Android 11: Google has released the latest version of its Operating Systems which is used by a number of smartphone and TVs. It was released last night and is the first time in the history that Google has released the developer preview before March.
Google, generally, releases the preview of Android before its developer event which is called Google I/O, which as per reports is said to happen by mid of 2020.
The latest Operating System (OS) from Google is simply called Android 11 as its official name has not been released yet. Android 11 comes out with some new features, however, at least in the developer preview, its User Interface (UI) remains the same.
Arguably, the most important feature that the users will now get in the latest version of Android is the ability to grant “one-time” location access to applications, similar to what Apple users had as “allow once”.
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This means that you will no longer be forced to allow the application to have access to your location all the time, or eradicate the hassle of toggling on and off the location access to the app. This feature may be a boon to the but will result to be a curse for some apps who sell user location data to make money.
Overall, it is a good move coming from Google as it gives more control over the privacy of a user in his/ her own hands.
This location usage feature will also be applicable to Camera and Microphone as well. Bringing the microphone under the umbrella of this feature is more important than you think as applications such as Facebook, in the past, has been accused of using the microphone of its user’s device(s) to listen to them. Additionally, it will also stop dead in tracks the Malwares and Spywares like Pegasus, made by the Israeli firm, NSO.
Another feature in Android 11 is that the users will get a “screen recording” option, similar to one enjoyed by Apple users. Even though this feature was present in the beta versions of Andriod 10 – Android Q – but never made it to the public version.
Android 11 developer preview also houses a “conversation” feature which is also similar to Apple’s iOS’s iMessage which will allow its users to see more than just the latest messager while replying to the texts right from the notification (either on shade or screen).
Recently, Google added Rich Communication Services (RCSs) on its Android platform which allows text like iOS on devices using Android.
The “conversation” feature in Android 11 will same a UI similar to Facebook’s bubbles chat heads you see from Messenger. These floating chat bubbles can appear on your home screen will allow the users to continue the conversation without opening the app. As this feature is of the OS and not for a particular application, applications like WhatsApp, Telegram, and even Facebook Messenger will be able to use it.
Another feature that is enlisted in Google Android 11 is the enhancement of the Application Package Interfaces (APIs) for the latest 5G connectivity. Tools like these will help the developers access the 5G features right in Android.
APIs for neural networks are also provided in Android 11 developer preview.
Like all the developer previews, Android 11’s developer preview is not apt to replace the stable Android version on your smartphones right now. In a blog post, the company wrote, “This initial preview release is for developers only and not intended for daily or consumer users”. To enforce this, Google has restricted the download of this preview and is not available as Over The Air (OTA) download.
