Android 14: Release Date, Timeline, Features, and More

Android 14 update, release date, timeline, features

Every year Google brings exciting upgrades to the Android operating system. It keeps Android enthusiasts eager to test the latest release. Android 12 was a massive upgrade in recent years as it brought the biggest visual redesign (thanks to Material You) and tons of improvements.

Last year, Google announced Android 13, which is kind of a polished Android 12 with better stability and more color schemes. Now, we’re moving on to Android 14, and we are likely to see new features and a bunch of under-the-hood changes. In this post, we’ll walk you through everything about Android 14 like its release date, timeline, features, and more.

Android version names used to be a buzzword a few years ago. But now, they are mainly used for the company’s internal development teams. Android 14’s name is not a secret, it’s called “Upside Down Cake“.

Android 14 Release Date and Timeline

Google has already released the Android 14 timeline and it’s quite similar to the last year. As scheduled, the first developer preview build has been released this month with one more coming in March.

Sometime in April, Google will release the first beta build of Android 14, followed by a second beta in May. The platform stability will begin in June with the third beta. This is where Google polishes the latest Android version and makes it ready for the stable release.

Google has not announced the Android 14 release date. However, the timeline suggests that the stable build will be released in August or early September.

You can click here to know which phones will get the Android 14 update.

What’s New in Android 14 DP1

Google has already released the first developer preview (DP1) of Android 14. It’s only available for Google Pixel. These are some noteworthy changes Android 14 DP1 brings:

Improved Battery Life: Over the years, Google has improved battery management on Android, and there’s still a lot of room for improvement. The foreground services in Android 14 are reserved for the highest-priority user-facing tasks. The background tasks are getting optimized in the upcoming Android release for improved battery life.

Better Accessibility: Android 14 brings accessibility improvements. The texts in the latest Android OS can be scaled up to 200% – a 70% increase from the last generation. Google is also bringing a non-linear font scaling curve to prevent size increase of texts which are already large to prevent any layout issues.

It has also been discovered that Android 14 has a hearing devices section in the Accessibility panel. This will make it easy to pair new hearing devices using Bluetooth. It might have the option to collect relevant usage information to improve the audio or hearing experience.

Regional Preferences: Android 13 introduced the per-app language preference option, which is getting improved in the upcoming OS release. In addition to this, Android 14 will also bring “regional preference”. It’s a new feature discovered in Android DP1.

Android 14 - Regional Preferences optins

You can use “regional preference” to set preferred temperature units for each app. Plus, you will be able to use different calendars such as the Chinese calendar, the Dangi calendar, and more. You can also change the first day of the week and the number system on your device.

Say Goodbye to Super Old Apps: Android 14 blocks installation of super old apps, specifically those built for Android 5.1 or older. This is because malware often targets older API levels.

Advantages for big-screen devices: As per Mishaal Rahman’s findings, Android 14 might allow the remapping of modifier keys such as Ctrl, Alt, Meta, and Caps lock. Plus, the upcoming Android release might add touchpad gestures support.

New back gesture animation: There haven’t been many changes to the gesture animations. But things could change now (at least for the back gesture animation). Android 14 has a beautiful back gesture animation. Take a look at it in the video below.

Note:
We are regularly updating this article with the latest information on Android 14. You can visit this page later for fresh updates.