Google is working on Android 14, the next most popular smartphone OS version. Android 12 brought the most significant visual change to the operating system, with Android 13 continuing to use the same Material You design language. From the Developer Preview Google has released for Android 14, we can say Google isn’t going to change anything drastic with Android 14 visually. But there are many under-the-hood changes and some new features.
Let us talk about when the Android 14 update will hit your devices, along with the new features it brings and the expected launch date of the update in this article.
Android 14 Release Date
Android 14 was made official during the Google I/O 2023 developer conference on May 10th. The company has released the second beta update for the public to try out the new features of Android 14. The Android 14 Beta programme is available for multiple brands, including OPPO, OnePlus, Lenovo, Xiaomi, iQOO, Tecno, Nothing, Realme, and Vivo. Google has revealed the official timeline along with the launch of the Android 14 Developer Preview 1. Take a look:
Android 14 Top Features
Generative AI Wallpapers
One of the coolest features of Android 14 has to be the Generative AI wallpapers. The features will allow users to create new wallpapers with the help of AI. One can add the description and the operating system will create a customised wallpaper based on the instructions.
When your device matches your energy >>> With just a few taps, you can create Generative AI wallpapers to customize your experience. Coming soon to Android. #GoogleIO pic.twitter.com/dJQLynq7rY
— Android (@Android) May 10, 2023
Customizable Lock Screen
Google has also introduced a new customisable lock screen option with Android 14. With this, users will be able to customise each and every aspect of a lock screen like clock, shortcuts, wallpapers, and more.
Improved Granular Access To Media
In Android 13 or earlier versions, if an app wants to access an image or video, you give access to either the whole folder or the whole SD card. With Android 14, you have more control over what an app sees in your storage. You can select specific photos or videos when an app prompts for Data Access.
Larger Fonts
Android has supported changing font sizes for a long time now, since Android 6.0, to be precise. On Android 13, you can scale the font to 130% on Pixel devices. With Android 14, the font can now be scaled up to 200%.
Android 14 uses nonlinear font scaling, which means text that is already large won’t see a further increase in size.
Notification Flashes
Android 14 will allow you to see notifications by using the camera flash lighting up or the display flash. You can toggle these settings from Accessibility settings in Android 14. You can use the camera flash or display flash to light up the notifications or use both simultaneously. With the display flash, you can also choose the colour of the flash.
Better Support For Larger Screens
Android 14 also brings new app quality guidelines for large screens. Google separates apps across three tiers with support for large screens and functionalities they offer.
Regional Preferences
Android is used in countries worldwide and is a truly global operating system. Different regions come with other regional measurements for dates, times, temperature, etc., such as Kilometres vs Miles and Fahrenheit vs Miles. The regional Preferences feature in Android 14 lets users set their preferred temperature units, distance, calendar, the first day of the week, and more. The feature is now available in Android 14 Developer Preview 2.
Satellite Connectivity
Hiroshi Lockheimer, SVP, Android, Chrome, ChromeOS, Play and Photos, has announced that Android 14 will support satellite connectivity.
Wild to think about user experiences for phones that can connect to satellites. When we launched G1 in '08 it was a stretch to get 3G + Wifi working. Now we're designing for satellites. Cool! Excited to support our partners in enabling all of this in the next version of Android!
— Hiroshi Lockheimer (@lockheimer) September 1, 2022
App Cloning
Google is testing the clone apps feature in Android 14 Developer Preview. It lets you create a second app instance, like current third-party solutions. As of now, many custom skins also have support for app cloning. Now, a similar feature will be available natively on Android 14.
Health Connect
Google announced Health Connect at I/O 2022, which could sync data across different health and fitness services such as Samsung Health, Google Fit, Fitbit and more. Health Connect is now baked into system settings in Android 14.
Enhanced PIN Privacy
With Android 14, you can turn off animations when you enter your PIN. This ensures that others won’t be able to see what you’re entering as PIN by looking over your shoulder.
Redesigned Back Arrow
The Android 14 also brings a new back arrow for gesture navigation. The feature will allow users to switch between the apps more efficiently. All you need to do is use the back gesture and the previous app will be opened.
Better System share sheet
The Android 14 update also brings a better share sheet, which will allow developers to add custom actions to the share menu. One can have custom sharing options like Send to your Devices, copy link, QR code, and more.
Per-App Language for Apps
The Android 14 will allow users to select languages on a per-app basis. The feature will allow developers to add multiple languages to their applications with ease.
Better Privacy
The Android 14 operating system will introduce a new feature that will allow apps to limit the visibility of specified views only to accessibility services that claim to help users with disabilities. Only real accessibility apps that have been vetted by Play Protect and the Play Store will be able to access sensitive data protected by the new feature.
Other Android 14 Features
- New PIN animations
- Enhanced permission control option for media files.
- New lava lamp-style animation for the media player along with splash animation for the play/pause button.
- New very low battery warning when the battery sinks below 2 per cent.
- Emoji Kitchen wallpaper, which allows users to create custom wallpapers using Emojis.
- Different live wallpapers for the lock screen and home screen.
- The system supports font scaling up to 200 per cent.
- Ability to identify bloatware and uninstall it with new Apps installed in the background feature.
Android 14 List of Compatible Devices
Google announced the Android 14 Beta 2 for the public during its annual developer conference. The company has revealed that the Android 14 Beta programme is now available for non-Pixel devices, including iQOO, Lenovo, Nothing, OnePlus, OPPO, Realme, Tecno, Vivo, and Xiaomi. Let us take a look at some of the phones that will be a part of Android 14 beta programme:
- Google Pixel 7 Pro
- Google Pixel 7
- Google Pixel 7a
- Google Pixel 6 Pro
- Google Pixel 7
- Google Pixel 6a
- Google Pixel 5a 5G
- Google Pixel 5
- Google Pixel 4a 5G
- OnePlus 11
- Vivo X90 Pro
- iQOO 11
- Nothing Phone (1)
- Xiaomi 13 Pro
- Xiaomi 13
- Xiaomi 12T
- Realme GT 2 Pro
- OPPO Find N2
- OPPO Flip N2
- Tecno Camon 20
- Lenovo Tab Extreme
Now let us look at the devices from various brands that have promised Android version updates, including an update to Android 14.
Samsung Phones
Samsung Galaxy S series
- Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
- Samsung Galaxy S23+
- Samsung Galaxy S23
- Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra
- Samsung Galaxy S22+
- Samsung Galaxy S22
- Samsung Galaxy S21 FE
- Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
- Samsung Galaxy S21+
- Samsung Galaxy S21
- Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra
- Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Plus
- Samsung Galaxy Tab S8
- Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 FE
Samsung Galaxy A series
- Samsung Galaxy A73
- Samsung Galaxy A72
- Samsung Galaxy A53
- Samsung Galaxy A52
- Samsung Galaxy A52s
- Samsung Galaxy A33
- Samsung Galaxy A23
- Samsung Galaxy A14
- Samsung Galaxy A13
- Samsung Galaxy A04s
Samsung Galaxy M series
- Samsung Galaxy M53 5G
- Samsung Galaxy M33 5G
- Samsung Galaxy M23
OnePlus Phones
- OnePlus 11
- OnePlus 11R
- OnePlus 10 Pro
- OnePlus 10T
- OnePlus 10R/5G
- OnePlus 9
- OnePlus 9 Pro
- OnePlus 9R
- OnePlus 9RT
- OnePlus Nord 2T
- OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite
- OnePlus Ace Pro
- OnePlus Ace Racing
- OnePlus Ace
- OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite
Xiaomi Phones
- Xiaomi 13 Pro
- Xiaomi 13 Lite
- Xiaomi 13
- Xiaomi 12T Pro
- Xiaomi 12T
- Xiaomi 12S Ultra
- Xiaomi 12S Pro
- Xiaomi 12S
- Xiaomi 12 Pro
- Xiaomi 12 Lite
- Xiaomi 12
- Xiaomi Poco X5 Pro
- Xiaomi Poco X5
- Xiaomi Poco X4 GT
- Xiaomi Poco M5s
- Xiaomi Poco M5
- Xiaomi Poco M4 5G
- Xiaomi Poco F4 GT
- Xiaomi Poco F4
Realme Phones
- Realme GT 2 Pro
- Realme GT 2
- Realme GT Neo 5
- Realme GT Neo 3T
- Realme GT Neo 3
- Realme GT Neo 2T
