Android 11: Features, How to download, Install and Compatible Phones

Android 11 has officially arrived with the launch of its first developer beta. It already shows many new features that can be tested on compatible mobile terminals.

Going back to previous years, Google has spent almost a decade putting names of candy to each version of Android released, with increasingly recondite denominations. However, this trend ended after the arrival of Android 10 last year for simplicity for the user, following the steps of Apple with its iOS system.

Android 11

Official Android 11 release date

If the usual deadlines are met, the “official” appearance before the public of Android will be in the Google I / O , which will be held from May 12 to 14, 2020 . But we will not see a final release, available to the general public, until the third quarter of 2020 . Until then, different trial versions for developers will be launched, starting with the first one in February of this year.

Now, this release will only reach the Google terminals (Pixel), to see Android 11 in other brands will still have to wait a couple of months and it will not be before December 2020 when the update for the most modern terminals will begin to arrive from Samsung, LG, Motorola, Sony, etc.

Android 11 for Huawei or Xiaomi

Out of this update are brands like Huawei, for its problems with the Trump administration, or Xiaomi. Both work with Android forks on AOSP , that is, they have the open source base of Android, on which both companies develop their EMUI and MIUI systems. In this way, when the AOSP version of Android 11 is available, the development of both forks is likely to begin. In the case of Huawei, without the GApps or Google services , which is present in the terminals that Xiaomi launches in the western market, at least, for now.

New features and functions of Android 11

The new version brings great news of great importance, which we will break down below:

5G network and connectivity

With the arrival of the new mobile network to the devices, the operating system wanted to adapt the APIs to have the best experience in terms of speed in the 5G network , which will dynamically reflect more data about the Internet connection we have in all time

In the same line is the Wi-Fi section, with the possibility of managing more advanced home or work connections, or even forcing disconnection to eliminate access to an unknown network.

A system more focused on people and contacts

On the other hand, we will have more customization options to control our calendar and calls. Among the novelties, things such as gesture control for call management will be integrated as standard, being able to do things like shake or flip the phone when a call comes in to hang it up, or classify if that number is spam or not with a movement.

Android 11 seems to be more focused on people as it will implement in the notification panel the possibility of grouping all the conversations we have with a person in different apps. For messaging, it also includes improvements in the chat such as the ability to answer messages in bubbles or insert images from the quick response.

Security, privacy and identification

Android 11 will have a greater focus in the field of security, with the imposition of restrictions on applications that ask for user permissions such as location or storage, being more thorough in the accesses we authorize them to have or not. In addition, there will be greater control in external storage access to the terminal. And finally, there is new support for the inclusion of identity documents or driving license, although it will depend on the legislation of each country.

This new version includes a new system of access to the data that the applications of the device handle, being able to identify and configure those permissions that they enjoy. Going deeper into the permission of the applications, these will no longer have constant access to user data, but we have the option of certain aspects such as location, microphone or camera, to which we can give permission only for that occasion , in addition to the options that there were already only when the app is running or never.

Options for customization in new screen formats

This new version incorporates a better implementation of the interface on screens that have a hole for the camera or other sensors , and for screens with rounded or “infinite” edges.

News for the camera

As for the camera, Android 11 brings several new features such as the integration of animated HEIFs (alternative to GIFs) , photography in RAW mode natively, and a new bokeh mode, although that will require hardware that supports that new functionality.

In addition, the new APIs will offer the possibility that when activating the camera we can mutate all notifications, something that is usually quite annoying when we try to take a snapshot and untimely messages do not stop coming.

Low latency

It is something in which there is going to be a lot of development, since with the launch of Stadia , the low video latency will be vital to avoid suffering lag or falling frames when we use this service, as in the HDMI connection of a mobile device to one TV. In any case, it can be configured to the taste of each developer with new APIs.

Neural Network API

In its version 1.3, it trains Android 11 to carry out more advanced tasks and processes simultaneously. This is not very important for the user, but the developers will be able to harness the power of this technology to make applications much smarter regardless of the hardware of the equipment, since they will use cloud computing for many tasks.

Improvements in biometric identification

This aspect is quite particular, and although it affects developers more, its implementations can be very deep. Now one of three levels can be assigned to each biometric identification : strong, weak and “credential device”, which becomes the one that would serve to certify our identity. This will allow, for example, that we can indicate if payments can only be made with the fingerprint, but the face is used to unlock the screen and not for that operation.

Partial updates and compatibility

With the launch of Project Mainline , Android 11 proposes that the updates do not have to be complete, it is something similar to what happens with Windows 10. The OS will become modular , which will allow parts of it to be updated independently no need to launch a full version every time.

Developer Betas: how many are there and how to download each

The process will take just Google to reach the final version of the system starts in February and will run throughout the year. After the Developer Preview 1 phase, two more editions will come to introduce test applications to the developers, so that they can send their feedback. In the following link you can download an image of Android 11 compatible with the devices indicated below.

From there we will go to the first official Beta version in May, coinciding with the presentation in the Google I / O, which will implement stability improvements in the system. Throughout the summer, Betas 2 and 3 will arrive, whose improvements in compatibility with the apps will be final before the official launch of Android 11 in Q3.

List of phones compatible with Android 11

At the moment, only Google’s own terminals are compatible with Developer Beta Preview. Specifically, they would be the following:

  • Google Pixel 2
  • Google Pixel 2XL
  • Google Pixel 3
  • Google Pixel 3 XL
  • Google Pixel 3a
  • Google Pixel 4
  • Google Pixel 4 XL

Google Camera 7.2

How to install Beta Preview versions

It is a method that Google has been using for several years, as part of the process prior to the dissemination of the new operating system. Users who are members of the group of developers, or have a Pixel terminal and dare to try the new version (not entirely recommended), can download it in a very simple way from the link we have put above. Once you have read the keys and the phases that Google will carry out for this development, you must proceed to the installation of the version .

There are two ways. The simplest is that the device hardware supports Android 11, since in that case you simply have to download the version of the device in question, and install it from storage . If it turns out not to be that first case, the installation will have to be done by activating an emulator , a task that Android Studio will handle .

When the terminal has Android 11 , it is necessary to take a tour of all applications to detect compatibility failures or system errors, and comment on channels or developer forums for Google to notify.