Right this moment we’re pushing the Android 13 supply to the Android Open Supply Mission (AOSP) and formally releasing the most recent model of Android. For builders, Android 13 is concentrated on our core themes of privateness and safety in addition to developer productiveness, making it simpler so that you can construct nice experiences for customers. We’ve additionally continued to make Android a good higher OS for tablets and enormous screens, providing you with higher instruments to reap the benefits of the 270+ million of those units in use the world over. You possibly can learn extra about Android 13 for shoppers in our Key phrase weblog publish
Android 13 is rolling out to Pixel units beginning as we speak. Later this 12 months, Android 13 can even roll out to extra of your favourite units from Samsung Galaxy, Asus, HMD (Nokia telephones), iQOO, Motorola, OnePlus, Oppo, Realme, Sharp, Sony, Tecno, vivo, Xiaomi and extra.
As all the time, we thanks for the suggestions you’ve shared, and we admire the work you’ve performed to make your apps appropriate with as we speak’s launch. Your assist and contributions are what make Android an important platform for everybody!
What’s in Android 13 for builders?
Right here’s a take a look at a few of what’s new in Android 13 – make certain to take a look at the Android 13 developer website for particulars on the entire new options.
Developer productiveness and instruments
Themed app icons – Android 13 extends Materials You dynamic coloration to all app icons, letting customers opt-in to icons that inherit the tint of their wallpaper and different theme preferences. All of your app wants to produce is a monochromatic app icon and a tweak to the adaptive icon XML. Extra right here.
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| Themed app icons adapting to wallpapers colours and darkish theme (left). |
Per-app language preferences – Android 13 makes it simpler to assist multilingual customers who wish to use your apps in a language that’s completely different from the system language. Android now supplies a typical “App language” Settings panel for apps which have opted-in, and you may name a brand new platform API to get or set the consumer’s most well-liked locale at runtime, serving to to scale back boilerplate code and enhance compatibility. Extra right here.
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| Per-app languages in Settings |
Improved textual content assist – Android 13 consists of textual content and language enhancements that enable you to ship a extra polished expertise. Sooner hyphenation optimizes hyphenation efficiency by as a lot as 200% so now you can allow it in your TextViews with virtually no influence on rendering efficiency. Textual content conversion APIs make looking out and autocompletion sooner when utilizing phonetic lettering enter for languages like Japanese, Chinese language, and others. Android 13 additionally improves line heights for non-latin scripts (comparable to Tamil, Burmese, Telugu, and Tibetan), eliminating clipping and making them simpler to learn. Extra right here.
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| Improved line peak for non-Latin scripts in apps concentrating on Android 13 (backside). |
Shade vector fonts – Android 13 provides rendering assist for COLR model 1 (spec, intro video) fonts and updates the system emoji to the COLRv1 format. COLRv1 is a brand new, extremely compact, font format that renders rapidly and crisply at any dimension. For many apps this can simply work, and the system handles every little thing. Extra right here.
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COLRv1 vector emoji (left) and bitmap emoji. |
Fast Settings Placement API – For apps that present customized Fast Settings tiles, Android 13 makes it simpler for customers to find and add your tiles. Utilizing a brand new tile placement API, your app can now immediate the consumer to immediately add your customized Fast Settings tile in a single step, with out leaving your app. Extra right here.
Programmable shaders – Android 13 introduces programmable RuntimeShader objects, with habits outlined utilizing the Android Graphics Shading Language (AGSL). You should use these shaders to create ripple, blur, stretch, and comparable superior results in your apps. Extra right here.
Media controls derived from PlaybackState – For apps concentrating on Android 13, the system now derives media controls from PlaybackState actions, offering a richer set of controls which might be constant throughout telephones and pill units and align with different Android platforms comparable to Android Auto and Android TV. Extra right here.
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Android 13 media controls are constant on telephones and tablets. |
Bluetooth LE Audio – Low Power (LE) Audio is the next-generation wi-fi audio constructed to allow new use instances like sharing and broadcasting audio to family and friends, or subscribing to public broadcasts for data, leisure, or accessibility. It’s designed to make sure that customers can obtain excessive constancy audio with out sacrificing battery life, and lets them seamlessly swap between completely different use instances. Android 13 provides built-in assist for LE Audio, so builders can use the brand new capabilities on appropriate units. Extra right here.
