You know how when you use your phone or tablet for long periods of time, it gets a little warm? Sometimes it even goes toasty — hi, Snapdragon 810! — and app performance suffers: you start seeing lags and stutters and things don't work as smoothly or as reliably as they should. That's because the system throttles the SoC when it risks reaching its limit temperature. This is the kind of performance issues that the new Sustained Performance Mode aims to solve.

There's a new 'Sustained Performance API' in the latest Android N Developer Preview 3. It works based on feedback provided by OEMs regarding each device and its performance for long-running apps. Developers can then call on this API to optimize some of their apps' windows and "tune [them] for a predictable, consistent level of device performance over long periods of time." The API is live on the Nexus 6P only (excuse the 5X in the hero image), but we're not yet sure if this means that it's never coming to other Nexus phones or if it's just being tested on the 6P for now.

The obvious implication for me are games, streaming apps, and navigation. These are the three scenarios where the screen is usually on for more than an hour at a time, the processor is churning, and depending on the case, even the connection and/or the GPS are alive and working. If developers can optimize their apps for long-term performance, this should really improve the user experience and cause less burnt fingers and overheated phones. I can't help but think that the Android Auto app should implement this as soon as it enables Auto mode on your phone. That'll be great.

Source: Android Developers