Android P Developer Preview arrives with new notification panel, notch support
Enlarge / Google's logo for the Android P Developer Preview. (credit: Google)
In what is quickly becoming an annual March tradition, Google is once again releasing an early preview of the next major version of Android. The Android P Developer Preview is out right now for developers (and eager Android enthusiasts) to take for a test drive. It's still very early in the news cycle for Android P, and while we haven't installed it yet, we do have a lengthy Google Blog post to draw details from. Highlights include enhancements to the notification panel, indoor positioning, support for iPhone X-style notches, and a million under-the-hood improvements.
However, device support for this release is pretty limited: you'll need a Google Pixel phone to play. The developer preview works on the Pixel 1, Pixel 1 XL, Pixel 2, Pixel 2 XL, and that's it. Pour one out for the Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P, and Pixel C tablet, which were all part of the Android O developer preview but didn't make it to Android P. I actually confirmed this with Google-those three devices won't be getting Android P.
Additionally, if you want to try Android P yourself, you won't yet have the convenience of using the Android Beta program, which lets you sign up for an over-the-air update that is delivered to your device. While that will come with later releases deemed stable enough for the "beta" tag, for now Google says this is "an early baseline build for developers only." You'll need to fire up some SDK tools and flash the Android P images manually.
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