13 ms·

Android 12 is live in AOSP

168 points by skiman10 5y ago

schmorptron 5y ago
Material You is just gorgeous. I love the pastel color schemes it makes, and the shapes are very refreshing compared to what has been "in" for the last few years IMO
- Andrew_nenakhov 5y ago
  YMMV but my gmail and dialer just recently got much uglier with blueish tones. Feels like Material UI was great looking around android 5.0 and goes downhill ever since.
  - jeroenhd 5y ago
    IMO Material only became good around Android 7. When Android 5 was still around, the boilerplate components were all way too big and the information density was incredibly low compared to Holo. Apps were tweaked and around Android 7 did I find them to be actually usable again. Google Calendar had this issue the worst if I recall. There were these gaudy, colourful images everywhere with cards sliding around and big, friendly buttons all over the place. The design looked pretty great during a quick presentation, but in practice I found it very hard to use the "stream" view calendar properly when I could see two or three events at most without scrolling.
    - Andrew_nenakhov 5y ago
      Sure, they did have a shortage of components, but the existing components were simple, clear, attractive. No ugly oval floating buttons or chiseled navbars hugging the FAB. Currently, the notes app is a good example of such uglyfication: what was previously a simple attractive app now sports a horrendous navbar with ugly squarerounded plus button of unclear color. Phew.
- 0xdeadb00f 5y ago
  I think android you looks liem fisher-price ui. Like the kind of OS UI you'd see for small children.
tjoff 5y ago
For every new release of android there is only one thing I care about, how will this affect termux? So I did a google and looks promising ( https://www.reddit.com/r/termux/comments/nyayhq/comment/h1j9jmj/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3 https://www.reddit.com/r/termux/comments/nyayhq/comment/h1j9... ).
- NotPractical 5y ago
  Me too, haha. I like the new UI and privacy controls, but this is always the most important consideration. By the way, as far as I know, Termux (at least as we know it) is for sure eventually doomed, which is really sad. Here's a brief explanation for those uninitiated: * Android 10 introduced a restriction that apps targeting API version 29+ can no longer invoke exec() on files within the app's home directory, which breaks Termux [1]. * An app can target any API version. There is a hardcoded "min_supported_target_sdk" in the Android source code (23 as of Android 12) [2], but as of now targeting a lower version only produces a warning, and it will likely take quite a long time before it reaches 29 anyway [3]. The main problem is that the Play Store won't allow new app updates targeting <29. For now, the Play Store Termux build is very out of date and it's recommended to get Termux from F-Droid. But for some reason, the developer of Termux has decided that they want to make Termux API 29 compatible [4]. (Perhaps to ensure long-term compatibility if the "min_supported_target_sdk" ever increases past 28 AND starts to actually be enforced, or maybe just because they want to distribute Termux in the Play Store, even though most of its users would be perfectly comfortable getting it from F-Droid?) * Making Termux API 29 compatible will make it a lot less fun and a lot less practical to use. All executables will have to be distributed inside separate APK files which must be individually installed, since exec() can now only be called on files in the read-only /data/app directory [5]. Say goodbye to `apt install <name>`. * Google continues to further restrict the OS in ways that break certain functionality within Termux. * Termux still works mostly normally for now in Android 10 and 11 (and 12, it seems), but its developer is already at work on the weird APK packaging system. [1] https://github.com/termux/termux-packages/wiki/Termux-and-Android-10 https://github.com/termux/termux-packages/wiki/Termux-and-An... [2] https://android.googlesource.com/platform/prebuilts/fullsdk/platforms/android-31/+/refs/heads/master/build.prop#40 https://android.googlesource.com/platform/prebuilts/fullsdk/... [3] https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072#issuecomment-473965266 https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072#issuecommen... [4] https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072#issuecomment-755013204 https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072#issuecommen... [5] https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072#issuecomment-671910224 https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072#issuecommen... === EDIT === According to the README, the current plan is actually to continue targeting API 28 for now: > There is currently no work being done to solve android 10 issues and working updates will not be resumed on Google Play Store any time soon. We will continue targeting sdk 28 for now. They are looking for contributors to help make an API 29 compatible version though: > @termux is looking for Termux Application maintainers for implementing new features, fixing bugs and reviewing pull requests since the current one (@fornwall) is inactive. Issue https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072 https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072 needs extra attention. https://github.com/termux/termux-app/blob/master/README.md#google-play-store-deprecated https://github.com/termux/termux-app/blob/master/README.md#g...
rickdeckard 5y ago
I don't know how to feel about the introduction of splash screens for all apps. I imagine they were needed to disguise some initial rendering of the app, but as a user I really really don't want to see splash screens when opening an app on a mobile device...
- gerash 5y ago
  It used to be against UX guidelines in Android but if the app startup cannot be any faster I don't mind a splash screen. Basically anything that indicates the phone has not frozen up even if it ends up taking a quarter second longer. What I find truly jarring is when I tap on a UI element and it responds after 2 seconds. I'd take splash screen and slow animation over that anyday.
