Android 9 Pie is now available: New Features and how to update to Android Pie
Android 9 Pie, the wait is over. After five months and five versions before the final version of Android P is already a reality. Google has just officially announced Android 9 Pie. After Oreo, we see that the company has decided to call the new version the name Pie. They have not chosen the name of a particular candy as in previous versions just one type of dessert. A simple name that comes to reflect that Android 9 Pie will offer a simpler and smarter experience.
With the announcement of the new name of the version we also see that Google changes the way of commercially numbering Android. It is not Android 9.0 Pie, it is simply Android 9 Pie, nothing to put the number of the subversion in the commercial name, as Apple has been doing for a long time. The version is 9.0.
Android 9 Pie New Features
As we saw in the past Google I/O 2018, this new version of Android is characterized by being simpler, smarter, and offering more control to the user. The most notable developments by Google on this new version are the following:
- Battery and intelligent brightness: Android 9 Pie uses artificial intelligence to adapt the device to our use. The device will learn our routines to prioritize the consumption of the battery on the applications that we use the most, managing to reduce up to 30% the use of the CPU and applications in the background, extending the battery life. It also does the same with the brightness of the screen, which is learning from our preferences for every moment of the day.
- App actions: Android 9 Foot in addition to predicting what applications we can open at that time of the day now will also predict the actions we can do such as sending a message to a contact, listening to a music album or starting the browser to go home.
- Slices: Android P will now show some extra information in the search engine to complement the information with the data of the application itself. So if we look for a transport application we can open it directly to request a car with driver to pick us up from our home or work.
- Gesture navigation: Android 9 Pie renews its navigation system to switch over to the gestures that the iPhone X has put in fashion. The button to see the Recent ones disappears to welcome a new lower bar that will act as a Start button when pressed once or a Recent button when sliding up. Sliding the bar to the dice we can also jump from application to application.
- Improved Smart Text Selector: The Android 8 Oreo smart text selector is enhanced in Android 9 Foot to recognize more applications that can open or search for text to perform an action.
- Digital well-being: Finally, Android 9 Pie cares about our well-being, and for that purpose, they launch several tools that will allow us to control the use made by the device:
- Control Board (Dashboard): shows us how we spend time with your device.
- Application timer (App Timer): allows us to set time limits in applications.
- DND (Do Not Disturb): Now this mode mutes all visual interruptions that may appear on the screen.
- Disconnect (Wind Down): This new mode activates the Nightlight next to Do Not Disturb, darkening the screen, and completely silencing the mobile.
Deployment of Android 9 Pie
The first to update Android 9 Pie with Google devices, Pixel, Pixel XL, Pixel 2, and Pixel 2 XL, next to the Essential Phone.
For the next few weeks Android 9 Pie will also reach the rest of the devices that participated in the Android Beta program:
- Nokia 7 Plus
- Oppo R15 Pro
- Sony Xperia XZ2
- I live X21UD
- I live X21
- Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S
- OnePlus 6
Google is working closely with its partners including Essential, Huawei, HMD Global, OnePlus, Oppo, Razer, Samsung, Sony Mobile, Transition, Vivo, and Xiaomi so that this autumn they update their devices to Android 9 Pie.
It is expected that by the end of autumn all Android One will be updated to this new version. The devices that have the update assured are:
- Xiaomi Mi A1
- Xiaomi Mi A2
- Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite
- Nokia 8 Sirocco
- Nokia 7 Plus
- Nokia 6.1
- Nokia 3.1
- BQ Aquaris X2
- BQ Aquaris X2 Pro
- HTC U11 Life
- Android One Moto X4
How to Update Your Pixel to Android 9.0 Pie
The Pixel, Pixel XL, Pixel 2, and Pixel 2 XL are already receiving Android 9 Pie officially today through an OTA update. The first users to receive this new version are the users registered in the Android Beta program. The update will arrive in a phased manner. If you do not want to wait, you can update manually by installing the OTA file:
- Pixel: 9.0.0 (PPR1.180610.009, Aug 2018)
- Pixel XL: 9.0.0 (PPR1.180610.009, Aug 2018)
- Pixel 2: 9.0.0 (PPR1.180610.009, Aug 2018)
- Pixel 2 XL: 9.0.0 (PPR1.180610.009, Aug 2018)
Steps to follow:
- We download the OTA file corresponding to our device and save it without decompressing it inside the same folder of the ADB.
- We connect the device to the computer and in a command window execute: ADB reboot recovery. When the Android logo with the red exclamation appears on the device, we press the Volume up + Power at the same time.
- Using the volume keys we select apply update from ADB and enter with the Power key.
- We write the instruction ADB sideload file.zip from the command window of our computer. For example, ADB sideload taimen-ota-ppr1.180610.009-8ac43d39.zip
- When the update is finished, it is up to us to restart the selected device to Reboot the system now. This process will leave the device updated respecting our data.
Conclusion
You also have your factory images available in case you want to do a clean installation and leave the device left from the factory with this new version of Android. More information | Android 9 Pie
