Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
Tl; DR
- Google has officially announced its new office mode for Android phones, providing PC -type experience with external screens.
- Built with Samsung on the Dex Foundation, it offers an improved office window and will be testable in a beta version of Android 16 quarterly.
- This mode allows windows of the Freeform application, an independent display operation and the possibility of extending the sessions on several screens.
During the Google I / S Developer conference this week, Google has finally confirmed some details on its long -awaited desktop mode function for Android phones. The company has not only confirmed that it was building new experience in office mode for phones connected to external screens, but that this experience will be available for tests soon in a next quarterly beta version of Android 16.
Earlier this month, Android authority revealed that Google is developing its own Dex -type office mode experience for Android. This feature offers an intuitive interface of the desktop type on external screens, with a task bar for the launch of pinned or recent applications in free form windows. It is based on the desktop window foundations that Google has developed for tablets in the first quarterly version of Android 15, but it adds additional options to take into account the fact that these window features are now displayed on an external screen rather than on an internal screen.
During the Google I / O 2025 developer shuttle, Google revealed that the new office mode of Android 16 is built on the basis of Samsung Dex.
“We collaborated with Samsung, based on the basics of Samsung Dex, to provide improved office window capacities in Android 16, for more powerful productivity workflows.” – Florina Muntenescu, Responsible for Developers Relations at Google
Google also confirmed that it made several improvements to the way Android manages external screens. The company says that Android 16 adds “the management of the fundamental platform for connected screens”, probably referring to the PC-type external display tools that we discovered in March.
“In Android 16, we have added the fundamental platform for connected screens that will be available in AOSP in the coming months in the preview developer.” – Alex Vanyo, engineer of relations with developers at Google
Finally, Google has confirmed that these improvements will soon be available for tests. During the “Unlock user productivity with the desktop window and the stylus support“Talk at Google I / O, Francesco Romano, an engineer of relations with developers at Google, said that the new Android office window features will be available as a developer for phones connected to external screens in the next beta versions of Android 16 QPR1.
During the conference, the developer also shared some additional details on the operation of the new office mode of Android 16. For example, the developer revealed that the minimum size of the window is 386 x 352 DP, that applications can create personalized headers, and that when peripherals compatible with desktop windows as the tablets are connected to an external monitor, the office session will be extended on the two screens.
On all devices that support the new desktop window mode, internal and external screens operate independently, applications being specific to the screen on which they run. The windows, the contents and the mouse cursor can move freely between the two screens.
The improved Android improved desktop window capacities for phones and improved support for external monitors are not available in the latest Android 16 QPR1 BETA 1 version. We do not know if they will be available in the Android 16 QPR1 BETA 2 version, but it is certainly possible. We do not plan that there are many changes between what we revealed earlier and what will be online in the versions to come, but if we locate differences, we will let you know.
Are you delighted to try Android’s new desktop mode for phones? Let us know in the comments below!
