Google officially launched the Android 5, the latest updated version of android, via its official blog under the tagline “be together. Not the same”. This was just a preview of the effort which Google has put in to ensure that the new Android version guarantees a never before experienced between-device interaction more intuitive than ever before. The official name given to this version was Android L which was later expanded to Android Lollipop. The update comes with significant improvements to the previous Kitkat version and is also said to incorporate a bunch of new features.
The biggest change perhaps is the way in which this operating system enables smooth syncing of your device with other devices which are linked to the same account. The developers have said that with this new sync feature, users will be able to pick up where they left off on any device linked to the phone, whether it is web searching or browsing photos or files. Users will also be able to open multiple accounts on different devices which are synced with the Android 5.0 device.
Another major change from its predecessor would be with respect to the system performance and battery life. Android’s app engine has been changed from Dalvik Runtime, which had supported all previous versions of android, to ART Runtime. Google has said that ART has an edge over Dalvik as it runs at almost twice the speed and also ensures faster launching of apps when they are installed for the first time. Google has also aspired to enhance the battery life of the device on which this OS is installed through its power saving options which balance out the power usage by various apps and give notifications about which app is consuming the maximum power. Android 5 also carries major improvements in the graphic engine, with particular emphasis on HD gaming.
With all these new features, and a name like Lollipop, the Android 5.0 certainly seems like a treat. Unfortunately, the only users who can actually experience this OS right now are the Nexus 6 and Nexus 7 owners. The rest of the companies like Sony, HTC, Motorola etc. have issued statements that they are working on making sure that Lollipop is available for their devices as soon as possible. Some critics have also said that since the market has reached almost the peak of growth, it seems unlikely that Lollipop will enjoy the kind of response that its previous updates had got. With only 30% android devices running on Kitkat, it is reasonable to presume that a very minor share of the old android users would update their device. As for the new devices which have pre-installed Android 5, like the Nexus 6, have been heavily pre booked and are expected to hit stores soon. All that remains to be seen is whether the Android 5 really does offer such major new features to induce the old users into updating their OS or will it just remain an OS for the new devices.