Android M Developer Preview images are live!

As promised, the Android M preview images have arrived! Android M brings with it quite a few new features that expand on the direction first taken by Google with Lollipop.

Some of the biggest features will include Android Pay support, new granular permissions controls, improved battery life, and much more. For more details, head to our announcement roundup for M. Now without further ado, jump right in and start downloading! Just be warned these are previews, so don’t expect the most stable of experiences.

• Nexus 5
• Nexus 6
• Nexus 9
• Nexus Player

In the days to come we’ll be sure to share our experiences with Android M, but for now, we invite you to tell us how the installation went in the comments below.

Google bringing Developer Pages to the Google Play Store

Applications are a huge part of the Android software experience, and in association, the developers that create these apps are important contributors to the robust ecosystem that we take for granted today. While the app listings carry a lot of information, the developer pages are somewhat sparse, with a list of only the apps the developer has available to be seen. That is all set to change now, with Google introducing Developer Pages to the Google Play Store.

Similar to what Youtube channel pages now look, Developer Pages will allow developers to add a big banner at the top of the page, a profile icon, and the ability to add text that explains what type of apps they make. A full list of their apps will also be available, but developers will also have to option to feature their best or most recent apps, allowing for a simple way to promote that particular app.

Developers will also now be able to A/B test individual listing pages for their apps, with the ability to test a total of four variants, all of which can be managed from the Developer Console. All that has to be done is to feed the tool different graphics and texts, and Google will handle the testing for them. These lets developers see which listing form  is working better to result in more downloads of their app. The Play Store will also keep track of the user engagement on each page, allowing developers to better optimize their pages.

Google to bring virtual reality to the masses with its ‘Expeditions’ and ‘Jump’ platforms

Last year at Google I/O, Google announced its virtual reality platform, Cardboard. There are hundreds of Cardboard-compatible apps on the Play Store, along with dozens of different headsets to choose from. To progress this VR platform forward, Google is giving us a glimpse at what’s to come.

For starters, since phones have gotten a lot bigger over the past year, Google is releasing a new Cardboard viewer that’s now compatible with 6-inch devices. The magnet button is also improved this time around, with a cardboard button that now works with every smartphone. The viewer now only takes three steps to assemble, a big decrease from the 12 it took to assemble the first version.

One of the most important points in this announcement is that the Cardboard SDK now supports iOS devices as well, which will likely bring many more users on board.

Google has also rolled out “Expeditions”, a new way for teachers to take their classes on field trips to basically anywhere in the world… or even to outer space. For folks who sign up for the Expedition program, a box will arrive at the school, which includes Cardboard headsets, phones and a tablet for the teacher. All of these devices are synchronized, so when the teacher chooses a place on the tablet, everyone will jump to the same virtual place at the same time. Teachers who want to bring Expeditions to their schools can sign up for the program online.

Google has also unveiled a program called “Jump”, which is a platform that allows anyone interested to create 360-degree video capture rigs. Using Google’s own VR computing platform, video captured with these rigs will be converted into immersive 3D content that everyone can experience. Google is opening up the camera geometry to everyone this summer, so motivated folks can create their own camera rigs if they want.

Since the camera geometry is available to everyone, Google hopes that multiple manufacturers will jump on board to create their own rigs. Google has also partnered with GoPro to create the first Jump-compatible rig.

These virtual reality experiences will be available through YouTube sometime this summer, which can be accessed using a smartphone and a compatible Cardboard headset.

Since this was just announce a little while ago, stay tuned as we update this post with more information over the next few hours!

…Developing…

Android M to feature automatic app data backup

During the Google I/O 2015 keynote Android M was formally announced bringing a number of great new features to the table. One thing that wasn’t mentioned in the keynote, however, is automatic backups (and restores) with M!

In an official developer entry, Google reveals how settings and apps data will now be backed automatically to Google Drive every 24 hours. This means that you never again have to worry about losing data if your phone fails. The backup system should also making switching to new phones easier than ever with all your app settings simply following you to the next device. The only catch here is that app developers have the ability to ‘opt out’ of supporting automatic updates if they so choose. It’s also worth noting that the file size is limited to 25MB per app.

For more details on how the new backup feature will work, you’ll want to head on over to Google’s developer page.