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8 Things you need to know about Android 4.4 KitKat

Google’s latest iteration of the candy coated mobile OS known as Android is here and version 4.4 affectionately known as KitKat has quite a few new features and improvements. Don’t worry about trawling through forums to find out all of the details because we have the top 10 things you need to know about Android 4.4 right here.

1. KitKat is optimised for every device

KitKat’s biggest update to the inner workings of Android is the optimisation to be more responsive on devices with as little as 512MB of RAM. Not only has the core functionality of the OS been rewritten with memory management in mind, the suite of Google apps including apps like Chrome and YouTube have been optimised to use less memory. This change by Google is so that manufacturers will no longer need to make phones that use outdated versions of the OS to save on money by not having to buy more expensive larger capacity RAM modules.

2. Fuller full screen apps

Android’s new full-screen immersive mode allows developers to hide all of the Android user interface elements while in full screen mode. This means that the status bar as well as the on screen navigation buttons for those devices that don’t use physical buttons will all disappear giving the application every single pixel to display content. To get the buttons back you’ll just have to swipe them in from the edge of the screen.

3. Hangout with all of your SMSes

The messages app is no more, long live Google Hangouts with all of your SMS and MMS messages integrating into the Hangouts application. Along with the integration into Hangouts SMSes that are handled by a third party app like like Facbook Messenger will still be stored in the default massaging application as well to keep track of them.

4. Emoji madness

Ever wondered how your iPhone toting brethren are able to access a plethora of emoticons that aren’t a part of your messaging application’s repertoire? They’re called emoji, they’re a distinctly Japanese invention, and they’re now a part of the standard Android keyboard.

5. Android Device Manager integration

ADM is Google’s equivalent of Apple’s ‘Find my iPhone’ service which allows you to GPS locate, lock and remotely wipe your Android device should it ever be liberated from your possession. As of Android 4.4 it is now a standard part of the operating system and not a separate activation making more devices safer from the get go.

6. Sensor batching

Android KitKat now works with device hardware sensors like accelerometers and gyroscopes to collect and deliver data from the sensors more efficiently in batches, rather than individually as they are detected. This lets the processor stay idle for longer until it needs to fetch a batch of data when it powers up and makes the trip. Sensor batching will help save power for devices that are using apps such as fitness or location tracking.

7. Print from the cloud

KitKat bring support for cloud printing services like Google’s Cloud Print or HP’s ePrint. Android will manage the interaction between the app rquesting to print and the available printers that can complete the job.

8. Easy home screen switching

If you’re like me and you’ve customised your home screen with a launcher like Nova Launcher or ADW.Launcher there is now an option inside Settings for you to switch between your different home screen apps making your tinkering just that little bit easier.

If you are a developer looking for some deeper insight into the changes you can check out the blog post on the Android developers blog for the full list of changes to the OS.

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