1 page.title=Program Overview
2 page.metaDescription=Welcome to the Android M Developer Preview, a program that gives you everything you need to test and optimize your apps for the next version of Android.
3 page.image=images/cards/card-preview_16-9_2x.png
4 page.tags="preview", "developer", "android"
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11 Developer Preview 3 is now available
13 <p>Includes final SDK and near-final system images</p>
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29 <a href="https://code.google.com/p/android-developer-preview/">
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38 Welcome to the <strong>Android M Developer Preview</strong>, a program that gives you
39 everything you need to test and optimize your apps for the next version of
40 Android. It's free, and you can get started right away just by downloading
41 the M Developer Preview tools.
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49 Hardware and emulator system images
53 Run and test your apps on Nexus 5, 6, 9, and Player (for TV), as well
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64 We’ll provide multiple updates during the Preview, so you’ll be testing
65 against the latest platform changes.
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71 Updates delivered by OTA
75 You can get updates over-the-air, once you’ve flashed a
76 device to the initial preview.
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86 New behaviors and capabilities
90 Start work early to support new platform behaviors such as
91 the new runtime permissions model and power-saving features.
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97 Priority window for developer-reported issues
101 During the first several weeks we’ll give priority to developer-reported
102 issues, so test and give feedback as soon as possible.
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112 Report issues and give us feedback using our <a href=
113 "https://code.google.com/p/android-developer-preview/">issue tracker</a>.
114 Connect with other developers in the <a
115 href="http://g.co/dev/AndroidMDevPreview">M Developer Community</a>.
125 With the M Developer Preview, you'll get an early start on testing your apps,
126 with enough time to make adjustments before the public platform release later
127 in the year. We'll provide several updates to the Preview tools in the weeks
128 ahead, so you can keep in sync with the latest changes as the platform moves
131 <img src="{@docRoot}preview/images/m-preview-timeline.png" alt=
132 "Preview program timeline" id="timeline">
134 You can help us improve the platform by <a href=
135 "https://code.google.com/p/android-developer-preview/">reporting issues</a>
136 through our feedback channels. This is especially
137 critical in the first month of the preview, when we’ll be giving priority to
138 developer-reported issues and feedback.
145 <img src="{@docRoot}preview/images/m-preview-timeline-crop.png" alt=
146 "Preview program timeline" id="timeline">
148 The M Developer Preview runs from May 28 until the final Android M public release planned for Q3
153 At key development milestones, we’ll deliver updates for your test devices.
159 <strong><a href="{@docRoot}preview/download_mp1.html">Preview 1</a></strong> (available).
163 <strong><a href="{@docRoot}preview/download_mp2.html">Preview 2</a></strong> (available).
167 <strong><a href="{@docRoot}preview/download.html">Preview 3</a></strong>
168 (final APIs and official Android 6.0 SDK, available).
173 These updates culminate in the <strong>official Android 6.0 SDK</strong> (now available),
174 which lets you build with the final APIs for the new version of Android, as well as
175 near-final system images to let you test system behaviors and features.
179 As you test and develop on Android M, we strongly recommend <strong>keeping
180 your development environment up-to-date</strong> as Preview updates are released.
181 To make the process easier, we'll deliver <strong>updates over-the-air
182 (OTA)</strong> to devices already flashed to a Preview build, as well as
183 providing system images that you can download and flash manually.
186 <strong>Note:</strong> Developer Preview 3 includes final APIs and near-final
187 system images available by both download and OTA. At the full public release of
188 Android M later in Q3, final system images will be available by download only,
189 so you'll need to <strong>flash manually</strong> to
190 your test devices.</strong>
194 We’ll notify you when Preview updates are available via the <a href=
195 "http://android-developers.blogspot.com/">Android Developers Blog</a>, as
196 well as this site and the
197 <a href="http://g.co/dev/AndroidMDevPreview">Android M Developer Community</a>.
200 <h2 id="preview_tools">
201 What’s in the Preview?
205 The M Developer Preview includes everything you need to test your existing
206 apps on a variety of screen sizes, network technologies, CPU/GPU chipsets,
207 and hardware architectures.
