Android posts

Posted by Matthew McCullough – VP of Product Management, Android Developer Android 16 has officially reached Platform Stability today with Beta 3! That means the API surface is locked, the app-facing behaviors are final, and you can push your Android 16-targeted apps to the Play store right now. Read on for coverage of new security and accessibility features in Beta 3. Android delivers enhancements and new features year-round, and your feedback on the Android beta program plays a key role in helping Android continuously improve. The Android 16 developer site has more information about the beta, including how to get it onto devices and the release timeline. We’re looking forward to hearing what you think, and thank you in advance for your continued help in making Android a platform that benefits everyone. New in Android 16 Beta 3 At this late stage in the development cycle, there are only a few new things in the Android 16 Beta 3 release for you to consider when developing your apps. Broadc...

Posted by Tyler Beneke – Product Manager, and Lucas Silva – Software Engineer Widgets are now available on your Pixel Tablet lock screens! Lock screen widgets empower users to create a personalized, always-on experience. Whether you want to easily manage smart home devices like lights and thermostats, or build dashboards for quick access and control of vital information, this blog post will answer your key questions about lock screen widgets on Android. Read on to discover when, where, how, and why they'll be on a lock screen near you. Lock screen widgets in clock-wise order: Clock, Weather, Stocks, Timers, and Google Home App. In the top right is a customization call-to-action. Q: When will lock screen widgets be available? A: Lock screen widgets will be available in AOSP for tablets and mobile starting with the release after Android 16 (QPR1). This update is scheduled to be pushed to AOSP in late Summer 2025. Lock screen widgets are already available on Pixel Tablets. Q: Are there any specific...

Posted by Matthew McCullough – VP of Product Management, Android Developer Today we're releasing the second beta of Android 16, continuing our work to build a platform that enables creative expression. You can enroll any supported Pixel device to get this and future Android Beta updates over-the-air. This build adds new support for professional camera experiences, graphical effects, extends our performance framework, and continues the evolution of features related to privacy, security, and background tasks. We’re looking forward to hearing what you think, and thank you in advance for your continued help in making Android a platform that works for everyone. Media and camera updates Android 16 enhances support for professional camera users, allowing for hybrid auto exposure along with precise color temperature and tint adjustments. It's easier than ever to capture motion photos with new Intent actions, and we're continuing to improve UltraHDR images, with support for HEIC encoding and new para...

Posted by Eiji Kitamura – Developer Advocate (@agektmr) In October 2024, we announced that Chrome 131 will allow third-party autofill services on Android (like password managers) to natively autofill forms on websites. Reflecting on feedback from autofill service developers, we've decided to shift the schedule and allow the third-party autofill services from Chrome 135. Native Chrome support for third-party autofill services on Android means that users will be able to use their preferred password manager or autofill service directly in Chrome, without having to rely on workarounds or extensions. This change is expected to improve the user experience and security for Android users who use third-party autofill services. Based on developer feedback, we've fixed bugs, and have been working to make the new setting easier to discover. To support those goals, we've added the following capabilities: An ability to query Chrome settings and learn whether the user wishes to use a third party autofill service...

Posted by Caren Chang – Developer Relations Engineer The Jetpack Media3 library enables Android apps to build high quality media apps. As part of the Media3 library, the Transformer module aims to provide easy to use, reliable, and performant APIs for transcoding and editing media. For example, apps can use Transformer to apply editing operations such as trimming a long piece of media file, or applying effects to video tracks. Transformer can also be used to convert media files from one format to another, such as adjusting the resolution or encoding of the media file. Developing Transformer APIs As part of the process to introduce new APIs, our engineering team works closely with Google apps such as Google Photos to test and experiment the new APIs. Experimental flags are first introduced to enable performance improvements. Once the results are successful and conclusive, these experimental features are then built into the default API implementations or promoted to public APIs for all apps to us...

Posted by Robbie McLachlan – Developer Marketing This year #WeArePlay took us on a journey across the globe, spotlighting 300 people behind apps and games on Google Play. From a founder whose app uses AI to assist visually impaired people to a game where nimble-fingered players slice flying fruits and use special combos to beat their own high score, we met founders transforming ideas into thriving businesses. Let’s start by taking a look back at the people featured in our global film series. From a mother and son duo preserving African languages, to a founder whose app helps kids become published authors - check out the full playlist. We also continued our global tour around the world with: 153 new stories from the United States like Ashley’s Get Mom Strong, which gives access to rehabilitation and fitness plans to help moms heal and get strong after childbirth 49 new stories from Japan like Toshiya’s Mirairo ID, an app that empowers the disabled community by digitizing disability certificates...

