Google Switches Android 17 Screen Recording Default to Single App in QPR1 Beta 3

9 articles · Updated · 9to5Google · May 19

Android 17 QPR1 Beta 3 now starts the screen recorder with the last-used app selected, so tapping "start" immediately records a single app instead of the entire screen.
The change builds on Android 17’s redesigned recorder menu, which replaced dropdowns with faster toggles for device audio, microphone input and showing screen touches.
Google’s shift addresses a long-standing privacy risk in earlier defaults, where recording the full screen could capture unexpected content outside the intended app.
QPR1 Beta 3 otherwise brings only minor interface tweaks—adjusted animations and added blur—after Google rolled the build out to Pixel testers with bug fixes and a small SDK update.

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