Android 16 QPR1 made my Pixel 9 Pro feel just like a Pixel 10 Pro

Believe it or not, I’m not usually one to load up beta software. It’s cool to try new Android features before they’re fully baked, but I run into more hiccups than I’d usually like along the way. However, when Google announced that the Android 16 QPR1 beta was ready for older Pixels, I let my curiosity get the better of me. I wondered what features I would get and which wouldn’t be ready yet.

So, I did what only a tech reviewer can: I loaded Android 16 on my Pixel 9 Pro XL to see if it could match my Pixel 10 Pro XL. Here’s what I found out along the way.

Perhaps the best possible thing that the Android 16 QPR1 release does is to — at long last — introduce Google’s Material 3 Expressive design language. We’ve been hearing about it for a few months now, and I’ve already had a taste of it on the Pixel 10 Pro, but I can now confirm that it’s just as sweet on the Pixel 9 Pro. It’s packed with small and large tweaks that make everything from navigation to customization a little bit easier.

Surprisingly, the first thing I noticed about the Android 16 QPR1 overhaul is its approach to menus. The Settings app is a bit less monochrome, bringing a little color to different categories to lump related subjects like Display & touch and Wallpaper & style together, along with Notifications, Sound & vibration, and Modes. I’m used to spending a lot of time — maybe too much — in the Settings app, so I’m all for Google making life a little bit easier.

Within that revamped Settings app, the revamped Wallpaper & style menu is the best part of Android 16 QPR1. It adds clever new options like Live effects, which I didn’t initially think I would like. I’m still a little confused by how tricky it can be to reposition the subject of your Live effect within its geometric bubble, but I like that you can swap to a real-time look at your local weather conditions with different effects for fog, snow, and rain.

One other brilliant thing that Google has done with the Android 16 QPR1 update is to shrink, well, everything. I’ve had my battles with the At a Glance widget in the past, mostly because I thought it took up just a little too much space, but now it’s better. And by that, I mean it’s smaller. So much smaller, in fact, that you can fit an extra row of apps or widgets on your home screen without tweaking your default grid.

Oh, and I may not have been sure about Google’s decision to copy a bunch of other Android features on the Pixel 10 series, but I’ve really come around to the My Pixel app. It’s essentially the next step in the Pixel Tips evolution, and it now has a tab for device support and the Google store, along with the tips I’ve come to rely so heavily on.

Now, if only Google could hurry up with the rollout of Live Updates so I can keep a closer eye on everything from Uber rides to Maps directions — then again, this isn’t a complaint exclusive to the Pixel 9 Pro.

So, although the Android 16 QPR1 beta does a lot to make my Pixel 9 Pro feel fresher, it doesn’t magically add all of Google’s new features to its older flagships. Yes, you can definitely make your phone look the part, but you’ll have to do a little extra work if you want things like the Pixel Journal to call your app drawer home.

While I’m still a little split on my need for Google’s new on-device journal, I’m much more interested in trying its Camera Coach and Magic Cue on older devices. To me, those are probably the top two features — sorry, Daily Hub, but you can stay on timeout in the corner — that I’d love to experiment with. I want to dive into Camera Coach suggestions while knowing that I don’t have 100x Pro Res Zoom at my disposal, and I’d be especially curious to see how it fares on a dual-camera device like the Pixel 9 or Pixel 9a.

Unfortunately, I’m a little less optimistic that I’ll see Magic Cue make its way to my collection of older Pixels anytime soon. Google is pretty clear that the Pixel 10-exclusive feature relies on a mix of its latest Gemini Nano model and the Tensor G5 chipset, the latter of which definitely won’t be coming to my year-old Pixel 9 Pro. It’s an omission that’s enough to leave a sour taste in my mouth, mainly because it seems like Magic Cue will be a fairly essential part of Pixel UI in the future.

Of course, exclusive features are the name of the game — they’re the real reasons to upgrade when the rest of the Pixel 10 Pro looks and feels a lot like its predecessor. And, if you need the latest and greatest, they might be worth it, but in the meantime, Android 16 QPR1 goes a long way in making my Pixel 9 Pro XL feel fresh again.