Posted by Matthew McCullough – VP of Product Management, Android Developer Android 16 Developer Preview 1 is available now to test with your apps. This is the start of Android having more frequent API releases as part of our effort to drive faster innovation in apps and devices. Two Android API releases in 2025 This preview is for the next major release of Android with a planned launch in Q2 of 2025. This release is similar to all of our API releases in the past, where we can have planned behavior changes that are often tied to a targetSdkVersion. We’re planning the major release a quarter earlier (Q2 rather than Q3 in prior years) to better align with the schedule of device launches across our ecosystem, so more devices can get the major release of Android sooner. With the major release coming in Q2, you’ll need to do your annual compatibility testing a few months earlier than in previous years to make sure your apps are ready. We plan to have another release in Q4 of 2025 which also will in...

Posted by Matthew McCullough – Vice President, Product Management, Android Developer We just dropped our Fall episode of #TheAndroidShow, on YouTube and on developer.android.com, and this time are live from Droidcon in London, giving you the latest in Android Developer news including the biggest update to Gemini in Android Studio as well as sharing that there will be more frequent SDK releases for Android, including two next year. Let’s dive in! Gemini in Android Studio: now helping you at every stage of the development cycle AI has the ability to accelerate your development experience, and help you be more productive. That's why we introduced Gemini in Android Studio, your AI-powered development companion, designed to make it easier and faster for you to build high quality Android apps, faster. Today, we're launching the biggest set of updates to Gemini in Android Studio since launch: now for the first time, Gemini brings the power of AI with features at every stage of the development lifecycl...

Posted by Donovan McMurray – Developer Relations Engineer CameraX, Android's Jetpack camera library, is getting an exciting update to its Dual Concurrent Camera feature, making it even easier to integrate this feature into your app. This feature allows you to stream from 2 different cameras at the same time. The original version of Dual Concurrent Camera was released in CameraX 1.3.0, and it was already a huge leap in making this feature easier to implement. Starting with 1.5.0-alpha01, CameraX will now handle the composition of the 2 camera streams as well. This update is additional functionality, and it doesn’t remove any prior functionality nor is it a breaking change to your existing Dual Concurrent Camera code. To tell CameraX to handle the composition, simply use the new SingleCameraConfig constructor which has a new parameter for a CompositionSettings object. Since you’ll be creating 2 SingleCameraConfigs, you should be consistent with what constructor you use. Nothing has changed in the w...

Posted by Chris Assigbe – Developer Relations Engineer and Tom Buckley – Product Manager With stylus input, Android apps on phones, foldables, tablets, and Chromebooks become even more powerful tools for productivity and creativity. While there's already a lot to think about when designing for large screens – see our full guidance and inspiration gallery – styluses are especially impactful, transforming these devices into a digital notebook or sketchbook. Users expect stylus experiences to feel as fluid and natural as writing on paper, which is why Android previously added APIs to reduce inking latency to as low as 4ms; virtually imperceptible. However, latency is just one aspect of an inking experience – developers currently need to generate stroke shapes from stylus input, render those strokes quickly, and efficiently run geometric queries over strokes for tools like selection and eraser. These capabilities can require significant investment in geometry and graphics just to get started. Today, ...

Posted by Shai Barack – Android Platform Performance lead Introducing Android support in Compiler Explorer In a previous blog post you learned how Android engineers continuously improve the Android Runtime (ART) in ways that boost app performance on user devices. These changes to the compiler make system and app code faster or smaller. Developers don’t need to change their code and rebuild their apps to benefit from new optimizations, and users get a better experience. In this blog post I’ll take you inside the compiler with a tool called Compiler Explorer and witness some of these optimizations in action. Compiler Explorer is an interactive website for studying how compilers work. It is an open source project that anyone can contribute to. This year, our engineers added support to Compiler Explorer for the Java and Kotlin programming languages on Android. You can use Compiler Explorer to understand how your source code is translated to assembly language, and how high-level programming language ...

Posted by Alex Vanyo – Developer Relations Engineer The 1.0 stable version of the Compose adaptive APIs with Material guidance is out, ready to be used in production. The library helps you build adaptive layouts that provide an optimized user experience on any window size. The team at SAP Mobile Start were early adopters of the Compose adaptive APIs. It took their developers only five minutes to integrate the NavigationSuiteScaffold from the new Compose Material 3 adaptive library, rapidly adapting the app’s navigation UI to different window sizes. Each of the new components in the library, NavigationSuiteScaffold, ListDetailPaneScaffold and SupportingPaneScaffold are adaptive: based on the window size and posture, different components are displayed to the user based on which one is most appropriate in the current context. This helps build UI that adapts to a wide variety of window sizes instead of just stretching layouts. For an overview of the components, check out the dedicated I/O session an...

