Google company test version of the open mobile platform Android 11. Android 11 release in the third quarter of 2020. To evaluate new platform features program . Firmware builds for Pixel 2/2 XL, Pixel 3/3 XL, Pixel 3a/3a XL and Pixel 4/4 XL devices. Flashing is done manually, the ability to install Android 11 through the OTA update system will appear in May.
Key Android 11:
- Android Emulator adds an experimental ability to run executable code for 32-bit and 64-bit applications built for ARM architecture in the environment of an Android 11 system image running in the emulator built for x86_64 architecture.
- Support for the 5G mobile standard has been expanded, providing higher bandwidth and lower latency. Network-intensive applications that perform activities such as streaming 4K video and downloading high-definition game assets can now work not only when connected via Wi-Fi, but also when working through a network of a cellular service provider. To simplify the adaptation of applications, taking into account 5G communication channels, the API has been expanded , used to check whether the connection is charged for traffic and whether it is possible to transfer large amounts of data through it. This API now covers cellular networks and allows you to define a connection to a provider that provides a truly unlimited data plan when connected via 5G.
The API has also been expanded. , which allows you to predict the amount of available bandwidth for downloading or sending data, without conducting your own network tests.
- Added support for new screen types "pinhole" (the screen covers the entire front surface of the smartphone, except for a small circle in the upper left corner for the front camera) and "waterfall" (the screen also covers the rounded side edges of the device). Applications can now determine the presence of additional visible and blind areas on these screens using the standard API . To cover the side faces and organize interaction in areas near the edges of the "waterfall" screens, the API proposed .
- Added additional features for messaging. A separate section with active conversations has been added to the notification area, allowing you to immediately find current conversations without leaving other applications. Messaging and chat apps have been converted to use the API , which allows you to apply the concept of "bubbles" to work with several applications at the same time - you can chat in a chat without stopping working in another program. When quickly writing a response from the notification area, you can now attach images to messages by copying them through the clipboard.
- API updated to version 1.3 , which provides applications with the ability to use hardware acceleration for machine learning systems. The API is positioned as the base layer for the operation of machine learning frameworks in Android, such as and Caffe2. A number of ready-made models of neural networks have been proposed for use on mobile devices, including (recognition of objects in photographs), (computer vision) and Smart
Reply (selection of options for responding to messages). In the new release support for extended quantization using signed integers instead of floating point numbers, which reduces the size of models and speeds up work with them. In addition, capabilities have been added to the Quality of Service API to control priorities and timeouts when executing models, and the Memory Domain API has been extended to reduce copy and memory conversion operations when executing models sequentially. - Added new options to control app access to personal data. In addition to the mode of accessing the location only while working with the program (access is blocked in the background) introduced in the last release in Android 11 support for one-time permissions. The user can now grant the app temporary access to key permissions such as location, microphone, and camera access. The permission is valid for the duration of the current session and is revoked as soon as the user switches to another program.
- Changes have been made to simplify the migration of applications to storage
, which allows you to isolate application files on an external storage device (such as an SD card). With Scoped Storage, application data is restricted to a single directory, and separate permissions are required to access shared media collections. Android 11 introduces support for an optional mode of accessing media using full file paths,
updated API DocumentsUI, added the ability to perform batch operations in the MediaStore. - Expanded options for biometric sensors for authentication. The BiometricPrompt API, which offers a universal biometric authentication dialog, now supports three types of authenticators β strong, weak, and device credentials. Simplified integration of BiometricPrompt with various application architectures, not limited to using the class .
- When assembling platform components that require increased protection, protection mechanisms that work at the compilation stage are involved (Control Flow Integrity) , (Integer Overflow Sanitization) and . To detect problems when working with memory in applications, checking of pointers in the heap based on the tags associated with them is enabled (). To find memory errors an additional system image that has the debug engine enabled (Hardware-assisted AddressSanitizer).
- API prepared , which allows you to organize a secure exchange of binary data between applications. For example, this API can be used to provide multiple applications with access to machine learning models when those applications are run by a single user.
- Added platform support for secure storage and retrieval of verifiable identification documents such as e-Driver's Licenses.
- As part of the Mainline project, which allows you to update individual system components without updating the entire platform, 12 new updateable modules have been prepared in addition to the 10 modules available in Android 10. Updates affect non-hardware components that are downloaded through Google Play separately from OTA firmware updates from the manufacturer. Among the new modules that can be updated through Google Play without updating the firmware are a module for managing permissions, a module for working with drives (supporting Scoped Storage), and a module with NNAPI (Neural Networks API).
- work to reduce the impact of changing the behavior of some subsystems on the operation of applications. Innovations that may affect the operation of applications can now be optionally disabled and adjusted at the SDK level. To simplify Android 11 app compatibility testing, the Developer Options interface and the adb utility provide settings to enable and disable compatibility-affecting features (I allow you to skip testing without changing the targetSdkVersion and without rebuilding the application). Updated greylisting for restricted APIs not provided in the SDK.
- Added framework A that allows the application to dynamically load additional resources at run time.
- Added the ability to pass verification status of an incoming call to applications, which can be used to generate customized dialogs after processing the call, for example, including additional actions for marking the call as spam or adding it to the address book.
- Improved API , which allows the application (network connection manager) to influence the algorithm for choosing preferred wireless networks by transmitting a ranked list of networks, and also takes into account additional metrics when choosing a network, such as information about the bandwidth and quality of the communication channel during the last connection. Added the ability to manage wireless networks that support the standard (Passpoint), including accounting for the expiration time of the user profile and the ability to use self-signed certificates in profiles.
- The ImageDecoder API adds support for decoding and displaying HEIF (Apple's HEIC) animated images using HEVC (H.265) compression methods. Compared to animated GIFs, the HEIF format can significantly reduce the file size.
- An API has been added to the NDK for use in native code of image encoding and decoding operations (JPEG, PNG, WebP, etc.), without involving third-party libraries. The new API makes it possible to reduce the size of APK files with native applications and solve the problem of updating embedded libraries that may contain vulnerabilities.
- Camera apps can now temporarily turn off vibration (for example, when displaying notifications) to block it from working during a camera session.
- Provided the ability to enable modes (blur the background on the image) for devices that support them (for example, the still mode provides a higher image quality, and the continuous mode more closely matches the data from the sensor).
- Added API for ΠΈ low latency video playback modes required by real-time streaming applications. In addition, support has been added for HDMI Low Latency Mode (Game Mode), which disables graphics post-processing on the TV or external monitor to reduce latency.
Source: opennet.ru