. Native support for this functionality in Android will certainly be welcomed but it won’t arrive until the end of next year as Android Q still has a long way to go before it’s ready for release.

Adnan Farooqui
Categories: Cellphones
Tags: android q, Google