- jeroenhd 5y ago
  My theory is that this is because of Flutter apps that sometimes struggle to initialize quickly from a cold start. They had (have?) this issue on iOS and I've seen some of them have the problem on Android too, something to do with shaders if I recall correctly. I hate seeing splash screens. When I encounter them, I see that as a sign that the developers weren't capable enough or didn't care enough to make their app start up quickly. I'm fine with games showing splash screens as they unpack resources and load shaders, but a chat app or a calendar shouldn't have to show me a "look at me I'm loading" screen.
  - MonaroVXR 5y ago
    I hate this when in visiting "Outlook.com" and especially when I go from mail to calendar.
IceWreck 5y ago
Google keeps on stripping down AOSP more and more. Its so barebones that nothing is usable out of the box anymore. It doesn't even have a web browser these days. All the default apps, contacts, calendar, etc haven't been updated in 8+ years. Any new feature doesn't come to AOSP, it comes to Google Play Services.
- oehtXRwMkIs 5y ago
  Sounds good to me. The less default apps the better. At this point they probably don't go further since it might cause system issues.
- tarkin2 5y ago
  From an app developer's point of view, the stuff shipped with AOSP is a mess that changes from version to version and from carrier to carrier and is almost impossible to develop against completely; and that's all solved with updates from google play services and external libraries.
- neodymiumphish 5y ago
  It kind of makes sense, though. First, there are plenty of open source browsers available, why should Google maintain one when the vast majority are going to opt for Chrome anyway? Second, very few people want a contact or calendar app that exists solely on their phone. They want the synchronization they get from any alternative app, whether that's from Facebook, Google, Microsoft, or some other third party. If you're capable of installing AOSP on a daily driver, you likely already know enough about F-Droid or other open source projects to find and install a better alternative anyway. Lastly, I totally agree about your concern with GPS being the default for any new feature implementation. I think that allowing Google to push alternative OS builders out of the game or forcing them to implement a GPS alternative from scratch, which sucks.
  - anderskaseorg 5y ago
    Android WebView is embedded in zillions of apps, not just the standalone browser, so it would indeed suck if Google stopped maintaining it and forced apps to embed Chrome instead. Fortunately, that is not what happened—they just moved Android WebView from AOSP to the (arguably more open) Chromium repository.
smusamashah 5y ago
I don't like Android 12 because of bigger zoomed in 'everything'. I don't like Windows 11 for kind of similar reason, less items in context menu, less customizable taskbar, bigger zoomed in start menu. Don't know what the f* is going on with "Modern" UIs.
- 0xdeadb00f 5y ago
  What I usually do these days is change the display size/DPI. Settings > Display > Display Size set it to Small or Smaller.
smusamashah 5y ago
I don't like Android 12 because of bigger zoomed in 'everything'. I don't like Windows 11 for kind of similar reason, less items in context menu, less customizable taskbar, bigger zoomed in start menu. Don't know what the f is going on with "Modern" UIs.
- danudey 5y ago
  > Don't know what the f is going on with "Modern" UIs. I see this as a confluence of a few different things: 1. Monitors are getting higher and higher resolutions; a 4K display that's less than 27" is going to feel awfully tiny unless you start scaling things up. 2. Things have gotten more complicated over time, and the more complicated they get the more chances that something will mess up. At some point my gaming PC decided that it was going to take 30-90 seconds for the right-click context menu in Explorer to come up, and while it was waiting it would lock up Explorer. Simplification can be a good thing. 3. People designing software are getting older and have worse eyes, so larger, clearer, less noisy UIs are a godsend. Probably some other stuff.
  - mschuster91 5y ago
    > 3. People designing software are getting older and have worse eyes, so larger, clearer, less noisy UIs are a godsend. "Modern" UIs most often are anything but clear and less noisy. Part of what made the Windows 95 design so strong was that UI elements were separated by visible lines, you exactly knew what the touchbox of any element was, the behavior and look of UI elements, menus and icons were generally consistent across applications...
    - mminer237 5y ago
      I think that's the worst part of the new Firefox UI. Firefox got rid of the defined, rectangular tabs using a colored background with lines between them. Now it's white rounded rectangles floating in a light-gray background with no other visible distinction. Even with perfect eyes, it was hard to tell what was going on without taking a moment to really focus on it.
handrous 5y ago
It took me way too long to realize the other-device-battery-indicators weren't four days from four different calendars (which, before I realized what they really were, I figured you could tap to go see the full calendar)
Andrew_nenakhov 5y ago
Previously, I used to be excited about new OS versions coming out. Nowadays, I'm only looking for what did they break or block this time, and how much problems would it cause.
- myko 5y ago
  Same. I was thinking about this when I first saw this announcement and realized that if AOSP was developed in the open it probably wouldn't change anything. Releasing big updates of the open source code like this feels pointless.
  - Andrew_nenakhov 5y ago
    AOSP is practically dead, all important parts replaced by proprietary Play Services. I think it is only a matter of time before google replaces Android and Linux with Fuchsia.
    - kllrnohj 5y ago
