Google Releases Android 14 Developer Preview 2: The second Android 14 Developer Preview is available today, expanding on the first preview released a month ago with new features and improvements in the areas of privacy, security, performance, developer productivity, and user customization, all while continuing to hone the experience of using large-screen devices such as tablets, foldables, and more.
Google Releases Android 14 Developer preview and Quarterly Platform Release (QPR) beta program are two ways in which you may provide input that will be used to make Android better in the future. Further details on the preview, such as where to find Pixel downloads and when they will become available, can be found on the Android 14 developer site. We appreciate your continuing efforts to make Android a platform that is accessible to all, and we look forward to hearing your feedback. Let us discuss about Google Releases Android 14 Developer Preview 2.
Working across form factors
Android 14 expands on previous versions’ tablet and foldable functionality, specifically that of Android 12L and 13. A great place to start preparing your apps is by reading through get started with creating for large displays and learning about foldables. Checklists of various lengths are included in our app quality guidelines for big displays. Low-latency stylus and motion prediction libraries have also been published.
The gallery’s large-screen selection features app user interfaces that focus on social and communicative features, media, productivity, commerce, and reading.
Privacy and security
Android’s app sandboxing, open source code, and open app development have always been pillars of the platform’s commitment to user privacy and security. With Android 14, we’re making the best possible operating system by making devices more secure and offering people additional options to keep their data private.
Selected photos access
If your app needs access to material that the user picks, we suggest utilizing the Picture Picker. It enables a permissionless experience for devices running Android 4.4 and later by using a number of built-in capabilities, Google Play system updates, and Google Play services. When your app asks any of the visual media permissions (READ MEDIA IMAGES / READ MEDIA VIDEO) introduced in SDK 33, Android 14 users will be able to choose which photographs and movies to share with your app. This is in addition to the existing Photo Picker.
Permission options in the new prompt are:
All photographs and movies stored on the device can be accessed in their entirety.
For the time being, MediaStore will only showcase the user’s chosen photographs and movies.
Stop letting: No viewing of any media is permitted.
Credential manager
Credential Manager was introduced in Android 14 as a platform API, and we’re able to provide support for it on devices as far back as Android 4.4 (API level 19) thanks to a Jetpack Library that includes an implementation of Google Play services. Using APIs to obtain and store credentials with user-configured credential providers, it hopes to streamline the login process.
The API not only allows your app to sign in using passwords, but also with passkeys, the emerging standard in passwordless sign-in. Passkeys are built on industry standards, are compatible with a wide range of browsers and operating systems, and may be used for both online and mobile applications. Based on comments from Developer Preview 1, adjustments were made to the API and the user interface style for the account picker in Development Preview 2. Find out more here.
Safer implicit intents
To protect apps from entering unintended code paths, Android 14 will now generate an exception when a mutable pending intent is created with an implicit intent. The pending purpose must be immutable or made clear by the app.
Background activity launching
There are limits on when an app may initiate background activity on devices running Android 10 (API level 29) or later. The fewer interruptions a person experiences and the more control they have over the content displayed on their screen, the better.
With Android 14, foreground apps have greater say over whether or not the apps they engage with can initiate actions in the background. To be more precise, apps aiming for Android 14 must provide permission to initiate background operations when submitting a PendingIntent or binding a Service.
Streamlining background work
In Android 14, we’re continuing our efforts to enhance the overall health of the system, the longevity of the battery, and the quality of the user’s app experience.
Background optimizations
Improvements to Android’s memory management mechanism have been included in Developer Preview 2 to enhance resource utilization when applications are operating in the background. Foreground services, JobScheduler, and WorkManager are all part of the standard Android app lifecycle APIs that are unavailable after an app enters the cached state, which might last for many seconds. Disabling background processes is a thousand times quicker than on Android 13.
