Android N

Archive for the ‘App Ideas’ Category

Android N – Everything You Need to Know

Friday, March 11th, 2016 It seems crazy that only 3% of Android users have been able to upgrade to Android Marshmallow, and yet, here we are already talking about Android N and what to expect. On Thursday, the 10^th of March, Android N was released for testing. This means that the first stage of the OS system has already been sent to developers to help iron out any bugs before the big release. So what are the reactions so far?

YouTube courtesy of Android Police

Split-screen multitasking

Mobile devices are being utilized more frequently for work-related activities, and therefore the implementation of split-screen multitasking has been hugely welcomed. The ability to run two apps side-by-side will allow users to multitask and copy information from one screen to the other. This feature is similar to the Windows and iOS features, bringing Android back into the forefront as a compatible workforce OS.

Improved battery life

The aim of every update is to improve battery life, and the improved settings and notification controls will hit that chord. The Doze process, previously launched in Marshmallow, will now save battery not only when the device is stationary, but will also save battery due to the effectiveness of the way in which Android N works in the background.

Improved notification controls

Direct reply notifications: The technology from Android Wear has been transformed for Android N by including the RemoteInput notification API. This enables users to reply instantly from within the notification window.
Bundled notifications: The latest feature will allow the user to group together notifications from the same app, as opposed to showing individual messages. The group notifications (Notification.Builder.setGroup Api ) can be expanded easily to individual notifications with a simple two-finger swiping or tapping movement.

Early release

This is the first time that Google has released a beta-version prior to their annual developer conference. The reason they give is that by allowing developers to test the product now, they will be able to implement changes and get  ‘the final N release to device makers this summer.’
Even though the uptake on previous OS updates has yet to reach high numbers, there is constantly a battle to keep technology moving. At present, there are 36% of devices still running on Lollipop and just 3% on Marshmallow. However, with new devices soon to be released by the popular smartphone manufacturers, Samsung and LG, the uptake on Android Marshmallow is quickly due to increase.
Android has come so far from the singular device that it supported back when the first Android OS was released. Today Android now hosts 400 OEMs, 500 carriers and millions of developers coming together to create experiences for over 1.4 billion Android users around the world.

Nutella?	Nerds?	Nougat?

So, what will be the sweetness of Android N?

Here in the office we are betting on Nutella, although we do have quite a few Nerds fans.