      This isn't remotely true. Nearly all the advertised Android 12 features are in AOSP, not Play Services. People vastly overestimate how much stuff is in Play Services.
  - yjftsjthsd-h 5y ago
    > Releasing big updates of the open source code like this feels pointless. Custom ROMs still benefit
- Frenchgeek 5y ago
  It's not like you can easily update the OS in a smartphone, to begin with...
  - fsflover 5y ago
    Unless it's made with a user in mind, like Librem 5 or Pinephone.
marcelnita 5y ago
Sadly, the update to Pixel phones comes in the next few weeks they say. https://9to5google.com/2021/10/04/android-12-aosp/ https://9to5google.com/2021/10/04/android-12-aosp/
- rcMgD2BwE72F 5y ago
  Are you sad that you can review the source code before the OS gets installed on your device?
  - sodality2 5y ago
    Can't verify the compiled source is what gets delivered to your Pixel device, though.
    - encryptluks2 5y ago
      Still better than what Apple offers.
    - NotPractical 5y ago
      It's important to note that, while it is true that you can't verify no changes have been made to the AOSP sources on the stock Pixel ROM, it's irrelevant because the Pixel ROM doesn't even claim to be AOSP -- it's a Google-flavored version of AOSP with the following "bonus features": * Google cloud-synced replacements for the more barebones (but at least local) stock AOSP apps (which can be disabled, but not fully uninstalled): Google Calendar (instead of AOSP Calendar), Google Photos (AOSP Gallery), Gmail (AOSP Email), Google Keyboard (Android Keyboard), etc * A few Pixel-exclusive Google apps not (yet) available on other Android phones: Pixel Launcher, Audio Recorder, etc * The standard suite of Google system apps present even on most non-Pixel phones, like Play Store and Play Services, with special higher privileges that aren't available to other apps and can't be revoked * The only option for system backup is to use Google Drive It infuriates me that almost none of the stock apps (aside from Google Photos and maybe Gmail) allow you to use them without a Google account, by the way. On a Google Pixel, the stock note-taking app is Google Keep Notes, so you can't do something as simple as write a note locally, without sending it to Google servers, unless you install a third-party note-taking app. What the fuck.
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
ruined 5y ago
Windows 11 macOS 11 Debian 11 Android 11 this is the only reason android 12 was released
- yathern 5y ago
  I'm pretty sure a new version of Android comes out every year. If Windows 11 wasn't announced, do you think they'd hold off for a while? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_version_history#Overview https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_version_history#Over...
- yjftsjthsd-h 5y ago
  iOS 15 Ubuntu 21.04 Opensuse 15.3 FreeBSD 13 Be careful you don't cherry pick your data points
  - ruined 5y ago
    iphone 11. checkmate
    - yjftsjthsd-h 5y ago
      ... Pixel 6? We are discussing OSs, not hardware.
    - oblio 5y ago
      2021. 21: 2 times 0 is 0, so nothing. 21: double 1, so 11. Jigo.
- rustyminnow 5y ago
  Android 8.0 Oreo Android 9 Pie Android 10 Android 11 ... Are probably the reasons android 12 was released
- NullPrefix 5y ago
  This could all be an elaborate set up for android 13.
nemacol 5y ago
This is only tangentially related but... Anyone else cringe / feel and overwhelming desire to turn off any video like the first one in this article (#AndroidDevSummit: tune in October 27-28!) where someone speaks in that excessively excited and optimistic voice? It is as cliché and gag inducing to me as the infomercial voiceover guy explaining how something simple thing is a disaster and how they have now solved it. I can't turn that shit off fast enough. Also, I really like Keri Byron from Myth busters, etc. This is not a complaint about a personality or whatever. Just this delivery that seems to be everywhere in tech sales pitches and time shares.
- silviot 5y ago
  I also find that style annoying, to the point that I wonder why it's even in use. I always thought it was an American thing, given it's barely present in my country, and when it's used it sounds ridiculous to most people.
- PKop 5y ago
  Agree and feel the same way with presentations like this. Also, I dislike how so many tech presentations have such a childish tone or silliness to them all the time, instead of just presenting information to adults as adults in a normal way. It's very distracting in my opinion.
- comeonseriously 5y ago
  I agree. I also like Kari so it's not her. I dig tech stuff, I just don't need a cheerleader.
- dyingkneepad 5y ago
  For years and years I watched Kari Byron dubbed in my native language. And the dubbers are mostly really good over there, great actors. Today I got to hear her real voice for the first time, and it was... weird. I feel some kind of immersion has been broken. There are quite a few shows I can't watch in English due to the real actors (or English dubbers) being worse than the dubbers of my countries. I'll add Kari to the list. Other than that, she's great! I'm a huge fan. Edit: it's Kari.
- deleted 5y ago
ehsankia 5y ago
Gonna predict some of the more controversial changes: - Removing GPay/DeviceControls from power menu - The new overscroll stretch animation - The new lockscreen clock (very hit and miss) - The new Material You widgets Any I missed?
- izacus 5y ago
  Web intent resolution change is probably going to create a lot of drama when someone actually notices it.
  - MonaroVXR 5y ago
    What do you mean by that?
    - iggldiggl 5y ago
      Something is mentioned here: https://commonsware.com/blog/2021/04/23/random-musings-android-12-developer-preview-3.html https://commonsware.com/blog/2021/04/23/random-musings-andro... – I think it was something stupid like ACTION_VIEW only offering your default browser plus any apps explicitly whitelisted by the respective domain owner, so any third-party apps are out and need to be manually launched. (Maybe you could set a helper app as your default browser to work around this, but if I really remember the above correctly, it's still rather grrrrr...)
