Posted by Matthew McCullough – VP of Product Administration, Android Developer

The second developer preview of Android 16 is now obtainable to check along with your apps. This construct contains adjustments designed to boost the app expertise, enhance battery life, and enhance efficiency whereas minimizing incompatibilities, and your suggestions is crucial in serving to us perceive the complete affect of this work.

System triggered profiling

ProfilingManager was added in Android 15, giving apps the flexibility to request profiling knowledge assortment utilizing Perfetto on public units within the subject. To assist seize difficult hint eventualities reminiscent of startups or ANRs, ProfilingManager now contains System Triggered Profiling. Apps can use ProfilingManager#addProfilingTriggers() to register curiosity in receiving details about these flows. Flows lined on this launch embrace onFullyDrawn for exercise primarily based chilly begins, and ANRs.

val anrTrigger = ProfilingTrigger.Builder(
                ProfilingTrigger.TRIGGER_TYPE_ANR
            )
                .setRateLimitingPeriodHours(1)
                .construct()

val startupTrigger: ProfilingTrigger =  //...

mProfilingManager.addProfilingTriggers(listOf(anrTrigger, startupTrigger))

Begin part in ApplicationStartInfo

ApplicationStartInfo was added in Android 15, permitting an app to see causes for course of begin, begin kind, begin instances, throttling, and different helpful diagnostic knowledge. Android 16 provides getStartComponent() to tell apart what part kind triggered the beginning, which will be useful for optimizing the startup circulate of your app.

Richer Haptics

Android has uncovered restricted management over the haptic actuator since its inception.

Android 11 added help for extra complicated haptic results that extra superior actuators can help by way of VibrationEffect.Compositions of device-defined semantic primitives.

Android 16 provides haptic APIs that permit apps outline the amplitude and frequency curves of a haptic impact whereas abstracting away variations between system capabilities.

Higher job introspection

Android 16 introduces JobScheduler#getPendingJobReasons(int jobId) which may return a number of the explanation why a job is pending, as a consequence of each express constraints set by the developer and implicit constraints set by the system.

We’re additionally introducing JobScheduler#getPendingJobReasonsHistory(int jobId), which returns a listing of the newest constraint adjustments.

The API may also help you debug why your jobs will not be executing, particularly should you’re seeing diminished success charges with sure duties or latency points with job completion as effectively. This may additionally higher allow you to perceive if sure jobs usually are not finishing as a consequence of system outlined constraints versus explicitly set constraints.

Adaptive refresh charge

Adaptive refresh charge (ARR), launched in Android 15, allows the show refresh charge on supported {hardware} to adapt to the content material body charge utilizing discrete VSync steps. This reduces energy consumption whereas eliminating the necessity for probably jank-inducing mode-switching.

Android 16 DP2 introduces hasArrSupport() and getSuggestedFrameRate(int) whereas restoring getSupportedRefreshRates() to make it simpler on your apps to benefit from ARR.

RecyclerView 1.4 internally helps ARR when it’s settling from a fling or easy scroll, and we’re persevering with our work so as to add ARR help into extra Jetpack libraries. This body charge article covers most of the APIs you should use to set the body charge in order that your app can immediately leverage ARR.

Job execution optimizations

Beginning in Android 16, we’re adjusting common and expedited job execution runtime quota primarily based on the next elements:

• Which app standby bucket the applying is in; lively standby buckets shall be given a beneficiant runtime quota.
• Jobs began whereas the app is seen to the consumer and continues after the app turns into invisible will adhere to the job runtime quota.
• Jobs which can be executing concurrently with a foreground service will adhere to the job runtime quota. If you want to carry out an information switch which will take a very long time think about using a consumer initiated knowledge switch.

Word: To know easy methods to additional debug and take a look at the habits change, learn extra about JobScheduler quota optimizations.

Absolutely deprecating JobInfo#setImportantWhileForeground

The JobInfo.Builder#setImportantWhileForeground(boolean) technique signifies the significance of a job whereas the scheduling app is within the foreground or when briefly exempted from background restrictions.

This technique has been deprecated since Android 12 (API 31). Beginning in Android 16, it’ll now not perform successfully and calling this technique shall be ignored.

This elimination of performance additionally applies to JobInfo#isImportantWhileForeground(). Beginning in Android 16, if the strategy is known as, the strategy will return false.

Deprecated Disruptive Accessibility Bulletins

Android 16 DP2 deprecates accessibility bulletins, characterised by way of announceForAccessibility or the dispatch of TYPE_ANNOUNCEMENT AccessibilityEvents. They’ll create inconsistent consumer experiences for customers of TalkBack and Android’s display reader, and alternate options higher serve a broader vary of consumer wants throughout a wide range of Android’s assistive applied sciences.

Examples of alternate options:

The deprecated announceForAccessibility API contains extra element on urged alternate options.

Cloud search in picture picker

The picture picker offers a secure, built-in method for customers to grant your app entry to chose photos and movies from each native and cloud storage, as an alternative of their total media library. Utilizing a mix of Modular System Parts by way of Google System Updates and Google Play providers, it is supported again to Android 4.4 (API degree 19). Integration requires only a few strains of code with the related Android Jetpack library.

