Odds are you don’t have Android 13 on your phone yet — only 5.2% of devices have that after six months. And now, there’s a new version of Android you don’t have. Android 14 is out today as a developer preview for Google’s Pixel phones. This marks the start of a months-long process of public development and testing as Google works toward a release later in 2023.
The first developer preview of any Android build is not for the faint of heart. As the name implies, Google releases these early builds mainly for developers who need to become accustomed to the system and API changes, giving them ample time to update their apps for the new OS. However, anyone with a compatible Pixel phone can flash the new software.
This time, the supported test devices include the Pixel 4a, Pixel 4a 5G, Pixel 5, Pixel 5a, Pixel 6, Pixel 6 Pro, Pixel 6a, Pixel 7, and Pixel 7 Pro. Each one has an OTA image that you can download from Google’s developer site and sideload on the phone. If this sounds like too much work, give it a few months. There will be a beta program down the line that makes it easier to get Android 14 on your device, and it’ll be more stable by that point.
Google’s announcement blog post doesn’t provide in-depth details of the new OS. Most of the features we associate with Android 14 won’t arrive until the later builds, but this is a good base on which developers can build and update their apps. For example, Google says it has improved the tablet and foldable features released in Android 12L and 13. Background tasks will also be streamlined to improve battery life and performance.
There are, however, two notable changes already on the table. As previously rumored, Android 14 will begin blocking the installation of old apps. We’re not talking about a year or two — Android 14 will not allow you to install apps that target API level 23 (Android 6.0) or older. Developers must declare an API version in the app manifest, which determines how it plugs into the system. Android can run older apps just fine, but they lack the latest features and security. A legitimate developer might have a reason to run an older API, but malware creators do that to circumvent system security.
Google chose to limit the API to Android 6.0 because that’s when it implemented granular app permissions. Older apps would automatically get the permissions they requested, which sounds crazy now. With each new version of Android, the API installation limit will advance, keeping ancient apps from compromising your device. If you never sideload apps from outside the Play Store, this won’t change anything. Google’s app repository adopted API limits several years ago.
The other notable change is support for non-linear text scaling. Sometimes text is just too small, so Android has the option to increase the size. However, it increases all text by the same margin, which can make headers and titles enormous. Non-linear scaling will adjust smaller text more than large text, making the overall page easier to read.
Google’s timeline lists another developer preview for next month, and the first beta should drop in April. There should be four beta releases, followed by the final in August or later.
Now read:
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