poisonborz 5y ago
In addition to other regressions mentioned here, Android 12 also removes the ability to set a custom "share" screen (akin to Sharedr).
suyash 5y ago
Is there any decent Android (non Chinese) device that is free of Google privacy invading software ?
- johnasmith 5y ago
  You can buy a pixel device and flash it to AOSP here: https://flash.android.com/ https://flash.android.com/ Install a launcher of your choice and be on your way: https://www.tomsguide.com/uk/round-up/best-android-launchers https://www.tomsguide.com/uk/round-up/best-android-launchers
  - suyash 5y ago
    brilliant!
    - throwaway78981 5y ago
      There is GrapheneOS too: https://nitter.mailstation.de/DanielMicay https://nitter.mailstation.de/DanielMicay
  - Dracophoenix 5y ago
    Is there any notable difference between flashing a GSI vs flashing AOSP from source or is the latter just done to ensure a degree of control over what one puts on one's device?
    - johnasmith 5y ago
      No difference except you did it from source and spent the build time yourself.
- NotPractical 5y ago
  Ironically the best option if you want a secure, private phone is usually to buy a Google Pixel phone, then install GrapheneOS on it. Technically you can use plain old AOSP, but GrapheneOS is probably the better option because: * You can re-lock the bootloader after installing it for security (unlike AOSP which is not signed by Google). * It has additional security/privacy protections on top of AOSP, like the ability to disable the "Internet" permission for individual apps. * It supports Play Services in a secure sandbox to allow for much greater app compatibility (since most Android apps in the Play Store require Play Services). The only way to add support for these apps to AOSP is to install the "Google privacy invading software" you mentioned on top of it, and grant it special privileges over your phone (otherwise it will refuse to run). While the Play Services sandbox feature of GrapheneOS requires installing Play Services on your phone, it not granted any special permissions; it's treated just like any other app. GrapheneOS simply lies to Play Services, telling it that it has special permissions when it actually doesn't. Pretty clever solution! And if you're not comfortable even with this low risk version of Play Services, you can simply choose to stick to F-Droid, but it's nice to have the option if you need it. You can even install sandboxed Play Services in an isolated profile to keep it separate from your main apps if you want. https://grapheneos.org/usage#sandboxed-play-services https://grapheneos.org/usage#sandboxed-play-services Edit: AOSP also has no backup/restore options, while GrapheneOS has Seedvault. I also found a fun video that provides a glimpse at what raw AOSP really looks like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWaAilxX28g&t=306s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWaAilxX28g&t=306s It doesn't even have a setup wizard.
mdoms 5y ago
> Notification UI updates - We also refreshed notification designs to make them more modern and useful. Please.... please just for a couple of years can we stop doing this? Why does my notification UI have to change so frequently?
- handrous 5y ago
  When you have enough designers and "UX experts" on staff to create an entire OS + productivity suite's design every year, you're going to get an entire OS + productivity suite's design every year.
adamch 5y ago
Very happy about the speed and privacy improvements. I'm excited to install this.
kevincox 5y ago
> To help protect private app data, Android 12 changes the default behavior of the adb backup command. For apps that target Android 12 (API level 31) or higher, when a user runs the adb backup command, app data is excluded from any other system data that is exported from the device. It isn't "app data", it is my data! This is the straw that made me switch to LineageOS, my phone shouldn't prevent me from accessing my data!
- Someone1234 5y ago
  So now to "help protect private app data" they've gone from a terrible backup experience (running adb backup) to essentially no backup experience. Unless of course you want to pay Google money and even then arguably get a subpar backup experience. Keep in mind that you have to unlock the device AND authorize USB debugging just to get adb backup to run.
  - tkinom 5y ago
    Instead develop a system to auto upgrade users to latest release with security patches like iOS, G is focusing on the tweaking icon/layout with a new "(im)material design".
    - pjmlp 5y ago
      While promoting Kotlin using Android Java (pseudo Java 8/11 subset with OpenJDK cherry picked features) as example of "Java" code.
- shadilay 5y ago
  "You will own nothing and be happy." https://www.forbes.com/sites/worldeconomicforum/2016/11/10/shopping-i-cant-really-remember-what-that-is-or-how-differently-well-live-in-2030/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/worldeconomicforum/2016/11/10/s...
- White_Wolf 5y ago
  I was actually waiting for 12 rollout before installing TWRP on the 9Pro. Now I'm not so sure it's a good idea... I'm having trouble as is is making changes to system apps and Priv-App, don't need more headaches. Looks like you are right dude. Might as well start getting used to Lineage. I'll miss the oneplus camera apps though.
synergy20 5y ago
As an embedded linux developer, what Android brings is an unified UI(after all those x-windows variants plus Qt GUI). As long as the below list remains to be OSS, Android can be used in many non-realtime devices that need a GUI(with/without touchscreen): * the linux kernel * the ART(java jvm) which most GUI apps depending on * base code to support the multimedia stack(video/audio) * NDK(c/c++) There are many devices can use Android for applications that have no need for google play store apps at all.
axiomdata316 5y ago
Wasn't wireguard supposed to be released natively in this version? I didn't see anything in the release notes about this.

