The first developer preview build of Android 11 was released on February 19, 2020, as a factory image for supported Google Pixel smartphones. It was intended for three monthly developer preview builds to be released before the first beta release, initially due in May, with a total of three monthly beta releases before the actual release. The release of the public beta was originally scheduled to take place on June 3 at Google I/O, which was ultimately cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so an online release event was planned instead. A state of "platform stability" is planned for July 2020, and the final release is expected to occur in the third quarter of 2020. Developer Preview 2 was then released on March 18, followed by Developer Preview 3 on April 23. On May 6, Google released an unexpected Developer Preview 4, as they pushed the whole roadmap for Android 11 forward a month, setting the date for the first beta for June 3. In the wake of nationwide civil unrest spurred by the death of George Floyd, Google announced that the release of the first Android 11 beta would be postponed. Beta 1 was released on June 10, 2020, with Beta 2 following up on July 8. Then on July 22, Google released a Beta 2.5, addressing several issues.
Features
Android 11 will have almost 100 new features. New platform features in Android 11 include enhancements to support foldable smartphones, identification of standalone 5G NR networks, Project Mainline, and High Efficiency Image File Format. Support for STIR/SHAKEN call authentication will also be included. Google also stated plans for a "dedicated conversation section in the notification shade", the ability to only grant certain permissions to apps on a case-by-case basis, and to introduce stronger enforcement of the "scoped storage" system. If automatically rebooting after a system update, apps can automatically resume and regain access to credential-encrypted storage without authentication. Android 11 comes with a new "recent apps" UI and the ability to undo an inadvertent closing of a recent app, as well as the ability to tweak gesture sensitivity. Ethernet tethering is supported when the device is connected to a USB-to-Ethernet adapter.
Android Trash Can
Android Trash is a new feature that allows apps to delete files and restore them up to 30 days later.
Android Seamless Updates
Devices launching with Android 11 will be required to support seamless updates with A/B partitions. This feature had previously been optional beginning in Android Nougat. This means system updates can be downloaded and installed in the background while the device is being used, increasing update speed and reducing downtime. This also allows a copy of the OS image to remain untouched on one of the partitions, just in case something goes wrong during the update process, your phone can revert back to the previous state.
Android 11 will have improvements in the interaction with Google Assistant. The new Assistant will improve the interaction between apps and System settings and the Google Assistant.
Bubble Notifications
Bubbles are built into the Notification system. They float on top of other app content and follow the user wherever they go. Bubbles can be expanded to reveal app functionality and information, and can be collapsed when not being used. When the device is locked or the always-on-display is active, bubbles appear just as a notification normally would. Bubbles is similar to Facebook Messenger Chat Heads, but is system-wide. Apps will need to update to support the Bubbles API. Bubbles are an opt-out feature.