- Realme GT Neo 2
- Realme GT 5G
- Realme 10 Pro+
- Realme 10 Pro
- Realme 10 5G
- Realme 10
- Realme 9 Pro+
- Realme 9 Pro
Oppo Phones
- Oppo Reno 8T
- Oppo Reno 8T 5G
- Oppo A78
- Oppo A56s
- Oppo Find N2 Flip
- Oppo Find N2
- Oppo Reno 9 Pro+
- Oppo Reno 9 Pro
- Oppo Reno 9
- Oppo F21 Pro 5G
Vivo Phones
- Vivo X90 Pro+
- Vivo X90 Pro
- Vivo X90
- Vivo X80 Pro
- Vivo X80
- Vivo V27 Pro
- Vivo V27
- Vivo V27e
- Vivo V25 Pro
- Vivo V25
- Vivo Y56
- Vivo Y100
- Vivo V23 Pro
- Vivo V23 5G
- Vivo V23e 5G
- Vivo T1 Pro 5G
- Vivo T1 5G
- Vivo T1x
- Vivo T1 Lite 5G
iQOO Phones
- iQOO 11
- iQOO 11 Pro
- iQOO 9T
- iQOO 9 SE
- iQOO 9 Pro
- iQOO 9
- iQOO Z7
- iQOO Z6 Pro
- iQOO Z6 Lite 5G
- iQOO Z6 5G
- iQOO Z6
- iQOO Z5
- iQOO Neo 6
- iQOO 8 Pro
- iQOO 8
Motorola Phones
- Lenovo ThinkPhone
- Motorola Edge 20
- Motorola Edge 30
- Motorola Edge 30 Pro
- Motorola Edge 20 Pro
- Motorola Edge 30 Fusion
- Motorola Edge 30 Neo
- Motorola Edge 30 Ultra
- Motorola Moto X40
- Motorola Moto G13
- Motorola Moto G23
- Motorola Moto G53
- Motorola Moto G73
- Motorola Moto G 5G 2022
- Motorola Moto G Stylus 5G 2022
- Motorola Moto G42
- Motorola Moto G52
- Motorola Moto G62 5G
- Motorola Moto G72
- Motorola Moto G82 5G
- Motorola Razr (2022)
NOTE: These phones are expected to receive the Android 14 update after it is launched, but it is not confirmed as of now.
Android 14 Latest News
Google Releases Final Android 14 Beta 5 Update for Supported Devices (August 16, 2023)
Google has released the final and last beta of the Android 14 update. The Android 14 Beta 5 is now available for eligible Pixel devices. The latest beta update brings new features and bug fixes.
Android 14 Beta 4 Arrives for Supported Devices (July 12, 2023)
Google has started rolling out the Android 14 beta 4 update to the supported devices. The update comes with version number UPB4.230623.005 and is around 200MB in size. The update brings some fixes and improvements before the official rollout.
OPPO Confirms 11 Smartphones Will get Android 14 Update (May 14, 2023)
OPPO has confirmed that it will soon roll out the Android 14 update to its range of smartphones. The company has confirmed that 11 of its devices will get the Android 14 update in the near future. The list includes:
- Oppo A98
- Oppo A78
- Oppo A77
- Oppo A57
- Oppo Reno8 Pro
- Oppo Reno8
- Oppo Reno8 T
- Oppo Reno7
- Oppo Find X5
- Oppo Find X5 Pro
- Oppo Find X3 Pro
Android 14 Beta 2 Official Released (May 10, 2023)
Google has officially released the second beta update for its upcoming Android 14 operating system. The company has revealed that the Beta 2 will come with some added features like Ultra HDR support, Health Connect application, Predictive Back, lossless USB audio, and more features. Moreover, it has also opened the beta update for non-Pixel devices.
Android 14 Beta 1 Comes With a Custom Lock Screen
One of the most awaited features in Pixel phones, custom clocks and the ability to customise the lock screen clock, is now added to Android 14 Beta 1. You can set the colours and size of the clock on the lock screen.
Android 14 Beta 1 Adds Support For Single-App Screen Recording
Screen recording on Android will get a revamp with the ability to record only a single app rather than recording the entire screen on your Android device.
Google Rolls out first Android 14 Beta Update (April 19, 2023)
Google has confirmed that it has rolled out the first Beta for the Android 14 operating system. The latest beta update is for early adopters enrolling in the Android beta programme. The latest beta update brings new features, including a smarter system UI, a new back arrow, better sharing capabilities, better graphics, per-app language preferences, and more.