168 points by skiman10 5y ago

Material You is just gorgeous. I love the pastel color schemes it makes, and the shapes are very refreshing compared to what has been "in" for the last few years IMO

Andrew_nenakhov 5y ago
YMMV but my gmail and dialer just recently got much uglier with blueish tones. Feels like Material UI was great looking around android 5.0 and goes downhill ever since.
- jeroenhd 5y ago
  IMO Material only became good around Android 7. When Android 5 was still around, the boilerplate components were all way too big and the information density was incredibly low compared to Holo. Apps were tweaked and around Android 7 did I find them to be actually usable again. Google Calendar had this issue the worst if I recall. There were these gaudy, colourful images everywhere with cards sliding around and big, friendly buttons all over the place. The design looked pretty great during a quick presentation, but in practice I found it very hard to use the "stream" view calendar properly when I could see two or three events at most without scrolling.
  - Andrew_nenakhov 5y ago
    Sure, they did have a shortage of components, but the existing components were simple, clear, attractive. No ugly oval floating buttons or chiseled navbars hugging the FAB. Currently, the notes app is a good example of such uglyfication: what was previously a simple attractive app now sports a horrendous navbar with ugly squarerounded plus button of unclear color. Phew.
0xdeadb00f 5y ago
I think android you looks liem fisher-price ui. Like the kind of OS UI you'd see for small children.

tjoff 5y ago

For every new release of android there is only one thing I care about, how will this affect termux? So I did a google and looks promising ( https://www.reddit.com/r/termux/comments/nyayhq/comment/h1j9jmj/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3 https://www.reddit.com/r/termux/comments/nyayhq/comment/h1j9... ).

NotPractical 5y ago
Me too, haha. I like the new UI and privacy controls, but this is always the most important consideration. By the way, as far as I know, Termux (at least as we know it) is for sure eventually doomed, which is really sad. Here's a brief explanation for those uninitiated: * Android 10 introduced a restriction that apps targeting API version 29+ can no longer invoke exec() on files within the app's home directory, which breaks Termux [1]. * An app can target any API version. There is a hardcoded "min_supported_target_sdk" in the Android source code (23 as of Android 12) [2], but as of now targeting a lower version only produces a warning, and it will likely take quite a long time before it reaches 29 anyway [3]. The main problem is that the Play Store won't allow new app updates targeting <29. For now, the Play Store Termux build is very out of date and it's recommended to get Termux from F-Droid. But for some reason, the developer of Termux has decided that they want to make Termux API 29 compatible [4]. (Perhaps to ensure long-term compatibility if the "min_supported_target_sdk" ever increases past 28 AND starts to actually be enforced, or maybe just because they want to distribute Termux in the Play Store, even though most of its users would be perfectly comfortable getting it from F-Droid?) * Making Termux API 29 compatible will make it a lot less fun and a lot less practical to use. All executables will have to be distributed inside separate APK files which must be individually installed, since exec() can now only be called on files in the read-only /data/app directory [5]. Say goodbye to `apt install <name>`. * Google continues to further restrict the OS in ways that break certain functionality within Termux. * Termux still works mostly normally for now in Android 10 and 11 (and 12, it seems), but its developer is already at work on the weird APK packaging system. [1] https://github.com/termux/termux-packages/wiki/Termux-and-Android-10 https://github.com/termux/termux-packages/wiki/Termux-and-An... [2] https://android.googlesource.com/platform/prebuilts/fullsdk/platforms/android-31/+/refs/heads/master/build.prop#40 https://android.googlesource.com/platform/prebuilts/fullsdk/... [3] https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072#issuecomment-473965266 https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072#issuecommen... [4] https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072#issuecomment-755013204 https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072#issuecommen... [5] https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072#issuecomment-671910224 https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072#issuecommen... === EDIT === According to the README, the current plan is actually to continue targeting API 28 for now: > There is currently no work being done to solve android 10 issues and working updates will not be resumed on Google Play Store any time soon. We will continue targeting sdk 28 for now. They are looking for contributors to help make an API 29 compatible version though: > @termux is looking for Termux Application maintainers for implementing new features, fixing bugs and reviewing pull requests since the current one (@fornwall) is inactive. Issue https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072 https://github.com/termux/termux-app/issues/1072 needs extra attention. https://github.com/termux/termux-app/blob/master/README.md#google-play-store-deprecated https://github.com/termux/termux-app/blob/master/README.md#g...

rickdeckard 5y ago

I don't know how to feel about the introduction of splash screens for all apps. I imagine they were needed to disguise some initial rendering of the app, but as a user I really really don't want to see splash screens when opening an app on a mobile device...

gerash 5y ago
It used to be against UX guidelines in Android but if the app startup cannot be any faster I don't mind a splash screen. Basically anything that indicates the phone has not frozen up even if it ends up taking a quarter second longer. What I find truly jarring is when I tap on a UI element and it responds after 2 seconds. I'd take splash screen and slow animation over that anyday.
jeroenhd 5y ago
My theory is that this is because of Flutter apps that sometimes struggle to initialize quickly from a cold start. They had (have?) this issue on iOS and I've seen some of them have the problem on Android too, something to do with shaders if I recall correctly. I hate seeing splash screens. When I encounter them, I see that as a sign that the developers weren't capable enough or didn't care enough to make their app start up quickly. I'm fine with games showing splash screens as they unpack resources and load shaders, but a chat app or a calendar shouldn't have to show me a "look at me I'm loading" screen.
- MonaroVXR 5y ago
  I hate this when in visiting "Outlook.com" and especially when I go from mail to calendar.

