Android Will Bring Back the Do Not Disturb Switch for Those Who Didn’t Like Modes

People tend to resist change if they are used to something convenient. A striking example was Google’s initiative to remove the “Do Not Disturb” option from Android’s quick settings and replace it with more flexible “Modes.” There are people who turn on the “Do Not Disturb” function several times a day, and they were predictably unhappy that it now required two actions instead of one. So Google decided to return everything to the way it was.

Image source: androidauthority.com

The incident affected a small share of Android users — it affected only owners of Google Pixel devices. The dubious innovation appeared with the Android 15 QPR2 update. Instead of a simple and quick “Do not disturb” option, the “Modes” setting allows you to personalize the notification display scheme, taking into account many parameters. Because of this, users were deprived of the ability to turn on the “Do not disturb” mode in the curtain with quick settings — choosing the “Modes” option brings up a pop-up window where there is a “Do not disturb” option along with several others. That is, you have to perform two actions instead of one, which was perceived with discontent.

In the fourth beta version of Android 16, fortunately, everything returned to its original positions, the resource Android Authority reported: in the quick settings menu, the “Do not disturb” icon was found, as it always was. At the same time, “Modes” have not gone anywhere – this option is now located next to it, giving the user a choice: to act according to the old or new scheme. There is no guarantee that this function from the beta version will appear immediately in the public edition of Android 16, and there have been no statements from Google yet. But we would like to hope that the company listened to public opinion, and the “Do not disturb” option will return at least in one of the subsequent updates of Android 16. In the meantime, Android Authority offers owners of Google Pixel smartphones to use an open source application that solves the suddenly arisen problem.