Google has officially published the first Developer Preview for Android 14 amidst a bevy of reported additions and upgrades. The release coincides with earlier Android updates. There are numerous improvements in the developer preview, both user- and backend-facing. People are naturally eager about Android 14 and what it brings to the table since Android powers billions of devices worldwide.
Google has a history of giving their Android updates delectable dessert-themed codenames. Android version 14 is the same. The latest Android is being given the intriguing moniker Upside Down Cake by the tech giant. Google has naturally continued the trend of using intriguing names for its Android releases even though codenames are no longer frequently employed.
Google remains dedicated to assisting tablets and foldable form factors. The most recent version of Android will continue the endeavour to offer a consistent experience across all screen sizes and form factors, which was first started in Android 12L and 13. Google is developing additional components, like as window size classes, activity embedding, sliding pane layout, and more, all of which will be supported by Jetpack Compose, to assist developers in producing apps that adapt to various screen sizes.
The business has also revised its advice for programmers on how to handle larger screens. This will make it easier for developers to monitor how well their apps work across different devices. Additional learning opportunities and multi-device interactions that will lead to a unified experience have also received attention.
With the ability to scale fonts up to 200%, Android 14 allows for even larger fonts. Compared to the 130% that was previously available on Pixel devices, this represents an increase of 70%. However, Google has also incorporated a non-linear font scaling curve that is automatically applied to prevent the text from becoming excessively huge.
This will maintain the equilibrium between the currently huge text and the smaller text on your phone, preventing the larger text from getting any bigger. Going to Accessibility -> Display size and text settings will allow developers to test this out according to the guidelines Google has already provided. The enhanced font scaling will be available for many different devices, including foldable and huge screen models.
Battery life has always trailed behind iOS on Android devices. Although things have improved over time, there is still work to be done. By improving how apps use the battery in the background, Android 14 advances this. Only the most important user tasks will now be given access to the foreground services.
This will stop undesirable apps from consuming the phone’s battery excessively when they are operating in the background.
Google is also making it simple for developers to set up their programmes so that downloading files consumes less background power. This will simultaneously improve app optimization for both developers and users. Other power-side changes include tighter controls on alarms, which prevent apps from setting off pointless alerts without authorization.
Additionally, an app cloning functionality is planned for Android 14. Users will be able to run the same software in two different accounts thanks to this feature. Even while this is quite similar to the two apps feature found in the majority of third-party Android skins, it will still be very useful.
The first developer preview of Android 14 is already available for download from the official website. Google has also made a brief OS timeline available for consumers to follow. Veteran customers will notice that the firm is largely adhering to the same schedule as it did for prior versions. A second developer preview will be made available in March after the first one.
In April and May, Android 14 will be released as beta versions, allowing us to see the new features in action. The months of June and July will bring even more stable updates for users. A stable release will eventually be released after the user-facing changes have been compiled.
