Android 12 Developer Preview 3 Released: Major Innovations and Screenshot Gallery

The next Android version is still focused exclusively on developers – at least until the first beta version is released next month. One way or another, the release of the next major build of Android 12 Developer Preview 3 has taken place, and there are many innovations in it.

Simultaneously, Android 12 DP3 is a minor update, mainly related to stability and performance. However, this release offers several tools for application developers to improve the user experience:

• Richer tactile feedback. Android 12 introduces support for more expressive effects, for example, at low frequencies: modern vibration motors have an expanded operating spectrum, allowing developers to create more informative tactile feedback for UI events;
• More flexible backups. Developers can now set different rules (including encryption requirements) for cloud backups and device-to-device transfers – for example; large files can be excluded from the first method but included in the second;
• A new style of notifications for incoming, outgoing, and background calls ensures uniformity and consistency of all applications for dialing numbers and video calls. They appear at the top of the notification bar, support several standard and custom actions, and can optionally contain avatars and allow custom styles of text and colored buttons.Other changes include allowing third-party applications to take full advantage of Quad / Nine Bayer’s camera sensors and improvements in video encoding. There are machine learning performance optimizations, and the ability to update AI accelerator drivers without updating the OS has been added – the same capability was previously implemented for graphics drivers.

  Google plans to release three more beta versions of the new mobile OS, after which – another build. Before the end of this year, Google provides the first lucky ones with the opportunity to install Android 12 on Pixel devices and other supported smartphones. 9to5Google reporters installed the latest Android 12 DP3 update and took visual screenshots of all the changes.

  From now on, the dark mode also applies to pop-up messages at the bottom of the screen (for example, about activating developer mode):

  In Android, links can be shared by browsers and by some applications, and the OS prompts you to choose which application to open them with. Android 12 will add the “checked links” feature – now the OS opens them directly in the applications for which they are intended, without the “open with” dialog box. The rest of the links open directly in the browser unless the user manually tied some of them to their applications. This will reduce the number of unnecessary dialog boxes:

  The OS now displays a counter of notifications associated with a group:

  Google has seriously redesigned widgets. There is a new menu, recommendations, as well as rounded corners for the widgets themselves. Perhaps the owners of Android smartphones will not start using them more often, but they will look more harmonious with other elements of the OS:

  The preview of the screenshots taken can now be swiped left or right:

  The switches in the quick settings menu have received an additional on or off status label:

  Decrease Brightness is now Extra Dim:

  On the home screen, you can now select a new grid for placing app shortcuts – 4 × 4:

  Now, when you start any application, a splash screen is displayed. By default, during launch, the animation scrolls with an enlarged icon in the center; however, developers will be free to make their own animation by changing the splash background, application icon, time, and so on:

  The battery and storage settings menu now displays a new, simpler, and clearer battery indicator:

  New rounded corners are used for the volume indicator and other key UI elements:

  Screenshot editing tool added font selection to text input tool:

  On the home screen and supported app shortcuts, a long press brings up an updated menu:

  The settings screen has also been redesigned with updated scroll and bounce animations: