Android
N is still in active development, but you can try it now as part of the N
Developer Preview. The sections below highlight some of the new features for
developers.
Make sure to check
out the Behavior Changes to learn about areas where platform
changes may affect your apps, take a look at the developer guides to learn more
about key features, and download theAPI Reference for details on new APIs.
Multi-window support
In Android N, we're
introducing a new and much-requested multitasking feature into the platform —
multi-window support.
Users can now pop
open two apps on the screen at once.
·
On
phones and tablets running Android N, users can run two apps side-by-side or
one-above-the-other in splitscreen mode. Users can resize the apps by dragging
the divider between them.
·
On
Android TV devices, apps can put themselves in picture-in-picture mode, allowing them to
continue showing content while the user browses or interacts with other apps.
See below for more information.
Applications running in
split-screen mode.
Notification enhancements
In Android N we've
redesigned notifications to make them easier and faster to use. Some of the
changes include:
·
Template updates: We're updating
notification templates to put a new emphasis on hero image and avatar.
Developers will be able to take advantage of the new templates with minimal
adjustments in their code.
·
Bundled notifications: The system can
group messages together, for example by message topic, and display the group. A
user can take actions, such as Dismiss or Archive, on them in place. If you’ve
implemented notifications for Android Wear, you’ll already be familiar with
this model. with this model.
·
Direct reply: For real-time
communication apps, the Android system supports inline replies so that users
can quickly respond to an SMS or text message directly within the notification
interface.
·
Custom views: Two new APIs enable
you to leverage system decorations, such as notification headers and actions,
when using custom views in notifications.
Bundled notifications
and direct reply.
Profile-guided JIT/AOT compilation
In Android N, we've
added a Just in Time (JIT) compiler with code profiling to ART, which lets it
constantly improve the performance of Android apps as they run. The JIT
compiler complements ART's current Ahead of Time (AOT) compiler and helps
improve runtime performance, save storage space, and speed up app updates and
system updates.
Profile-guided
compilation lets ART manage the AOT/JIT compilation for each app according to
its actual usage, as well as conditions on the device. For example, ART
maintains a profile of each app's hot methods and can precompile and cache
those methods for best performance. It leaves other parts of the app uncompiled
until they are actually used.
Quick path to app install
One of the most
tangible benefits of ART's JIT compiler is the speed of app installs and system
updates. Even large apps that required several minutes to optimize and install
in Android 6.0 can now install in just a matter of seconds. System updates are
also faster, since there's no more optimizing step.
Doze on the go...
Android 6.0
introduced Doze, a system mode that saves battery by deferring apps' CPU and
network activities when the device is idle, such as when it's sitting on a
table or in a drawer.
Now in Android N,
Doze takes a step further and saves battery while on the go. Any time the
screen is off for a period of time and the device is unplugged, Doze applies a
subset of the familiar CPU and network restrictions to apps. This means users
can save battery even when carrying their devices in their pockets.
Doze now applies
restrictions to improve battery life even when the device is not stationary.
A short time after
the screen turns off while the device is on battery, Doze restricts network
access and defers jobs and syncs. During brief maintenance windows,
applications are allowed network access and any of their deferred jobs/syncs
are executed. Turning the screen on or plugging in the device brings the device
out of Doze.
.
Project Svelte: Background
optimizations
Project Svelte is an
ongoing effort to minimize RAM use by system and apps across the range of
Android devices in the ecosystem. In Android N, Project Svelte is focused on
optimizing the way apps run in the background.
Background processing
is an essential part of most apps. When handled right, it can make your user
experience amazing — immediate, fast, and context-aware. When not handled
right, background processing can needlessly consume RAM (and battery) and
affect system performance for other apps.
Since Android 5.0,
JobScheduler has been the
preferred way of performing background work in a way that's good for users.
Apps can schedule jobs while letting the system optimize based on memory,
power, and connectivity conditions. JobScheduler offers control and simplicity,
and we want all apps to use it.