IceWreck 5y ago

Google keeps on stripping down AOSP more and more. Its so barebones that nothing is usable out of the box anymore. It doesn't even have a web browser these days. All the default apps, contacts, calendar, etc haven't been updated in 8+ years. Any new feature doesn't come to AOSP, it comes to Google Play Services.

oehtXRwMkIs 5y ago
Sounds good to me. The less default apps the better. At this point they probably don't go further since it might cause system issues.
tarkin2 5y ago
From an app developer's point of view, the stuff shipped with AOSP is a mess that changes from version to version and from carrier to carrier and is almost impossible to develop against completely; and that's all solved with updates from google play services and external libraries.
neodymiumphish 5y ago
It kind of makes sense, though. First, there are plenty of open source browsers available, why should Google maintain one when the vast majority are going to opt for Chrome anyway? Second, very few people want a contact or calendar app that exists solely on their phone. They want the synchronization they get from any alternative app, whether that's from Facebook, Google, Microsoft, or some other third party. If you're capable of installing AOSP on a daily driver, you likely already know enough about F-Droid or other open source projects to find and install a better alternative anyway. Lastly, I totally agree about your concern with GPS being the default for any new feature implementation. I think that allowing Google to push alternative OS builders out of the game or forcing them to implement a GPS alternative from scratch, which sucks.
- anderskaseorg 5y ago
  Android WebView is embedded in zillions of apps, not just the standalone browser, so it would indeed suck if Google stopped maintaining it and forced apps to embed Chrome instead. Fortunately, that is not what happened—they just moved Android WebView from AOSP to the (arguably more open) Chromium repository.

smusamashah 5y ago

I don't like Android 12 because of bigger zoomed in 'everything'. I don't like Windows 11 for kind of similar reason, less items in context menu, less customizable taskbar, bigger zoomed in start menu. Don't know what the f* is going on with "Modern" UIs.

0xdeadb00f 5y ago
What I usually do these days is change the display size/DPI. Settings > Display > Display Size set it to Small or Smaller.

smusamashah 5y ago

danudey 5y ago
> Don't know what the f is going on with "Modern" UIs. I see this as a confluence of a few different things: 1. Monitors are getting higher and higher resolutions; a 4K display that's less than 27" is going to feel awfully tiny unless you start scaling things up. 2. Things have gotten more complicated over time, and the more complicated they get the more chances that something will mess up. At some point my gaming PC decided that it was going to take 30-90 seconds for the right-click context menu in Explorer to come up, and while it was waiting it would lock up Explorer. Simplification can be a good thing. 3. People designing software are getting older and have worse eyes, so larger, clearer, less noisy UIs are a godsend. Probably some other stuff.
- mschuster91 5y ago
  > 3. People designing software are getting older and have worse eyes, so larger, clearer, less noisy UIs are a godsend. "Modern" UIs most often are anything but clear and less noisy. Part of what made the Windows 95 design so strong was that UI elements were separated by visible lines, you exactly knew what the touchbox of any element was, the behavior and look of UI elements, menus and icons were generally consistent across applications...
  - mminer237 5y ago
    I think that's the worst part of the new Firefox UI. Firefox got rid of the defined, rectangular tabs using a colored background with lines between them. Now it's white rounded rectangles floating in a light-gray background with no other visible distinction. Even with perfect eyes, it was hard to tell what was going on without taking a moment to really focus on it.

handrous 5y ago

It took me way too long to realize the other-device-battery-indicators weren't four days from four different calendars (which, before I realized what they really were, I figured you could tap to go see the full calendar)

Andrew_nenakhov 5y ago

Previously, I used to be excited about new OS versions coming out. Nowadays, I'm only looking for what did they break or block this time, and how much problems would it cause.

myko 5y ago
Same. I was thinking about this when I first saw this announcement and realized that if AOSP was developed in the open it probably wouldn't change anything. Releasing big updates of the open source code like this feels pointless.
- Andrew_nenakhov 5y ago
  AOSP is practically dead, all important parts replaced by proprietary Play Services. I think it is only a matter of time before google replaces Android and Linux with Fuchsia.
  - kllrnohj 5y ago
    This isn't remotely true. Nearly all the advertised Android 12 features are in AOSP, not Play Services. People vastly overestimate how much stuff is in Play Services.
- yjftsjthsd-h 5y ago
  > Releasing big updates of the open source code like this feels pointless. Custom ROMs still benefit
Frenchgeek 5y ago
It's not like you can easily update the OS in a smartphone, to begin with...
- fsflover 5y ago
  Unless it's made with a user in mind, like Librem 5 or Pinephone.

