Android N Developer Preview 3 now available for Nexus 6P, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6; Nexus 5 speculated to get Android N soon
At the ongoing Google I/O 2016, the company has announced the release of Android N Developer Preview 3 for compatible Nexus devices. The third preview version is said to be comparatively stable than the last two Android N preview builds. However, since it is a beta version, it is likely to contain bugs
Google has usually launched new version of Android OS through its Google I/O event. However, the company has adopted a different strategy this year as it has unveiled the Android N OS at the ongoing Google I/O 2016 event after releasing two preview builds.
Google has released the Android N Developer Preview 3 factory images for Nexus 6P, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6, Nexus 9, Nexus Player, Pixel C tablet and General Mobile 4G Android One. Users are recommended to perform a backup of their device’s data before flashing the Android N beta edition.
The new preview build features a new update mechanism that automatically downloads and install the software update in the background when it is made available. This means that the Android N device will neither display any notifications for system software update nor ask for confirmation on installing it. Also, it won’t show the undesired “Android is upgrading” screen.
The Google Nexus 5 from 2013 is still not included in the list of eligible devices for the third Android developer preview build. However, speculations suggest that the developers are testing Android N OS for Nexus 5 as it was found tagged with Android N in Google Git’s repositories in the recent past.
Google has announced that final Android N version will be made available by late summer this year. It has rolled out three preview builds till now and it will be releasing two more builds before making the final version available.
Android N is packed with plenty of new features. Some of them include split-screen mode, improvements in the notifications areas allows users to respond to messages directly, 72 new emojis, Vulkan API for better graphics performance, and enhanced Doze battery saving mode.