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Google's latest effort to help users monitor and control their screen time, Digital Wellbeing, is making its way to more devices. Originally available exclusively for Pixel and Android One owners, Digital Wellbeing features are now being rolled out on Nokia 6 and Nokia 8 devices with Android Pie, as well as on the new Samsung Galaxy S10.
The NokiaPowerUser site was the first to spot the addition to Nokia devices, which was picked up by XDA developers and noted on their blog. XDA also noticed that Digital Wellbeing was available in the device settings of the Samsung Galaxy S10, making it the first non-Pixel phone or non-Android One to come with Digital Wellbeing installed.
Basically, Digital Wellbeing is Google's version of Apple's Screen Time, and one of the primary ways in which the company addresses consumer concerns about device dependence.
This has been a hot topic in the tech industry in recent months, as people have become more aware of our unhealthy behaviors in our use of smartphones and their applications. In fact, a number of people involved in the creation of mobile applications have since said they are complicit in creating applications that exploit the weaknesses of the human psyche for the sole purpose of making users dependent.
A former Google executive, Tristan Harris, has launched a whole movement focused on this problem. He also created the Center for Humane Technology, which encourages the implementation of new design principles that allow users to regain control over their technology.
In the meantime, companies are deploying features to enable us to control our behavior around existing technologies.
For example, Facebook last year changed the way its news feed works to reduce the time spent on its site in favor of well-being. And Instagram, a company owned by Facebook, introduced a well-spent time feature, informing users "you're all caught off guard" instead of offering endless scrolling. YouTube lets you schedule reminders to pause.
We also have operating system-level features, such as Apple's Screen Time and Google's Digital Wellbeing, for more complete control and monitoring.
Specifically, Digital Wellbeing allows you to track your dependency on your device in a variety of ways, including how often you check your phone, how many notifications you receive, how often you use apps, and so on. allows you to define usage limits and parameters. like a "Wind Down" night mode and do not disturb settings.
Announced on Google I / O 2018, this feature set debuted on Pixel devices last year in Android Pie. He came later on Android One devices last fall.
According to the release notes of the standalone Digital Wellbeing application, it came out of the beta on February 19. However, this note did not indicate that it applied to non-Pixel, non-Android devices.
Google has not yet responded to a request for comment regarding the expansion of Digital Wellbeing.
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