Ahead of the holidays, Google is pushing out the second developer preview of Android 16 to give developers time to assess the changes that'll arrive in the stable release next year. Android 16 DP2 brings new developer features like more control over haptics, a way to determine when a device has adaptive refresh rate support, and cloud search support in the photo picker, but it'll likely also bring some new user-facing features. We won't know what new user-facing features are in the update until we actually install it on our own devices, though, so for now, here's everything Google told us about Android 16 Developer Preview 2.
✕ Remove Ads Related Android 16: All the new features from Developer Preview 1, plus official release window
Move over, Android 15
Posts2 What's new in Android 16 Developer Preview 2?
Google's blog post announcing Android 16 DP2 mentions a ton of new developer features, but we'll start by highlighting the ones that we think will most impact regular users.
Android 16 gives apps better control over haptics
Android has long offered apps limited control over the haptics of your phone, but in Android 16, the operating system will give apps more fine-grained control over them. Starting in Android 16, new haptic APIs will let apps "define the amplitude and frequency curves of a haptic effect." This will let apps effectively customize the strength and duration of vibrations. In addition, these new APIs take the guesswork out of device-specific capabilities, so developers don't need to worry about the specific device they're creating custom haptic effects for.
✕ Remove Ads Apps can now take advantage of adaptive refresh rate in Android 16
Android 16 builds upon the adaptive refresh rate feature that Google introduced in Android 15. Adaptive refresh rate, if you aren't aware, is a feature that enables the display refresh rate to adapt to the content frame rate without changing display modes, a known cause of jank. The feature only works on select devices that have implemented the required system-level code changes, though. So far, this only includes the Google Pixel 9 series, at least following the most recent December Pixel Feature Drop.
Source: Google
How adaptive refresh rate works in Android.
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Although Android 15 added platform-level support for adaptive refresh rate, it didn't offer a way for apps to actually take advantage of it. That's changing with Android 16, though, as the update introduces a new hasArrSupport() method as well as a getSuggestedFrameRate(int) method. It also restores the getSupportedRefreshRates() method. Google is also updating its RecyclerView library to version 1.4 which supports adaptive refresh rate when views are settling from a fling or a smooth scroll.
Android's photo picker will (soon) add a search feature
Stop if you've heard this one before: the Android photo picker will soon let you search through your media gallery. Google confirmed at its I/O developer conference earlier this year that it would add search functionality to the photo picker, and the company is getting ready to go live with it. Google says that search functionality in the photo picker is "coming soon" to both Android 16 and older versions of the operating system through Google System Updates.
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Android's photo picker doesn't currently support search functionality.
To prepare for this new feature, Google is releasing new APIs to enable searching from the cloud media provider for the Android photo picker. The cloud media provider is simply the app that provides the photo picker with photos and videos stored in the cloud. The only app that supports acting as a cloud media provider right now is Google Photos, but the API to do so is open to any cloud photo sharing service.
Android 16 makes Wi-Fi Ranging more secure
Last year's Android 15 release added support for a feature called Wi-Fi Ranging, a positioning technology that enables precise indoor location tracking. Wi-Fi Ranging allows for <1m accuracy, making it significantly more precise than traditional Wi-Fi-based location tracking which uses signal strength measurements. It's part of the Wi-Fi 6 standard, so many existing smartphones and tablets already have the hardware needed to support it -- though they might need firmware updates to unlock it.
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Wi-Fi Ranging is based on time-of-flight rather than signal strength, making it much more precise.
In Android 16, Google is making Wi-Fi Ranging more secure by introducing AES-256-based encryption and protection against MITM attacks. This will allow the technology to be used more safely in "proximity use cases, such as unlocking a laptop or a vehicle door."
