Since releasing Android 15 in September, the Android growth crew has been onerous at work on the subsequent main launch, and at present it’s asserting the primary developer preview for Android 16.
In response to the crew, this launch marks the beginning of a sooner launch cycle for Android APIs. Beforehand, the foremost API launch would occur in Q3, however subsequent yr it would occur in Q2. This higher aligns with the system launch schedule and can permit extra gadgets to get the Android launch sooner, the crew defined.
As a result of API being launched earlier, the Android crew recommends builders do compatibility testing a couple of months earlier to make sure apps are prepared in time.
After the Q2 launch, there can be one other main API launch in This autumn that may embrace developer APIs and have updates, optimizations, and bug fixes, however received’t embrace new habits modifications that might have an effect on apps.
Moreover, there’ll nonetheless be quarterly Android releases, and the Q1 and Q3 updates that come between the API releases will embrace incremental updates, the Android crew defined.
By way of new options within the working system itself, new additions to Android on this developer preview embrace:
- The flexibility to embed the picture picker into an app’s view hierarchy, in order that customers can choose media while not having to offer an app with overly broad permissions
- Help for well being information in Well being Join
- The most recent model of the Privateness Sandbox on Android
The Android growth crew additionally shared that it hopes to realize platform stability by March 2025 to provide app builders loads of time to check their apps earlier than the ultimate launch, usually in late summer season or early fall.
