Android 13

Android 13
Version of the Android operating system
Screenshot
DeveloperGoogle
OS familyAndroid
General
availability		August 15, 2022; 20 months ago (2022-08-15)
Latest release13.0.0_r16 (TSV1.220628.059)[1] / April 1, 2024; 16 days ago (2024-04-01)
Kernel typeMonolithic (Linux)
Preceded byAndroid 12
Succeeded byAndroid 14
Official websiteandroid.com/android-13/
Support status
Supported

Android 13 is the thirteenth major release and the 20th version of Android, the mobile operating system developed by the Open Handset Alliance led by Google. It was released to the public and the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) on August 15, 2022.[2] The first devices to ship with Android 13 were the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro.

As of February 2024, 29% of Android devices run Android 13, making it the most widely-used version of Android.[3]

History

Android 13 logo for Developer preview and Beta release

Android 13 (internally codenamed Tiramisu)[4][5][6] was announced in an Android blog posted on February 10, 2022,[7] and the first Developer Preview was immediately released for the Google Pixel series (from Pixel 4 to Pixel 6, dropping support for the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3a). It was released 4 months or so after the stable version of Android 12. Developer Preview 2 followed later, releasing in March.[8] Beta 1 was released on April 26, 2022.[9] Google released beta 2 during Google I/O on May 11, 2022.[10] Two more beta versions were planned for release in June and July. Platform stability was reached in June, with Beta 3. The final release of Android 13 began on August 15 when the update was made available to Pixel phones and pushed to the Android Open Source Project.[11][12]

Features

Privacy

Android 13 includes several new features intended to enhance user privacy, both user-facing and developer-facing.[13][14]

A new media picker is added, which improves privacy by allowing users to choose which photos and videos apps have access to.[15] Most apps have not implemented this picker yet. In addition, Android 13 introduces a new permission, NEARBY_WIFI_DEVICES. Previously, Wi-Fi and GPS permissions were bundled into a single setting termed "Location". This change means that apps can now be allowed to search for nearby devices and networks without needing to request access to broader navigational systems.[16]

Also, a new runtime permission feature is being added to apps sending non-exempt notifications which allows users to focus on notifications most important to them.[17]

User experience

Apps are now required to request permission from the user before they are able to send notifications.[18]

Small changes to dialog windows such as the Internet toggle have been added, making them fit better with the design language. The media player has been redesigned, now using the album cover as a background, and including more user controls.[19] The multiple users feature has been improved, with the added option of selecting which apps can be accessed by the guest user. App data is sandboxed for each user, so no information is shared.

New features

The number of active apps is now shown at the bottom of the notifications panel; a tap on it opens a detailed panel which lets the user stop each of them.[20]

Support for Bluetooth LE Audio and the LC3 audio codec, which enables receiving and sharing audio between multiple bluetooth devices simultaneously; it can also improve the audio quality and battery life of the connected devices, as long as they also support it.[15][21][22][23] This version opens the support for third-party apps to use themed "Material You" icons.[15] Long-pressing and dragging a notification will allow the notification to open in split screen view. This feature is available on phones as well as tablets.[18] Android 13 also adds support for WiFi 7, which is intended to decrease latency, buffering, lag and congestion.[24][25]

As of Beta 2, the Pixel Launcher includes a new "unified" search bar, which is able to provide search results from the internet as well as local apps and activities. It seems that Google will be expanding the capabilities of this search tool in future releases.[26]

Android 13 allows users to change the language for a specific app, rather than doing so for the entire software. One instance of this feature is changing the language in the YouTube app from American English to Spanish.[27]

Tweaks

Split Screen mode now persists through app changes, meaning it is possible to use other apps and the phone launcher, and split screen apps will stay paired together in the Overview menu. Animations have been improved, notably the fingerprint scanner glow on the Pixel 6 series. Overflow notifications on the lock screen also are housed in a dynamically sized pill rather than a bar, and the 2-line stacked clock is slightly smaller.[18] The app label font has been changed in the Pixel Launcher, and subtle haptics have been added throughout the user experience. The Android version has been changed to "Tiramisu" in settings and the Quick Settings panel. As of Developer Preview 2, "Tiramisu" is replaced with "13". The unified search bar includes new smoother animations and transitions.

Many of the changes are from Android 12.1 "12L", such as the dock displayed on large screens, and other improvements for large format devices. These are mainly intended for foldables and tablets, but they can be enabled on phones by changing the DPI settings.

