So finally it’s decided – Android 8.0 will be called nothing else but “Oreo”. As you may know already, this version of OS is packed with many great features, which collectively make it an upgrade that no one should miss. We already knew about many of its features, thanks to its unveil at I/O, but since now its name and everything else has been finalized, let’s take a final look once again on its top features and availability information. Let’s begin:
Top Features
Some of the top features included in this Android version are given below:
- Best performance yet: Oreo will unleash the best performance potential of Android till date. Not only it will significantly reduce the boot time but also optimize performance for apps running in the background. As a result, your overall Android experience will be much smoother than ever before.
- Better notification management: The notifications are also about to get a lot smarter with Oreo. You’ll be able to snooze them so they can pop up at a later time, and you’ll also be able to check out missed notifications by tapping the notification dots appearing in an app. No need to swipe through the drop down menu to check out missed notifications
- Better emojis: Oreo has got the support for Emoji 5, which means that in this version emojis will look much like they look in iOS. Plus, there are also a whole lot of new emojis included in the OS now.
- Bluetooth 5.0 support: The adoption of this latest Bluetooth standard may be lagging behind, but Google has done its job by including the native support for it in the OS. Android 8.0 Oreo will come with native Bluetooth 5.0 support, so very soon we may expect smartphones to come with this latest and greatest standard Bluetooth technology.
- Fingerprint gestures: Fingerprint sensors were made into smartphones for authentication, but it turns out that smartphone makers have used them to do much more than that. Many devices allow their users to control various aspects of UI by swiping across/tapping the fingerprint sensors of their device in a certain manner. These things are likely to increase even more now, as Android 8.0 Oreo has got the support for fingerprint gestures as well. So now developers will also be able to use this feature in their apps.
- Autofill inside apps: Until now autofill on Android was limited to websites only. Now, autofill will work inside other apps as well, thanks to Autofill Framework included in Oreo. This should make filling forms included inside apps much easier.
- Smart Wi-Fi: To save the battery of their devices many users turn Wi-Fi on and off depending on when they want to use it. Fortunately, you may not have to do that exercise anymore as Oreo has got smart wi-fi. You’ll be able to set your wi-fi to turn ‘on’ or ‘off ‘depending on your location. For instance, if you want your phone to turn wifi on when you’re in office and off when you’re not at the office, you can set that thing and then forget it. The wi-fi will be enabled and disabled by your smartphone automatically depending on whether you’re in the office or not.
- Google Play Protect: After several instances of malicious apps being discovered inside the Play Store, Google has decided to take the security of Play Store to next level with this feature included in Android 8.0 Oreo. The feature will run a security check on every app before it’s installed on your device(s), and also help you in detecting and removing potentially harmful apps from your device(s).
Availability
As always, Android 8.0 Oreo will also be rolled out to devices in a phased manner and availability for your device may take some time. Big G said following things regarding the rollout in its blog post announcing the rollout of this OS version:
“We’re pushing the sources to Android Open Source Project (AOSP) for everyone to access today. Pixel and Nexus 5X/6P builds have entered carrier testing, and we expect to start rolling out in phases soon, alongside Pixel C and Nexus Player. We’ve also been working closely with our partners, and by the end of this year, hardware makers including Essential, General Mobile, HMD Global Home of Nokia Phones, Huawei, HTC, Kyocera, LG, Motorola, Samsung, Sharp and Sony are scheduled to launch or upgrade devices to Android 8.0 Oreo. Any devices enrolled in the Android Beta Program will also receive this final version.”
The very first users who’ll get it are the beta users of OS. Then there’ll be Pixel and Nexus device owners, and then only it will come to 3rd party smartphone makers. So as of now, there’s some time until you receive this major Android update.
Conclusion
Android 8.0 is company’s best release till date. Hopefully, it’ll make Android more secure, robust and powerful than ever. Keep an eye on updates to get it as soon as it’s available for your device!