The new version of the Android will come packed with features that will bring personalization and privacy to new heights, according to tech giant Google.
Google recently unveiled Android 12, the latest iteration of its mobile device OS, in the global stage at the Google I/O event, promising more bells and whistles for upcoming smartphones fitted with the new OS.
Pending further platform stability, Google said the commercial launch could be later this year, although the beta version of the OS can now be downloaded.
In a virtual press conference, Google said the unveiling is timely, considering that there are now 3 billion devices powered by Android and the number is expected to further soar.
Increasing privacy concerns was also an important reason for Google to come up with the newly designed OS.
Sebastian Bauer, senior director of design for Android and Pixel at Google, said Android 12 is the “biggest design change” of the popular OS since 2014.
Bauer said this time around, Google focuses on a “fluid” and beautiful design and a slew of personalization on a bigger scale.
“Smartphones are deeply personal, so new Android will be able to adapt to you,” Bauer said, noting that the new design is a collaboration of Google’s material design team and hardware design team.
The executive said the user interface or UI, “harmonizes” with the user and “respects” the user’s choices. This feature is seen on the Android 12’s “always-on display,” which allows the smartphone to seamlessly transition between the “lock” screen to the “home” screen.
Android 12 allows the phone to automatically light on from the bottom or from the side, depending on the user’s touch. “This will make the phone more aware and more ‘alive’,” Bauer said.
In a virtual demo, Bauer said lighting and seamless transition in Android 12 will make smartphones more “responsive” and more “dynamic.”
The “home” screen features a more open grid and cleaner layout. The OS maximizes the screen, and can automatically determine which app the user most often uses.
One very notable feature of Android 12 is automatic color extraction. What this means is that it automatically “processes” a chosen photo by the user to make the photo more personalized and unique. Users can override the feature any time.
On Android 12’s privacy and security, Google said it is all about giving more control to the user.
Charmaine D’Silva, group product manager for Android at Google, said there are two key points:
- Transparency, to allow users a complete view of how apps are accessing user information from the device, and
- Controls, or the ability for the user to reduce the scope of data to be shared.
For instance, location information can be controlled so that apps can only have “limited” info on the user’s location.
With a new permissions dashboard, there are also controls for microphone and camera.
One key feature is an indicator showing what app or apps is using the microphone or camera. The user can now disable the microphone and camera without the knowledge of the app.
“This is similar to placing a piece of tape in your smartphone camera,” D’Silva said.
What about under the hood of the smartphone, where data can also be accessed?
D’Silva said the new artificial intelligence feature in the Android 12 makes sure that processing of the data is “isolated”, thus increasing security.
