Google launches Android 14, rolling out today to Pixel
While there are a handful of meaningful Pixel additions and changes, Android 14 is not a particularly flashy launch with Google choosing...
So wallpapers, clock changes on lock screen, and updated credential manager which I assume is the latest push for Passkeys.
That qualifies a major version change? It kinda sucks that we've stagnated in mobile OS improvements. You just don't really see anything radically different or innovative anymore.
Feature wise most mobile OS's are pretty mature so it's only natural to see less "improvements" compared to the early days.
Use your favourite Lemmy client for example, the first month of development every release brought a bunch of new features and improvements but these days the releases are all pretty small.
That's fair. I've switched to thinking of it like a rolling release. This is the latest edition. It's like a maintenance release with the few treats baked in rather than the bare minimum security patches.
Also cloned apps which is big for me
I think that didn't make into Android 14
See am I crazy or didn't google say this was a thing coming ages ago?
Also disabling apps. Am I also crazy or did that come and go and only ever work on certain ones? I really do sometimes find it useful to disable apps instead of uninstalling them. When you uninstall you need to configure them all over again when you do the reinstall.
Because when someone tries to be radical and innovative everyone screams "GIMMICK! JUST GIVE ME AN UPDATE THAT ADDS BASIC FEATURES!"
What would be considered radical according to you, then?
Not that I disagree with you, though..
There are so many things Google could do.
We? No, there's a tonne of innovation still to be had, but when the goal is profits, it's easier to play it safe and protect those margins.
What happened to the webcam-over-USB feature that was promised? Just updated to 14 and went into charge-settings but no webcam option. Tried two USB-cables and both mac and Windows but no go. Was this confirmed to be scrapped? Was my most hyped feature 😭
It's listed on their official update video so it does exist. But it says "on compatible devices and countries" so might only be on the newest phones so far?
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I'm on Pixel 6a so not ancient... Seems like it will release in another update before year end so here's hoping 🙏
It's in the next QPR update.
Thx, then I'll just have to wait a bit longer.
I think it's in the current QPR beta. You need to register for the beta program, which will give you access to the new features they're testing for the December feature drop.
Thx, I'll just wait it out then. At least it's not scrapped.
I hope it has the ability to remove the Google search bar from the home screen
EDIT: got the update, still can't get rid of the search bar on the default launcher :(
You could always use a different launcher to do this. I like Nova Launcher, but there are lots of good options.
Custom launchers are a huge no to me if they don't support Quickswitch... thanks again to Google/Android for breaking the animations....
I hope that A14 fixes this.
In loving Kvaesitso. It integrates really well with Nextcloud and Google Drive. And has a ton of other cool features.
My current goto for an alternate launcher is Ruthless Launcher
lawnchair works best for me atm but it's really out of date and hasn't been updated in ages 😭
Search and ads are their bread and butter, Android is there to get you personalized ads. They're not going to give them up as defaults.
They even mess up split screen when you choose a different launcher. that's just a dark pattern to make you use google more
It doesn't. I would really like that too...
yeah I just finished updating and found out 😩
Didn't expect a lot out of A14 tbh. I think that Operating Systems have matured to become mostly an intermediary between the user and apps as opposed to the conductor. As long as they stay out of the way, most users will be content.
Personally tho, I wouldn't be surprised if 15 is a huge release. Right now, the next frontier seems to obviously be transitioning phones towards AI personal assistants and w/ full integration. Microsoft is already leading the charge from the desktop OS front, but phones imo will be the most familiar integration opportunity.
Huh, the update is going out to 4a 5G but not the 4G version... Is my phone already depreciated?
Yup. Came out a few months before the 4a 5G:
https://endoflife.date/pixel