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Android 11

Android 11 operating system is the eleventh big release of Android. It is the 18th version of Android mobile OS, which was released on 8 September 2020. The alphabetic naming system of Android, based on deserts, was stopped since Android 10. So, therefore, this operating system has branded with “Android 11”.

In this article, we will look at some of the most prominent features of Android 11.

Features of Android 11

There are numerous new features are added in Android 11, some of them are mentioned below:

• Conversations
• Accessibility
• Device controls
• Content capture
• Predictive tools
• Privacy & security
• Media
• Camera
• Messaging & sharing

Manage our conversation

While swiping down from the top of the screen in Android 10, we reach the device notification bar, but in Android 11, it split into two different parts. One part shows our notifications and another of our conversations. These conversations are chat notification from our chat apps such as Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Twitter. So, we can give more attention to them as compared to other notifications.

In this way, we will see all our notifications at the same spot and reply to them straight away. We can also pin our conversations with bubbles. We might be seen a floating icon appears above the apps when receiving a new message or notification. In Android 11, the pin conversations always appear on the top of other apps and screen.

Accessibility

Voice Access: Perceptive apps help us to control and navigate our phone using voice command. Even the voice command can be used offline for more support when required.

Lookout: The lookout feature is available in two new modes: food label and scan document. Launching Lookout also enables flashlight and helping users to read in low light. It is now available on all 2GB+ devices running on Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) or later.

Device controls

With Android 11, we can control all our connected devices (IOT) from a single point. We can control our air-conditioner to set temperature chill, dim lights, etc. from our phone. We can see and manage our other connected devices by pressing and holding the phone power button. It makes our home life more comfortable.

Content capture

• Built-in screen recording: Android 11 comes with a screen recording feature that captures our phone’s current screen activity. It eliminates the installation of any third-party app. We can record screens with mic sound, our device or both.
• Select and share become easier: We can easily select text or images from our one app and share them with others. On Pixel devices, we can easily save, copy, and share information between several apps.

Predictive tools

Android 11 reduces the manual work that we need to perform on our Android phone by predicting our habits and patterns, it suggests accordingly.

A smart reply feature is used in Android phones that received some changes. The smart reply feature mode suggests some auto-response sentences or keywords when we receive a message. It let us answer with a single click if any of the suggestions are relevant. However, it is not clear what is new here.

Privacy & security

• Google Play system updates: Android 11 gives more security and privacy fixes to our smartphone straight from Google Play. Due to this, our device is equipped with the most recent rescue.
• Soft restart: Our device receives system updates from Google Play when it idle, and the device does not require a full reboot.
• Resume on reboot: Our apps get running immediately when an update will install. So don?t miss any notification after the phone rebooted.
• Background location: Android 11 provides more control over location sharing apps which are not currently in use. So that apps don’t access device data more than they required.
• Scoped storage: Android restricts huge access to device shared storage for all apps running on Android 11, which protects our information in a better way.

Media

• Media controls: In Android 11, there are new media control features. It allows us to play music from other devices connected to our phones, such as Bluetooth speakers or other gadgets.
• Device controls: With Android 11, we can manage our connected IOT (Internet of Things) devices all from a single spot on our smartphone.
• Android Auto: The devices running on Android 11 can connect Android Auto wirelessly to a car. It eliminates the wire to make it functional.
• Context-aware Bluetooth airplane mode: If we use headphones connected with our phone through Bluetooth and turn on Airplane mode, our device will stay connected. We don’t need to reconnect them.

Camera

• Mute during camera capture: The developer implemented new APIs for apps that mute vibration from alarms, ringtones or notifications.
• Camera support in Emulator: The latest camera2 APIs support a fully functional camera in Emulator, making it easy for the developer to test their apps.
• 3P performance optimizations: The device camera works well even at photo-sharing platforms such as Snapchat.
• Bokeh modes: App developer now request for a bokeh picture using Android camera2 APIs.

Messaging & sharing

• Conversations: Now, users can see, respond and control all conversations across several messaging apps at the same spot. We can set the priority of conversations that will display on the device lock screen.
• Bubbles: We can also pin our conversations, which appear on the top of apps and device screens. It allows us to access chat anywhere or anytime.
• Smart reply: The replies are intelligently suggested on Pixel devices based on what should be said in conversation.
• Keyboard autofill: GBoard suggests and helps us to fill forms with information we mostly use, such as our home address or passwords.
• Overview actions: On the Pixel devices, we can easily save, copy and share our info among several apps.
• Nearby Share: Now, we can quickly and securely send videos, audios, files, map locations and much more to devices nearby at us. The sharing of data to nearby devices works on Android devices, Chromebooks or devices running on the Chrome browser.

Control app permissions

In Android 11, we can control our device resource accessibility. We can choose a different type of accessibility permission for apps. We can select whether they give download permission to apps for accessing sensitive data or not. So our device resources get better protected.

One-time permissions

We can even give one-time permissions to the apps that need to access our storage, network connection etc. When we run that app for the next time, the app must ask for permission again.

Permissions auto-reset

If we are not using our app for a time, we may want to stop accessing our data. In Android 11, we can reset the permission for our unused applications. We can also turn permission back to on.

Blocked permissions

If a user denies the app permission several times, the app goes blocked from requesting permission for the next time.

Android 11 Easter egg

Another feature of Android 11 is the Easter egg discovered by users as the beta version rolled out. The Easter egg of Android 11 is much more similar to the Android 7 Easter egg, which displays a pet cat. If you want to enable Easter egg in Android 11, follow the below guide.

1. Go to device Settings > About phone> Android version.
2. Click continuously on the Android version, it pop-up the volume dial graphic.
3. Spin the dial towards clockwise until it reaches its maximum.
4. Repeat it three times, and you will see a new “11,” and a small pop-up cat emoji appears at the bottom of the screen.

Now, you can add “Cat Controls” to your shortcuts in the power menu. Press and hold the power button to enable the controls screen.

1. Click on three dots available next to Home.
2. Select the Add controls.
3. Now, look for the “See other apps” option at the bottom of the device screen.
4. Now select “Cat controls.”
5. Click on the checkbox to select a food bowl, water bubbler and toy.

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