ANDROID 12 DP1, THE FIRST TEST: THE MAIN NEWS WE HAVE FOUND

On the evening of Feb. 18, 2021, the awaited news arrived: Android 12 is among us . Google has released the DP1 (Developer Preview) of the next major release of the green robot operating system. For the uninitiated, this preliminary build coincides with the first opportunity for developers, professionals and enthusiasts to get their hands on the news that we will see in the coming months.

The release of the DP1 is always a moment of great excitement for the smartphone world, given that for years developers and "geek" users have used to carry out the classic flash night of the new version, in order to test first-hand right away all the news. techgeeksblogger

We therefore "immersed" in the build released by Google and found several interesting information.

Developer Preview 1, between Material NEXT and one-handed mode

Once the flash is finished and the smartphone is restarted, the new Material NEXT graphic style stands out right away. In fact, the operating system has been tinged with blue as regards the background of the settings, as well as the notification curtain. There is also a revised lock screen, as the background is highlighted by a new transparent layer when you enter the PIN or the unlock pattern.

Another element renewed in aesthetic terms is the main toggle that appears at the top of the settings tabs, for example in relation to the options for developers. The latter appears in fact of higher dimensions than the others and is immediately noticed.

For the rest, the notifications also have a slightly revised look. In general, Google has made the interface more enjoyable in both light and dark themes.

"Little" hidden gem: by enabling a special flag via ADB, it is possible to obtain a completely renewed settings interface, probably to be used with one hand. In this case the screenshots describe the situation better than a thousand words, but in general the elements are moved down and the icons take on a larger size.

Basically, this type of interface is somewhat reminiscent of Samsung's One UI . This is certainly an interesting "secret": who knows if in the end Google will decide to give users the possibility to activate the interface directly from the settings.

Moving on to the actual features, the most important introduction made with Android 12 is that relating to the one-handed mode , which finally arrives natively. This possibility has been discuss for some time, but now Google is really implementing it. It is a feature that reduces the size of the contents on the screen, so as to allow the user to use everything quickly without having to hold the smartphone with two hands. This mode was unearthed by XDA Developers' Mishaal Rahman, who quickly showed how it works in a tweet .

However, this is one of the only features that we have not been able to enable directly, as it is probably hidden behind some flags not yet available (as indeed is the "OneUI style" interface). In any case, it seems that the feature works in a very similar way to the "Ease of Access" feature on the iPhone. For the rest, another option shown by Rahman that we were unable to enable is the one relating to the possibility of capturing extended screenshots while scrolling the screen. You can check it out in this tweet , although the feature currently appears to be "hidden" and has several stability issues.

 

It also seems that Google is working on more interacting widgets , which allow you to switch from one "screen" to another. Another secondary novelty, but useful in the everyday context, is that relating to Picture in Picture (PiP). In fact, now it is finally possible to enlarge the window of the latter in a natural way, just as it happens for the zoom in the Camera app, thus disconnecting from the previous "gesture" not exactly the most comfortable to use.

For the rest, according to what was discovered by 9to5Google , on Pixel 5 there is a screen relating to the expected gestures that are carried out with a double tap on the back of the smartphone. However, the latter do not seem to work at the moment.

Returning to the features that we were able to test with hand, it is now possible to choose for which multimedia applications to display the controls in the notification curtain. Incidentally, this type of player has been revised and is now displayed in a larger size. Then there is an interesting novelty relating to the possibility of postponing notifications . In fact, once the special option " Allow postponement of notifications " has been enabled, it will be possible to press a special button that will appear at the bottom right of the notification to be able to choose how long to "postpone it".

Of course, even in the past there were "snooze" features, but now a dedicated button is available. There is also a feature designed to quickly share the Wi-Fi password with another device: just select the " Nearby " option and the other device will be able to connect in no time at all.

In addition to this, it is interesting that in " Languages and input " there is an option called "Redirect vibration" , which allows you to send the information relating to the vibration obtained from the smartphone to your controller. The latter suggests that, in the end, the rumors of a few days ago regarding the possible arrival of a native gaming mode made as it should be, can be true.

This was not enough, now the ability to edit screenshots with stickers has been added and further indications in terms of privacy have been added. In addition, net of other secondary features (such as an accessibility feature that allows you to have more control over the reduction of "vivid" colors), the remaining additions are to be found in additional measures in terms of security. For example, it is now enough to press the power button five times to make an emergency call.

Android 12: timing and compatible smartphones

Android 12 is therefore finally here, albeit in a limited version. In fact, remember that the first Developer Preview is designed to make developers familiar with the new major release. Precisely for this reason many features are "hidden" and you need to know the right methods to enable them, which are not easy to find. Additionally, Google has already confirmed that there will be two more Developer Previews, as well as four Betas, before the final release. In short, the road to the arrival of the "definitive" build is still long and will take us into the second half of the year .

In fact, if all goes as planned, the Developer Preview phase will last until April 2021, while the Beta phase will arrive in August 2021. As for compatible devices, currentlythe smartphones on which the Android 12 DP1 can be installed are Google Pixel 3, Pixel 3 XL, Pixel 3a, Pixel 3a XL, Pixel 4, Pixel 4 XL, Pixel 4a, Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5.

Concluding our first contact with Android 12, we can only say that we are interested in the Google project. In fact, despite currently many innovations do not appear or cannot be activated directly from the settings, the direction taken by the Mountain View company begins to take shape in an intriguing way .

Think of the controller's vibration option, which suggests the arrival of a Game Mode, as well as the "hidden" One UI-style interface, which we can't wait to find out more about. This without counting the appearance of the double tap gestures on the Pixel 5 backcover or the Material NEXT desing. In short, the next preliminary stages will probably give us the opportunity to investigate all the issues that remain "in doubt"

 inbusinessworld   digitalmarketingtrick  thewebscience  itgraviti  beloveliness  allmarketingtips