Google’s New Android 16 Developer Preview Unveiled
Google proposed a program for developers to evaluate the new features of the Android 16 platform. Pre-testing firmware assemblies have been prepared for various Pixel devices including Pixel 6/6A Pro, Pixel 7/7a/7 Pro, Pixel 8/8a/8 Pro, Pixel 9/9 Pro/9 Pro XL/9 Pro Fold, Pixel Fold, and Pixel Tablet.
The preliminary release for Android 16 was formed three months earlier than previous versions, due to a new development schedule. This new schedule will see more than one significant Android release and two issues formed – one in the second quarter and the other in the fourth quarter. The summer release will include major innovations, changes in behavior in the SDK, and new APIs. The winter release will focus on improvements, new APIs, and changes that do not impact app operation.
Some of the changes in Android 16 Developer Preview 1 include:
- Offered built-in interface to provide applications with access to user photos and videos stored on the device or in cloud storage. This new interface only grants access to specific files selected by the user, rather than the entire multimedia library.
- In Health Connect, a new API has been added to enable the reading and saving of medical records in