'Android 12 QPR3 Beta 1' Brings New Level of Complication to Android Betas - Ars Technica
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Enlarge / What the coverage of the latest Android versions looks like.
Android is going to have a busy month, and it's likely the new normal going forward. So listen. On Monday, Android 12L left beta and launched as a new stable version of Android, with some release strings calling it "Android 12.1". Today, Google launches another Android beta, the aptly named “Android 12 QPR3 Beta 1”. We're also expecting the second developer preview for Android 13 any day now. These are three current versions of Android, all existing simultaneously and giving various glimpses of the future.
You know how Chrome has three release channels called "Stable", "Beta", and "Dev?" Android seems to do that now.
Android usually makes a major release around October every year. Behind the scenes, there are also pushes for "Quarterly Platform Releases (QPR)" which don't usually get much promotion, although Google has started to inflate these releases for Pixel users by calling them “Pixel Feature Drops”. This year's Android 12L is a special tablet-focused mid-cycle release, but it's also a version 2 of the bloated Android 12 quarterly platform. Considering the new API level and tablet changes, we can understand why 12L would have a three-month beta. But now, Google is immediately launching the quarterly 3 beta 1 platform release, even if there are no drastic 12L-style changes.
If you're wondering what's new in Android 12 QPR3 Beta 1, the answer probably won't be very exciting. Google has a set of release notes on developer.android.com, and they're pretty sterile. Google says: “While these updates do not include app-impacting API changes, we are providing images of the latest QPR beta builds so you can test your app against these builds if needed. . The notes state that this is the first June 2022 Feature Drop beta for Pixels, but that's a little misleading. Pixel Feature Drops are still proprietary updates to the Google app, and you won't beta testing them. You beta test under the hood changes to the Android platform, which will likely fix only a few bugs.
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As for the devices supported by QPR3 Beta 1, they are the usual Pixel phones, with one notable exception. If you have the Pixel 6, 5, 5a, 4, or 4a, you can install the update, but the Pixel 3a seems to have reached the end of the line. Google's official support page has Pixel 3a support ending May 2022, which means there's no June 2022 update.
How do you call this?
“Android 12 QPR3 Beta 1” is a timeless entry in the “Google is bad at branding” compendium. Google seems conflicted over the names of these quarterly releases, and the branding of Android 12L is also an atrocity. Google calls it "12L" in blog posts, "Android 12.1" on the factory image page, and "Android 12" on the phone's "about" screen. The new beta would be so much easier to understand if Android 12L was just universally referred to as "Android 12.1". Then we could call today's release "Android 12.2 Beta 1".
We can only speculate why Google doesn't, but we'll assume it has to do with the root of all Android ills: OEM updates. If a Samsung phone says "Android 12" and a Google phone says "Android 12.2", it would probably make Samsung unhappy and users would probably complain. By calling each version of Android 12 simply "Android 12," Android hardware makers' legendary inability to deliver timely updates won't be in evidence as much.
If you're wondering when the Android version of Chrome's "canary" nightly builds will be released, these do already exist. These are called "Dogfood" versions, and they are only intended for Google employees.
SOURCE: Reviews News
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