The final beta build of Android O has been released today by the Android team to those in the Android Beta Program. Build OPP4.170623.014 is rolling out to devices now with it having the final API levels (API level 26) along with finishing touches on the platform overall.
In a post on the Android Developer blog, Vice President of Engineering David Burke indicated that this is being considered by Google as a Release Candidate. That means that it is both very stable and very little, barring a major bug being found, will stop it from being released in short order.
Developer Preview 4 is a release candidate build of Android O that you can use to complete your development and testing in time for the upcoming official release. It includes the final system behaviors, the latest bug fixes and optimizations, and the final APIs (API level 26)
To be clear, the new APIs were introduced in Developer Preview 3 so this confirms that they are indeed final.
DP4 for Android O is available for the Nexus 6P, Nexus 5X, Pixel, Pixel XL, Nexus Player and the Pixel C. Since it is a release
Android O on The Nexus 6P
candidate, you could run it without much trouble on a production phone. All you need to do is register your compatible device at the Android Beta Program site. However, you could still encounter a bug or two so proceed with caution. If you aren’t comfortable with beta software, just wait it out. The official release of O is likely to be at the end of August or early September so it won’t be but a few more weeks.
Android O is bringing a lot of refinements that you will find in Android Nougat along with several new features. Those new features include notification channels, Picture-in-Picture, improvements to the notification area and notifications on your lock screen and dozens of other small changes. You won’t find massive changes here but a lot of refinements.
To register for the Android Beta Program, head to this site.
To read more about Developer Preview 4 for Android O, head to this site.
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