Google’s developers have been busy again and are back to Android, which has received some system-level improvements. Thanks to the modular structure of the operating system, individual components can be updated separately and independently of one another, which greatly benefits further development. The third Google system update has now been released and will be rolled out for all smartphones, tablets and other devices. The main focus in the third round of July is, surprisingly, connectivity.
Google System Updates is a fairly recent line of updates consisting of operating system components that can be updated directly from the Play Store. Previously, this was known internally as “Project Mainline” and the changes were only publicly communicated in exceptional cases. But with the new name, transparency has also been increased and detailed information on the individual improvements is provided several times a month.
The Google System Updates are independent of the Google Play Services updates and the updates via the Google Play Store. While the system updates are actually related to the operating system, the play services are responsible for the essay and framework.
The Google Play Store updates the apps used by the user and is thus at the top of the now three-tiered update pyramid. Still, most of the updates relate to improvements around the Google Play Store – as they do almost every month. In the third edition of the current month, however, the priorities are different.
In fact, with the third issue, which will probably be the last for July, there are again five innovations: A critical fix, improved information on account security, an announcement of the new game dashboard for additional devices, and three improvements in the area of connectivity – including the Matter Developer preview. Here is the full listing for the month of July.
Critical Fixes
- [Phone] Bug fixes for system management & diagnostics, and utilities-related services.[1][6]
Account Management
- [Phone] The section headers in the Data & Privacy tab of the Google account settings have a new appearance.[2]
- [Phone] Enhancements to in-app support experience.[5]
- [Phone] Enhancements to the user interface for Family Link.[5]
- [Phone] Provide users with unified safety recommendations from the Google Account across Google apps.[6]
Device Connectivity
- [Phone] APIs for developers to build seamless multi-device experiences.[5]
- [Phone] With the Matter Developer Preview, you can set up and share Matter devices between Matter ecosystems.[6]
- [Phone] Automatically switch Bluetooth audio peripherals between your devices (phone, tablet, laptop).[6]
- [Auto, Phone] Control whether a Cast Sender sees the self-device as a Cast target.[6]
Games
- [Phone] Game Dashboard lets you choose longer battery life or higher performance, block out calls and notifications when playing, access Play Games achievements, and more. Available on select devices running Android T.[6]
Google Play Store
- Improvements to the Play-as-you-download feature to let gamers start playing mobile games while the app download continues to reduce waiting times.[3]
- New Features to help you discover the Apps & Games you love.[3]
- Optimizations allow faster and more reliable download and installation.[3]
- New features to the Play Pass and Play Points programs.[3]
- Enhancements to Google Play Billing.[3]
- Continuous improvements to Play Protect to keep your device safe.[3]
- Various performance optimizations, bug fixes and improvements to security, stability and accessibility.[3]
Support
- [Phone] Provide an ability to filter the data plans available to purchase by various categories received from the Carrier.[2]
- [Phone] Enhanced system update flow to show features included in new Android updates.[4]
Wallet
- [Phone] Updates user experience to latest Google Material design, rebrands as “Google Wallet”.[2]
- [Phone] Updates the Passes rotating barcode feature.[6]
- [Phone, WearOS] Add support for launching Google Wallet in 22 new countries.[6]
System Management
- Updates to system management services that improve device connectivity, network usage, security, stability, and updatability.[1]
Developer Services
- New developer features for Google and third-party app developers to support Maps, Machine Learning & AI, and utilities-related developer services in their apps.[6]
[1] Available through Google Play system update for July
[2] Available through Google Play services v22.22 updated on 07/28/2022
[3] Available through Google Play Store v31.1 updated on 07/28/2022.
[4] Available through Google Play services v22.24 updated on 07/28/2022.
[5] Available through Google Play services v22.26 updated on 07/28/2022.
[6] Available through Google Play services v22.30 updated on 07/28/2022.
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