Google today revealed it is prolonging the Android 11 preview cycle by about a month. But instead of releasing a beta this month, as it had previously intended, a fourth developer preview will be released today instead.
The first beta will officially begin on June 3, which will take place in place of its I/O developer conference during an Android-centric online event.
“When we began preparing Android 11, we weren’t expecting the kinds of improvements that would find their way to us all, in almost every area in the world,” writes Google’s Android team today. “These have challenged us to remain flexible and to find new ways of working together, especially with our group of developers. We’re announcing an update to our development schedule to help us address these challenges.”
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Google states that it aims to meet the needs of the Android community, which naturally started working on early device testing for Android 11 based on the company’s guidelines, with the current climate during the coronavirus pandemic and the other goals that come with that. In this case, delaying the release by a month would seem like a rational approach.
Google says developers will aim the June 3 Beta 1 release date for a compatible device to gain input from the wider community of Android Beta users. And that community will be bigger because, as with previous launches, Google will make over-the-air updates accessible for those who opt into the beta and have a compatible app. The list of beta-compatible devices remains to be seen, but all recent Pixel phones will possibly be included, beginning with Pixel 2.
