Google says Android 11 won’t show lockscreen album art

Android 11 contains a fair few changes in how media playback is handled across the user experience. The first Developer Preview tested off the controversial move of shifting the music player notification up to the Quick Settings panel. Beta 1 made the feature accessible, while Beta 2 enables it by default. Then there are Media Controls that make it easy to switch the output device for audio and video, even letting the phone remember up to 5 previous media sessions across reboots. Now, information has surfaced that Google maybe including another change in Android 11, removing the ability to see album art previewed across the whole lockscreen.

Whenever you have music playing on your device on previous versions of Android, the album art from the music is stretched across the lockscreen. Android 10 even applied a slight blur effect to the artwork. So throughout your playlist, you would have different album artworks displayed across your lockscreen. This was a small and temporary, yet refreshing change to the UX, one that went back to displaying your set wallpaper once you stop music playback.

As it turns out, Google has decided to remove the ability to show album art on the lockscreen on Android R / Android 11, as confirmed on the Google Issue Tracker.

“We no longer show album art on the lock screen in R. comment #1 : Has been fixed on our internal build (which is ahead of the public release) & will be available in future.”

Users were initially pointing out how the lockscreen album art disappears if face unlock is enabled, presuming a bug. However, the bug is the appearance in the first place, as Google no longer intends to have the album art showing up across the lockscreen on Android 11. Why? We don’t really know, as no real reason or explanation has been provided for this move.

Android 11 News on XDA

As the comment mentions, the issue has been “fixed” in the internal Android 11 releases. So with the stable rollout of Android 11, expected around September 8, 2020, we will no longer have this temporary spruce up in lockscreen visuals.

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Source: Google Issue Tracker
Story Via: /r/AndroidApps

Thanks to XDA Senior Member AndroidDeveloperLB for the tip!

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HDC 2020 starts September 10th, EMUI 11 based on Android 11 and Harmony OS 2.0 expected

Huawei holds several events throughout the year, covering a wide spectrum of topics across its entire ecosystem of products. One of its key events is the annual Huawei Developer Conference, or HDC, which sees wide participation across the industry, and attendance from Chinese as well as international guests. Since COVID-19 has made international travel difficult, this year’s HDC is expected to rely much more on online presence rather than on-site presence. Now, Huawei has announced that HDC 2020 will be held from September 10, 2020, to September 12, 2020.

#HDC2020 is coming… it’s time to experience a fully connected, intelligent world.
Want in? Save the Date now: 10-12 September 2020.#Huawei pic.twitter.com/OMc6k13aQC

— Huawei Mobile (@HuaweiMobile) August 2, 2020

This year’s event will be held at Songshan Lake in Dongguan, China, where Huawei has an office, but we expect ready livestreaming facilities for all major events. The first day will host the keynote speech, after which we expect several presentations and activities over the course of three days. A lot of these presentations will be developer-focused, as is the theme of the event, but we do expect to hear more about Huawei’s upcoming strategies and consumer-facing products.

For instance, HDC 2019 was the first event where Harmony OS was first shown off, and for HDC 2020, we are expecting Harmony OS 2.0 to make an appearance. Further, we also expect EMUI 11 based on Android 11 to be shown off, continuing the tradition of showcasing beta builds of the upcoming UX upgrade at the event, as they did for EMUI 10. Other items on the agenda should be HMS Core and its new Kits, 5G, AI, and other changes to the Huawei ecosystem. The main keynote will be followed by different tech sessions where developers can expect to hear more from industry leaders, as well as codelabs for live sessions involving coding and programming.

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OnePlus will unveil its Android 11-based HydrogenOS 11 software on August 10th

The OnePlus One is remembered for a lot of firsts for the company as well as for the industry. Surprisingly, the OnePlus One did not ship with OnePlus’s own software but shipped with CyanogenOS, and that was actually one of the reasons why the tech enthusiasts circles first noticed the device. But a while after the launch of the phone, OnePlus parted ways with Cyanogen and began working on its own software solutions — OxygenOS and HydrogenOS. From 2015 to 2020, OnePlus has grown tremendously as a company, and now, the Chinese OEM is preparing to unveil HydrogenOS 11 based on Android 11 on August 10, 2020.

OnePlus One Hydrogen OS: First Impressions

OxygenOS and HydrogenOS are software “skins” and user experiences from OnePlus, both of which trace their roots back to the early years of the company. While OxygenOS served the needs of international users, HydrogenOS served the needs of users in China, with features and UI that appeases that set of audience. Initially, the ROMs sported very different looks and several different features. But after more than a year of separate existence, OnePlus had decided to merge the codebase for OxygenOS and HydrogenOS with a view of providing quick software updates to its user base.

