It appears the N4 is getting "L"

[bjacks12]

Android "L" Preview Source Code Going Live In AOSP, Includes Support For Nexus 4, 5, 7 (2012+2013), And 10


Google has put out AOSP source code for the "L" preview for all of the current Nexus devices.

Praise be to Duarte!

 

[SiempreTuna]

Excellent

The performance enhancement will be nice

I wonder if the battery saving stuff will work

 

[SlyFerret]

Wow, what an unexpected surprise!

It isn't often that something like this goes in the users favor!

-SF

 

[bjacks12]

I've been hearing that L is way better on battery life.

 

[D-U-R-X]

Awesome news!

 

[acejavelin]

I've been hearing that L is way better on battery life.

L is way better on battery... testers with the preview on the N5 have noted around a 30%-40% increase in battery life, we know this is partially do to ART and the demise of Dalvik, but it the preview is pretty bare-bones, so the battery savings could be somewhat inflated in an incomplete operating system.

 

[John Bean]

Surely the N5 already used ART - in which case the savings must be elsewhere.

 

[acejavelin]

Surely the N5 already used ART - in which case the savings must be elsewhere.

No, the N5 used Dalvik... All KitKat and prior Android versions did.

 

[John Bean]

No, the N5 used Dalvik... All KitKat and prior Android versions did.

Well I use ART on my unrooted N4 with stock KK...

I didn't say that Dalvik wasn't available on a N5 but I'd be surprised if any bleeding-edge tester of L used it when running KK, especially when comparing things like battery life.

 

[acejavelin]

Well I use ART on my unrooted N4 with stock KK...

I didn't say that Dalvik wasn't available on a N5 but I'd be surprised if any bleeding-edge tester of L used it when running KK, especially when comparing things like battery life.

I didn't say ART was the only thing increasing battery life, but don't take my word for it, here is the original article...

http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2014...ta-we-put-android-l-through-our-battery-test/

 

[bjacks12]

No, the N5 used Dalvik... All KitKat and prior Android versions did.

Funny, my stock N4 is running on ART and has been since November.

 

[acejavelin]

Funny, my stock N4 is running on ART and has been since November.

Geez... I never said it couldn't do it ART, the DEFAULT runtime on all current releases of Android is Dalvik, many KitKat versions have a early implementation of ART which is usable and stable but not the "official" runtime environment nor is it supported by Google or most app developers (yes, I know most apps are compatible anyway)... as en example, my LG G2 with stock 4.4.2 noticably has the runtime option missing from the developer menu, not because it is incompatible with the device, but because LG chose to leave it out for some reason.

 

[Rxpert83]

Geez... I never said it couldn't do it ART, the DEFAULT runtime on all current releases of Android is Dalvik, many KitKat versions have a early implementation of ART which is usable and stable but not the "official" runtime environment nor is it supported by Google or most app developers (yes, I know most apps are compatible anyway)... as en example, my LG G2 with stock 4.4.2 noticably has the runtime option missing from the developer menu, not because it is incompatible with the device, but because LG chose to leave it out for some reason.

Likely because including it would mean more support calls from people not understanding the preview in KitKat was very much a beta release. IE not for the average user.

I don't blame them honestly

 

[RozzaC]

Apparently it's almost daily driver-able now, thanks to the devs at XDA.

Tempted to give it a spin..

 

[Rxpert83]

Its worth a flash.

Although I will say L isn't really a daily driver even on the nexus 5, so if you want to flash it consider it a test run. If you stick with it, you'll be presently surprised then

I went back to 4.4.4 after a day

 

[antelifeUK]

Its worth a flash.

Although I will say L isn't really a daily driver even on the nexus 5, so if you want to flash it consider it a test run. If you stick with it, you'll be presently surprised then

I went back to 4.4.4 after a day

I have been using the XDA L version for almost 3 days now, and I can say that 3 days for me is a long time to stay on a ROM.

I am what people call a "flashaholic" , but this L version has cured me (at least for a while)

Apart from a few minor app incompatibilities, the latest Beta 3 is, in my opinion, a daily build.

 

[SiempreTuna]

Examining Project Volta: We put Android L through our battery test | Ars Technica

The article got a 36% improvement in their battery test using a 'beat up daily driver' - so probably comparable to my N4

Which would be great - just about compensate for gradual performance erosion of nearly 2 years of use

I'm also not sure the tests they ran would pick up many of the improvements they mention in the article. It talks about improvements to how many background tasks are managed in order to minimise the number of times the phone is woken up; optionally only performing some tasks on WiFi and not attempting network-related tasks when there's no network.

The tests the article ran wouldn't have picked up any benefit from these improvements as they were burn tests: keeping the phone awake and working constantly and measuring how long lasted.

I guess that means the improvements might be even better than 36%

 

[kdellea]

Art is simply an addition or modification of dalvik

 

[John Bean]

Art is simply an addition or modification of dalvik

Not really. In broad terms ART performs the same function as Dalvik but the way it achieves it is completely different.

 

[SiempreTuna]

I tried switching to ART but didn't notice any improvement in performance at all. Switched back. No worse. I guess 50% faster than fast enough don't really register

 

[RCG]

So, if in a couple of months, we have a Nexus 4 running Android L, what would be the reason to buy a Nexus 6?

Will there be things which won't work on the N4, or will it run too slowly, or what?

 

[MacFett]

what would be the reason to buy a Nexus 6?

Larger screen, better specs, hopefully more storage.

 

[John Bean]

So, if in a couple of months, we have a Nexus 4 running Android L, what would be the reason to buy a Nexus 6?

Will there be things which won't work on the N4, or will it run too slowly, or what?

Same reason people buy anything new when the "old" one works fine: because it's new. It's called "consumerism"

However, I may replace my Nexus 4 if and when we finally get 4G around here; the switch from 3G to 4G is a real benefit and a good enough reason to want something that supports it.

That said I doubt I'll but a Nexus 6 (if that's what it's eventually called) but instead buy a nice Nexus 5 at a knock down price after it is obsoleted by the Nexus 6

 

[bjacks12]

If the rumors are true about the screen size, I -MAY- upgrade to a Nexus 6. However, my Nexus 4 is still working great and I really don't want to drop another $350 on a phone as I've only had the 4 for a year. I'm looking into switching to T-Mobile and flashing the LTE modem on my phone. It would be nice to have LTE stock, but i just can't quite justify replacing a functional phone.

 

[RCG]

If the rumors are true about the screen size, I -MAY- upgrade to a Nexus 6. However, my Nexus 4 is still working great and I really don't want to drop another $350 on a phone as I've only had the 4 for a year. I'm looking into switching to T-Mobile and flashing the LTE modem on my phone. It would be nice to have LTE stock, but i just can't quite justify replacing a functional phone.

My concern is that it will be larger.

I really don't think I want a larger phone, but I am getting wound up about it.

I too, have only had my Nexus 4 for a year, and hate to get rid of it, just to have a newer phone.

But ... I can't imagine that Android L won't run better on an N6 than an N4, so here I sit, vacillating.