Google Announces Android 12L: Remember Honeycomb? It was a version of Android OS optimized for tablet devices. But, in 2016, at Google I/O, Google announced that it wasn’t going to focus on the Android tablet market anymore. So it quietly submerged into the darkness that rooted in its failure with Apple’s dominance over the iPad market. Now, in 2021 and with the same smart thinking that made such a powerhouse as Honeycomb possible in the past, there is another “L upgrade” of Android 12 (aka Android 12L) and we can’t wait to see what great things this one brings! 🙂
Google said the Android 12L feature drop will hit sometime in early 2022, but they didn’t specify when exactly.
What is Android 12L?
Google announced on its official blog today that the company is going to be releasing a developer preview version of Android 12L. Although no release date has been announced for this version, Google claims that the development platform will be optimized for larger displays and smaller-sized tablets.
Google said that last year, there was a 20% increase in sales of tablets globally. In addition to that, it reported 2.5 times the sales growth in slim-and-light laptops as well as a 92% increase in the adoption of its Chrome operating system over the full year. These figures combined represent around 250 million devices around the globe.
Android 12L will be part of an upcoming feature release for Android 12. Google recently announced that the development for this version started after its predecessor, Android 11, suffered from a couple of glitches and bugs. To resolve these issues and prevent them from happening in future releases, Google has decided to optimize the UI and change it so the Quick Settings and Notifications would appear side by side – all within a 2-column layout.
Another big aim is to make it easier for those who own larger screen devices such as tablets and phablets to multitask by creating a new dock that will launch apps quickly, as well as a split-screen mode and new touch gestures that will come as standard. Not only that but there will be various new APIs and changes made under the hood to improve compatibility with specific functions in apps.
We know that Apple’s iOS was among the first mobile operating systems to be separated into two distinct versions – iOS, which runs on iPhones and other handheld devices, and iPadOS, which is used on Apple’s tablets. Now Google knows that there is more than one type of device out there that it has to keep in mind for Android if it wants to stay competitive (and it clearly does!).
Also, the idea of a new tablet running Android 12L is gaining a lot of momentum as well. There’s a rendition of how it could look available to the public right now. You can try Android 12L right now using the official emulator released by Google.
Conclusion
Google has announced the new Android 12L version of its operating system, which is designed specifically for foldable devices like the Galaxy Fold. The new operating system is called Android 12L. It is part of the Android One program, which is one of the most reliable and fastest updates for smartphones. It is a direct competitor to the iPadOS, which is the operating system for Apple’s foldable device.