Download the new Hydrogen Icon Pack from the OnePlus 8

In essence, OnePlus has more or less merged the software experience on its devices across regions. HydrogenOS still exists for the Chinese region, but apart from a few China-specific features, it is very similar to the global software. These features are not unlike the India-specific features that we see from the company.

All Android 11 News on XDA

With HydrogenOS 11 and Android 11 officially making an appearance on August 11, we can take a look at some of the changes that OnePlus has in store for its software. While the teaser does not explicitly mention so, we expect the first public releases to be within the Open Beta tracks, so users looking for a stable experience on day 1 should probably keep their expectations grounded. Since Android 11 has largely been available for Snapdragon 865-based flagships (with some rare exceptions), we also wouldn’t be too surprised if the initial releases remain restricted to the company’s flagships, OnePlus 8 and OnePlus 8 Pro. As far as expected features are concerned, we are expecting a redesign of the Weather app, but we are also hoping for an Always-On Display implementation as well as has long been promised. We also expect most of the features to migrate over onto OxygenOS as well.

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Source: OnePlus Weibo

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Samsung Galaxy Note 20 series expected to support Ultra-wide band technology for precise, indoor positioning

The Samsung Galaxy Note 20 series will pick up the crown from the Samsung Galaxy S20 series as the flagship series from the South Korean company, showing off the best of consumer-centric technologies that the company has to offer. We already have a fair idea of what to expect from the Galaxy Note 20 and the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, and the phones are right around the corner, but it seems that one key highlight feature has seemingly flown under the radar so far. The Galaxy Note 20 series is expected to come with Ultra-Wide Band technology for precise, indoor positioning.

As pointed out by a tweet from Twitter user @SaudiAndroid, Samsung will be launching a technology called UWP (though this could be a spelling error and it is likely to be called UWB) that will allow users on the new Galaxy Note 20 phones to transfer files at very high speed. We spotted several certification reports that corroborate the testing of Ultra-Wide Band technology by Samsung, indicating usage at 8250MHz.

According to XDA’s own Max Weinbach, the Ultra-Wide Band chip on the Galaxy Note 20 series could possibly be used for faster device-to-device connections and consequent file transfers. Possibly, you would be able to point the Note 20 at another Note 20 (or other future Samsung phones with the UWB chip) to prioritize connecting to that particular device, taking advantage of the precise, indoor positioning features enabled by the technology.

Samsung Galaxy Note 20 XDA Forums

This feature would be similar to what Apple promises with Ultra-Wide Band on the iPhone 11:

The new Apple‑designed U1 chip uses Ultra-Wide band technology for spatial awareness — allowing iPhone 11 to understand its precise location relative to other nearby U1‑equipped Apple devices. Think GPS at the scale of your living room. So if you want to share a file with someone using AirDrop, just point your iPhone at theirs and they’ll be first on the list.

We are unable to conclusively ascertain whether the feature will be made available to both, the Galaxy Note 20 and the Note 20 Ultra, or whether it will remain restricted to the top tier flagship only. For the technology to take off, it would make sense for Samsung to expand it to as many phones as possible within its lineup. We expect Samsung to reveal more during Samsung Unpacked.

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Source: FCCID (1, 2)
Story Via: @SaudiAndroid

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MediaTek’s 5G Dimensity chips will finally start shipping on smartphones outside of China later this year

MediaTek has enjoyed great success in the budget and mid-range SoC segments over the years. However, the company has struggled to replicate a similar success story in the upper mid-range and flagship space, where it loses out to Qualcomm. At one point, the company even decided to give up on the high-end segment altogether and centered its efforts solely on the entry-level chipsets, only to make a comeback a year later under new branding, Dimensity. The MediaTek Dimensity 1000 was the first SoC in the new lineup, featuring the latest ARM Cortex-A77 cores, Mali-G77 GPU, and 5G modem. However, so far, devices with the MediaTek Dimensity 1000 have curiously been restricted to China, but that could change soon.

The company went on to launch a few more chipsets under the new brand, including the mid-range Dimensity 800, Dimensity 820, Dimensity 1000+, and Dimensity 720, which was unveiled just last week.

As impressive as these chipsets might sound on paper, we have yet to see a device with a Dimensity chipset launch internationally. Every single smartphone that launched with the MediaTek Dimensity SoC so far has been limited to the Chinese market only.  But that might soon change as the company has now officially confirmed its plans to bring the Dimensity chipsets to more markets outside China.

During MediaTek’s Q2 2020 earning call, the company made the following remarks to give us an idea as to when we can expect devices featuring Dimensity SoCs to hit the international markets:

“Very importantly, our 5G smartphone shipment to regions beyond Mainland China will start in the third quarter.”