Health Connect now supports activity intensity
Health Connect is getting even more upgrades in Android 16 DP2. After DP1 brought support for storing medical records in Health Connect, DP2 is adding support for new datatypes centered around activity intensity. Specifically, it adds a new ACTIVITY_INTENSITY, which is defined according to World Health Organization guidelines around moderate and vigorous activity. Every ACTIVITY_INTENSITY record requires the start time, end time, and whether the activity intensity is moderate or vigorous.
✕ Remove Ads New APIs in Android 16 help apps support the predictive back gesture
Predictive back is an Android feature that helps you preview where the back gesture will take you so you don't accidentally exit the app when performing the gesture. The feature was first introduced in Android 13, but because it impacts the way apps handle back navigation, it stayed as a developer option until the most recent Android 15 release.
Although Android 15 enables system predictive back animations by default, it's still up to apps whether or not they want to support those animations. To help apps support them, Android 16 adds new APIs such as PRIORITY_SYSTEM_NAVIGATION_OBSERVER which lets apps receive the regular onBackInvoked call when the system handles a back navigation so as to not impact the normal back navigation flow. It also adds the finishAndRemoveTaskCallback() and moveTaskToBackCallback() callbacks that let the system "trigger specific behaviors and play corresponding ahead-of-time animations when the back gesture is invoked."
✕ Remove Ads Accessibility announcements will be less disruptive in Android 16
If you rely on TalkBack or other screen reader software, then you may be familiar with how disruptive certain accessibility announcements can be. To solve this, Android 16 deprecates accessibility announcements characterized by the user of announceForAccessibility or the dispatch of TYPE_ANNOUNCEMENT AccessibilityEvents. Google says these create "inconsistent user experiences" for users of TalkBack and screen reader software and that there are better alternatives. Suggested alternatives are mentioned in the updated documentation for the deprecated announceForAccessibility API.
What else is new in Android 16 DP2
Here are the remaining developer features in Android 16 DP2. These don't have any direct user-facing impact, so you'll only want to pay attention if you're an app developer.
✕ Remove Ads Better job introspection: Android 16 adds a new JobScheduler#getPendingJobReasons(int jobId) method that returns multiple reasons why a job is pending, including explicit constraints set by the developer and implicit ones set by the system. It also adds JobScheduler#getPendingJobReasonsHistory(int jobId) which returns a list of the most recent constraint changes. Google says this API will help developers debug why their jobs aren't executing.
Full deprecation of JobInfo#setImportantWhileForeground The JobInfo.Builder#setImportantWhileForeground(boolean) method will no longer function effectively and calling it will be ignored in Android 16. This method was deprecated in Android 12, so developers should have already moved away from it.
Job execution optimizations: Android 16 adjusts regular and expedited job execution runtime quotas based on factors like which app standby bucket the app is in (active standby buckets are given a generous runtime quota), making jobs started while the app is visible and that continue after the app becomes invisible adhere to the job runtime quota, and making jobs that execute concurrently with a foreground service adhere to the job runtime quota.
Start component in ApplicationStartInfo: Android 16 adds a new getStartComponent() method to distinguish what component type triggered a process start. This builds upon the ApplicationStartInfo class added in Android 15, which gives apps useful diagnostic data about process starts.
System triggered profiling: The ProfilingManager class now includes System Triggered Profiling in Android 16, allowing for capturing "challenging trace scenarios such as startups or ANRs." Apps can use ProfilingManager#addProfilingTriggers() to register interest in receiving info about these flows. This builds upon the ProfilingManager class added in Android 15, which gives apps the ability to request profiling data collection using Perfetto on public devices in the field.
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For a full rundown of new features Google added in Android 16 Developer Preview 1, check out our previous coverage. And of course, stay tuned for our coverage of the new user-facing features in Android 16 DP2.
Related The first Android 16 developer preview just landed: Here's what you need to know
Google is serious about its new release schedule
Posts When will Google release the Android 16 beta?
