The second Android 12 Developer Preview brings more privacy controls and tweaks

By Christian de Looper Published March 17, 2021

Google has released the second Android 12 Developer Preview, bringing with it a number of tweaks and fixes, as well as a few new features that weren’t available in the first Developer Preview.

It’s important to note that the Developer Previews don’t usually highlight many consumer-facing new features. The new features and visual tweaks are usually reserved for the public betas, which will start rolling out in May, according to Google. Until then, Developer Previews give users a taste of the under-the-hood tweaks users should expect.

Recommended Videos

One of the notable new features is that Google is adding better privacy controls for notifications that are displayed on the lock screen. You’ll now be able to configure notifications to require authentication for certain actions — for example, you can configure messages to require authentication in order to be deleted. It’s currently unclear if users will be able to configure these controls, or if this will be up to developers.

Another major new feature is the addition of a new way to keep certain apps awake, running, and connected when they manage a connected device like a fitness tracker.

Other features are a little smaller — and focused mainly on developers. For example, there’s a new API for developers to build apps with rounded corners, which will come in handy given the slew of phones with rounded displays these days. Also, Google is improving the controls you’ll get in picture-in-picture mode, allowing users to do things like hide PiP windows a little offscreen when they need to see an app, and single-tap a window to show controls, or double-tap to toggle window size.

The Pixel launcher in Android 12 has gotten a few tweaks ,too, though more will likely show up later. As noted by XDA Developers Editor-in-Chief Mishaal Rahman, the Pixel launcher has gotten a new widget picker tool, and Dark Theme has received a few visual tweaks to be a little lighter than it was in Android 11.

The next Android 12 Developer Preview is set to be released in April, and will likely be the last Developer Preview before Google starts releasing betas. The final release of Android 12 should start rolling out to users in August or September.

Topics

Christian de Looper

Contributor

Christian de Looper is a long-time freelance writer who has covered every facet of the consumer tech and electric vehicle…

Mobile

When is my phone getting Android 13? Google, Samsung, OnePlus, and more

Android 13 has been available for Android phones since late 2022, and it's a pretty minor update from Google. Well, we say minor, but that's only in comparison to the positively gargantuan number of changes that were in Android 12 — and in light of Google's policy of trickling out improvements to Android apps over the course of a year as soon as they're ready. Android 13 is more of a tune-up to the engine that powers your phone than anything else. But it's still one worth getting excited for.

Tablet and foldable owners will see the most benefits, and there will be some updates to Material You to improve Android's customizability. There really isn't much else to say about Android 13. It's a very under-the-hood update, and that trend appears to be continuing with the upcoming Android 14 as well.

Mobile

The first Android 14 preview is here, and these are its 3 biggest changes

Google has released the first Developer Preview version of Android 14 for Pixel devices, ahead of officially revealing the operating system to the public later this year. Before you go rushing off to download and install the software, Google makes it very clear that this is for developers and app testing only, and isn’t suitable for everyday use.

If you decide to install it anyway, some features may not be operational, and you may encounter various bugs. Still, it's an important and exciting next step into this year's big Android update.

Mobile

Microsoft’s Surface Duo gets a Windows-style refresh with Android 12L

Surface Duo 2 on a textured background.

Microsoft is finally updating its Surface Duo -- ahem -- duo to Android 12 this week. The company broke the news on its official Microsoft Devices Blog after previously committing to rolling out an update sometime this year. Android 12 was made generally available by Google in October 2021, while Android 12L hit Pixels in March.

The star of the show here is Android 12's big visual refresh. Yup, Material You, dynamic color theming, and more are coming to the Surface Duo phones. The company as even throwing in four new wallpapers to highlight the refresh. However, Microsoft is going a step further by redesigning the Duo's software so that it'll look a lot like Windows 11. This is pretty obvious in that the system settings app and notification center now resemble Windows 11's versions of those features, and there are a lot of fluent design (Microsoft's design language) touches hidden in the company's preinstalled apps. In other words, the Surface Duo and Duo 2 pair are becoming true Windows phones. Of course, this illusion disappears when you dip into third-party apps, but if you're buying a Microsoft Duo, you're almost certainly a superfan.