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Google Launches Android Studio 3.0 and Android Oreo 8.1 With Improvements

October 30, 2017
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Google Launches Android Studio 3.0 and Android Oreo 8.1 With Improvements
Google has released Android Studio 3.0 and a developer preview of Android Oreo 8.1. This version of Android Studio is the stable release. Announced at Google I/0 2017, the Android Studio 3.0 provides support for the creation of new Kotlin files. Moreover, it is possible to convert Java to a new language.

The Android Studio 3.0 provides support for Gradle 3.0.0, which ships with enhanced build engine for large projects with several modules. Moreover, it provides support for method references, type/repeating annotations, interface methods including lambda expressions.

The Android Profiler has been replaced with Android Monitor and is mainly used to measure processor, memory including real-time network usage. The method tracing mechanism based on samples was capable of capturing heap dumps to monitor memory allocations. It is also used to manage network transmitted files.

The Device File Explorer helps you to view files stored on the device including transferring them to your PC. Furthermore, the Android Instant Apps are available via two modules coupled with support for adaptive icons and enhanced Layout editor.

Meanwhile, Google also released a developer preview version of the Android 8.1 with new features, improvements and bug fixes. The preview version provides support for Neural Networks API ( NNAPI) to activate hardware acceleration for machine learning code. Going forward, we can expect new Android smartphones with support for AI.

In Android 8.1 Oreo developer preview, the notification sound is limited to one per second. The additional alerts are not processed even if your app wants it. With FEATURE_RAM_NORMAL and FEATURE_RAM_LOW, it is possible to target devices with less memory. The new version also includes support for autofill, safe browsing, fingerprint including enhancements to text and wallpapers.

That said, the Android 8.1 Oreo preview is only available for select devices such as Nexus and Pixel. To work with the preview version, you need to register in the Android Beta program.