Google has released its newest Android 13 for preview by developers. This version is said to have new theming options, language controls as well as privacy features. The software is for developers rather than end users. Developer previews are expected through February and March. A stable version is expected sometime in June or July for an official release by the tech giant later in the year by August or September.

The new preview is available on Google Pixel 4 and later models of the smartphone. Preview 1 is out and it is called “Tiramisu” which is a delicious Italian dessert. It is specifically meant for developers. It is aiming to increase privacy and security issues for users.

Google is also offering a system image for the Android emulator in Android Studio. There is also a generic system images for testing, if required by vendors.

Some of the interesting featuring that are debuting or improving in Android 13 are as follows:

Android 13 will expand dynamic color feature for all app icons after app developers supply monochromatic compatible icons instead of only Google apps as in version 12. This might initially be available only on Pixel phones though Google said it would work to expand the feature for all.

A new photo picker lets users share photos and videos with a specific app without the app needing permission for the app to see all photos saved in a device. This will keep other media private from the app. This permissions feature could also become part of Android 11 and 12, eventually. This feature is already available for documents and is now being extended for photos.

A new Wifi permission will let apps find and connect to Wifi points without location permissions.
Language preferences can be set on a per app basis instead of general settings. This will be a boon for multilingual users.
Project Mainline initiative will deliver more updates using Google Play instead of the Operating System.

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