marcelnita 5y ago

Sadly, the update to Pixel phones comes in the next few weeks they say. https://9to5google.com/2021/10/04/android-12-aosp/ https://9to5google.com/2021/10/04/android-12-aosp/

rcMgD2BwE72F 5y ago
Are you sad that you can review the source code before the OS gets installed on your device?
- sodality2 5y ago
  Can't verify the compiled source is what gets delivered to your Pixel device, though.
  - encryptluks2 5y ago
    Still better than what Apple offers.
  - NotPractical 5y ago
    It's important to note that, while it is true that you can't verify no changes have been made to the AOSP sources on the stock Pixel ROM, it's irrelevant because the Pixel ROM doesn't even claim to be AOSP -- it's a Google-flavored version of AOSP with the following "bonus features": * Google cloud-synced replacements for the more barebones (but at least local) stock AOSP apps (which can be disabled, but not fully uninstalled): Google Calendar (instead of AOSP Calendar), Google Photos (AOSP Gallery), Gmail (AOSP Email), Google Keyboard (Android Keyboard), etc * A few Pixel-exclusive Google apps not (yet) available on other Android phones: Pixel Launcher, Audio Recorder, etc * The standard suite of Google system apps present even on most non-Pixel phones, like Play Store and Play Services, with special higher privileges that aren't available to other apps and can't be revoked * The only option for system backup is to use Google Drive It infuriates me that almost none of the stock apps (aside from Google Photos and maybe Gmail) allow you to use them without a Google account, by the way. On a Google Pixel, the stock note-taking app is Google Keep Notes, so you can't do something as simple as write a note locally, without sending it to Google servers, unless you install a third-party note-taking app. What the fuck.

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ruined 5y ago

Windows 11 macOS 11 Debian 11 Android 11 this is the only reason android 12 was released

yathern 5y ago
I'm pretty sure a new version of Android comes out every year. If Windows 11 wasn't announced, do you think they'd hold off for a while? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_version_history#Overview https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_version_history#Over...
yjftsjthsd-h 5y ago
iOS 15 Ubuntu 21.04 Opensuse 15.3 FreeBSD 13 Be careful you don't cherry pick your data points
- ruined 5y ago
  iphone 11. checkmate
  - yjftsjthsd-h 5y ago
    ... Pixel 6? We are discussing OSs, not hardware.
  - oblio 5y ago
    2021. 21: 2 times 0 is 0, so nothing. 21: double 1, so 11. Jigo.
rustyminnow 5y ago
Android 8.0 Oreo Android 9 Pie Android 10 Android 11 ... Are probably the reasons android 12 was released
NullPrefix 5y ago
This could all be an elaborate set up for android 13.

nemacol 5y ago

This is only tangentially related but... Anyone else cringe / feel and overwhelming desire to turn off any video like the first one in this article (#AndroidDevSummit: tune in October 27-28!) where someone speaks in that excessively excited and optimistic voice? It is as cliché and gag inducing to me as the infomercial voiceover guy explaining how something simple thing is a disaster and how they have now solved it. I can't turn that shit off fast enough. Also, I really like Keri Byron from Myth busters, etc. This is not a complaint about a personality or whatever. Just this delivery that seems to be everywhere in tech sales pitches and time shares.

silviot 5y ago
I also find that style annoying, to the point that I wonder why it's even in use. I always thought it was an American thing, given it's barely present in my country, and when it's used it sounds ridiculous to most people.
PKop 5y ago
Agree and feel the same way with presentations like this. Also, I dislike how so many tech presentations have such a childish tone or silliness to them all the time, instead of just presenting information to adults as adults in a normal way. It's very distracting in my opinion.
comeonseriously 5y ago
I agree. I also like Kari so it's not her. I dig tech stuff, I just don't need a cheerleader.
dyingkneepad 5y ago
For years and years I watched Kari Byron dubbed in my native language. And the dubbers are mostly really good over there, great actors. Today I got to hear her real voice for the first time, and it was... weird. I feel some kind of immersion has been broken. There are quite a few shows I can't watch in English due to the real actors (or English dubbers) being worse than the dubbers of my countries. I'll add Kari to the list. Other than that, she's great! I'm a huge fan. Edit: it's Kari.
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ehsankia 5y ago

Gonna predict some of the more controversial changes: - Removing GPay/DeviceControls from power menu - The new overscroll stretch animation - The new lockscreen clock (very hit and miss) - The new Material You widgets Any I missed?

izacus 5y ago
Web intent resolution change is probably going to create a lot of drama when someone actually notices it.
- MonaroVXR 5y ago
  What do you mean by that?
  - iggldiggl 5y ago
    Something is mentioned here: https://commonsware.com/blog/2021/04/23/random-musings-android-12-developer-preview-3.html https://commonsware.com/blog/2021/04/23/random-musings-andro... – I think it was something stupid like ACTION_VIEW only offering your default browser plus any apps explicitly whitelisted by the respective domain owner, so any third-party apps are out and need to be manually launched. (Maybe you could set a helper app as your default browser to work around this, but if I really remember the above correctly, it's still rather grrrrr...)

