Since new Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones were confirmed to come with Android 7.1 Nougat, we knew that is only a matter of time before Google releases the new update. The company has now announced that developers will be able to get their hands on Android 7.1 by the end of the month.
The new 7.1 version will arrive with several new improvements, along with a variety of optimizations and bug fixes. The complete official list of the improvements is located below. As for the consumer release, Google didn’t reveal much as expect that they are working with partners to bring Android 7.1 to devices in the coming months.
- App shortcuts API — lets you surface key actions directly in the launcher and take your users deep into your app instantly. You can create up to 5 shortcuts, either statically or dynamically.
- Circular app icons support — lets you provide great-looking rounded icon resources that match the look of Pixel and other launchers.
- Enhanced live wallpaper metadata — lets you provide metadata about your live wallpapers to any picker displaying the wallpapers as a preview. You can show existing metadata such as label, description, and author, as well as a new context URL and title to link to more information.
- Image keyboard support — expands the types of content that users can enter from their keyboards, letting them express themselves through custom stickers, animated gifs, and more. Apps can tell the keyboard what types of content they accept, and keyboards can deliver all of the images and other content that they offer to the user. For broad compatibility, this API will also be available in the support library.
- Storage manager Intent — lets an app take the user directly to a new Settings screen to clear unused files and free up storage space on the device.
