Android 12L, a version of the Android operating system specifically designed for devices with large screen estate, was finally been rolled out by Google last week. News of this version of the operating system first came to light late last year with the promise of an early 2022 release, which has come to fruition, albeit on a few devices first.
Android 12L will first be seen in supported devices from Samsung, Lenovo, and Microsoft later this year, according to Google. Other device makers will likely offer the same upgrade to their tablets soon after the devices from the aforementioned manufacturers get their update.
Devices currently being targeted by the Android 12L update should have a 600sp display or larger. Therefore, both tablets and foldable phones will be eligible to receive the enhancements.
The enhancements in question include an updated user interface for big screens, multitasking enhancements, and tweaks to improve compatibility support so that apps would still offer a better experience despite not being optimized by the developer for big-screen devices.
Some of the tweaks included in the Android 12L update include the notification shade now taking advantage of the bigger space by showing Quick Settings and Notifications in a two-column layout. This is reminiscent of how Xiaomi handles notifications in MIUI 13 although in a slightly different way.
The two-column layout is also seen in the lock screen, where both the Notifications and the Clock are displayed. Built-in systems that come with the Android OS have also seen a revamp, with the most obvious change being seen in the Settings app.
The settings app now makes it possible to make changes without having to go in and out of each section. Furthermore, the pin and lock screen pattern has also been moved to the side of the display to make it easier for a user to reach them while one handling the tablet or foldable.
A taskbar has also been added to make it easier to quickly launch and switch between apps, as is the case in Windows and iPadOS. There is also the introduction of gesture navigation which, according to Google, “helps users do things like flip through recent apps, reveal or hide the taskbar, enter split-screen mode and swipe up to go home.”
To quickly get into the split-screen mode, users on Android 12L will now simply drag and drop apps using a new “Split” action in the overview to start apps running side by side. This makes watching a YouTube video while reading the news or looking up something in Chrome possible. It is not necessarily a new feature, but it has now been made easier to get it up and running for normal users.
Apart from revealing that devices from Samsung, Lenovo, and Microsoft will receive the update later this year, Google has not provided a clear roadmap for other manufacturers on when they will get access to Android 12L.
Apple has dominated the tablet space with their iPadOS for a long time, and it will be interesting to see whether Google specifically tailoring the Android OS for these large devices will have an impact on Apple’s share in this market.
If you are a developer and are interested in optimizing your app(s) for Android 12L or just playing around with it, head over to your Android Studio to get the images you need to run it and get tinkering. There are step by step instructions on Google’s Android developer portal you can refer to.
For ordinary users, betas for Pixel devices and tablets like the Lenovo P12 Pro are available and owners of the said devices who are into experimenting can download the necessary software and keep going – if you need directions, hit us up!
