The L Design Preview of Android will include the new Material theme, new animation capabilities, 3-D views with real-time shadows, activity transitions, nested scrolling
Google's thesis of Material Design is impressive in motion. It's physical without being hokey 3-D or using fake textures. There is a liberal amount of drop shadow involved, though, which has been a bit out of fashion in favor of "flat design." Looks like Google is bringing drop shadow back.
Enhanced notifications in L: Notifications from lock screen are prioritized so most useful ones are presented. Swipe down and see full list of notifications.
About 15% of people have PIN or pattern lock, Burke says. L will feature personal unlocking. It can unlock automatically via swipe when it notices a Bluetooth-connected smartwatch. Without the smartwatch, it presents the PIN lock screen.
Chrome for mobile has grown 10 times in last year. It's now at 300 million devices, from 27 million the year prior.
In demo of upcoming Chrome, the browser highlights use of Material Design. When searching for Van Gogh's Starry Night, Chrome shows the artwork in a tile, and the title is on a blue background, which was automatically generated by Chrome.
Chrome tabs shown as overlapping cards with realistic shadows and perspective.
Multitasking made easier with tabs showing both websites and app content within Chrome.
Search results on Chrome mobile can launch apps that are installed on the device. For example, an OpenTable link on Google can open the app. The feature, which was previously was only available with a few apps, will be available to all developers.
Android Wear can support square and round form factors. Watch will provide answers to smoking questions and act as key in multiscreen world.
Interestingly enough, this Android Wear interface doesn't have a lot of the material design ideas that Google presented earlier. There are white cards, but none of those tactile paper layers. Looks like they dumbed down the UI for devices with less processing power.
People check Android phones more than 125 times every day, and Wear aims to surface important, brief communication.
Demo of Wear: Check weather forecast, commute time, shipping tracking, receive calls and see who it is at a glance, add reminders or ask questions via voice.
@MarkWilson: I mean, they were showing off analog wallpaper themes...
Do Not Disturb, accessed by swiping down, can silence notifications.
The command "Play some music" turns on music with album art displayed in the background and features controls on the small screen.
"The very best wearable apps respond to the users' context with glanceable cards on the screen and allow users to take direct action in just a few seconds."
Android Wear SDK available today. Write code that runs directly on wearable. Can present fully customizable UI, control sensors, and send data between devices.
If an app downloaded from Google Play has a version for Android Wear, it will automatically download to the smartwatch.
With Eat24, the food delivery app can surface favorite/repeat orders, allowing users to place a takeout or delivery order within seconds.
Now we're seeing a recipe app that sends step-by-step instructions to your watch. Each step gets a screen, and you swipe to get to the next step. I'm a skeptic about smart watches, but I'll admit, this looks so much better than using a tablet in the kitchen.
With integration of ridesharing app Lyft, the smartwatch wearer can say: "OK Google, call me a car." Shows car ETA and traffic. Also allows riders to rate from the watch screen.
LG G Watch will be available to order later today on the Play store.
Honestly though, I don't know why Android Wear often has this silly wallpaper on it, when all of the information comes through on a card--what's essentially a word bubble--that takes up 80% of the screen anyway.
Samsung Gear Live, which will be available for order later today as well.
Moto 360 will be available for order this summer.
Audience response: awwwww....
Now we're going to hear about Android in the car.
Android Auto: Android platform for cars, except it's safe for driving. Puts navigation, communication, music, and other apps front and center. Contextually aware and voice enabled--keep your eyes on the road!
So basically, Google is naming everything Android[whatever it is] now. AndroidWear. AndroidAuto. Etc.
Andy Brenner, product manager at Google, is demoing Android Auto. Apps are running on Android phone, so experience changes with updates or device upgrades. Screen shows destinations, reminders, contacts, music.
All of these AndroidAuto apps look and feel like Android on a wide screen. It's more or less your Android phone in landscape mode.
Google Maps on Android Auto is voice enabled. Product manager Andy Brenner asks the car infotainment system how late the DeYoung Museum is open. He gets an answer, decides to visit, and asks for turn-by-turn directions without having to tap or swipe.
"Wouldn't it be great if building an app for your car was as simple as building for your phone?" Guess what? Google announces the Android Auto SDK. Partners include: Pandora, TuneIn, Stitcher, Spotify, Songza, iHeartRadio, and more.
With L release, Google is adding set of APIs (for Ice Cream Sandwich and above) to isolate work and personal data, so employees don't need to carry around two phones.
Shoutout to Samsung for contributing Knox, its mobile enterprise security suite, to L.
Native Office editing will be built within Google Docs suite. It will open native Word files--no need to convert into a Google Docs file. Native Office editing will also include review and suggested changes.
