By Ishaan Nyati, Class IX G
Here I tell you the story of Android Lollipop with the signature Material Design tagging along.
It all began when Google decided to bring about the 5.0 update. On October 15, Google released its much anticipated Android L (this has been a tradition of Google to name its new android as a sweet, beginning with the next letter; and the last version was Kit-Kat, and so the next would begin with L) Lollipop, smashing all rumours of Liquorice Candy or Lemon Honey Pie. It later announced that the first devices to come with Lollipop ‘out of the box’ (that is as a base software) were the Nexus 6 (phone), the Nexus 9 (tablet) and the Nexus Player (a television extension; and all three were to be launched on November 3. These were also the first devices to run the sweet operating system.
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| Image Courtesy: www.theadbuzz.com |
The Lollipop source code was also made available through the Android Open Source Project in the same week. And both application and operating software began to update to the new standards set by the search engine giant. Most of the apps developed by Google have been updated for material design. All of the Nexus family has got the 5.0.2 update and companies such as Motorola, HTC and LG have also developed Lollipop for their flagships. Samsung, breaking all records, has updated most of its phones in a very short time period.
One of the most important things to note about Android Lollipop is the newly introduced Material Design. It describes this new look in this way: “We challenged ourselves to create a visual language for our users that synthesizes the classic principles of good design with the innovation and possibility of technology and science.” The very new solid squares, rectangles and circles have a floating yet physical and singular touch to them. Also a circular selection interface has been developed that is different from the quite persistent complete selection interface.
Now let us come to the way the operating system will – or already has – revolutionize the way we look at any android device. The most important task of android 5.0 is to bring in uniformity in the versatile tasks and types of work that different apps do. Google launched a long list of icons that must be used to denote tasks in the taskbar (towards the left) as well as in other parts of the app. And Google aspires that this uniformity exists not only in the Android world, but also on iOS, Chrome and the internet.
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| Image Courtesy: www.wired.com |
Now let us come to the less important yet significant changes that characterize the 5.0 update on Android devices. Let us begin with ‘screen pinning.’ As the brother of a 4-year old I have often felt that I could have done with an app which could ‘pin’ the screen on to a single application, and now you can easily do it on your phone without downloading any unreliable third-party apps. Just press the ‘pin button’ on the most recent window and the work’s done. To return, you have to hold the back and recent tabs buttons and the screen is unpinned (you have to put in the code if you have a lock on your lock screen).
The lock screen has also been given a complete makeover. You now swipe up to unlock, and meet the lock below (if any). You can also swipe left to open a camera shortcut, and right to avail a phone shortcut.
We can also view our notifications from the lock screen. Another change is the way the notification tray and quick settings react. The notification tray now doesn’t seem a new window but acts as a stack of cards hovering over the screen when the panel is pulled down. When it is pulled down again, the quick settings panel is visible.
Google has also started a new project- Project Volta. It aims at one of the worst problems encountered by the smartphone industry- the very short battery life. It automatically works in Lollipop phones, acting as an inbuilt battery saver and task killer to save the battery of the device. The new software also brings in a new feature of multiple users. The feature allows the creation of new users, who can set up their own devices in the virtual world, while having the same devices. Guest feature also allows ‘guests’ to use the device without prying into personal information. We can also prioritize our notifications and even select which notifications to show on the lock screen to prevent personal data being shown to any person. The other features like 64-bit processing compatibility, a built in ‘Flappy Android Lollipop’ Easter egg, a new flashlight-like application, 15 new languages and ‘Tap and Go’ are the ones that make Android Lollipop 5.0 the biggest release yet by Android and Google.
(This article by Ishaan Nyati was also posted in the May 2015 issue of Amazing Kids! Magazine – http://mag.amazing-kids.org/)