Posted by Daniel Trócoli – Google Play Partnerships Back again for 2024, we’re opening up applications for Google Play’s Indie Games Fund in Latin America - as part of our commitment to helping developers of all sizes grow on Google Play. Check out the 10 selected studios who received a share of the fund last year. We will award a share of $2 million in addition to hands-on support to selected small games studios based in Latin America. The program is open to indie game developers who have already launched a game - whether it’s on Google Play or another mobile platform, PC or console. Each selected recipient will get between $150,000 and $200,000 to help them take their game to the next level, and build successful businesses. Check out all eligibility criteria and apply now. Applications close at 12:00pm BRT September 13, 2024. Priority will be given to applications received by 12:00pm BRT August 30, 2024. For more updates about all our programs, resources and tools for indie game developers vis...

Posted by Robbie McLachlan, Developer Marketing In our latest film for #WeArePlay, which celebrates the people behind groundbreaking apps and games, Jakub takes us on a journey through the world of Amanita Design. Born in Prague, Czech Republic, his journey into the world of games began with a passion for animation and an eye for artistic detail. Driven by a vision to create games that blend captivating art with immersive storytelling, he founded his company Amanita Design in 2003. Today, the thriving business is renowned for its unique approach to games, drawing inspiration from Czech landscapes, fairy tales, and the rich cultural heritage of its homeland. With a dedicated team of around 30, they are crafting games as visually stunning as they are narratively rich. Discover how he is merging the charm of Czech culture with the magic of gaming. What’s the inspiration behind Amanita Design and your game Machinarium? I have a love for nature, fairy tales, and Czech culture. Growing up ...

Posted by Maru Ahues Bouza – Product Management Director, Android Developer Yesterday’s Galaxy Unpacked event from Samsung debuted the latest in foldables, wearables, and more! The event introduced the Galaxy Z Fold6 and Z Flip6 and the Galaxy Watch7 and Watch Ultra - and it has never been easier to build apps that look great across all these screen sizes and types. To help you get your apps ready for the latest Android devices, we’re sharing how you can prepare your app for Wear OS 5 and how to build adaptive apps that scale across mobile, tablets, foldables and more! Get your app ready for Wear OS 5 Samsung’s new Galaxy Watch lineup, including the Watch Ultra and Watch7, will be the first smartwatches powered by Wear OS 5, the latest version of the Wear OS platform. As Wear OS 5 is based on Android 14, this new platform version brings with it a number of developer-facing changes. To ensure your app is ready for the next generation of devices, start by testing your app on the Wear OS 5 Emulator! ...

Posted by Robbie McLachlan, Developer Marketing #WeArePlay celebrates the inspiring journeys of people behind apps and games on Google Play. In honor of Pride Month, we are highlighting founders who have built tools to empower the LGBTQIA+ community. From dating apps to mental health tools, to storytelling platforms - these founders are paving the way for more inclusive technology. npckc is a game creator from Kanto, Japan whose stories portray the trans experience Born in Hong Kong and raised in Canada, npckc is a trilingual translator based in Japan. A self-taught programmer, they create games that feature stories and characters which are often from marginalized communities. One such game is "one night, hot springs" where players follow Haru, a trans woman, as she embarks on a visit to the hot springs. Players have praised the game's realistic portrayal of trans experiences and the relaxing music composed by npckc's partner, sdhizumi. As a finalist in Google Play's Indie Games Festival in Japan...

Posted by Matthew McCullough – VP of Product Management, Android Developer Today's Android 15 Beta 3 release takes Android 15 to Platform Stability, which means that the developer APIs and all app-facing behaviors are now final for you to review and integrate into your apps, and apps targeting Android 15 can be made available in Google Play. Thank you for all of your continued feedback in getting us to this milestone. Android 15 continues our work to build a platform that helps improve your productivity while giving you new capabilities to produce superior media and AI experiences, take advantage of device form factors, minimize battery impact, maximize smooth app performance, and protect user privacy and security, all on the most diverse lineup of devices. Android delivers enhancements and new features year-round, and your feedback on the Android beta program plays a key role in helping Android continuously improve. The Android 15 developer site has lots more information about the beta, includ...