The developer preview contains new APIs to allow looking out from the cloud media supplier for the Android picture picker. Search performance within the picture picker is coming quickly.

Ranging with enhanced safety

Android 16 provides help for strong security measures in WiFi location on supported units with WiFi 6’s 802.11az, permitting apps to mix the upper accuracy, larger scalability, and dynamic scheduling of the protocol with safety enhancements together with AES-256-based encryption and safety in opposition to MITM assaults. This permits it for use extra safely in proximity use circumstances, reminiscent of unlocking a laptop computer or a automobile door. 802.11az is built-in with the Wi-Fi 6 normal, leveraging its infrastructure and capabilities for wider adoption and simpler deployment.

Well being Join updates

Well being Join within the developer preview provides ACTIVITY_INTENSITY, a brand new datatype outlined in accordance with World Well being Group pointers round reasonable and vigorous exercise. Every document requires the beginning time, the top time and whether or not the exercise depth is reasonable or vigorous.

Well being Join additionally accommodates up to date APIs supporting well being information. This permits apps to learn and write medical information in FHIR format with express consumer consent. This API is presently in an early entry program. Enroll if you would like to be a part of our early entry program.

Predictive again additions

Android 16 provides new APIs that can assist you allow predictive again system animations in gesture navigation such because the back-to-home animation. Registering the onBackInvokedCallback with the brand new PRIORITY_SYSTEM_NAVIGATION_OBSERVER permits your app to obtain the common onBackInvoked name at any time when the system handles a again navigation with out impacting the conventional again navigation circulate.

Android 16 moreover provides the finishAndRemoveTaskCallback() and moveTaskToBackCallback(). By registering these callbacks with the OnBackInvokedDispatcher, the system can set off particular behaviors and play corresponding ahead-of-time animations when the again gesture is invoked.

This preview is for the subsequent main launch of Android with a deliberate launch in Q2 of 2025 and we plan to have one other launch with new developer APIs in This autumn. The Q2 main launch would be the solely launch in 2025 to incorporate deliberate habits adjustments that would have an effect on apps. The This autumn minor launch will choose up function updates, optimizations, and bug fixes; it won’t embrace any app-impacting habits adjustments.

We’ll proceed to have quarterly Android releases. The Q1 and Q3 updates in-between the API releases will present incremental updates to assist guarantee steady high quality. We’re actively working with our system companions to convey the Q2 launch to as many units as attainable.

There’s no change to the goal API degree necessities and the related dates for apps in Google Play; our plans are for one annual requirement annually, and that shall be tied to the foremost API degree.

prepare

Along with performing compatibility testing on the subsequent main launch, just be sure you’re compiling your apps in opposition to the brand new SDK, and use the compatibility framework to allow targetSdkVersion-gated habits adjustments as they develop into obtainable for early testing.

App compatibility

The Android 16 Preview program runs from November 2024 till the ultimate public launch subsequent 12 months. At key growth milestones, we’ll ship updates on your growth and testing environments. Every replace contains SDK instruments, system photos, emulators, API reference, and API diffs. We’ll spotlight crucial APIs as they’re prepared to check within the preview program in blogs and on the Android 16 developer web site.

We’re concentrating on Late Q1 of 2025 for our Platform Stability milestone. At this milestone, we’ll ship remaining SDK/NDK APIs and in addition remaining inner APIs and app-facing system behaviors. We’re anticipating to achieve Platform Stability in March 2025, and from that point you’ll have a number of months earlier than the official launch to do your remaining testing. Study extra within the launch timeline particulars.

Get began with Android 16

You may get began at this time with Developer Preview 2 by flashing a system picture and updating the instruments. If you’re presently on Developer Preview 1, you’ll robotically get an over-the-air replace to Developer Preview 2. We’re on the lookout for your suggestions so please report points and submit function requests on the suggestions web page. The sooner we get your suggestions, the extra we are able to embrace within the remaining launch.

For one of the best growth expertise with Android 16, we suggest that you just use the most recent preview of the Android Studio Ladybug function drop. When you’re arrange, listed here are a few of the issues it’s best to do:

• Compile in opposition to the brand new SDK, take a look at in CI environments, and report any points in our tracker on the suggestions web page.
• Check your present app for compatibility, be taught whether or not your app is affected by adjustments in Android 16, and set up your app onto a tool or emulator operating Android 16 and extensively take a look at it.

We’ll replace the preview system photos and SDK recurrently all through the Android 16 launch cycle. This preview launch is for builders solely and never meant for each day client use. We’re making it obtainable by guide obtain. When you’ve manually put in a preview construct, you’ll robotically get future updates over-the-air for all later previews and Betas.

In the event you’ve already put in Android 15 QPR Beta 2 and wish to flash Android 16 Developer Preview 2, you are able to do so with out first having to wipe your system.

As we attain our Beta releases, we’ll be inviting shoppers to attempt Android 16 as effectively, and we’ll open up enrollment for Android 16 within the Android Beta program at the moment.

For full info, go to the Android 16 developer web site.