215 You can download these components through the SDK Manager in <a href=
216 "{@docRoot}sdk/installing/adding-packages.html">Android Studio</a>:
220 <li><strong>Official Android 6.0 SDK and tools</strong>
223 <li>M Developer Preview <strong>emulator system image</strong> (32-bit &
227 <li>M Developer Preview <strong>emulator system Image for Android TV</strong>
233 Hardware system images
237 You can download these hardware system images for Nexus devices from the
238 <a href="download.html">Downloads page</a>:
243 <strong>Nexus 5</strong> (GSM/LTE) “hammerhead” device system image
247 <strong>Nexus 6</strong> “shamu” device system image
251 <strong>Nexus 9</strong> (Wi-Fi) “volantis” device system image
255 <strong>Nexus Player</strong> (Android TV) “fugu” device system image
260 Documentation and sample code
264 These documentation resources help you learn about the Preview:
269 <a href="setup-sdk.html">Set Up the SDK</a> has step-by-step instructions
274 <a href="{@docRoot}preview/testing/guide.html">Testing Guide</a> and <a href=
275 "behavior-changes.html">Behavior Changes</a> point you to key areas to test.
278 <li>Documentation of new APIs, including an <a href="api-overview.html">API Overview</a>,
279 downloadable <a href="{@docRoot}preview/download.html#docs">API Reference</a>, and detailed developer guides on
281 <a href="{@docRoot}preview/features/runtime-permissions.html">permissions</a>,
282 <a href="{@docRoot}preview/backup/index.html">app backup</a>, and others.
286 <a href="{@docRoot}preview/samples.html">Sample code</a> that demonstrates how to support
287 permissions and other new features.
291 <a href="{@docRoot}preview/support.html#release-notes">Release notes</a> for the current version
292 of the M Developer Preview, including change notes and diff reports.
301 Use these support resources as you test and develop on the M
306 <li><a href="https://code.google.com/p/android-developer-preview/">M
307 Developer Preview Issue Tracker</a> is your <strong>primary feedback
308 channel.</strong> You can report bugs, performance issues, and general
309 feedback through the issue tracker. You can also check for <a
310 href="https://code.google.com/p/android-developer-preview/wiki/KnownIssues">known issues</a>
311 and find workaround steps.
314 <li>The <a href="http://g.co/dev/AndroidMDevPreview">Android M Developer
315 Community</a> is a Google+ community where you can <strong>connect with
316 other developers</strong> working with Android M. You can share
317 observations or ideas or find answers to questions about Android M.
322 <h2 id="preview_apis_and_publishing">
323 Final SDK, targeting, and publishing
327 <p>With Developer Preview 3, the platform APIs are now official (API level 23) and the
328 <strong>official Android 6.0 SDK is now available</strong>. We recommend updating your environment
329 right away through Android Studio. Once you've updated your environment, you can target
330 the new API level, compile against the new platform, and publish at your convenience
331 to Google Play (including alpha, beta, or release channels).
333 <p>If you want to opt out
334 of compatibility behaviors (which is strongly recommended),
335 you can target the Android 6.0 platform by setting your app's <code><a href=
336 "/guide/topics/manifest/uses-sdk-element.html">targetSdkVersion</a></code>
337 to <code>“23”</code>.
340 <p>Before releasing an app that targets API level 23, we strongly
341 recommend distributing it to a group of testers through the new <a
342 href="http://android-developers.blogspot.com/2015/07/iterate-faster-on-google-play-with.html">
343 beta testing features available in the Google Play Developer Console. See the
344 <a href="https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/3131213">Help
345 Center article</a> for more information.
348 <h2 id="get_started">
353 To get started testing your app with Android M:
357 <li>Review the <a href="{@docRoot}preview/api-overview.html">API Overview</a>
358 and <a href="{@docRoot}preview/behavior-changes.html">Behavior Changes</a> to get an
359 idea of what's new and how it affects your apps. In particular, learn about
360 the new <a href="{@docRoot}preview/features/runtime-permissions.html">runtime
361 permissions</a> model, power-saving features, and auto backup.
364 <li>Set up your environment by following the instructions for
365 <a href="{@docRoot}preview/setup-sdk.html">Setting up the Preview SDK</a>
366 and configuring test devices.
369 <li>Follow the <a href="https://developers.google.com/android/nexus/images">
370 flashing instructions</a> to flash the latest M developer preview system image
371 for Nexus 5, 6, 9, and Player. Once you've flashed your development device,
372 Preview updates will be delivered through over-the-air (OTA) updates.</a>
375 <li>Review the <a href="{@docRoot}reference/packages.html">API
376 Reference</a> and <a href="{@docRoot}preview/samples.html">M Preview
377 samples</a> to gain more insight into new API features and how to use them in
381 <li>Join the <a href="http://g.co/dev/AndroidMDevPreview">Android M
382 Developer Community</a> to get the latest news and connect with other
383 developers working with the new platform.
388 Thank you for your participation in the Android M Developer Preview program!