One of the more modest yet additional interesting changes seen in Android 12 Developer Preview 3 is a new level of granular control over applications that can get to the notification listener service. In Android 11, it’s an all-or-nothing switch: either a helper app (like Android Wear, Android Auto, or Fitbit) can access all your notification information, or it can’t. Beginning with A12 DP3, things are somewhat more subtle.
The new form of this Settings screen (Apps & Notifications>Special App Access>Notification access in A11, Notifications>Device and app notifications in A12) used to have only one switch for all notifications. Presently it separates them into four groups: real-time, conversations, default, and silent. The last two are self-explanatory, basic alerts for data and alarms that don’t trigger a full visual and audio alert, respectively. Real-time notifications are for ongoing events, for example, calls or music controls. Conversations are texts, emails, or anything that’s information coming from a specific human.
Permitting specific applications to access some of these categories, yet not all, is a major help to any individual who’s attempting to smooth out the ways and spots they can be reached. Ordinarily see these screens for Fitbit, as the application needs the listener permission to send notifications from phone to Versa 3. It’s likewise as often as possible utilized for Android Auto, or any application that responds to notifications from other applications, as Tasker.
This appears to be a genuinely completed implementation of this additional layer of notification security. While there will never be an assurance that a feature from a Developer Preview will make it right to the public release, this one seems like it has an excellent opportunity to do as such.