Android 15 Developer Preview for Google Pixel Smartphones Said to Arrive on February 15

Android 15 could make its first appearance this week. According to a comment made on a post on the Android Open Source Project (AOSP), the Android 15 Developer preview is likely to be scheduled for Thursday. The comment also revealed that the next generation of Google's operating system (OS) for smartphones might be called Android V. This corroborates earlier reports that suggested that the company's developers had given it an internal codename of Vanilla Ice Cream. Details of Android 15 features are yet to be announced, but a couple of them have recently leaked online.

9to5Google spotted an AOSP commit page, where a comment was recently made by a user named Misha Kulaha with a Google.com email address. Kulaha said, “Maybe makes sense to wait until Android V will be available? Its first Developer preview is scheduled for Feb 15.”

Last week, the first hint towards Android 15 was seen when the Android 14 QPR3 Beta 1 update was rolled out. According to the publication, the logo was different from the familiar circular badge with an upside-down Bugdroid. The logo appeared in an inverted triangle shape and the words Android 14 missing. Some have deciphered it to be a V shape, hinting at the arrival of Android V.

If the information shared by Kulaha holds out, the Android 15 Developer preview will arrive just a week after the rollout of the last Android 14 quarterly platform release beta update. The timing will also match with Google's first preview of Android 14 which was released on February 8. Supported Pixel smartphones should be eligible for the update, based on Google's release history. Other smartphones are likely to get access to Android 15 when the public betas are made available in the coming months.

While not a lot is known about the features Android 15 may pack, an earlier report has suggested that Google is working on adding support for Auracast a feature that follows Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) standard, and allows users to broadcast audio to nearby compatible devices. Another rumoured feature is the reintroduction of lock screen widgets, which will finally allow users to use some functionalities of supported apps without unlocking the phone.