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takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

Google has released a preview of the next iteration of Android, "N", and it includes improved multitasking features [techcrunch.com]:

The expectation was that Google wouldn't start talking about Android N [g.co] until its I/O developer conference [google.com] in May. Instead, it decided on a very different approach.

Hiroshi Lockheimer [linkedin.com], Google's SVP for Android, Chrome OS and Chromecast, writes on Medium today [medium.com] (yep, Medium and not Blogspot) that the team decided it wanted to release the preview earlier in order to get more feedback from developers earlier in the process and get the final N release into the hands of device manufacturers this summer. Google's current plan [android.com] calls for five preview releases and a final release in Q3 2016.

[...] For the first time, Android will also offer a split-screen view [android.com]. Apps that support this will be able to run side-by-side with other apps on both tablets and phones (and developers can set the minimum allowable dimensions for their apps). Multi-windows support is something users have long asked for — especially on tablets. Google's own Pixel-C, for example, would make a far better productivity device with this feature. Besides a basic side-by-side mode, Android N will also offer a picture-in-picture mode so video apps can play in the corner on Android TV devices, for example.

Samsung [samsung.com] and other device makers have already included split screen modes in their customized versions of Android, and projects like Remix OS [arstechnica.com] have tried to make Android look and act more like a Windows/OS X/Linux desktop.

Android Marshmallow is installed on just 2.3% of Android devices [theregister.co.uk]. The slow pace of over-the-air updates may lead Google to compete more directly [theregister.co.uk] with smartphone manufacturers.

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