Since Google acquired Android in 2005, it has been evolving and gaining more popularity. As of 2022, Android OS powers over three billion smartphones worldwide. In a blog post, Android announced that Android 15 is now available for developer testing. Here are the Google Pixel devices eligible for installing this version:
- Pixel 6 and 6 Pro
- Pixel 6a
- Pixel 7 and 7 Pro
- Pixel 7a
- Pixel Fold
- Pixel Tablet
- Pixel 8 and 8 Pro
DP1 available for developers
These Pixel users can download the Android 15 system image from the downloads page. Initially, users could install it manually or use the Android Flash Tool. However, due to an issue with sideloading, Google has “temporarily” disabled the download of OTA images. So, users can now only flash the images until the issue is resolved.
The first developer preview of #Android15 is here!
Try the updated features, test your apps, and collaborate with us to build the future of Android → https://t.co/IuFi0axz6o pic.twitter.com/jN9mvDGu6R
— Android Developers (@AndroidDev) February 16, 2024
Android 15 Developer Preview 1, also known as DP1, can also be tested in Android Emulator. Google has published a detailed guide on how to set up an emulator to try out the Developer preview. Users can emulate phone or tablet devices using Developer Preview 1.
New features
Google uses the latest version of Privacy Sandbox for Android 15 to safeguard user data. It also has Health Connect, Partial Screen Sharing, and new APIs for verifying file integrity. This version has In-App camera recording and supports MIDI 2 devices, which will benefit creators.
Android Dynamic Power Framework (ADPF) optimizes CPU, GPU, and Thermal management. It boosts gaming and other performance-intensive applications faster and more power-efficiently in Android phones. In Android 15, ADPF will add features to supported devices. It will have a power efficiency mode that will boost the power efficiency for long-running workloads. GPU and CPU work durations and Thermal Headroom Thresholds will also help bring out the best performance at minimal power cost.
Android 15 DP1 has a new "keyboard vibration" toggle under Settings → Sound & vibration → Vibration & haptics that disables haptics in your keyboard app. I first revealed this in the Android 14 QPR2 Beta 2 release, but it's now enabled by default. pic.twitter.com/vFhsUxCh6N
— Mishaal Rahman (@MishaalRahman) February 16, 2024
Developers and testers are already finding subtle changes and updates in Android 15. One tester of DP1 has found out that Android 15 lets you disable keyboard hepatic feedback from settings. We might be seeing more updates about Android 15 in the coming days. Google plans to start the Beta testing in early April and achieve platform stability in June. If everything goes smoothly, the final release might come in August.
Photo credit: The feature image has been taken by Pupu Liang of TechAcute.