MIDI 2.0 – Android 13 provides assist for the brand new MIDI 2.0 commonplace, together with the flexibility to attach MIDI 2.0 {hardware} by means of USB. This up to date commonplace gives options comparable to elevated decision for controllers, higher assist for non-Western intonation, and extra expressive efficiency utilizing per-note controllers. Extra right here.
OpenJDK 11 updates – Android 13 Core Libraries now align with the OpenJDK 11 LTS launch, with each library updates and Java 11 programming language assist for app and platform builders. We plan to convey these Core Library adjustments to extra units by means of Google Play system updates, as a part of an ART module replace for units operating Android 12 and better. Extra right here.
Predictive again gesture – Android 13 introduces new APIs that allow your app inform the system that it’s going to deal with again occasions prematurely, a observe we name the “ahead-of-time” mannequin. This new method is a part of a multi-year effort that can assist you put together your app to assist the predictive again gesture, which is out there for testing on this launch by means of a developer choice. Extra right here.
Constructed for tablets
Android 13 extends the 12L replace that we launched earlier this 12 months, and it delivers a good higher expertise on tablets. You’ll discover options like an enhanced multitasking taskbar, extra large-screen layouts and optimizations in system UI and apps, improved compatibility modes for apps, and extra. We’re persevering with to speculate to provide the instruments you have to construct nice experiences for tablets in addition to Chromebooks and foldables. You possibly can study extra about the best way to get began optimizing for giant screens, and remember to take a look at our massive screens developer assets.
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| Multitasking on tablets with Android 13. |
Privateness and safety
Picture picker and APIs – A brand new system photograph picker now offers customers a typical, privacy-protecting strategy to share native and cloud-based images. Picture picker extends Android’s long-standing doc picker and makes it straightforward for customers to share particular images and movies with an app, with out giving the app permission to view all media information on the machine. Picture picker supplies a devoted expertise for images and movies and consists of APIs for apps to entry the shared media information. The photograph picker expertise is now obtainable to customers who obtain Google Play system updates, on units (excepting Go units) operating Android 11 and better. Extra right here.
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Picture picker lets customers share particular images and movies with an app. |
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| Notification permission dialog in Android 13. |
Close by machine permission for Wi-Fi – Android 13 introduces the NEARBY_WIFI_DEVICES runtime permission for apps that handle a tool’s connections to close by entry factors over Wi-Fi. The brand new permission is required for a lot of commonly-used Wi-Fi APIs and permits apps to find and connect with close by units over Wi-Fi with out additionally needing to amass the situation permission. Extra right here.
Granular permissions for media file entry – Picture picker is our really useful resolution for user-friendly, permissionless sharing of images and movies, however for apps that haven’t moved to photograph picker but or for audio use instances, Android 13 provides new granular media permissions. These new permissions change the READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE permission and supply entry to particular kinds of media information, together with pictures, video, or audio. We extremely advocate shifting your app to photograph picker if attainable; in any other case, use the granular media permissions when concentrating on Android 13. Extra right here.
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| Requesting permission to entry audio information. |
Developer downgradable permissions – Beginning in Android 13, apps that not require permissions beforehand granted by the consumer can use a new API to downgrade the permissions. By eradicating unused permissions, your app can present that it’s utilizing the minimal permissions wanted, which may enhance consumer belief. Extra right here.
Safer exported Intent filters – Android 13 applies stricter guidelines when delivering specific intents to exported intent filters in one other app that’s concentrating on Android 13. For intents that specify actions, the system now delivers the intents to the exported element provided that the intent matches the receiver’s declared <intent-filter> parts. Extra right here.
Efficiency for apps
Android 13 improves efficiency and effectivity for all apps by means of updates to the ART runtime. We plan to convey these enhancements to extra Android customers by means of Google Play system updates, as a part of our ongoing ART module updates for units operating Android 12 and better.
Improved rubbish assortment – A brand new rubbish collector primarily based on the Linux kernel characteristic userfaultfd is coming to ART on Android 13 units in an upcoming Google Play system replace. The brand new rubbish collector eliminates the learn barrier and its fastened overhead per object loaded, lowering reminiscence stress and resulting in as a lot as ~10% discount in compiled code dimension. It’s extra environment friendly at GC-time as effectively, since pages are freed as compaction progresses. Total, the brand new rubbish collector helps to avoid wasting battery, keep away from jank throughout GC operations, and defend apps from low-memory kills.
