Android 11 is official in beta, comes with a focus on people, controls and privacy

Google has finally dropped the first Android 11 Beta release for Pixel phones (Pixel 2 or newer) without the live event, Google I/O 2020, which was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Android 11 Beta brings several new features including improved notifications, better control over the other devices and new privacy controls.

This Beta version gives the users the Final APIs, meaning to start final compatibility testing for apps, SDKs, and libraries.

Android 11 Beta Release highlights:

Notifications, adding the new “Conversations” section at the top of the notification shade along with priority settings and reminder, make it easier for users to find important contacts, with a people-forward design in one place.

Bubbles, floating on top of the display like Chat Heads of Facebook Messenger, help users to keep conversations in view and accessible while multitasking.

Device Controls, allow users to quickly access and control connected devices such as lights, thermostats and cameras from the power menu.

Media Controls, moved up into pull-down quick settings shade, enable users to control and switch the output device for audio or video contents, whether it be headphones, speakers or TV. Sessions from multiple apps are arranged in a swipeable carousel and users can restart previous sessions from the carousel without having to start the app.

Voice Access, for those users who control their phones entirely by voice, includes an on-device visual cortex that understands screen content and context, and automatically generates labels and access points for accessibility commands.

One-time permission, lets users give an app access to the location, microphone or camera, the user-facing permissions dialog contains an option called Only this time. The next time the app needs access to these sensors, it will have to request permissions again.

Permissions auto-reset, if users haven’t used an app for a few months, the system will “auto-reset” all of the permissions associated with the app and notify the user. The app can request the permissions again the next time the app is opened.

Consolidated keyboard suggestions, let Autofill apps and IMEs securely offer context-specific entities and strings directly in an IME’s suggestion strip, where they are most convenient for users.

Gboard, lets users to get relevant and automatic suggestions for emoji and text, based on Federated Learning.

You may also be in favor with the new features like the updated Pixel Launcher, screen recording, fast sharing and suggested apps. Please check out the Android Dev Channel for more detail.

Anyway, Android 11 Beta 1 is finally here. Without a break, Beta 2 is coming in July and Beta 3 in August. The final release is scheduled to launch this fall.