Since Android 16 Developer Preview builds aren't meant for regular users, I'm sure you're wondering when you'll be able to actually try Android 16 out for yourself. Fortunately for you, Google already told us when the first beta release of Android 16 will drop, and it's going to happen sometime next month. For reference, that's 3 months earlier than when the first beta of Android 15 dropped, which is necessary because Google plans to release Android 16 sometime in Q2 of 2025.
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While we don't know the exact release date of Android 16 yet (one leak suggests it'll be June 3, 2025), we do have the general release schedule, which is as follows:
Given that all four of these betas will be released before when Google usually holds its annual I/O developer conference (May), it's hard to say which beta will first bring the key features of Android 16. Our guess is Beta 2, as Android 16 Beta 3 in March of 2025 will be the operating system's "Platform Stability" milestone, which is when things are more or less finalized for the stable release. Platform Stability, if you aren't aware, is when the APIs and app-facing system behaviors are finalized for a new Android version. It's also when Google opens up the Play Store to apps targeting the latest version.
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After Android 16 is released in Q2 of 2025, Google will start pushing out incremental updates to the platform that bring security fixes and new user-facing features. The first quarterly release of Android 16 will land in Q3 of 2025 with a lot of changes that we don't know of yet. The second quarterly release of Android 16 in Q4 of 2025, though, will be a bit special as it'll actually bring new developer APIs, so it's possible it'll even have its own marketing name.
Related Android 16 timeline revealed: Platform Stability in Q1, rollout in Q2
Beta releases begin in January
Posts How to install Android 16 Developer Preview 2
If you aren't a developer, Google doesn't want you to install Android 16 Developer Preview 2. These builds aren't stable, so some of your favorite apps or features might not work. Because of this, Google won't push out an OTA update to Android 16 DP2 unless you've already manually installed Android 16 DP1 on your Pixel device.
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To install Android 16 DP2 on your Pixel device, you can use the Android Flash Tool, a web tool that makes it easy to manually install Google Pixel updates. Simply click one of the following links on your PC to get started:
Google Pixel 6 Google Pixel 6 Pro Google Pixel 6a Google Pixel 7 Google Pixel 7 Pro Google Pixel 7a Google Pixel Tablet Google Pixel Fold Google Pixel 8 Google Pixel 8 Pro Google Pixel 8a Google Pixel 9 Google Pixel 9 Pro Google Pixel 9 Pro XL Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold
Each of these links will open the Android Flash Tool page with the Android 16 Developer Preview 2 build preselected. If the Android 16 DP2 builds aren't showing for you, then you might have to wait for Google to upload them to the tool's backend. Alternatively, you can download the Android 16 factory images right now and manually flash Developer Preview 2 using the provided script. Either way, you'll need to set up ADB access on your phone beforehand in order to install Android 16 DP2 via the Android Flash Tool or factory image.
✕ Remove Ads Related How to install Android 16 Developer Preview builds
And why you probably shouldn't
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Android 16 DP1 frustratingly couldn't be installed on top of Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1 -- the latest available beta at the time of DP1's release -- without wiping your device's data. Fortunately, that isn't the case this time around. Google says that if you've already installed Android 15 QPR2 Beta 2, you won't have to perform a factory reset on your Pixel device to migrate to Android 16 DP2.
By default, though, both flashing options will wipe your device's data, so to avoid that, you need to change some things. To avoid wiping your device's data when using the Android Flash Tool, click the pencil icon and uncheck "wipe device." To avoid a data wipe when flashing a factory image, edit the script to remove the '-w' flag from the 'fastboot update' command.
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Once you've installed Android 16 DP2, you'll automatically get OTA updates to Android 16 Beta 1 and beyond. Sometime in January 2025, Android 16 Beta 1 will roll out to users who haven't installed DP2 but who have enrolled in the Android Beta program.
Finally, if you don't own a supported Pixel device but still want to try Android 16 DP2, then you can boot it up using the Android Emulator provided in Android Studio. Developers are recommended to install the latest Android Studio feature drop code-named Ladybug to take advantage of all the new features it brings.
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Android 16 is coming early this time around which is very interesting
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