Optimizations all through ART – In Android 13, ART makes switching to and from native code a lot sooner, with JNI calls now as much as 2.5x sooner. We’ve additionally reworked the runtime’s reference processing to make it largely non-blocking, which additional reduces jank. We’ve uncovered a brand new public API, Reference.refersTo(), which is beneficial in reclaiming unreachable objects sooner, and we’ve made the interpreter sooner by optimizing class/methodology lookups. Lastly, ART now performs extra byte-code verification at set up time, avoiding the expense of verification at runtime and conserving app startup occasions quick. Extra right here.
Get your apps prepared!
Now with as we speak’s public launch of Android 13 to AOSP, we’re asking all Android builders to end your compatibility testing and publish your updates as quickly as attainable, to provide your customers a clean transition to Android 13.
To check your app for compatibility, simply set up it on a machine operating Android 13 and work by means of the app flows searching for any useful or UI points. Overview the Android 13 habits adjustments for all apps first, to deal with areas the place your present app may very well be affected. Listed here are a number of the prime adjustments to check:
- Notifications runtime permission – Be sure you perceive how this new permission works together with your app’s notifications, and plan on concentrating on Android 13 (API 33) as quickly as attainable to assist assist customers. Extra right here.
- Clipboard preview – Make certain your app hides delicate knowledge in Android 13’s new clipboard preview, comparable to passwords or bank card data. Extra right here.
- JobScheduler prefetch – JobScheduler now tries to anticipate the subsequent time your app might be launched and can run any related prefetch jobs forward of that point. For those who use prefetch jobs, take a look at that they’re working as anticipated. Extra right here.
Keep in mind to check the libraries and SDKs in your app for compatibility. For those who discover any SDK points, attempt updating to the most recent model of the SDK or reaching out to the developer for assist.
When you’ve printed the appropriate model of your present app, you can begin the course of to replace your app’s targetSdkVersion. Overview the habits adjustments for apps concentrating on Android 13 for this, and use the compatibility framework to assist detect points rapidly.
Pill and large-screens assist
With Android 13 bringing a greater expertise to tablets, make certain your apps look their finest. You possibly can take a look at large-screen options by establishing an Android emulator in Android Studio, or you should use a big display screen machine from our Android 13 Beta companions. Listed here are some areas to observe for:
- Taskbar interplay – Examine how your app responds when considered with the brand new taskbar on massive screens. Make certain your app’s UI is not reduce off or blocked by the taskbar. Extra right here.
- Multi-window mode – Multi-window mode is now enabled by default for all apps, no matter app configuration, so make certain the app handles split-screen appropriately. You possibly can take a look at by dragging and dropping your app into split-screen mode and adjusting the window dimension. Extra right here.
- Improved compatibility expertise – in case your app isn’t optimized for tablets but, comparable to utilizing a set orientation or not being resizable, test how your app responds to compatibility mode changes comparable to letterboxing. Extra right here.
- Media projection – In case your app makes use of media projection, test how your app responds whereas enjoying again, streaming, or casting media on massive screens. You’ll want to account for machine posture adjustments on foldable units as effectively. Extra right here.
- Digital camera preview – For digital camera apps, test how your digital camera preview UI responds on massive screens when your app is constrained to a portion of the display screen in multi-window or split-screen mode. Additionally test how your app responds when a foldable machine’s posture adjustments. Extra right here.
You possibly can learn extra in regards to the pill options in Android 13 and what to check right here.
What’s subsequent?
Android 13 is rolling out to Pixel units beginning as we speak.
For those who’re at the moment enrolled within the Android Beta program, you’ll get the Android 13 closing launch and stay enrolled to obtain ongoing Beta updates for Android 13 characteristic drops, beginning later this 12 months. For those who’d wish to decide out of ongoing Beta updates while not having to wipe your machine, simply go to the Android Beta website and decide out after you get the Android 13 closing launch and earlier than taking the primary beta for Android 13 characteristic drops.
System pictures for Pixel units are obtainable right here for handbook obtain and flash, and you will get the most recent Android Emulator system pictures through the SDK Supervisor in Android Studio. For those who’re searching for the Android 13 supply, you may discover it right here within the Android Open Supply Mission repository underneath the Android 13 branches.
Thanks once more for collaborating in our program of early previews and Betas! We’re wanting ahead to seeing your apps on Android 13!
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