Changes in android versions

Android Timeline and Versions

The Android OS was first released in September 2008. Google rolls out new versions of Android on a frequent basis, but has no set time for each future version. Some of the in-between versions were never released commercially.

It typically takes manufacturers 6 to 12 months after a specific Android Software Development Kit (SDK) release to deliver products using that version, so the vendor can complete custom additions, interface code and QA the device. Although not supported by manufacturers, it is often possible to install a newer OS version into a ‘rooted’ device.

Android Version 9.0

In August 2018, version 9.0 «Pie» was released.

Areas that are new or improved include:

• Rounded corners across UI
• Optional gesture-based interface
• Large number of UI tweaks
• Android dashboard with app time limit controls

Android Version 8.0

In August 2017, version 8.0 «Oreo» was released.

Areas that are new or improved include:

• Picture-in-Picture support
• Adaptive Icons
• Notification Improvements
• Faster bootup
• Integrated printing support

Android Version 7.0

In August 2016, version 7.0 «Nougat» was released.

Areas that are new or improved include:

• Screen Zoom
• Virtual Reality Platform
• Multi-Window Support
• Improved updating with new system partition

Android Version 6.0

On October 2015, version 6.0 «Marshmallow» was released.

Areas that are new or improved include:

• Reduced battery consumption while in sleep
• Improved privacy controls
• Fingerprint support with fingerprint sensor equipped devices
• Easier transition from older devices

Android Version 5.1

In March 2015, version 5.1 was announced.

Areas that are new or improved include:

• Support for multiple SIM cards
• Device protection for lost or stolen device
• High definition phone calls
• Enhancements to join WiFi networks
• Control of paired Bluetooth devices

Android Version 5.0

In October 2014, version 5.0 was announced. This release uses the new code-name of Lollipop.

Areas that are new or improved include:

• Responsive UI with natural lighting and shadows
• Improved notifications, selective notifications and prioritzations
• Battery saver, estimated time when charging should be completed
• Encryption defaults on, and new smart-lock features
• Sharing for guests and access to contacts from other phones
• Improved Bluetooth operation
• Boosted performance including support for 64-bit CPUs
• OK Google voice tasks
• Android TV

Android Version 4.4

In September 2013, version 4.4 was announced. This release uses the new code-name of Kit Kat.

Areas that are new or improved include:

• Just say «Ok Google» to start voice operations
• When playing music or videos, lock screen shows related art
• Immersive mode hides everything except the active content
• Faster multitasking
• Priority contacts listing
• Hangouts places all messages in one place
• Printing

Android Version 4.3

In July 2013, version 4.3 was announced. This release retains the prior release’s code-name of Jelly Bean.

Areas that are new or improved include:

• Restricted profiles for tablets
• Improved Bluetooth power efficency
• Dial pad autocomplete
• Improved Right-to-Left language support
• Faster user switching from lock screen
• 4K Resolution support

Android Version 4.2

In October 2012, version 4.2 was announced. This release retains the prior release’s code-name of Jelly Bean.

UI changes and enhancements include:

• Multiple users for tablets

Other areas that are new or improved include:

• Photo Sphere to take 360 degree images
• Built-in keyboard gesture typing (like Swype)
• Daydream to display info while idle or docked
• Beam photos and vidoes

Android Version 4.1

In July 2012, version 4.1 was released. This release is code-named Jelly Bean.

UI changes and enhancements include:

• Improved touch response and transitions
• Expandable, actionable notifications
• Adaptive keyboard and guesses

Other areas that are new or improved include:

• Instant review of taken photos
• External braille input and output via USB
• Improved Voice search
• NFC based photo sharing
• USB audio
• Google Wallet

Android Version 4.0

In late October 2011, version 4.0 was released. This release is code-named Ice-Cream Sandwich. It merges the 3.x tab centric design and the v2.x phone based design into a single version.

