The eventful year of 2014 that is almost halfway to its completion has already witnessed a series of technological advancements, be it the unveiling of Microsoft Surface Pro or the WWDC, where Apple Inc. launched its Mac OS X along with its latest iOS 8. Amidst this technological fanfare, Google has managed to steal the limelight for a while by setting ablaze the technology section with the latest version of the Android operating system.
Post the successful launch of its latest Android version, Kitkat, Google has come up with a little something called Android L. The version of this OS hasn’t been declared yet, although we can infer that it can be termed as 4.5 or 5.0, it is being speculated that the letter L is possibly a codename for Android Lollipop. Let’s take a look at the new features of Android L, among which a few will prove to be exceptional.
Material design of a device refers to an interface that represents a more vivid and vitalized character. Google has attempted to create a layout that allows user to experience precise screen transitions and fitting interaction with the tools.
The material design also brings about a phenomenal upgrade to the animations and enhances the depth of screen elements. Creation of ripples when an icon is touched, prominent automatic shadows & scaling and common actions to switch from one app to another are some interesting features that have been introduced.
This unique approach that includes a robust core UI would be helpful in discouraging users to switch to custom superimposed layouts.
Despite the hardware constraints, phones with Android L as an OS will be able to access a whole new set of features that are unavailable in the present Android devices. Now, an android user will be able to click RAW pictures or switch to burst mode, without having to tweak the feature out of the Google Play Store. The leverages of the manual controls have been extended; now you can now set the exposure, tone map, curves, ISO levels, etc. according to your requirements.
The notifications layout in Android L has experienced an extensive revamp, a unique feature in which the user can decide the type of notifications that would pop up when the phone is locked. Users can also regulate the amount of information visible in the notification bar. This feature would be highly welcomed by the users, given the fact that they appreciate the inflow of messages being private. Interestingly Android L will learn to scale up or down the notifications according to your usage priorities. This notification will appear as a ‘heads up’, giving you options to instantly revert or dismiss without disrupting your currently active apps.
Generally, we keep our phone locked because of our intention to maintain privacy but there are certain situations when you’re all by yourself yet need to repeatedly unlock your phone. Android L has been provided with a functionality to sense an environment where the imposition of security inputs isn’t necessary and make the device less barricaded. Your house can be considered a trusted environment. One more interesting add-on of a trusted environment is that your phone will automatically detect other compatible devices like the Google Chromebook and sync in, enabling you to shift your tasks to a wider screen.
With an ambition to escalate the credibility levels of android devices, Google has introduced a new runtime called ART. It is believed that ART will revolutionize the user experience standards by reducing the time taken to load android applications. Alongside its compatibility with 64-bit devices, ART will be equally functional across other hardware architectures such as ARM and x86. ART will provide the Android users with the ability to use more RAM than the preset limit of 32-bit.
Every android user frets about the consistently eroding battery backup of their handset. The Android L has come up with a remedy for quick battery drain, termed Project Volta, under which the insignificant services will be eliminated and will run only when required. Other key notes of Project Volta are the reduced screen refresh rates and frequency of data exchange. Moreover the apps and tools which would be developed for Google’s latest android version will undergo a performance optimization procedure by android developers to ensure that they work efficiently without draining the battery at quicker rates. The apps installed in Android L will undergo a behavioral change in order to comply with the pertaining battery state.
If you’re thinking to do so, you might want to hold your horses for a while. Presently, the SDK (Software Development Kit) has been made available exclusively to developers in order to incorporate all possible changes or improvements. This can be considered as a smart move by Google, since developers can now observe the technicalities of the OS and can create android apps or tools accordingly, something that Apple has been doing for a while now.
The tournament of creating the premier OS, among tech giants like Apple and Google, might eventually affect one’s market space by a morsel, but if looked upon from a bigger perspective it brings about immense possibilities in terms of UI/UX maximization.
Manish Jain is the co-founder and Managing Director at Konstant Infosolutions. He is responsible for the overall operations of the company and has played a major role in bringing Konstant up from its humble beginnings and, with his immense energy and drive, transforming it into a globally trusted name in IT solutions.
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