Fewer non-dismissible notifications
Android 14 will allow users to ignore notifications on unlocked devices if they contain the FLAG ONGGOING EVENT flag. When the smartphone is locked, notifications cannot be dismissed by the user or the device’s notification listeners. System and device policy alerts, which are critical to the device’s functioning, will continue to be completely non-dismissable.
App compatibility
We’re prioritizing app compatibility to make upgrades quicker and smoother with each platform release. To offer you and your team more time to make any required app modifications, we’ve made most changes to apps’ external appearance optional in Android 14, and we’ve also improved our tools and procedures to help you become ready sooner.
Now is the opportunity to check out new features and provide us feedback, as we are at the phase of Developer Preview 2 where we are asking for comments on our APIs and specifics on how platform changes influence your apps.
It is also a good time to begin testing for compatibility and figuring out what needs to be done. Several of these new behaviors may be tried out without affecting your app’s targetSdkVersion by utilizing the toggles in Developer Settings. You may use this to gauge how the new opt-in features of Android 14 could effect your app.
Final SDK/NDK APIs and app-facing system behaviors will be made available upon reaching Platform Stability. We anticipate reaching Platform Stability in June 2023, giving you plenty of time to complete all necessary testing before the official release. Learn more about the expected release date here.
Get started with Android 14
Everything you need to experiment with Android 14’s features, put your apps through their paces, and provide feedback is included in the Developer Preview. The most recent release of Android Studio’s SDK Manager makes it simple to set up the Android Emulator in a tablet or foldable configuration for testing your app on these devices. You may get started right away with Pixel 7 Pro, Pixel 7, Pixel 6a, Pixel 6 Pro, Pixel 5,
Pixel 5a 5G, Pixel 4, or Pixel 4a (5G) smartphones by flashing a system image onto your device. You may utilize the 64-bit system images using the Android Emulator in Android Studio if you don’t have a Pixel device.
If you want to get the most out of developing for Android 14, the most recent preview of Android Studio Giraffe (or more recent Giraffe+ versions) is what you need. Once you’ve gotten everything set up, you may go on to the following:
In this early stage of the developer preview, your input on the new features and APIs is invaluable. Please use the feedback page to log problems with our system.
Install your app on a device or emulator running Android 14 and put it through its paces to make sure it works properly. This will tell you if your app is affected by the default behavior changes included in Android 14.
Apps that are targeting Android 14 will need to be tested with the new platform’s opt-in behavior modifications. It’s crucial to analyze and evaluate these shifts as soon as possible. You may test the modifications one by one by toggling them on and off.
Throughout the Android 14 release cycle, we will constantly upgrade the preview system images and SDK. New users of the Android 14 developer preview will have to manually download the preview version because it is meant primarily for developers and not for everyday or consumer usage. You may install preview builds manually, and then receive updates for subsequent previews and Betas via over-the-air downloads.
If you wish to avoid wiping your smartphone when upgrading from the Android 13 QPR Beta program to the Android 14 Developer Preview program, you should upgrade to Developer Preview 2 right now. A more current build date for the Android 13 Beta might prohibit you from upgrading to the Android 14 Development Preview without first wiping your device’s data.
We’ll be asking users to test out Android 14 when we’ve reached the Beta stage, and registration for the Android 14 Beta program will open at the same time. Please be aware that version 14 of Android is now unavailable in the Beta testing phase.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Android 14 Developer Preview 2?
Android 14 Developer Preview 2 is the second version of the Android 14 operating system that is released for developers to test and provide feedback on the platform.
When will Android 14 Developer Preview 2 be released?
The release date for Android 14 Developer Preview 2 is unknown at this time, as it is a hypothetical future event.
What are the new features in Android 14 Developer Preview 2?
The specific features of Android 14 Developer Preview 2 are unknown at this time, as it has not been released yet.
Can I use Android 14 Developer Preview 2 on my phone?
Android 14 Developer Preview 2 is typically only available for specific devices that are designated for developer testing, so it may not be available for regular users to install on their personal devices.
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