Another good option
is
GCMNetworkManager,
part of Google Play Services, which offers similar job scheduling with
compatibility across legacy versions of Android.
Data Saver
Data Saver in
Settings.
Over the life of a
mobile device, the cost of a cellular data plan typically exceeds the cost of
the device itself. For many users, cellular data is an expensive resource that
they want to conserve.
Android N introduces
Data Saver mode, a new system service that helps reduce cellular data use by
apps, whether roaming, near the end of the billing cycle, or on a small prepaid
data pack. Data Saver gives users control over how apps use cellular data and
lets developers provide more efficient service when Data Saver is on.
Quick Settings Tile API
Quick Settings tiles
in the notification shade.
Quick Settings is a
popular and simple way to expose key settings and actions, directly from the
notification shade. In Android N, we've expanded the scope of Quick Settings to
make it even more useful and convenient.
We've added more room
for additional Quick Settings tiles, which users can access across a paginated
display area by swiping left or right. We've also given users control over what
Quick Settings tiles appear and where they are displayed — users can add or
move tiles just by dragging and dropping them.
Number-blocking
Android N now
supports number-blocking in the platform and provides a framework API to let
service providers maintain a blocked-number list. The default SMS app, the
default phone app, and provider apps can read from and write to the
blocked-number list. The list is not accessible to other apps.
By making
number-blocking a standard feature of the platform, Android provides a
consistent way for apps to support number-blocking across a wide range of
devices. Among the other benefits that apps can take advantage of are:
·
Numbers
blocked on calls are also blocked on texts
·
Blocked
numbers can persist across resets and devices through the Backup & Restore
feature
·
Multiple
apps can use the same blocked numbers list
Call screening
Android N allows the
default phone app to screen incoming calls. The phone app does this by
implementing the new
CallScreeningService, which allows the
phone app to perform a number of actions based on an incoming call's Call.Details, such as:
·
Reject
the incoming call
·
Do
not allow the call to the call log
·
Do
not show the user a notification for the call
.
Multi-locale support, more
languages
Android N now lets
users select multiple locales in Settings, to better support
bilingual use-cases. Apps can use a new API to get the user's selected locales
and then offer more sophisticated user experiences for multi-locale users —
such as showing search results in multiple languages and not offering to
translate webpages in a language the user already knows.
ICU4J APIs in Android
Android N now offers
a subset of ICU4J APIs in the Android framework under
the
android.icu package. Migration is
easy, and mostly entails simply changing from the com.java.icu namespace to android.icu. If you are already
using an ICU4J bundle in your apps, switching to the android.icu APIs provided in the
Android framework can produce substantial savings in APK size.
OpenGL™ ES 3.2 API
Android N adds
framework interfaces and platform support for OpenGL ES 3.2, including:
·
Floating-point
framebuffers for HDR and deferred shading.
·
BaseVertex
draw calls to enable better batching and streaming.
·
Robust
buffer access control to reduce WebGL overhead.
Android TV recording
Android N adds the
ability to record and playback content from Android TV input services via new
recording APIs. Building on top of existing time-shifting APIs, TV input
services can control what channel data can be recorded, how recorded sessions
are saved, and manage user interaction with recorded content.
Android for Work
Android for Work adds
many new features and APIs for devices running Android N. Some highlights are
below — for a complete list of Android for Work updates related to Android N,
please see Android for Work Changes.
Work profile
security challenge
Profile owners can
specify a separate security challenge for apps running in the work profile. The
work challenge is shown when a user attempts to open any work apps. Successful
completion of the security challenge unlocks the work profile and decrypts it
if necessary. For profile owners,
ACTION_SET_NEW_PASSWORD prompts the user to
set a work challenge, and ACTION_SET_NEW_PARENT_PROFILE_PASSWORD prompts the user to
set a device lock.
