Android Developer Blog: Android 14 Beta 4

posted by David Burkevice president of engineering

Today we bring you Android 14 Beta 4, continuing our work on refinement and performance as we get closer to the general availability release of Android 14. Beta 4 is available for Pixel Tablet and Pixel Fold , in addition to the rest of the supported versions. Pixel family, so you can test your apps on devices spanning multiple form factors and see first-hand the work we’re doing to improve the experience of large-screen and foldable devices.

Beta 4 is our second Stable platform Android 14 release, which means that developer APIs and all app-related behaviors are final and you can review and integrate them into your apps, and you can publish apps to Google Play on devices running Android 14 at the official API level.

Now is a good time to complete compatibility testing and release any necessary updates to ensure a smooth app experience before the final release of Android 14 later this year.

If you’re developing an SDK, library, tool, or game engine, it’s even more important to release all necessary updates now to prevent your downstream app and game developers from being locked out of compatibility issues. Also, when you release a compatible update, be sure to notify your developers.

Each version of Android contains changes to the platform that improve privacy, security, and overall user experience. These changes may affect your applications. Testing your app involves installing your production app on a device running Android 14 Beta 4; you can use google play or other ways. Go through all the app’s streams and look for functional or UI issues. Review the behavioral changes to focus your testing.

Today’s beta 4 has everything you need to try Android 14 features, test your apps, and give us back. The easiest way to get started is to use the 64-bit Android emulator system images for the Pixel Tablet or Pixel Fold setups found in the latest preview of the Android Studio SDK Manager. You can also register any supported Pixel device here — including the new Pixel 7a, Pixel tabletand the Pixel folding – to get this beta and future Android 14 beta updates and live beta features.

Try new features and APIs. Report issues in our tracker on the feedback page.

Test the compatibility of your current application – find out if your app is affected by the default behavior changes in Android 14. Install your app on a device or emulator running Android 14 and test it thoroughly.

Test your app with opt-in changes – Android 14 features opt-in behavior changes that only affect your app when targeting the new platform. It is important to understand and assess these changes early on. To facilitate the test, you can enable and disable changes individually.

Update your app with the Android SDK upgrade wizard – Android Studio Hedgehog now filters and identifies specific Android 14 API changes that are relevant to your app, and walks you through the steps to upgrade your app. sdkTargetVersion with the Android SDK Upgrade Wizard.

We will be updating beta system images regularly throughout the Android 14 release cycle.

If you are already registered with Android 14 beta program and your device is supported, Beta 4 will be released to you as an Over The Air update without any further action.

For complete information on how to get the beta, visit the Android 14 Developer Site.