Google releases Android 11 Beta 3 ahead of public launch

Abner Li | Aug 6 2020 - 9:59 am PT

Ahead of the public launch “coming very soon,” Google is rolling out Android 11 Beta 3. This is the “release candidate” and very close to what Pixel owners will receive in the coming weeks.

Developers are advised to “release compatible updates for apps, SDKs, and libraries.” With Android 11, Google finalized “all app-facing surfaces and behaviors” with the previous release, thus providing an extra month of development and preparation time.

Android 11 lets Exposure Notification apps run without needing to enable the device location setting. This is meant to address the user perception that “location” is needed.

This is an exception we’re making for the Exposure Notification System only, given that it has been designed in such a way that apps using it can’t infer device location through Bluetooth scanning. To protect user privacy, all other apps will still be prohibited from performing Bluetooth scanning unless the device location setting is on and the user has granted them location permission.

Here’s everything new in Android 11 Beta 3 [Gallery]

The following issues have been resolved in Beta 3:

General

Package visibility: When you declare an intent filter for browser apps, your app gains visibility into browser apps on the device. In previous versions, this intent filter gave apps visibility into a broader set of apps. (Issue #158914189)
Fixed app stability issues that were caused by upgrading the version of SQLite that is used by the Android platform from 3.22 to 3.28.
Fixed an issue that prevented some apps from connecting to the internet when the device was using cellular data.
Fixed an issue that interfered with some apps’ ability to determine a device’s GPS location.
Fixed an issue with SurfaceTexture that was causing some apps to crash intermittently.

Google apps

The Google app, Google search bar, or Discover feed no longer sometimes freeze or become unresponsive. (Issue #159192774)
Some labels in the Pixel launcher Home settings no longer display incorrectly. (Issue #160946862)
Users are no longer blocked from upgrading the Photos app to the latest version. (Issue #160848917)

Google identifies three top issues remaining:

General

On Pixel devices when using another default launcher, gesture navigation actions can sometimes launch the Pixel launcher instead of the default launcher. (Issue #160859801)

Google apps

On some devices, the Camera app can sometimes crash when a user attempts to take a photo or video. (Issue #158818461)
The screen sometimes fails to auto-rotate when using the YouTube app. (Issue #159098879)

Android 11 will launch by the end of September with the final release to AOSP and OEMs. Pixel owners will be first to receive the new operating system.

Android 11 Beta 3 (RPB3.200720.005) system images are available for the Pixel 2, Pixel 2 XL, Pixel 3, Pixel 3 XL, Pixel 3a, Pixel 3a XL, Pixel 4, and Pixel 4 XL, as well as the Android Emulator. If you need help, here’s our full guide on installing Android 11. Google today said that Android 11 Beta 3 will also be available for the Pixel 4a when that phone becomes available later this month.

The Android Beta Program is now live to let early adopters easily install via an OTA update.