poisonborz 5y ago

In addition to other regressions mentioned here, Android 12 also removes the ability to set a custom "share" screen (akin to Sharedr).

suyash 5y ago

Is there any decent Android (non Chinese) device that is free of Google privacy invading software ?

johnasmith 5y ago
You can buy a pixel device and flash it to AOSP here: https://flash.android.com/ https://flash.android.com/ Install a launcher of your choice and be on your way: https://www.tomsguide.com/uk/round-up/best-android-launchers https://www.tomsguide.com/uk/round-up/best-android-launchers
- suyash 5y ago
  brilliant!
  - throwaway78981 5y ago
    There is GrapheneOS too: https://nitter.mailstation.de/DanielMicay https://nitter.mailstation.de/DanielMicay
- Dracophoenix 5y ago
  Is there any notable difference between flashing a GSI vs flashing AOSP from source or is the latter just done to ensure a degree of control over what one puts on one's device?
  - johnasmith 5y ago
    No difference except you did it from source and spent the build time yourself.
NotPractical 5y ago
Ironically the best option if you want a secure, private phone is usually to buy a Google Pixel phone, then install GrapheneOS on it. Technically you can use plain old AOSP, but GrapheneOS is probably the better option because: * You can re-lock the bootloader after installing it for security (unlike AOSP which is not signed by Google). * It has additional security/privacy protections on top of AOSP, like the ability to disable the "Internet" permission for individual apps. * It supports Play Services in a secure sandbox to allow for much greater app compatibility (since most Android apps in the Play Store require Play Services). The only way to add support for these apps to AOSP is to install the "Google privacy invading software" you mentioned on top of it, and grant it special privileges over your phone (otherwise it will refuse to run). While the Play Services sandbox feature of GrapheneOS requires installing Play Services on your phone, it not granted any special permissions; it's treated just like any other app. GrapheneOS simply lies to Play Services, telling it that it has special permissions when it actually doesn't. Pretty clever solution! And if you're not comfortable even with this low risk version of Play Services, you can simply choose to stick to F-Droid, but it's nice to have the option if you need it. You can even install sandboxed Play Services in an isolated profile to keep it separate from your main apps if you want. https://grapheneos.org/usage#sandboxed-play-services https://grapheneos.org/usage#sandboxed-play-services Edit: AOSP also has no backup/restore options, while GrapheneOS has Seedvault. I also found a fun video that provides a glimpse at what raw AOSP really looks like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWaAilxX28g&t=306s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWaAilxX28g&t=306s It doesn't even have a setup wizard.

mdoms 5y ago

> Notification UI updates - We also refreshed notification designs to make them more modern and useful. Please.... please just for a couple of years can we stop doing this? Why does my notification UI have to change so frequently?

handrous 5y ago
When you have enough designers and "UX experts" on staff to create an entire OS + productivity suite's design every year, you're going to get an entire OS + productivity suite's design every year.

adamch 5y ago

Very happy about the speed and privacy improvements. I'm excited to install this.

kevincox 5y ago

> To help protect private app data, Android 12 changes the default behavior of the adb backup command. For apps that target Android 12 (API level 31) or higher, when a user runs the adb backup command, app data is excluded from any other system data that is exported from the device. It isn't "app data", it is my data! This is the straw that made me switch to LineageOS, my phone shouldn't prevent me from accessing my data!

Someone1234 5y ago
So now to "help protect private app data" they've gone from a terrible backup experience (running adb backup) to essentially no backup experience. Unless of course you want to pay Google money and even then arguably get a subpar backup experience. Keep in mind that you have to unlock the device AND authorize USB debugging just to get adb backup to run.
- tkinom 5y ago
  Instead develop a system to auto upgrade users to latest release with security patches like iOS, G is focusing on the tweaking icon/layout with a new "(im)material design".
  - pjmlp 5y ago
    While promoting Kotlin using Android Java (pseudo Java 8/11 subset with OpenJDK cherry picked features) as example of "Java" code.
shadilay 5y ago
"You will own nothing and be happy." https://www.forbes.com/sites/worldeconomicforum/2016/11/10/shopping-i-cant-really-remember-what-that-is-or-how-differently-well-live-in-2030/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/worldeconomicforum/2016/11/10/s...
White_Wolf 5y ago
I was actually waiting for 12 rollout before installing TWRP on the 9Pro. Now I'm not so sure it's a good idea... I'm having trouble as is is making changes to system apps and Priv-App, don't need more headaches. Looks like you are right dude. Might as well start getting used to Lineage. I'll miss the oneplus camera apps though.

synergy20 5y ago

As an embedded linux developer, what Android brings is an unified UI(after all those x-windows variants plus Qt GUI). As long as the below list remains to be OSS, Android can be used in many non-realtime devices that need a GUI(with/without touchscreen): * the linux kernel * the ART(java jvm) which most GUI apps depending on * base code to support the multimedia stack(video/audio) * NDK(c/c++) There are many devices can use Android for applications that have no need for google play store apps at all.

axiomdata316 5y ago

Wasn't wireguard supposed to be released natively in this version? I didn't see anything in the release notes about this.