While many devices are still waiting for their update to Android 13, we see how Google launches the first preview of Android 14, showing a small preview of what we will find in the next update of its operating system.
As this is a developer preview, most of the news is at the API level and very focused on app development, with new permissions, behaviors or security improvements, but important news begins to be discovered. Android 14 DP1
App cloning is coming to Android 14
Clone or duplicate apps on Android This has been possible for years through third-party apps, customization layers from some manufacturers such as OnePlus, or by creating a work profile, but now Google is going one step further and adds app cloning to Android 14.
Native app cloning started coming to AOSP in 2021, hoping it would come with Android 12 or Android 13, but it didn’t. We had to Android 14 to view clone apps natively.
Android 14 Developer Preview 1 we see that Google is preparing its own tool to duplicate apps
App cloning will allow us to have the same app installed twice to be used with different accounts when they do not support multiple accounts. For example, we can have two WhatsApp apps, each with a phone number.
Not all applications can be duplicated. Google and other device makers with Android 14 will be able to choose the apps that cannot be cloned. Google blocks the cloning of several of its own applications:
- Android-Auto
- Calendar (AOSP)
- Camera (AOSP)
- Chromium
- Clock
- Contacts (AOSP)
- Files
- Gallery (AOSP)
- Gmail
- Google Calendar
- Google Camera
- Google contacts
- Google Play Movies & TV
- Google Search
- Maps
- MDS (modem diagnostic system)
- posts
- Security
- Phone
- Google Photos
- Pixel tips
- play store
- Printer
- google recorder
- Stk (SIM toolkit)
- Youtube
- youtube music
As this is a very preliminary developer preview, this feature is not yet available, it is not working, so we will have to wait for the next development versions of Android 14 to see when app cloning will be functional .
Through | 9to5Google