For many developers, apps aren't just about the platform they run on, but also integration with cloud services that transport notifications, data, crash reports, ads, and more. The breadth of services and features offered by Firebase ensured many developers would consider it a must-have in their apps, even if only for Crashlytics. With the fourth annual Firebase Summit in Madrid, several new announcements expand the product line even further with products and services that can make development even easier and more effective.
Read MoreAndroid 10 source code is now available on AOSP
While many people are enjoying — or lamenting — the upgrade to Android 10, there are some out there that are just as interested in the final source code. With each major release of Android, a huge code drop is made to the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) with everything a developer needs to build the latest version of the OS. As of this morning, the code is now fully available and ready for consumption.
Read MoreFlutter technical demo for web released, expanding Google's dream of cross-platform UI development
Most developers should be familiar with Google's cross-platform, portable UI framework Flutter, which can make developing apps for both Android and iOS a whole lot easier. In fact, it just recently hit 1.0 late last year. Today, at the company's I/O developer conference, Google has announced a technical preview for the Flutter's next logical step: the web.
Read MoreGoogle Search and Assistant are getting new instructional chops and deeper app/service integration
As part of the Google I/O brouhaha, Google is announcing a handful of changes related to Search and the Assistant, all of which should help you get to the information you need faster — albeit in slightly different ways. First, Search will soon support a so-called "HowTo" markup schema for web developers and video makers, which will allow for their content to appear as results in related how-to queries. Second, Google is expanding App Actions to more deeply integrate a few new types of services including health, finance, and ride-sharing into the Assistant.
Read MoreGoogle's rolling out the red carpet for Android Automotive developers at I/O
There are a lot of things a software platform needs to succeed, and developer interest is one of the most integral pieces of the puzzle. To help Google's plans for Android Automotive — which brings a full Android OS to cars — the company is gearing up to help interested developers get started at this year's I/O conference.
Read MoreGoogle creates dedicated site for Android game development
Games make up a good chunk of Android's software library, so it only makes sense that Google would have some developer documentation just for games. Ahead of the 2019 Game Developer Conference, which starts in just a few days, Google has created a new portal for topics related to making games on Android.
Read MoreAndroid Q steps up the fight against overlay-based malware
One of the bigger developer-facing changes we've spotted in Android Q is a mild deprecation of the SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW permission which controls overlays. (Think Facebook's chat heads or those Pokémon Go stats apps and you should get the idea.) Sideloaded apps on Android Q will see that permission revoked after 30 seconds, Play Store apps on Q will see it revoked on reboot, and the permission is being taken away entirely on the "Go" version of Android Q.
Read MoreAndroid Q includes some ART-related performance gains, developers can expect faster app launches and improved garbage collection
Android Q won't just bring new features, it's also set to further improve on the performance of previous Android releases via some tweaks to its ART compiler. In addition to detailing some recent benefits made to app distribution — which current devices running Android P will benefit from — Google also detailed some more technical changes to how ART improves app performance in Android Q.
Read MoreThe Best Of AP
Android Studio 3.3 includes official Navigation Editor support and more than 200 bug fixes
If you're a developer of Android apps, there's a good chance you use Google's purpose-built Android Studio environment. The last update to version 3.2 came with one headline feature — App Bundles — plus a few incremental improvements, and now 3.3 has arrived.
Read MoreGoogle announces Flutter 1.0, the first stable release of its cross-platform mobile development toolkit
Yesterday, at a dev-focused event at the Science Museum in London, UK, Google announced the 1.0 release of its cross-platform portable UI toolkit. Flutter has been in development since in 2015 with several betas being going out in the last year and a preview release this summer. It will allow developers to build apps that seamlessly work on both Android and iOS without maintaining separate codebases.
Read MoreLatest Deals
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Keep a lookout with the Arlo Ultra camera system for $363 ($37 off)
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14 temporarily free and 17 on-sale apps and games for Wednesday
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[Update: More retailers] The Lenovo Smart Clock is already $60 ($20 off) from Walmart
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[Update: Best Buy, B&H too] Amazon purchases of the Pixel 4 will come with a $100 gift card
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18 new Android games from the week of October 7, 2019: DIGIMON ReArise, Lovecraft's Untold Stories, and Xenowerk Tactics
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19 new Android games from the week of September 30, 2019: Call of Duty: Mobile, League of Wonderland, and Takoway
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19 best new Android games from the week of September 23, 2019: Mario Kart Tour, Lock's Quest, and Vestigium
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4 Years Ago Today
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