Following months of developer previews and beta testing, Android 13 has arrived. Google has added the code for the latest version of its mobile operating system to the Android Open Source Project, and the company is rolling out Android 13 updates for supported Pixel phones. Factory images and OTA images are also available.
Among other things, the update brings many small user interface tweaks, additional controls over which apps can send notifications, support for setting default languages on a per-app basis, and the ability to stream messaging apps to a Chromebook.
While many of the changes are aimed at developers, allowing them to create apps that take advantage of new (or different) features, Mishaal Rahman has compiled a list of 60 user-facing features inlucded in Android 13. If you’re a more visual-oriented learner, 9to5Google also put together a 23 minute video showing off major new features, which you can see below.
A few highlights include:
- Updated media player and media controls user interface
- QR code scanner shortcut in Quick Settings
- Bigger gesture navigation bar at hte bottom of the screne
- Optional support for themed icons, which extends the dynamic theme engine by using colors from your wallpaper in homescreen app icons
- Copying something to your clipboard will bring up an overlay at the bottom of your screen to show what you copied (you can also tap to preview or edit) / Android 13 will also auto-clear content from your Clipboard after an hour
- Support for Bluetooth LE audio
- View 7 days worth of activity in the privacy dashboard, up from 24-hours in Android 12
- Flashlight brightness can be controlled thanks to a new API, but it’s up dot phone makers to implement it
- Photo Picker that lets you grant an app temporary read-only access to certain images on your device
- Better tablet support with features like drag and drop an app into split-screen view using the taskbar
You can find more details about Android 13 at android.com/android-13.
