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First Preview of Android N: Developer APIs and Tools

android-developers.blogspot.com

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Re: First Preview of Android N: Developer APIs and Tools

#3

Post by ubertaco »

Woah:

>Improved Java 8 language support - We’re excited to bring Java 8 language features to Android. With Android's Jack compiler, you can now use many popular Java 8 language features, including lambdas and more, on Android versions as far back as Gingerbread. The new features help reduce boilerplate code. For example, lambdas can replace anonymous inner classes when providing event listeners. Some Java 8 language features --like default and static methods, streams, and functional interfaces -- are also now available on N and above. With Jack, we’re looking forward to tracking the Java language more closely while maintaining backward compatibility.

Re: First Preview of Android N: Developer APIs and Tools

#6

Post by pjmlp »

Besides finally saying something about Java support, I found other items interesting.

ART will recompile applications based on profiling data.

Introduction of support to hardware keystores, with the mention that one use case is to prevent jailbreaking.

Prevent the NDK users that ignored the documentation and linked to non official platform libraries to keep doing that.

Re: First Preview of Android N: Developer APIs and Tools

#7

Post by Wonnk13 »

the $150 discount on Pixel C is really telling. It's clear that revenue is higher for tablet optimized apps and games and Android really needs to step up to compete with Apple.

I'm just a hobby developer, but the last four-ish months have been really exciting. There's a been ton released and polished in the developer console alone.

Re: First Preview of Android N: Developer APIs and Tools

#8

Post by blinkingled »

pjmlp wrote: post #6

Besides finally saying something about Java support, I found other items interesting. ART will recompile applications based on profiling data. Introduction of support to hardware keystores, with the mention that one use case is to prevent jailbreaking. Prevent the NDK users that ignored the documentation and linked to non official platform libraries to keep doing that.

> ART will recompile applications based on profiling data.

They went back to having a JIT in addition to AOT - which means there is no AOT when the app is installed. When the device is idle/charging then AOT will selectively precompile the used portions of the app and optimize it further using the profiling data. So faster app installs (boon for FDE devices with slow NAND write speeds) and no optimizing apps step after system update.

Re: First Preview of Android N: Developer APIs and Tools

#9

Post by sliverstorm »

creshal wrote: post #2

I guess I'll take a look at the APIs in 5 years, when it has enough market share to be worth considering.

Ice Cream Sandwich, which is 5 years old, has about vanished.

Jelly Bean still has 30% market share, but are owners of 4 year old phones a significant portion of app revenue? I'd wager the people spending money have at least KitKat.

Lollipop, at a year and half old, has another 30%

Re: First Preview of Android N: Developer APIs and Tools

#10

Post by creshal »

sliverstorm wrote: post #9
creshal wrote: post #2

I guess I'll take a look at the APIs in 5 years, when it has enough market share to be worth considering.

Ice Cream Sandwich, which is 5 years old, has about vanished. Jelly Bean still has 30% market share, but are owners of 4 year old phones a significant portion of app revenue? I'd wager the people spending money have at least KitKat. Lollipop, at a year and half old, has another 30%

KitKat is three years old at this point. And I still see new phones and tablets with 4.1 or 4.2 on sale.

Digital Signage platforms especially (the part of the Android market I actually care about) seem to be largely stuck on 4.1.

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