After a series of developer previews, Google on Wednesday released the first beta version of Android 11. It is also making these pre-release versions available for over-the-air updates, reports ANI. Presently, the list of supported devices only includes Pixel 2, 3, 3a, and 4.
Google said the beta focuses on three key themes — people, controls, and privacy. Google is also making OS images available for download and an updated emulator is available, too.
A few months ago, Google said that developers would need to get a user’s approval to access the background location. That caused a bit of a stir among developers. Google will now keep its current policies in place until 2021 to give developers more time to update their apps.
In previous updates, Google worked on improving notifications. In this case, conversation notifications will now appear in a dedicated section at the top of the pull-down shade. Also available is built-in support in the notification system for what are essentially chat bubbles, which messaging apps can now use to notify while in work or using other apps.
For those users who rely on voice to control their phones, Android will now use a new on-device system that aims to understand all that is on the screen and then automatically generate labels and access points for voice commands.
In subsequent beta releases, Google will also enable media controls that will make it easier for the user to switch the output device for their audio and video content.
In terms of privacy, Google is adding one-time permissions so that an app only gets access to the microphone, camera or location once, as well as auto-resets for permissions when an app isn’t used for a while.
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