Recently, we were informed that the Android 14’s dynamic color engine (“Monet”) seems to be adding better support for users who enable “high contrast” to improve visibility! Apps should look good for everyone, including those who rely on Android’s accessibility features. Now, more Android 14 Developer Preview 2 innovations are here. You can check the complete details which is mentioned below.
A couple of more Android 14 (DP2):
- A new EXECUTE_APP_ACTION permission that “allows an assistive application to perform actions on behalf of users inside of applications.” This permission is granted to the default Assistant. Currently, I don’t see any APIs that require this permission.
- A new LAUNCH_CAPTURE_CONTENT_ACTIVITY_FOR_NOTE permission that “allows an application to capture screen content to perform a screenshot using the intent action.” This is intended for the app that holds the ROLE_NOTES role.
- ROLE_NOTES is a new role in Android 14. It can only be granted to apps that target SDK 34 and that handle the android.intent.action.CREATE_NOTE intent. The role itself is disabled unless config_enableDefaultNotes = true, and the default holder is defined by config_defaultNotes.
- (In case you’re wondering, Google Keep doesn’t currently qualify to be the holder of ROLE_NOTES.)
- Attached is the settings page for setting the “default notes app”.
- Apps with permission can use the ACTION_LAUNCH_CAPTURE_CONTENT_ACTIVITY_FOR_NOTE intent action to trigger SystemUI to get a screenshot of the current window on behalf of the app. The user then has a chance to edit the screenshot, which can then be returned to the notes app.
- Companion Device sync: In Android 13, Google laid the groundwork for syncing certain data when setting up a companion device (like a smartwatch or earbuds) through an app that uses the CompanionDeviceManager API. They added preliminary support for syncing permissions.
- Bluetooth Audio Routing: “Choose whether different types of audio are played on your hearing device or phone speaker” If you have a hearing aid connected to an Android 14 device, you’ll be able to choose where certain sounds (ringtone, call, media, system sounds) will play from by default (“decide automatically”, “play on hearing device”, or “play on phone speaker”).
- Dual screen: When an app is using both displays to show content, you’ll get a notification that “dual screen is on.” When the device gets too warm, you’ll be warned that “Dual Screen is unavailable because your phone is getting too warm.”
- SYSTEM_CALL_STREAMING: Android 14 adds a new SYSTEM_CALL_STREAMING role that only system apps targeting SDK 34 and which have a CALL_STREAMING_SERVICE implemented can hold. This role grants the permissions CALL_AUDIO_INTERCEPTION and RECORD_AUDIO, which can be used to grant access to APIs to stream phone call audio between Android devices.
We’ve never seen it in action yet, but what they added was the ability to automatically grant certain permissions to apps you approve the transfer of from your phone to your watch, provided you already granted those permissions on your phone.
Now in Android 14, there’s a more generic “system data sync” feature. Right now, it “only supports call metadata sync“, which isn’t that useful since this is something you already see done (usually through NotificationListeners).