Posted by Paris Hsu, Product & Design, Android
Android Studio Arctic Fox splash screen
Note: As we announced late last year, we've changed our version numbering scheme to match the number for the IntelliJ IDE that Android Studio is based on, 2020.3, plus our own patch number, as well as a handy code name to make it easier to remember and refer to. We'll be using code names in alphabetical order; the first is Arctic Fox, now in beta, and the next is Bumblebee, now in canary.
Today, we are excited to unveil Android Studio Arctic Fox (2020.3.1) Beta ❄️🦊: the latest release of the official Android IDE focuses on Design, Devices, and Developer Productivity. It is available for download now on the beta channel for you to try out all the new features launched this week during Google I/O 2021!
Inspired by developer communities around the world, who despite having to adjust to challenges this past year still continue to create amazing and innovative apps, we have delivered and updated the suite of tools to empower three major themes:
In short, this is an upgrade you do not want to miss! ✨ There are many more features and improvements surrounding these themes you can find in this Beta version, so read or watch below for further highlights. Or, skip the reading, download Android Studio Arctic Fox (2020.3.1) Beta in the beta channel and try out the latest features yourselves today! Give us feedback and help us to continue to focus on the areas you care about most in the next version of Android Studio.
What's new in Android development tools (I/O 2021)
Below is a full list of new features in Android Studio Arctic Fox (2020.3.1) Beta, organized by the three major themes:
Compose Preview
Compose Layout Inspector
Using Deploy to device from preview and gutter icon
Editing numbers and strings update immediately in the preview and on device
Accessibility Test Framework Scanner in Layout Editor
Wear OS emulator pairing assistant dialog
Phone + Watch emulators paired successful state
Wear OS system image
Heart Rate Sensor for Wear OS Emulators
Google TV remote controls
Google TV system image
Android Automotive OS Sensor replay
Extended controls in the Emulator tool window
Background Task Inspector
Test matrix running tests across multiple devices in parallel
Memory Profiler: recorded Java / Kotlin Allocations
To recap, Android Studio Arctic Fox (2020.3.1) Beta includes these new enhancements & features:
You might also have seen other new features at I/O which are not included in the list above; they are included in Android Studio (2021.1.1) Bumblebee Canary since these features were not quite ready for a beta channel release:
With this exciting release, the Android Studio team also presented a series of sessions about Android Studio. Watch the following videos to see the latest features in action and to get tips & tricks on how to use Android Studio 📺:
Android Studio Arctic Fox (2020.3.1) is a big release, and now is a good time to download and check out the Beta release to incorporate the new features into your workflow. The beta release is near stable release quality, but as with any beta release, bugs may still exist, so, if you do find an issue, let us know so we can work to fix it. If you’re already using Android Studio, you can check for updates on the Beta channel from the navigation menu (Help > Check for Update [Windows/Linux] , Android Studio > Check for Updates [OS X]). When you update to beta, you will get access to the new version of Android Studio and Android Emulator.
As always, we appreciate any feedback on things you like, and issues or features you would like to see. If you find a bug or issue, please file an issue. Follow us -- the Android Studio development team -- on Twitter and on Medium.
