Android 14 is all set to make its debut at this year’s Google I/O event on Wednesday, May 10. While the operating system (OS) is out for beta testing, it still has a long way to go before making its way to the general public — possibly by August — and questions about what’s new are expected.
Here are some new features that Google is likely to bring to the Android 14 — internally dubbed ‘Upside Down Cake’.
Notification flashes
Several smartphone makers have added this feature to their devices over the years ,but never has it been internally baked into the Android operating system itself. This year, Google is looking to change that, especially for people with hearing disabilities, but also for people who keep their phones on mute and still want to be able to know when they receive a notification. This will include a screen flash and camera flash. Users can pick and choose between them and even decide on the colour of the flash they want. Whether or not this would be customisable for different apps is not clear yet.
Better support for larger screens
Google announced on Thursday that it will be unveiling its first foldable Pixel ever, called the Pixel Fold, alongside Android 14. So, it makes sense for the company to help developers build apps that adapt to smartphones, foldables and tablets. Google has partnered with several other smartphone makers in the past to help them adapt Android for larger screens but this will be the first time that the Google Pixel will be in the game.
Restricting Photo and Video access
If you are someone who is uncomfortable with sharing your gallery access with certain apps, then Android 14 is likely to put your mind at ease. The OS update is said to give you the option to select specific media that you want the app to have access to. Similar to what Apple did in the iOS 14 update.
Satellite connectivity
In September 2022, Google’s senior vice president for Android, Hiroshi Lockheimer, tweeted saying that the next generation of Android will have the ability to connect to satellites. “When we launched G1 in (2008) it was a stretch to get 3G+WiFi working. Now we're designing for satellites. Cool! Excited to support our partners in enabling all of this in the next version of Android,” he said.
Predictive back gestures
With Android 14, when you want to back to the previous screen, you might be able to catch a glimpse of where you’re going before you land on that page. Right now, it's not always clear where a back swipe will take you; sometimes, it can be to the home screen, sometimes to a previous screen, or it might be to an app.
App cloning
People who want two WhatsApp accounts on one phone can also breathe a sigh of relief as Android 14 seems to be integrating app cloning into the system. Some smartphone makers already have this feature on the Android skin that they add on top — like Samsung's OneUI 5.1, for example — but an official setting to do that should make the experience better. However, the feature is currently being tested and might or might not initially make it to the final Android 14 release.
Health Connect
Google’s Health Connect is an app to help you track all your fitness routines in one place — like Google Fit does currently — and there are rumours that it might come preinstalled on devices running on Android 14. The app is currently in beta testing.
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