Google has only just released Android 13, but of course the company is already hard at work getting Android 14 ready. According to the latest findings, it looks like the new release will make the AV1 codec mandatory for all devices. This new video encoding method is a lot more efficient than other systems and will help save bandwidth, all without losing out in the quality department. More than that, it appears that some devices launching with Android 14 will be forced to support 64-bit-only apps, finally spelling the end for 32-bit-only applications.
As Esper’s Mishaal Rahman shared in his excellent Android 14 preview, the new AV1 requirement is codified in the Android Open Source Project Gerrit. The entry reads, “As per android cdd 14, sec 2.2.2 and sec 2.6, Handheld and Tablet device implementations must support decoding AV1.” CDD here refers to the Android Compatibility Definition Document, which lists all the requirements devices have to meet in order to be certified for the update or release by Google. It looks like work on this document has started very early in the project this time around, as Mishaal Rahman already spotted a skeleton page for the next version of the compatibility definition.
Forcing all devices to support AV1 in Android 14 is a big deal and could reduce bandwidth requirements across different web services—notably, YouTube already uses AV1 to make certain resolutions more efficient to transfer while using less bandwidth.
There is another, potentially even more consequential change headed for devices launching with Android 14. Those that come with Armv9 CPUs will be forced to support 64-bit apps only. The latest processors are all bound to make this switch, with 2021’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 already based on Armv9 architecture. This same switch is already rumored for the Pixel Tablet, which is supposed to be launching with support for 64-bit only. It looks like Google is finally getting serious about sunsetting 32-bit applications, a step that Apple has already taken in 2017. Most modern apps are already updated to work on 64-bit architectures, so this change shouldn’t hurt users too much—in fact, 99% of apps on the Play Store are already updated. It might mean that a handful of older games or abandoned apps won’t work anymore, though.
With 2023 inching closer and thus, Android 14, we will probably learn many more things about the new release before it comes to us in the form of a beta, which is slated to come in April this time around.