Android 5.1 has been in talks for quite a time. It may not have any major updates but it will be coming out with bug fixes and security updates which is making people impatient about it’s release. Motorola has been known for setting benchmarks when it comes to budget phones. Moto E offers water and dust resistance along with a great battery life and it also offers a stock Android UI. After all this it appears that Android 5.1 is now rolled out only to Moto E (2nd Gen). Only Android One smartphones in this price range have received this update. The press still isn’t informed about when the update will be available in the other markets, too.
There isn’t a lot of changes in this version though despite weighting 258.8MB there are some smaller tweaks and bug fixes. Once the device officially receives this update in the device will include changes given below.
One can block interruptions until the next alarm. This update will prevent you from missing an alarm once you select ‘No Interruptions’. This choice is available only if an alarm is set for the next 12 hours. The user can also select his downtime early if he is going to bed early. He can change the notification setting and chose ‘Until your downtime early’. Although, this option is only visible within 4 hours of the scheduled start. The user along with this can now alter the notification volume control when the media is playing. With this settings for the volume control, a tap on the bell icon will let the notification volume control.
The Lollipop update is also coming up with a reasonable way of dismissing a notification. Instead of swiping any notification to the left and clearing it off, one can swipe up to remove it of the screen. Through which the notification gets cleared but stays in the tray unlike the previous situation which used to remove it from the tray.
The latest update’s major change is around the Wi-Fi which won’t reconnect automatically in the home network and the Wi-Fi not being able to connect, if idle all night has been fixed. The quick setting features include different Wi-Fi access points and also different paired Bluetooth devices with a new pull down menu. The camera reduces its noise while clicking a low-light shot along with improved responsiveness of the viewfinder with the front-facing camera.
One of the few noticeable features include the security purposes. If a device is lost or stolen, the device will remain locked until the user log-ins with their Google account. The only need for enabling this feature is that the user should have a Google account on the device. The user after this will only have to set a PIN, password or a pattern screen lock.
The improvements lead to faster launch time of the applications because of the changes in the Android Runtime. If the user enables the Ambient Display, the minimum swipe distance has increased. This will help the person to reduce accidental interactions.
Along with these major updates, some of the Bug Fixes in this release includes not being able to delete SMS messages when the SIM card is full and not having a ringer audio while making an outgoing call.
The bugs which crashed Chrome on launch and the unnecessary and frequent restarts while viewing Netflix are fixed. There have been changes with issues that involved the CPU wake locks which caused heavier battery drainage and the connection synchronizations with MS Exchange servers. The incorrect default APN and contents which cannot be played when ‘pinned’ have also been resolved. Most of all there has been improvements in the general stability.
