Android 16: Features, official release date, and Developer Preview 2
en.bedadung.com -- Officially, Android 16 is scheduled for release sometime around the end of June in the second quarter of 2025. Not only that, but a second DP build will be accessible in December as part of the ongoing Developer Preview.
In accordance with Google's modified Android release timetable, we already know a good deal about the upcoming major version, even if Android 15 only began making its way to phones and tablets in late 2024. This is all the information you currently need about Android 16.
What we currently know about Android 16,
A codename that defies convention and a few more qualities
Though its communication has mostly been developer-focused thus far, Google has begun to share information on what to anticipate from the Android 16 release. Several new APIs are available for developers to test out in the Android 16 Developer Preview, which gives us a sneak peek at what our favorite apps will look like in the upcoming year.
Android's encrypted photo picker will be available for developers to incorporate into their apps, making it simpler and more private to enter images in various contexts. Additionally, there are new APIs that allow apps to read and write medical information in the Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) format. This should allow Android health apps to comprehend and generate health data in a consistent manner.
Although there isn't much official information available, we have already begun to gain a sense of how the update would appear to users, primarily because of Android expert Mishaal Rahman's reports.
The upcoming Android version might deviate from Google's long-standing naming scheme. Codenames for Android versions have historically been based on desserts and start with letters that consecutively move around the alphabet: 2.2 Froyo, 2.3 Gingerbread, Android 2.0 Eclair, and so on, all the way up to Android 15 Vanilla Ice Cream. That pattern suggests that the codename for Android 16 should begin with the letter W.
Apparently not. Rahman writes for Android Authority that Baklava will be the codename for Android 16. According to Rahman, the reset is connected to a shift in Android's development: version 16 is intended to implement a trunk-based development model for Android, which means that rather than receiving major code updates every few months, the operating system will receive smaller, more regular code updates.
We've already seen enough rumors about Android 16's features that it's clear that it will be a more important update than last year's Android 15.
According to Android Authority's Mishaal Rahman, Android 16 may bring a completely revamped quick settings panel. The redesigned panel has a fresh appearance, and Rahman was able to get it to function by experimenting with the contentious new features of the Android 15 QPR beta. Swiping down from the top of the screen brought up your notifications with the revised panel, which was tested in September. However, you had to use two fingers to swipe down to reach fast settings.
Depending on where you slide in from the top edge of the screen, a later version of the redesigned notifications and quick settings panels will either open notifications or quick settings without requiring the same two-finger gesture.
In Android 16, we might be able to create a floating "bubble" around any app. Although from Android 11, Android has provided a feature that creates a floating shortcut to a particular app, these so-called bubbles have only ever functioned with chat apps. Rahman claims that Android 16 may extend that capability to any program on your device, enabling short-term bubble-style shortcuts to utility apps, browsers, and other apps.
Do Not Disturb could get a boost in Android 16 thanks to Priority Modes. Rahman writes that these modes are user-configurable notification settings that let you define a name, icon, and conditions under which the modes will start. Each Priority Mode can allow different notifications from different apps and contacts; for example, a Priority mode for sleep could silence all notifications that don't come from defined contacts, while a work Priority Mode could turn off notifications from social media and games.
Rahman's found evidence of a new chip-style notification in Android 15 QPR1 Beta 3 that reminds us more than a little of Apple's Dynamic Island notifications. The chips will use a new Rich Ongoing Notifications API to display info about ongoing processes in your phone's status bar.
It looks like Android 16 could bring back custom app icon shapes. In Android 11, you could choose between a handful of shapes for your app icons, but it was later removed. Now, evidence has been shared on the Google News Telegram channel that custom icons are making a comeback, with screenshots showing circular, square, and various scalloped shapes as options.
Android 16 could ship with a notification bundling feature that works similarly to the way Gmail groups emails of similar types. It'll be off by default, but when enabled, it'll group notifications of particular kinds — promotions, news, social, et cetera — into silenced bundles "for a quieter experience." Mishaal Rahman found evidence of this feature in Android 15 QPR2 Beta 2, but couldn't get it working, signaling that the feature may be planned for release on Android 16.
Android 16 DP2 brings a heap more developer-focused changes
Android 16 DP2 landed on December 18. It includes a ton of developer-centric changes that themselves won't mean anything to average users, but will lead to changes in app behavior that will have an impact on the day-to-day Android experience. Here are a few of the biggest changes.
- As promised at Google I/O in May, Android's photo picker is finally getting search functionality — though it's not exclusive to Android 16. The functionality is "coming soon" to Android 16 and older versions. The change includes a new APIs that'll allow third-party cloud media services to implement search functionality when using the photo picker.
- New APIs will make it easier for app developers to implement predictive animations for back gestures.
- Android 16 DP2 introduces ways for apps to take advantage of Android's recent adaptive refresh rate support.
- Android's Health Connect service can now categorize activities by intensity, as defined by the World Health Organization.
For more of the nitty-gritty about developer changes in Android 16 Developer Preview, check out our guide linked below.
- When will Android 16 be released?
- Spring of 2025, with a beta to begin soon
- Android_16_DP2_release_schedule
While Android versions have long been released in either the late third or early fourth quarter of the year, Android 16 will be available sooner than that. Google's confirmed that a "major SDK release" — Android 16 — is coming in the second quarter of 2025, with a "minor SDK release" to follow in Q4. A November leak says that Android 16 will be pushed to AOSP and Pixel devices on the same day: June 3, 2025.
That all lines up with what we expected before, based on Mishaal Rahman's analysis of Android 15's Compatibility Definition Document — and roughly matches the timeline Google shared in late November (as seen above). Here's the expected timeline for Android 16's major milestones:
- November 2024 : Android 16 Developer Preview 1
- December 2024 : Android 16 Developer Preview 2
- January 2025 : Android 16 Beta 1
- February 2025 : Android 16 Beta 2
- March 2025 : Android 16 Beta 3
- April 2025 : Android 16 Beta 4
The Android 16 developer preview period has begun. We wouldn't recommend running a Developer Preview on your primary device, but if you've got a phone around for development (or just to play with), you can grab Android 16 Developer Preview 2 now. Google's timeline shows that we should expect beta releases to follow in January, and that the company is targeting platform stability sometime in the spring. If you're an average user just looking to try new features early, you might want to hold off until March or April.
While we're still in the early days, we'll be following leaks, rumors, and official news about the next big Android release until, and even after Android 16 makes its way to our phones; check back often for all the latest developments.***
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