Major UI changes and enhancements include:

• Refined UI
• Recent Apps selection
• Home folders and favorites tray
• Resizable Widgets
• Lock screen actions
• Quick Response for calls
• Network data control

Other areas that are new or improved include:

• Social network improvements
• Unified calendar
• Camera and Camcorder changes — face detection, image stabilization, snapshots while video recording, new gallery app with photo editor
• Browser can get full desktop versions of web sites
• Improved Email
• NFC based sharing
• Face Unlock
• WiFi-Direct support

Android Version 3.2

In July 2011, Android 3.2 was released. This release is also code-named Honeycomb (like versions 3.1 and 3.0). Enhancements over prior versions include:

• Further enhancements for Tablets
• Compatibility zoom for fixed-sized applications
• Direct application access to SD card file system
• Extended screen API for managing different screen sizes

Android Version 3.1

In June 2011, Android 3.1 was released. This release is also code-named Honeycomb (like version 3.0) and is targeted at devices with larger screens such as tablets. Enhancements include:

• UI refinements to navigation and animations
• USB devices and accessories supported, including mice, keyboards, digital cameras and more.
• Expanded recent apps list
• Resizeable Home screen widgets
• Support for joysticks and gamepads
• Improved Wi-Fi networking stability, including connection while the screen is off
• Updated set of standard apps, including browser, gallery calendar, contacts and email.
• Enterprise support features

Android Version 3.0

In February 2011, the 3.0 SDK was released. This release is code-named Honeycomb and is targeted at devices with larger screens such as tablets. Enhancements include:

• New UI optimized for tablets includes a new system bar, action bar, customizable home screens and recent apps list
• Redesigned keyboard for faster more accurate entry
• Improved text selection, copy and paste
• Synchronize media files via USB without mounting a USB mass-storage device
• Support for physical keyboards via Bluetooth or USB
• Bluetooth tethering allows more devices to share the network connection
• Updated applications for larger screens including browser, camera, gallery, contact and email
• Multi-core processor support
• High-performance 2D and 3D graphic support

Android Version 2.3

In December 2010 the 2.3 SDK was released. This release is code-named Gingerbread. There have also been a stream of minor updates and bug fixes to version 2.3 since it’s intial release, with the latest as version 2.3.7 in September 2011. Enhancements from the first 2.3 release include:

• UI refinements for simplicity and speed
• Faster, more intuitive text input on the virtual keyboard
• One-touch word selection and copy/paste
• Improved power management and power usage status
• Application status and ability to manually stop applications
• Internet phone calling
• Near-Field Communication (NFC) support to read NFC tags
• New download manager
• Multiple camera support (i.e. front and rear cameras)
• Support for barometer, gravity, gyroscope, linear acceleration and rotation vector sensors

Android Version 2.2

In May 2010 the 2.2 SDK was released. This release is code-named Froyo (for Frozen Yogurt). Enhancements include:

• Camera control improvements with more on-screen buttons
• Tethering with up to 8 WiFi hotspots or via USB connection
• Multi-lingual keyboard support allows quick language switching
• More performance improvements for faster app access and browser speedups
• Bluetooth improvements including voice dialing, contract sharing, support for bluetooth car and desk docks
• Numerous enhancements for Microsoft’s Exchange, such as remote wipe, calendar support, global address lists and improved security
• New home screen tips widget

Android Version 2.0 and 2.1

In October 2009, the 2.0 SDK was released, and updated in January 2010 with version 2.1. Few devices were released with v2.0, but v2.1 has been quite popular. These releases were both code-named Eclair. Enhancements include:

• Improved UI
• Contact and Account improvements and synchronization
• Email support for Exchange, supports multiple account aggregation
• More camera improvements including flash, digital zoom, white balance, scene modes and macro focus
• Improved virtual keyboard
• Browser improvements including key functions of HTML5
• Improved speed
• Improvements to Calendar and Google Maps
• Bluetooth 2.1 support and related Bluetooth features
• Live wallpapers

Android Version 1.6

The v1.6 Software Development Kit (SDK) was released in September 2009. This release was code-named Donut. Enhancements include:

• New camera, camcorder and photo gallery interfaces
• Improved voice search and search experience
• Support for higher screen resolutions
• Google turn-by-turn navigation
• Text to speech engine
• Multi-touch gesture support
• VPN (Virtual Private Network) support

Android Version 1.5

This was a major release that was first utilized by a number of manufacturers. It was made available in April 2009, and was code-named Cupcake by Google. Enhancements include:

• Camcorder support to record and watch videos
• Ability to easily upload images and videos to Picasa and YouTube
• A number of Bluetooth improvements
• Widgets and folders can now be placed on the home screen
• Animation on various screen transitions
• On-screen keyboard with text-prediction

Android Version 1.1

This minor update was the first release used in a commercial device, the T-mobile G1, in October 2008.

