Android

Android 8.1 Developer Preview 2 Gets Better With Pixel Visual Core Processor

Google has started to push Android 8.1 Developer Preview 2 for Pixel and Nexus smartphones. The main attraction of the latest preview is the addition of Pixel Visual Core processor. According to sources, the final stable version of Android 8.1 Oreo will be made available to all the compatible devices by the end of December 2017. The list of devices consists of Pixel, Pixel XL, Pixel 2, Pixel 2 XL, Pixel C, Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P.

The addition of Pixel Visual Core processor will help to boost the image signal processing on the smartphone. During the launch of pixel 2 series, Google had disclosed that the new smartphones are equipped with a Pixel Visual Core processor designed in collaboration with Intel.

Even though the search-engine giant had provided a provision for the Pixel Visual Core on to the hardware, the software part was still lacking support. The latest update solves the problem to a great extent.

The main purpose of the Pixel Visual Core processor is to improve the quality of the images with the help of machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) technology. The real use of the processing comes while snapping images using HDR+ technology via the Android Camera API. Hence, you will be able to make use of third-party apps to snap images and the quality will be at par with the default camera app included with the Pixel 2.

The Android 8.1 Developer Preview 2 also includes the final batch of the system images for Nexus and Pixel smartphones coupled with API level 27. The preview also consists of improvements, enhancements and bug fixes including November 2017 security updates.

The Android 8.1 Developer Preview 2 is integrated with Neural Networks API to accelerate the computation of machine learning frameworks such as Caffe2 and TensorFlow Lite. Moreover, the preview edition also features a Shared Memory API to enable low memory devices with less than 1GB RAM to compute effectively.

Google is scheduled to push the final release of Android 8.1 Oreo by the end of December 2017. If you are not willing to install the beta version, you can wait for the final release. If you are not aware of what you are doing with your expensive Pixel and Nexus devices, then it’s better to wait for few more days. According to reports, the final preview of the Android 8.1 provides support for SMS Connect and improvements related to storage.

To be eligible to receive the latest preview build, you need to enroll in the Android Beta program. You will receive a notification to download the software bits via OTA. It is also possible to manually flash your Pixel and Nexus smartphones by downloading and installing factory image from the official Android Developers site.

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