Posted by Murat Yener – Developer Relations Engineer Following our recent Google I/O announcement recommending Kotlin Multiplatform (KMP) for sharing business logic across mobile, web, server, and desktop platforms, and our move to use KMP in Google Workspace, KotlinConf 2024 was the next moment to share the highlights and connect with the Kotlin community. Kotlin Multiplatform, developed by JetBrains, allows developers to build cross-platform apps by compiling Kotlin code into platform-native binaries while leveraging the full capabilities of a modern, memory-managed language. This approach has been a long-term investment for the Google Workspace team, enabling them to share the business logic between different platforms. The Android team has been working to support KMP and recently released an alpha version of Room with KMP support. As of today, Annotations, Collections and DataStore are already in stable with KMP support . We've also commonified Lifecycle, ViewModel and Paging libraries to...

Posted by Ash Nohe and Tram Bui – Developer Relations Engineers Before you read on, this topic is scoped to Views. Predictive Back with Compose is easier to implement and not included in this blog post. To learn how to implement Compose with Predictive Back, see the Add predictive back animations codelab and the I/O workshop Improve the user experience of your Android app. This blog post aims to shed light on various dependencies and requirements to support predictive back animations in your views based app. First, view the Predictive Back Requirements table to understand if a particular animation requires a manifest flag, a compileSDK version, additional libraries or hidden developer options to function. Then, start your quest. Here are your milestones: Upgrade Kotlin milestone Back-to-home animation milestone Migrate all activities milestone Fragment milestone Material Components (Views) milestone [Optional] AndroidX transitions milestone Upgrade Kotlin milestone The first...

Posted by Maru Ahues Bouza, Product Management Director, Android Developer Scaling Across Screens with Jetpack Compose The promise of Jetpack Compose has always been that a modern toolkit designed to build native UI can help you build better apps faster and easier. As more and more of you - 40% of the top 1k apps, in fact - use (and love) Compose, we’ve been working to extend those benefits you’re seeing on mobile to also help you build across form factors as well. At Google I/O 2024, we announced a lot of new updates for Compose that help you build across form factors, including Compose APIs to support adaptive layouts, and new updates for Compose TV and Wear OS. From foldables to wearables to TVs, Compose is delivering features built to make Android development faster and easier. Apps like yours are already using Compose to support more screens with less code. When thinking about layouts - think adaptive Yesterday, we announced a new set of Compose APIs for buildin...

Posted by Vivek Radhakrishnan – Technical Program Manager, and Seung Nam – Product Manager With technology in cars becoming more capable, the opportunity to deliver safe and seamless connected experiences for drivers and passengers is greater than ever. Google remains committed to the automotive industry and is seeing momentum across Android Auto and cars powered by Android Automotive OS with Google built-in. We’re excited to share updates across our in-car experiences and introduce new programs and resources to make it easier for you to bring your apps to cars. Learn more below and in the Android for Cars Technical Session. Momentum and updates With over 200 million cars on the road compatible with Android Auto, and nearly 40 car models like the Nissan Rogue, Renault R5, Acura ZDX, and Ford Explorer offering Google built-in, the time to bring your apps to cars is now. Over the last year, the ecosystem of apps available across these experiences has grown – thanks to you. New entertainment apps li...

Posted by Shobana Radhakrishnan – Senior Director of Engineering, Google TV, and Paul Lammertsma – Developer Relations Engineer Over the past year, we’ve seen significant growth of Android TV OS, reaching 220 million monthly active devices with a 47% year-over-year increase. This incredible engagement would not be possible without our dedicated developer community. A massive thank you for your contributions. Android 14 on TV We’re bringing Android 14 to TV! The next generation of Android provides improvements in performance, sustainability, accessibility, and multitasking to help you build engaging apps for TVs. Performance and sustainability — Android 14 for TV improves on previous OS versions so users get a snappier, more responsive TV experience. We’ve also added new energy modes to put users in control, helping to reduce a TV’s standby power consumption (see Energy saving image). Ensure your app integrates with MediaSession correctly to prevent content from continuing when input modes ch...

Posted by Matt Van Der Staay – Engineering Director, Google Home This blog was originally posted on Google for Developers. As the saying goes, “home is where the heart is.” It’s where we spend the most time; it’s your space to be comfortable, where you can truly relax, connect and make memories. Our homes have gotten more helpful with connected products, such as a smart door lock or Nest thermostat. Despite this momentum, it's still too hard to develop for the home. We are changing all of that. Building on the foundation of Matter, we've re-envisioned Google Home as a platform for developers - all developers, not just those that build smart home devices. Google Home is the destination to create innovative experiences for the home. Today, we’re announcing the Home APIs and Home runtime. With the Home APIs, app developers can access over 600M devices, Google’s hubs and Matter infrastructure, and an automation engine powered by Google intelligence - all available on both Android and iOS....