Android Version 1.0

This first release was made in September 2008, but was not used in any commercially available device.

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Android versions: A living history from 1.0 to 12

Explore Android’s ongoing evolution with this visual timeline of versions, starting B.C. (Before Cupcake) and going all the way to 2021’s Android 12 release.

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Contributing Editor, Computerworld |

Android Versions

What a long, strange trip it’s been.

From its inaugural release to today, Android has transformed visually, conceptually and functionally — time and time again. Google’s mobile operating system may have started out scrappy, but holy moly, has it ever evolved.

Here’s a fast-paced tour of Android version highlights from the platform’s birth to present. (Feel free to skip ahead if you just want to see what’s new in Android 11 or Android 12.)

Android versions 1.0 to 1.1: The early days

Android made its official public debut in 2008 with Android 1.0 — a release so ancient it didn’t even have a cute codename.

Things were pretty basic back then, but the software did include a suite of early Google apps like Gmail, Maps, Calendar, and YouTube, all of which were integrated into the operating system — a stark contrast to the more easily updatable standalone-app model employed today.

The Android 1.0 home screen and its rudimentary web browser (not yet called Chrome).

Android version 1.5: Cupcake

With early 2009’s Android 1.5 Cupcake release, the tradition of Android version names was born. Cupcake introduced numerous refinements to the Android interface, including the first on-screen keyboard — something that’d be necessary as phones moved away from the once-ubiquitous physical keyboard model.

Cupcake also brought about the framework for third-party app widgets, which would quickly turn into one of Android’s most distinguishing elements, and it provided the platform’s first-ever option for video recording.

Cupcake was all about the widgets.

Android version 1.6: Donut

Android 1.6, Donut, rolled into the world in the fall of 2009. Donut filled in some important holes in Android’s center, including the ability for the OS to operate on a variety of different screen sizes and resolutions — a factor that’d be critical in the years to come. It also added support for CDMA networks like Verizon, which would play a key role in Android’s imminent explosion.

Android’s universal search box made its first appearance in Android 1.6.

Android versions 2.0 to 2.1: Eclair

Keeping up the breakneck release pace of Android’s early years, Android 2.0, Eclair, emerged just six weeks after Donut; its «point-one» update, also called Eclair, came out a couple months later. Eclair was the first Android release to enter mainstream consciousness thanks to the original Motorola Droid phone and the massive Verizon-led marketing campaign surrounding it.

Verizon’s «iDon’t» ad for the Droid.

The release’s most transformative element was the addition of voice-guided turn-by-turn navigation and real-time traffic info — something previously unheard of (and still essentially unmatched) in the smartphone world. Navigation aside, Eclair brought live wallpapers to Android as well as the platform’s first speech-to-text function. And it made waves for injecting the once-iOS-exclusive pinch-to-zoom capability into Android — a move often seen as the spark that ignited Apple’s long-lasting «thermonuclear war» against Google.

The first versions of turn-by-turn navigation and speech-to-text, in Eclair.

Android version 2.2: Froyo

Just four months after Android 2.1 arrived, Google served up Android 2.2, Froyo, which revolved largely around under-the-hood performance improvements.

Froyo did deliver some important front-facing features, though, including the addition of the now-standard dock at the bottom of the home screen as well as the first incarnation of Voice Actions, which allowed you to perform basic functions like getting directions and making notes by tapping an icon and then speaking a command.

Google’s first real attempt at voice control, in Froyo.