Platform

Android 13 ART was updated with a new garbage collector (GC) utilizing the Linux userfaultfd system call.[28][29][30] It reduces memory pressure, compiled code size, jank, and reduces the risk of killing apps because of low memory during GC.[30] Other changes improve app startup and improve performance.[30] Because of the Mainline project, Android 12 ART will also be updated.[28]

See also

References

  1. ^ "android-security-13.0.0_r16". Google Git.
  2. ^ "'Panlingual' feature for per-app language settings planned for Android 13". androidpolice.com. androidpolice.com. December 23, 2021. Archived from the original on January 25, 2022. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  3. ^ "Mobile & Tablet Android Version Market Share Worldwide". StatCounter Global Stats. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
  4. ^ Porter, Jon (February 11, 2022). "Yep, Android 13's dessert codename is 'Tiramisu' after all". The Verge. Archived from the original on May 10, 2022. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
  5. ^ "Google may have already revealed the dessert name for Android 13 "T"". xda-developers.com. July 27, 2021. Archived from the original on February 11, 2022. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  6. ^ "PLATFORM_VERSION_CODENAME is being updated from T to Tiramisu". android-review.googlesource.com/. Archived from the original on February 11, 2022. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  7. ^ Android Developers (February 10, 2022). "The first developer preview of Android 13". Archived from the original on April 5, 2022.
  8. ^ "Android 13 Developer Preview 2". Android Developers Blog. Archived from the original on November 1, 2022. Retrieved March 18, 2022.
  9. ^ "The first Android 13 beta is available now". Engadget. Archived from the original on February 27, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2022.
  10. ^ "Release notes". Android Developers. Archived from the original on November 8, 2022. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  11. ^ Porter, Jon (August 15, 2022). "Android 13 arrives for Pixel phones starting today". The Verge. Archived from the original on October 30, 2022. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  12. ^ Lamont, Jonathan (August 15, 2022). "Android 13 now available for Pixel phones, AOSP". MobileSyrup. Archived from the original on January 12, 2023. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  13. ^ "I/O 2022: Android 13 security and privacy (and more!)". Eugene Liderman and Sara N-Marandi, Android Security and Privacy Team. Archived from the original on July 11, 2022. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
  14. ^ Newman, Lily Hay. "Android 13 Tries to Make Privacy and Security a No-Brainer". Wired. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
  15. ^ a b c "Features and APIs Overview | Android 13 Developer Preview". Android Developers. Archived from the original on February 10, 2022. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
  16. ^ "New runtime permission for nearby Wi-Fi devices | Android 13 Developer Preview". Android Developers. Archived from the original on March 9, 2022. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
  17. ^ "Notification runtime permission". Android Developers. Archived from the original on June 10, 2022. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  18. ^ a b c Li, Abner (March 17, 2022). "Here's everything new in Android 13 Developer Preview 2 [Gallery]". 9to5Google. Archived from the original on March 17, 2022. Retrieved March 18, 2022.
  19. ^ "Android 13 DP2 Brings Redesigned Media Player & Output Picker". Android Headlines. March 18, 2022. Archived from the original on March 18, 2022. Retrieved March 18, 2022.
  20. ^ Amadeo, Ron (August 30, 2022). "Android 13 review: Plans for the future, but not much to offer today". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on August 30, 2022. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
  21. ^ "Android 13 may finally bring full support for Bluetooth LE Audio". xda-developers. December 22, 2021. Archived from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
  22. ^ "New LC3 Encoder (I5f2f7627)". AOSP Gerrit. Archived from the original on January 9, 2022. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
  23. ^ "Add new LC3 decoder (I275ea8ba)". AOSP Gerrit. Archived from the original on April 22, 2022. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
  24. ^ Palmer, Jordan (October 20, 2022). "Android 13 review". Tom's Guide. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
  25. ^ "What is WiFi 7? How Does WiFi 7 Work? | WiFi 7 Routers". TP-Link. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
  26. ^ "Android 13's new launcher search lets you pin recent queries to your home screen". Android Police. May 13, 2022. Archived from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  27. ^ "Per-app language preferences". Android Developers. Archived from the original on January 15, 2023. Retrieved January 15, 2023.
  28. ^ a b Gidra, Lokesh, What's new in app performance, archived from the original on August 16, 2022, retrieved August 16, 2022
  29. ^ Gidra, Lokesh; Boehm, Hans-J.; Fernandes, Joel (October 12, 2020). "Utilizing the Linux Userfaultfd System Call in a Compaction Phase of a Garbage Collection Process". Defensive Publications Series. Archived from the original on August 16, 2022. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
  30. ^ a b c "Android 13 is in AOSP!". Android Developers Blog. Archived from the original on August 15, 2022. Retrieved August 16, 2022.

External links

  • Android 13 – Official website for users
  • Android 13 on Android Developers – Official website for developer information
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