What are the features of the latest Android OS that Android App Developers Must Know?

Google has been really quick in terms of launching Android versions – one after the other, leaner, fitter and better than the previous. In the month of October, 2014 Google has launched the latest Android version 5.0 - codenamed the Lollipop! While every version of Android has come with interesting features, specific to itself. Lollipop too has own set of specific features and functionalities – and being the latest of all that Google has to offer, these features of the ‘new’ Lollipop need to be seen and understood by everyone having a stake at an Android app development endeavour.

Following offers a brief about all those important facts. Let’s explore them:

• Style redefined: Lollipop comes with a very eye catchy style. By using finger touch, the user can view menu items in an animated way across. When the menu items slides over, the user can see the realistic 3D style, backdrop shadow which makes this very intuitive. An Android App developer can work towards a more engaging graphical/multimedia-content.
• Easy to access navigation: The navigating nature of the device had been changed. For example, an app of Android application development company like gmail, when the home screen will open then left panel would be of new mails and right panel will be of content of the mail clicked.
• Usability tracking: The OS keeps track of the user’s engagement. Based on this, notifications will come automatically in the home screen of the device containing the frequent used items. Suppose the user is doing any activity – say, playing a game – on the same time, if the user gets a call from someone then without having to stop the game, there will appear a notification (as a pop up) as an overlay from there the user can accept or reject the call. Similarly, in case of a new message too, the notification will be on the top of the screen – without hindering a session.
• Lock-screen becomes smarter: The lock screen had been made very smart. It will notify the user of incoming messages, so he/she can view the messages without unlocking the screen. If a particular location is set or the user is using the Android Watch then the lock screen can be opened without any password or pattern or the user can use voice also to simply unlock the screen.
• Smarter intra-device/app communication: Lollipop enables smarter intercommunications between apps. Now any app, approved in the Android app store (read, Google Play store) - no matter developed by which Android app development company - can use the feature of other apps developed by other Android app companies - across the genres. For example, if the user searches for car rent, then it will directly open a car rental app rather than a website.
• Extended Battery Life: The usage of the battery in Android is much more as compared to other mobile OS – so there more energy usage! Lollipop attends this problem by coming up with a built-in battery saving mode, with which the battery life of the Android device can be extended more than 90 minutes as compared to other OS versions of Android .

Generally great appearance brings performance issues in an Android device. But this latest version of Android had been developed by concentrating on performance as well as appearance.

Reference: https://www.apsense.com/article/what-are-the-features-of-the-latest-android-os-that-android-app-developers-must-know.html