New versions of Android are only released once a year, but Google provides many updates throughout the year: the first major quarterly feature drop for 2023 was announced at CES in January, and now a second update was announced at MWC 2023 .

The themes of this update are productivity, accessibility, and connectivity. All the details can be viewed on Google's official blog post (opens in a new tab), and the update itself is starting to roll out today. Key features of the update include.

The first update comes in the form of a new single note widget for Google Keep (Google's completely underrated notes app). This widget will make it easier to manage notes and check off to-do lists.

The widget can display images, reminders, background colors, and everything else you add to your notes while syncing with the cloud or your Wear OS smartwatch. keep for Wear OS also adds two new shortcuts to help you create your own notes and to-do lists from your wrist. Shortcuts are also added to help you create your own notes and to-do lists from your wrist.

Another productivity booster is a new feature that allows users to freehand annotate PDF files stored on Google Drive. Available on cell phones and tablets, this feature allows users to annotate documents with ink strokes or highlighters using touch or stylus.

Chrome for Android has also added an important accessibility feature, allowing users to zoom in on content on the screen by up to 300%. The existing page layout is maintained. Users have the option to set this size as the default to avoid the annoying task of resizing each time. This feature is currently part of Chrome's beta version and will be rolled out to the public in March.

This feature is also available in Wear OS 3 and above. A new mono-audio sound mode is offered to prevent disorientation that may be caused by split audio.

Although not Android, Chromebooks will also include Google's Fast Pair Bluetooth technology. Fortunately, if you have already paired your headphones with your Android phone, they will automatically connect to the Chromebook.

If audio is your thing, this drop in functionality will bring a number of enhancements: while not Android itself, Chromebooks will also come with Google's Fast Pair Bluetooth technology, allowing you to connect your new Bluetooth headphones with a single tap. Bluetooth headphones with a single tap. Thankfully, if you have already paired your headphones with your Android phone, they will automatically connect to your Chromebook

and will also offer the Google Meet noise-canceling feature. As its name suggests, this feature helps filter out distracting background noise during a call.

This means you don't have to worry about making calls in crowded coffee shops or other places with inconsiderate people who won't throw everything out to make a call with a stranger.

In case the green robot Android mascot wasn't indicative enough, Google likes to have fun. So there are some fun things bundled into the latest feature drop, including one that lets you combine emojis into custom stickers. If you wanted a chicken in the shape of a heart or wanted to share screen space with a monkey emoji, this feature might be worth checking out.

As well as this, Google will be rolling out new tap-to-pay animations for Google Wallet. Convenient. Not entirely, but it could make the usual monotonous day more enjoyable.

These new Android features are currently being rolled out, but the rollout has just begun, so it may be some time before they reach you. In any case, it is good to see that Google is working on improving the Android experience outside of the standard annual release cycle. Hopefully by the time the next update comes out, there will be even cooler features added.