Notably, Froyo also brought support for Flash to Android’s web browser — an option that was significant both because of the widespread use of Flash at the time and because of Apple’s adamant stance against supporting it on its own mobile devices. Apple would eventually win, of course, and Flash would become far less common. But back when it was still everywhere, being able to access the full web without any black holes was a genuine advantage only Android could offer.

Android version 2.3: Gingerbread

Android’s first true visual identity started coming into focus with 2010’s Gingerbread release. Bright green had long been the color of Android’s robot mascot, and with Gingerbread, it became an integral part of the operating system’s appearance. Black and green seeped all over the UI as Android started its slow march toward distinctive design.

JR Raphael / IDG

It was easy being green back in the Gingerbread days.

Android 3.0 to 3.2: Honeycomb

2011’s Honeycomb period was a weird time for Android. Android 3.0 came into the world as a tablet-only release to accompany the launch of the Motorola Xoom, and through the subsequent 3.1 and 3.2 updates, it remained a tablet-exclusive (and closed-source) entity.

Under the guidance of newly arrived design chief Matias Duarte, Honeycomb introduced a dramatically reimagined UI for Android. It had a space-like «holographic» design that traded the platform’s trademark green for blue and placed an emphasis on making the most of a tablet’s screen space.

Honeycomb: When Android got a case of the holographic blues.

While the concept of a tablet-specific interface didn’t last long, many of Honeycomb’s ideas laid the groundwork for the Android we know today. The software was the first to use on-screen buttons for Android’s main navigational commands; it marked the beginning of the end for the permanent overflow-menu button; and it introduced the concept of a card-like UI with its take on the Recent Apps list.

Android version 4.0: Ice Cream Sandwich

With Honeycomb acting as the bridge from old to new, Ice Cream Sandwich — also released in 2011 — served as the platform’s official entry into the era of modern design. The release refined the visual concepts introduced with Honeycomb and reunited tablets and phones with a single, unified UI vision.

ICS dropped much of Honeycomb’s «holographic» appearance but kept its use of blue as a system-wide highlight. And it carried over core system elements like on-screen buttons and a card-like appearance for app-switching.

JR Raphael / IDG

The ICS home screen and app-switching interface.

Android 4.0 also made swiping a more integral method of getting around the operating system, with the then-revolutionary-feeling ability to swipe away things like notifications and recent apps. And it started the slow process of bringing a standardized design framework — known as «Holo» — all throughout the OS and into Android’s app ecosystem.

Android versions 4.1 to 4.3: Jelly Bean

Spread across three impactful Android versions, 2012 and 2013’s Jelly Bean releases took ICS’s fresh foundation and made meaningful strides in fine-tuning and building upon it. The releases added plenty of poise and polish into the operating system and went a long way in making Android more inviting for the average user.

Visuals aside, Jelly Bean brought about our first taste of Google Now — the spectacular predictive-intelligence utility that’s sadly since devolved into a glorified news feed. It gave us expandable and interactive notifications, an expanded voice search system, and a more advanced system for displaying search results in general, with a focus on card-based results that attempted to answer questions directly.

Multiuser support also came into play, albeit on tablets only at this point, and an early version of Android’s Quick Settings panel made its first appearance. Jelly Bean ushered in a heavily hyped system for placing widgets on your lock screen, too — one that, like so many Android features over the years, quietly disappeared a couple years later.

JR Raphael / IDG

Jelly Bean’s Quick Settings panel and short-lived lock screen widget feature.

Android version 4.4: KitKat

Late-2013’s KitKat release marked the end of Android’s dark era, as the blacks of Gingerbread and the blues of Honeycomb finally made their way out of the operating system. Lighter backgrounds and more neutral highlights took their places, with a transparent status bar and white icons giving the OS a more contemporary appearance.

Android 4.4 also saw the first version of «OK, Google» support — but in KitKat, the hands-free activation prompt worked only when your screen was already on and you were either at your home screen or inside the Google app.

The release was Google’s first foray into claiming a full panel of the home screen for its services, too — at least, for users of its own Nexus phones and those who chose to download its first-ever standalone launcher.

JR Raphael / IDG

The lightened KitKat home screen and its dedicated Google Now panel.

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