Android 11 is here. Google has released the first developer preview of Android 11 and it is now available to download and test for the developers. Google typically publishes developer builds of new Android variants in March, but Android 11’s first developer preview has been published quicker than the normal release period. Speaking about characteristics, it brings improvements for foldable phones and screen varieties, new camera abilities, privacy-centric tools, handy app performance, 5G-related developments, and a lot more. Aside from releasing the first Android 11 Developer Preview, Google has also revealed the rollout timeline for upcoming builds to its stable release.
Google states that system pictures, as well as GSI data for the initial Android 11 Developer Preview, are now ready to download for the Pixel 4, Pixel 3a, Pixel 3, and the Pixel 2. Google makes it clear that the preview build is stringently for developers and is not proper for regular users. However, beta testing will soon be exposed to regular Android users on invitational support, and groups for the same will open soon.
Android 11 release schedule:
Here’s the full release timeline for Android 11 builds revealed by Google
Android 11 Developer Preview 1: February
Android 11 Developer Preview 2: March
Android 11 Developer Preview 3: April
Android 11 Beta 1: May
Android 11 Beta 2: June
Android 11 Beta 3: Q3 2020
Android 11 final build: Q3 2020
Android 11: What’s new
Android 11 brings support for a wider range of screen types such as waterfall and hole-punch. Developers can now optimize their apps to let them use the curved regions for creating meaningful interactions. There is now a dedicated discussion section in the notifications screen where users can discover their continuous conversations overall apps. Android 11 also includes the Bubbles API on notifications, which causes chat bubbles to the desk so that users can simply keep conversations in appearance while multi-tasking.
Another very useful characteristic that Android 11 adds is the capability to insert pictures via copy/paste to notification inline responses. Users can draw images from Chrome and paste into their immediate responses beginning with the first Android 11 Developer Preview.
Speaking regarding privacy and security, Android 11 includes a new one-time verification characteristic that lets users confer temporary permissions to apps for accessing their location, mic, or camera. The new version of Google’s mobile OS also develops biometrics adaptability and adds platform support for securely collecting and recovering verifiable IDs like driving license and more such documents.
Another minor, but a convenient feature, introduced by Android 11 is that apps can now use new APIs to mute ringtones and vibrations for alarms or notifications while using the phone’s camera. Bokeh mode enhancements, a native image decoder, and the ability to decode and render image animations from HEIF files have also arrived. The latter is claimed to drastically reduce file size for image sequences.
On the connectivity front, Android 11 brings call screening improvements, Wi-Fi API enhancements, and more scope for 5G-related improvements. Google states it has combined a new API to let users monitor whether a connection is unmetered so that the variety of streaming content and resolution can be increased, although it will use more data. There is a tonne of developer-facing improvements that have been introduced with Android 11 too, and you can read them all on the official Android Developer Blog.
