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Test Drive Android L Developer Preview

Screenshot_2014-06-27-17-46-33One of the nice things about Nexus devices is the direct support that comes from Google. Shortly after announcing Android L Developer Preview at Google I/O, the images are already available for anyone to download. The images are only for Nexus 5 and Nexus 7 (2013) Wi-Fi version. If you have one of these devices, go ahead to Google’s L Developer Preview webpage.

I’ll take you through some steps, and then share some impressions about Android L.

First, you’ll need to get the Android SDK. I imagine most people who want to try new things would have tried new things before, and the Android SDK would thus have been installed. But if you don’t, get the Android SDK.

If you already have the Android SDK, it may be necessary to update it. Otherwise you may run into problems like the below:

$ adb devices
List of devices attached
0906a323 offline

It’s easy to update the SDK. Change to your Android toolkit directory (e.g. android-sdk-macosx/tools). Then:

$ ./android update sdk

Ensure your Nexus device is setup to accept USB debugging. Go into Settings, Developer options, then enable USB debugging. If you don’t find the Developer options menu item, you will need to enable it by going into Settings, About (or About tablet), and click on the Bulid number multiple times until your device says Developer mode is enabled.

Make sure your computer can see your device.

$ adb devices
List of devices attached
0906a323 unauthorized

If you see unauthorized like in the above, you need to accept your host fingerprint on the Nexus device. Follow the Nexus’ on-screen instructions.

Now, get the L Developer Preview source from the L Developer Preview page. Unpack it:

$ tar jxf ../Downloads/razor-lpv79-preview-d0ddf8ce.tgz
$ cd razor-lpv79/

Mine is a Nexus 7 device. If you’re setting up for Nexus 5, the filename and directory name will be different. If your Nexus device has not been unlocked, then do so now:

$ fastboot oem unlock

Follow the Nexus’ on-screen instructions to complete the unlock. Note that your device will be erased.

Now, you’re done to begin flashing the L Developer Preview. Just run the flash-all.sh script.

$ ./flash-all.sh
sending 'bootloader' (3911 KB)... OKAY
writing 'bootloader'... OKAY
rebooting into bootloader... OKAY
archive does not contain 'boot.sig'
archive does not contain 'recovery.sig'
archive does not contain 'system.sig'
--------------------------------------------
Bootloader Version...: FLO-04.02
Baseband Version.....: none
Serial Number........: 00000000
--------------------------------------------
checking product... OKAY
checking version-bootloader... OKAY
sending 'boot' (7030 KB)... OKAY
writing 'boot'... OKAY
sending 'recovery' (7574 KB)... OKAY
writing 'recovery'... OKAY
sending 'system' (688456 KB)... OKAY
writing 'system'... OKAY
erasing 'userdata'... OKAY
erasing 'cache'... OKAY
rebooting...

The above is on Mac OS X. On Windows, you will run flash-all.bat.

If you’re wondering whether you can go back to the original KitKit stock images, yes, you can. Grab them from https://developers.google.com/android/nexus/images, and you just pretty much do the same flashing as above.

Now it’s time to test drive the L Developer Preview!

The home screen has a new wallpaper, and the soft keys have a new look. But otherwise the home screen looks pretty much the same as Android KitKat’s. That’s not unexpected, since the L Developer Preview that we’re downloading isn’t the same thing that was revealed during the Google I/O keynote.

I’ve got to complain about the home screen though. The default wallpaper, honestly, doesn’t project a sense of energetic, refreshing, vibe that you’d expect to come out of an upcoming version of an important operating system. It actually feels dull. To me, at least. Again, it’s not the same wallpaper as we saw at Google I/O.

Notifications show up in the lock screen now, without having to swipe down from the top edge. The new apps switcher looks really beautiful, especially the rolodex style animation was you scroll through the apps list.

There’s also a new keyboard. There are no lines or separators between the keys, but yet somehow it gives me greater confidence that I’ll type more accurately.

The Settings app has changed somewhat. It’s mostly about a change in the visual layout. The long item list in the Setting’s main screen is now broken up into two columns. I understand it’s still a single column on the Nexus 5 (that’s the pone) when it’s in portrait orientation.

Finally, Android L brings multiuser profile support. In KitKat, there was a guest mode, which was called a Restricted Profile. Android L still has that Restricted Profile, but on top of it, you can create additional standard user accounts. I think the big leap was with the introduction of Restricted Profiles. However, the addition of standard user accounts may make it useful for sharing table devices among family members.

I was looking forward to the personal unlocking feature, but unfortunately, it isn’t found in this L Developer Preview. There’s also no word on whether Google will continue to push out updates to the preview release. Hopefully there’ll be updates, and also that they can come in as an OTA update.

Other new features with Android L, which we can’t see, include support for 64-bit processors and improved battery life. Hopefully this paves the way for the next Nexus device, assuming of course that they are still on the way, and that they will launch when Android L is officially released, to come with 64-bit processors.

The new design language you’re seeing in the user interface is what Google calls Material Design. Not all the apps have been updated with the new look. The Calculator app, which you see above, is an example of the new Material Design look. The bounce effect as your scrolling hits the end of the road now takes the form of a shadow which follows where your finger is pulling.

Android L is expected to be released in the last quarter of this year. In the meanwhile, those of you with a supported Nexus device can go try out the L Developer Preview now.

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