Android 12

Following last week’s initial tweet parade during the Pixel 6 launch event, Google today gave another look at new Material You widgets for Android 12.

The Pixel 6 has introduced a centralized settings page to manage your phone, app, and Google Account. This Security “Hub” is now appearing on older Pixel phones running Android 12. 

The focus of Android 12L is on tablets and foldables, but the release is also coming to phones and Google is introducing Unicode 14 emoji support with it. 

Android 12L is an expansion focused on foldables and other large-screen devices with plenty of exciting new designs and features to go with that. During its launch, Google confirmed that Android 12L’s features would be coming to the Galaxy Z Fold 3 in the not-too-distant future.

Google today announced Android 12L as a release focused on tablets, foldables, and other large-screen form factors. It’s also coming to phones, and the company today provided a timeline for the Android 12L Developer Preview and Beta.

As part of this year’s Android Dev Summit, Google has unveiled a suite of new tools for developers, making it easier to use the new Material You design language and create apps for larger screens.

At the 2021 Android Dev Summit, Google announced Android 12L as a “feature drop” for foldables, tablets, and Chrome OS, but it will also be coming to phones, and Pixel devices – in the future – can sign-up for a Beta.

Android 12’s public rollout (for Pixel phones) started last week and that normally serves as the operating system’s big release for the year. In 2021, Google is doing something different and announced “Android 12L” for foldables, tablets, and Chrome OS today.

Android 12 is perhaps the biggest update to the platform in years, but most of its best designs and features are primarily on Pixel. Samsung has been working on its One UI 4 update based on Android 12, and in a new video the company shows how it’s adopting some of Google’s features from Pixel.

Back in August, Google rolled out the ability to transfer past WhatsApp messages from iPhones to Samsung Galaxy devices. This ability to transfer your WhatsApp history is now coming to Pixel and all other Android 12 phones.

Android 12 started rolling out last week, and Google today explained and defended the new “Internet” tile in Quick Settings by citing user research studies. That said, it promises an upcoming usability tweak.

Android 12 development for Samsung smartphones is chugging along. The company today released a third public One UI 4.0 beta that integrates Android 12’s finalized AOSP release, brings a new Weather app, and makes other tweaks.

After waiting what felt like ages, Android 12 has arrived with a literal mountain of changes, tweaks, and tuning to sink your teeth into. We’ve whittled or distilled our deep dive down to a selection of 20 of the best features added in Android 12 — features we think you’ll really love right away.

We’ve had some time to dive deep into the Android 12 Previews and Android 12 Betas over the past few months. Now that the stable release has dropped and is available on Pixel hardware, we’re going to dig even deeper and share every new feature and change we’ve found in Android 12 — the biggest overhaul to the world’s most popular mobile OS.

While Android releases don’t carry a public dessert name any longer, they do have an internal codename that keeps up the tradition. This year’s release is “Snow Cone,” and Google has just released its usual statue for Android 12 alongside the platform’s rollout today on Pixel phones.

Just over two weeks after Android 12 hit open source, Google this morning rolled out the stable version of Android 12 to existing Pixel owners. That event would normally mark the end of a release’s Android Beta Program, but Google is continuing it this year.

Android 12 is rolling out now to current Pixel phones, and Google took the Pixel 6 launch as an opportunity to preview more Material You widgets from major first-party apps.

After three developer previews, five betas, and the AOSP release, Android 12 is ready to launch on Pixel phones as Google’s biggest mobile OS release in recent memory. The new Material You design language is a defining aspect of this Android version that spans every screen and interaction. The other big highlights are more privacy and security controls.

One of the more annoying bugs in Android 12 Beta 5 is the lack of weather in At a Glance on the Pixel Launcher. Google now looks to be rolling out a fix for this problem. 

Google is rolling out an update to the “Sounds” app on Pixel phones that introduces a Material You redesign, as well as the new “Material Adventures” collection.