Android 10 was launched on September 3, 2019, and Android 11 got here out on September 8, 2020. So the place is that this 12 months’s Android 12 launch?
As a substitute of the ultimate Android 12 launch this month, Google pushed out Android 12 Beta 5 and stated the ultimate launch was “weeks” away. A brand new report from XDA Developers’ Mishaal Rahman claims to slender issues down a bit, saying that Monday, October 4, is the magic date.
XDA says it has an inner Google doc detailing the “tentative” launch date for Android 12. The doc really solely lists when the Android Open Supply Mission (AOSP) supply code will likely be launched, however the developer supply code launch and the buyer Pixel launch are normally on the identical day.
The Android 12 steady replace could also be launched on October 4, as that is when Google plans to launch to AOSP. This tentative launch date was additionally talked about by a 3PL. pic.twitter.com/PMN802gQj0
— Mishaal Rahman (@MishaalRahman) September 12, 2021
The doc seems to be prefer it’s meant for third-party gadget producers excited about licensing Google’s Android apps and lists a ton of dates for the OS’s help timeline. After all, the core of Android is open supply, and anybody can do no matter they need with the supply code, however if you need Google’s approval and the possibility to license apps just like the Play Retailer and Gmail, you may have to comply with the principles. With the intention to push OEMs to ship newer variations of Android on new units, Google simply stops approving GMS licenses (Google Cellular Companies—aka, all of the Google apps) for brand new units at across the two-year mark. The doc additionally lists when Google will cease supporting the Android 12 codebase and “ACK,” or the “Android Frequent Kernel” (the Linux kernel with Android patches), with safety patches, which is 3.5 years after launch. (Understand that well-supported units will simply transfer to a more recent Android model after the primary 12 months.)
The later launch is comprehensible, since Google has a lot to care for this 12 months. Android 12 is among the greatest Android releases ever, coming with a complete new “Materials You” UI for Pixel telephones and together with a wild computerized color-theming system. Gadgets will lastly begin transport Android’s “GKI,” or “Generic Kernel Image,” which is able to assist unify the Android Linux kernel throughout completely different units and may even permit some units to ship kernel updates by the Play Retailer. There’s an incremental file system for Play-as-you-download video games, a brand new privateness dashboard, efficiency optimizations, and one million different modifications.
A few of these new options will not be absolutely uncovered to customers till the launch of the Pixel 6 (every time that’s), however the first massive chunk, Android 12, is just some weeks away.
