The first beta of Android Q was released less than a month ago, and today, Google just released Beta 2. This also comes before Google I/O which is likely when the next beta will be announced. The beta is still only available on Pixel phones, Android Studio’s emulator, and as a generic system image (GSI).
Bubbles
A major addition to this beta is “Bubbles,” a new way to multitask and re-engage with apps. Bubbles can let you use an app’s functionality between different apps on your device. They’re built directly into the notification system and can be expanded to reveal app functionality and information, and can be collapsed when not being used. It appears to be similar to Facebook Messenger’s chat bubbles, but with a wider functionality.
Other additions
- “Scoped Storage” provides apps access to a storage space intended only for their apps. Earlier, if the app needed to store files, it had to ask for permission from the user. Now, only if the app needs to access the shared collections for photos, videos, and audio, they’ll need to ask for permission.
- A foldables emulator is available in Android Studio 3.5 (canary) as a virtual device. Some platform improvements for foldables have also been included.
- An improved sharesheet that can provide the ability to preview the content being shared.
- Screenshots no longer have notches, cut-outs, or rounded corners. Hooray!
- Apps get more control over audio capture by letting them specify the direction of the microphone when taking an audio/video recording. For zoomable microphones, Android will give developers more control over the recording field dimension.
How do I get it?
If you’re enrolled in the beta program, an OTA update should come to you soon. If you aren’t in the beta program, you can join it here or manually flash the factory images from here. Another thing to note is that with this release, Google has also provided generic system images (GSIs) which you can get here.
Also worth pointing out are the known bugs that Google has mentioned in the release notes:
- Users might experience problems with apps that access photos, videos, media, or other files stored on your device, such as when browsing or sharing in social media apps.
- Banking and finance apps might not work as expected.
- Some apps might crash on startup because of legacy behaviors.
- Some permissions managed through Settings may need to be set again after app re-installation or device reboot, including Unknown Sources and others.
If you don’t have a Pixel device, you can use the Android Emulator. All you have to do is download the latest emulator system images via the SDK Manager in Android Studio.
Source: Android Developers
