Android N Release Date Rumors, Features: Leaked Screenshot Of Next Android Version Surfaces Online, New OS To Launch On 'Google I/O 2016' Event

By Jomar Endriga

Google's next mobile operating system, touted as the Android 7.0 N or simply Android N, may still be under wraps but the company's own Android Developers Blog may have already given out an unofficial glimpse into what is coming. A pair of screenshots have appeared in a recent Android Support Library v23.2 post showing that there is a new "hamburger button" at the upper left corner of the Settings menu of an unannounced Android version.

Since that button is not part of the current Android 6.0 Marshmallow, Android enthusiast are claiming that the OS featured in the leaked screenshots is clearly the Android N. The images were first spotted by Android Police and Android expert Artem Russakovskii independently confirmed that it is indeed the Android N.

At first, nothing seems out of the ordinary upon inspecting the screenshots (see below) until users realize that there is a hamburger menu in the Bluetooth settings section. It seems that Android 7.0 N will introduce hamburger menus alongside the usual three-dot menus. The addition of this new option in the upcoming OS points to a side navigation drawer that is likely to have all Settings sections listed, making it easier for users to switch between them.

At present, users need to go back into main settings screen before going to another Settings section. This feature nay be a practical addition but there is a chance that things might change as the development of the new firmware progresses.

Other clues included in the post is that official support for both day and night themes is finally going to be offered by Android 7.0 N. Furthermore, the screenshots themselves were apparently taken on a Nexus 5 device so it might be safe to assume that the OS will arrive to the said smartphone model later this year.

Based on earlier reports, other features expected to be integrated in Android N are Split Screen and Multiwindow support as well as improved tablet and stock stylus support. The search giant has also revealed that Android N will not ship with Oracle's proprietary Java application programming interfaces as seen on previous version. The company previously confirmed that it will now utilize OpenJDK, an open source version of the Java Development Kit which is also from Oracle.

The unreleased Android 7.0 N OS is widely expected to be unveiled during Google's I/O 2016 conference. The event will be held from May 18 to 20 at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in the company's hometown of Mountain View, California. Aside from the software, other products rumored to make an appearance at the conference are new and improved Google Cars, the company's augmented reality platform called Project Tango, its open-hardware smartphone platform called Project Ara, and a monocle-shaped Google Glass.

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