MediaTek didn’t reveal much info beyond just stating that shipments of chipsets will begin in Q3 2020. It remains unclear which OEMs will be among the first to bring smartphones powered by Dimensity SoC to the global markets.

The current list of smartphones with Dimensity SoC includes the iQOO Z1 (Dimensity 1000+), Oppo Reno3 5G (Dimensity 1000L), Redmi 10X series (Dimensity 820), ZTE Axon 11 SE, Honor Play 4 series, and Honor X10 Max (Dimensity 800).

The flagship SoC space is in a desperate need for a competitive, alternative option, and it looks like MediaTek’s Dimensity lineup might just be the answer we are looking for. It remains to be seen whether MediaTek will be able to leverage its new branding to gain a foothold against Qualcomm and, more importantly, deliver performance and efficiency that closely rival the Snapdragon’s 7xx and 8xx series of chipsets.

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Source: Seeking Alpha
Story Via: @bryanbma

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[Update: 4 New Devices] Paranoid Android Quartz 4 brings new features, adds support for Mi A2, Redmi K20, and more

Update 1 (08/03/2020 @ 01:22 AM ET): Paranoid Android Quartz 4 based on Android 10 is now available for the Xiaomi Mi 9, Mi 9T/Redmi K20, Xiaomi Redmi 5 and Xiaomi Redmi 7/Y3. Scroll to the bottom for more information. The article as published on July 21, 2020, is preserved below.

The team behind the popular Paranoid Android custom ROM released the first stable Android 10-based build earlier this year in April. Since then, the team has rolled out two more stable releases with new features and support for more popular devices. With the Quartz 3 release last month, the team added support for a couple of Xiaomi devices and revealed that they were working to extend support for a few more popular phones, like the Google Nexus 6P, Xiaomi Mi A2, Redmi Note 7, and more. Now, the team has started rolling out Paranoid Android Quartz 4, which brings support for a few of these devices and adds a couple of noteworthy features to the ROM.

As per a recent post on the team’s blog, Paranoid Android Quartz 4 is now rolling out for all supported devices and it includes these improvements and features:

• July security patchset.
• App Locker (system wide).
• Swipe to Face Unlock on lockscreen.
• Internal audio screenrecord support.
• Full gestural navigation mode support.
• Unlink ringtone and notification volumes.
• Volume panel version 1.1.
• Heads Up tile.
• USAP support.
• Support for FOD dim only icon (OnePlus).
• Longpress power button to enable torch.
• Statusbar icons manager.
• Fixed AAC codec support for all devices.

Along with the aforementioned features, the Paranoid Android Quartz 4 build also includes a few device-specific changes that can be found on the second post of the respective device threads on our forums (linked below). As mentioned earlier, the build also brings support for the following devices:

• Samsung Galaxy Note 3 (HLTE/CHN/KOR/TMO)
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
• Xiaomi Mi 8 Pro
• Xiaomi Mi 9T/Redmi K20
• Xiaomi Mi A2

The team is working to add support for the following devices as well, builds for which will be released in the next few days:

• Google Nexus 6P
• OnePlus 7 and 7T
• Xiaomi Redmi 7/Y3

Download Paranoid Android Quartz 4

If you’re interested in trying out Paranoid Android Quartz 4 on your device, you can head over to the respective XDA forum thread (linked below) and follow the instructions in the post to get started:

• ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M2 (XDA Forums)
• ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1 (XDA Forums)
• Essential Phone (XDA Forums)
• OnePlus 7 Pro (XDA Forums)
• OnePlus 6 (XDA Forums) and 6T (XDA Forums)
• OnePlus 3 and 3T (XDA Forums: 3, 3T)
• OnePlus 5 and 5T (XDA Forums: 5, 5T)
• OnePlus 7T Pro (XDA Forums)
• Xiaomi Redmi 5 (XDA Forums)
• Xiaomi Mi 8 (XDA Forums)
• Xiaomi Mi 9T Pro/Redmi K20 Pro (XDA Forums)
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 (XDA Forums)
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S (XDA Forums)
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 8/8T (XDA Forums)
• Xiaomi Redmi 3s (XDA Forums)
• Xiaomi Redmi 4A (XDA Forums)
• Xiaomi Redmi 6 Pro (XDA Forums)
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 and Note 5 Pro (XDA Forums: Note 5, Note 5 Pro)
• Xiaomi Mi A2 (XDA Forums)
• Xiaomi Mi 8 Pro (XDA Forums)
• Pocophone F1 (XDA Forums)
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3 (XDA Forums)

Note: Builds for a few new and previously supported devices had not rolled out at the time of writing. We will update the post as soon as the respective forum posts go live.

