Continuing to refine the big screen device experience on tablets, foldables and more
Google recently released the second test version of Android 14, which comes with several important changes from the first preview of Android 14.
In this second preview it is mentioned that I know continued to improve the platform's work on tablets and devices with a folding screen, as libraries are provided that provide pointer motion event prediction and low latency when working with styli.
We're working to make updates faster and smoother with each platform release by prioritizing app compatibility. In Android 14 , we made most app-related changes optional to give you more time to make necessary app changes, and we updated our tools and processes to help you get up and running sooner.
In addition to this, it is also highlighted that UI templates for large screens are provided, taking into account applications such as social networks, communications, multimedia content, reading and shopping. In the dialog box for confirming the permissions of applications to access media files, it was possible to grant access not to everyone, but only to selected photos or videos.
Another change that stands out is that added a section to the configurator to override the regional preference setting, such as temperature units, the first day of the week, and the number system. For example, a European living in the US could configure it to display temperatures in Celsius instead of Fahrenheit and consider Monday as the start of the week instead of Sunday.
Moreover, be continuous with the development of Credential Manager and its associated API, which allows applications to sign in with the credentials of external authentication providers. Both password login and passwordless login methods (access keys, biometric authentication) are supported. Improved interface to select an account.
Has been added a separate permission to allow apps to initiate actions when the application is in the background, in addition to background activation is limited so as not to distract the user while working with the current application. Active apps have more control over how other apps they interact with trigger actions.
The memory management system has been optimized to more rationally allocate resources to apps running in the background. A few seconds after the application enters the cached state, background work is limited to working with APIs that manage the application's lifecycle, such as the Foreground Services API, JobScheduler, and WorkManager.
Notifications marked with the FLAG_ONGOING_EVENT flag can now be dismissed when displayed on a device with the screen unlocked. If the device is in screen lock mode, such notifications will not be dismissed. Notifications that are important to the operation of the system will also remain as non-rejected.
Have been added new methods to the PackageInstaller API: requestUserPreapproval(), which allows the app catalog to delay the download of APK packages until you receive confirmation of the installation from the user; setRequestUpdateOwnership(), which allows you to assign future application updates to the installer; setDontKillApp(), which allows you to set additional functions for the application while working with the program. The InstallConstraints API provides installers the ability to trigger the installation of an application update when the application is not in use.
Finally, it should be mentioned that Android 14 is expected to be released in Q2023 XNUMX.
For interested in evaluating the new functionalities of the platform, a preliminary test schedule has been proposed in which firmware builds are ready for Pixel 7/7 Pro, Pixel 6/6a/6 Pro, Pixel 5/5a 5G, and Pixel 4a (5G) devices.