Google has recently announced the launch of Android 14 Beta 4, indicating that the stable version of the operating system could be available as early as August. This latest update comes after an extensive period of development and bug fixing, resulting in a more refined and polished build. Initially planned for release on July 5, the launch was slightly postponed due to the holiday.
However, it is now accessible for eligible Pixel devices, starting with the Pixel 4a (5G). Android 14 Beta 4, identified as UPB4.230623.005, encompasses the July security patches and has a file size of approximately 200MB, varying depending on the device. The release notes disclose a comprehensive list of bug fixes that address various system issues and enhance overall performance.
Bug Fixes and Improvements in Android 14 Beta 4
One of the resolved issues reported by developers involves problems with notifications and Quick Settings tiles that would not function until a device was restarted. Additionally, VoIP apps were experiencing a cessation of audio recording when the screen was locked or when the app was running in the background. Glitches with the display of the currently playing song when transitioning from always-on-display mode to the lock screen have also been rectified.
The update addresses a range of other issues, including resolving charging problems, fixing crashes of the Android System Intelligence service, resolving errors related to the CredentialManager registry, eliminating null pointer exceptions in the HealthConnect API, rectifying boot loops, addressing unresponsive elements in the system UI during mode switches, and resolving the unresponsiveness of the Picture-in-Picture (PiP) window when using certain apps and games in PiP mode and locking the smartphone screen.
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Furthermore, the update addresses issues with the lock screen wallpaper, poor UI animations in the launcher, incorrect intent picker dialog during work profile setup, improper display of rounded borders on notifications, unresponsiveness when eSIM was disabled, crashes caused by ConnectivityService, problems with the system volume slider, issues with TalkBack accessibility, fingerprint enrollment failures during device rotation, incorrect ranking of Bluetooth devices in the system audio output switcher, as well as various other stability and performance enhancements. The complete changelogs can be found on Google’s official website.
Notably, this Android 14 beta 4 release is now accessible for Pixel Fold and Pixel Tablet devices as well. Users have the opportunity to enroll in the beta program in order to receive prerelease updates. Based on past release patterns, it is likely that this will be the penultimate beta build before the stable release. Following a similar timeline to Android 13, where android 14 Beta 4 was launched in early July and the stable version was released in August, Google seems to be following a comparable trajectory this year. While the update is gradually rolling out, it may take some time before it reaches all users, depending on their device and carrier.