Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
TL; DR
- The first beta of Android 14 goes live today.
- Anyone with a Pixel phone made after the Pixel 4a 5G was included can install it.
- It’s safe enough to use as a daily driver, but you should still be careful.
Since early February, Android 14 has been released in what are known as developer previews. These early versions of the operating system are unstable and mostly designed for developers to use for application testing. Today, however, we’re moving away from the developer previews to the first beta.
You can install Android 14 first beta if you own a supported Pixel device. Supported Pixels are Pixel 4a 5G and everything launching after it (Pixel 5, Pixel 5a, Pixel 6/Pro, Pixel 6a, Pixel 7/Pro). Note that this list does not include the vanilla Pixel 4a (without 5G). If you don’t have a Pixel phone, chances are your phone will see beta support soon. While we don’t have direct confirmation from any OEMs yet, we do have a speculative list of possible Android 14 launch windows.
Supported Pixel owners, see our guide on installing Android 14 for setup help! Be warned that this is still beta software and may contain bugs and other issues. While going from stable Android 13 to Android 14 beta won’t require a factory reset, going back will be a must. In other words, don’t jump into the beta unless you’re absolutely sure this is where you want to be!
Android 14 beta: what’s new?
Overall, Android 14 won’t be a huge leap forward from Android 13. Since we’ve already seen two developer previews, this first beta is very similar. However, this is what we know so far.
One thing you’ll notice right away is the new back gesture animation. When you swipe inwards from the edges of your phone to start the “back” command, the icon will be more visible. It will also match the device’s theme with Material You, which is a subtle but cute touch.
Another change that you will undoubtedly notice is an updated share sheet. When you hit the Share icon inside an app, the first apps you’ll see will be more related to your own use. You may also notice new custom actions here because developers will eventually have this capability. Basically, sharing content from an app will get faster and more powerful in the future.
Unfortunately, some changes may not be welcome. One of the changes in Android 14 beta is a new feature that limits app connections to sensitive data from other apps in the name of accessibility. While this sounds good on paper — it will protect your sensitive data from nefarious apps trying to take advantage of accessibility services — it may also break some apps that use these features with the user’s permission. Google says this won’t affect trusted apps like TalkBack, but we don’t know which other apps Google trusts. In other words, as this beta progresses, we’ll get a better idea of whether this is good news or bad news.
Finally, Android will have more graphics capabilities. This will include things like transformation effects. It will be interesting to see how app developers use this to their advantage!