All the aforementioned builds already have Google apps included, so you don’t need to flash a separate ZIP file to get the Google Play Store. However, if you’re a Galaxy Note 3 user, you will have to flash a separate Gapps package to get Google apps on your device. In case you already have the Paranoid Android Quartz 3 build running on your device, you should automatically receive the Quartz 4 OTA in the next few days.

The Paranoid Android team is currently working to extend support to a few more devices, including:

• OnePlus One
• Sony Xperia XZ2 and XZ2 Dual
• Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact and XZ2 Compact Dual
• Sony Xperia XZ3 and XZ3 Dual
• Xiaomi Mi A3
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 3

If you’re interested in helping the team with development, you can reach out to herna@paranoidandroid.co. In case you want to stay up-to-date on news about the custom ROM and new releases, you should consider following them on Twitter.

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Update: Paranoid Android Quartz 4 based on Android 10 is now available for the Xiaomi Mi 9, Mi 9T/Redmi K20, Xiaomi Redmi 5 and Xiaomi Redmi 7/Y3

Over the weekend, Paranoid Android has added in support for four new devices:

• Xiaomi Mi 9 (XDA Forums)
• Xiaomi Mi 9T / Redmi K20 (XDA Forums)
• Redmi 5 (XDA Forums)
• Redmi 7/Y3 (XDA Forums)

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[Update: Full Removal in 2021] Microsoft is killing its dedicated Cortana voice assistant app for Android and iOS

Update 1 (08/02/2020 @ 04:09 PM ET): Microsoft has announced that they are fully shutting down the dedicated Cortana app on iOS, Android, and more platforms in 2021. Scroll to the bottom for more information. The article as published on November 17, 2020, is preserved below.

Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa are by far the two biggest voice assistant platforms, but there are plenty of other options out there, including Apple’s Siri, Samsung’s Bixby, and Microsoft’s Cortana. Cortana used to be limited to Microsoft’s Windows 10 operating system and Microsoft’s ecosystem in general, but back in late 2015, the company released apps on iOS and Android to try to catch up with the big two. It looks like Microsoft has decided there’s no longer any point in offering a dedicated Cortana mobile app, however, as they’ve decided to discontinue the app in most markets early next year.

Microsoft has confirmed (via The Verge) they will pull support for Cortana on third-party platforms like Android and iOS on January 31st, 2020, as part of a series of changes to Cortana-related services. After this date, the app will disappear from app stores in the UK, Australia, Germany, Mexico, China, Spain, Canada, and India. Although the app will continue to work for users in the US for an undetermined amount of time after January 31st, 2020, Microsoft will no longer support the app after this date. Furthermore, an update to the Microsoft Launcher app on Android—which also had Cortana integration—will remove Cortana. Microsoft says they aren’t planning on completely killing Cortana, however, as it will be integrated with the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity apps (such as Outlook). and Windows 10 will still keep it as its voice assistant.

If you use Cortana for syncing things like reminders and lists with your Windows 10 PC, you’ll still be able to do so with the Microsoft To Do app which is available for free on Google Play. Else, most of your voice assistant needs can probably be fulfilled by Google Assistant, a platform that Google is completely committed to and keeps updating to get smarter by the day.

Microsoft To Do: List, Task & Reminder (Free, Google Play) →

Microsoft Cortana – Digital assistant (Free, Google Play) →

Update 1: Fully Shutting Down in 2021

Back in November, Microsoft announced they were pulling the dedicated Cortana app for Android and iOS from app stores in the UK, Australia, Germany, Mexico, China, Spain, Canada, and India. As promised, the apps were pulled from app stores in these regions on January 31st, 2020. However, the app remained accessible on iOS and Android app stores in the U.S., where it can still be downloaded to this day.

Microsoft has now announced (via The Verge) that it will shut down the current iOS and Android apps for Cortana in 2021. In addition, the company will end support for the Harman Kardon Invoke smart speaker and remove Cortana functionality from the first-generation Surface Headphones. As compensation, Microsoft is offering gift cards to owners of the Harman Kardon Invoke and first-generation Surface Headphones. More details on this program can be found here and here. Meanwhile, third-party Cortana skills will be sunset later this year on September 7, 2020, as previously announced.

Microsoft says it is focusing on improving its Microsoft 365 subscription service, but the company notes that Cortana will still be accessible in the various apps and services where it’s already integrated. For example, the virtual assistant will remain in Windows 10, Outlook mobile, and will be coming to the Teams mobile app.

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