GoKawiilMegan Ellis / Android Authority
TL;DR Google is finally rolling out a promised Play Store feature that lets users add widgets easily when they install a new app.
While the feature is out, it’s not fully functional.
Along with it, Google is testing the option to pause downloads on the Play Store so big downloads don’t wipe out your mobile data.
Last month, Google released a Play Services update and noted that users would have the option to add home screen widgets for apps while they were being installed from the Play Store. Although we couldn’t get a glimpse of the feature back then, we now have and can tell you how it likely works. We’ve also come across a few minor tweaks, including the upcoming ability to pause downloads mid-process.
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We recently stumbled upon a new snackbar message that now appears at the bottom of the screen when you install an app. The message simply tells you that widgets are available for the app and gives you a button to add widgets to your phone’s home screen.
Instead of revealing a new menu, tapping that button takes you to the standard widget picker sheet, showing all the different widget options for that app.
There are a few caveats that we noted with this functionality. First, the snackbar message doesn’t appear for all new apps being installed. Second, it appears only once, and you might not see it again if you miss it. However, that doesn’t limit you from adding widgets to your home screen — you just have to do it the regular way.
Additionally, we’ve seen another minor tweak to the size of the app’s description. While the description doesn’t change, it now appears much bigger — almost as big as the app’s title. While both changes are already live, another one could be joining the ranks soon.
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