Google has released the first beta build of its new mobile operating system, Android 14, for its Pixel phones. The Android 14 Beta 1 comes with several new features and improvements, including a smarter system UI with a more prominent back arrow inside the pill, which Google says will help users better understand and use the back gesture appropriately.
The Android 14 Beta 1 will also allow apps to add custom actions to the system share sheet, creating share sheet actions in the context of the app you open. Moreover, the Path API in Android 14 enables the creation and drawing of powerful vector graphics, with API updates that allow you to interpolate between paths with exact structural matches, enable morphing effects, and provide backward compatibility up to API21 with the AndroidX library.
Android 14 will also introduce per-app language settings and additional privacy changes to protect sensitive user information, such as passwords and prevent sensitive information from being executed. The latest version of Android will also include improvements in accessibility, battery life, and security.
The Android 14 Beta 1 is currently available for Google’s Pixel phones, including Pixel 4a 5G, Pixel 5, Pixel 5a, Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, Pixel 6a, Pixel 7, and 7 Pro, with April 2023 security patches. Interested users can join the beta program to test the new features and improvements.
