Android has been with us on our phones for fifteen years and throughout that time we have had the opportunity to see and thoroughly analyze all of its releases, from those early days of Cupcake and Donut to the latest Android 13. or the imminent Android 14. Each version has brought interesting novelties to our devices, but not all have fallen in the same way: we asked the specialized editors of Xataka Android and Xataka what they considered to have been best android version ever. These were their answers. What is the best version of Android for you? If you wish, you can participate in the comments.
ANDROID 12 IS HERE: WHAT’S NEW AND FEATURES
Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
Jose Garcia Nieto:
For me, the best version of Android was definitely Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0) followed closely by Android 5.0 Lollipop. However, I will stick with Android 4.0. Because? Because until the arrival of Android 4.0, Android was all terrain. It wasn’t until Android 4.0 that the operating system began to have a modern and somewhat cohesive design..
Old hounds probably remember that Honeycomb (Android 3.0) was intended for tablets and brought the Holo UI to the table. Well, Android 4.0 brought this interface to mobile phones with great success. there was also notification improvements, added face unlock… Seems like yesterday when it debuted the Nexus which, if I’m not mistaken, was from Samsung.
Beyond that, the truth is that each version of Android has brought its own neat little things. For example, Eclair (Android 2.0) brought the zoom gesture, Lollipop brought Material Design, and Android 9 Pie brought gesture navigation.
Samuel Fernandez:
Of all the Android versions I’ve been through, considering I came into the ecosystem during the Eclair days and I’m already on version 13, I think the one that got me the most notable was Ice Cream Sandwich. After a time when Android was really ugly, and with the Honeycomb experience for tablets, with ICS Android has made a significant graphical leap and made many improvements.
Caesar Grind:
I want to think that each new version of Android is better than the previous one, that bugs are fixed and that improvements are added to adapt to the times and the needs of each moment, but I think that there have been two key moments for the operating system. The first was with Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). Until this moment Android was considered an unprofessional system, with many flaws and to which iOS gave a thousand tricks in all.
However, with the arrival of the “ice cream sandwich”, improvements have been made to notifications (swipe to ignore them, for example) or facial recognition to unlock them, although perhaps what i remember best is the designwhich began to look neater, although there was still a lot left.
Android 12
Samuel Fernandez:
I think the next big release would be Android 12. Material You was the ultimate style change. Once the system has matured, finding a line with a sleek design that would fit into every corner of the system was key for me. And I think MY completely hit the nail on the head. And driving a Pixel every day, without layers of customization, is much more enjoyable.
Ricardo Aguilar:
I have three favorite versions of Android. The first of these is quite recent: Android 12. This version introduced Material You, Android’s new design language. Although I think the system needs a little more consistency, everything is starting to take a look with pastel colors, automatic accents and a general interface (at least on Pixels), rather successful.
Alvaro Garcia:
The aesthetic section is probably the point that I appreciate the most in the software and I firmly believe that Material Yu has been a significant breath of fresh air. In my view, put back on the table the importance of customization of the operating system of Google. And without the need to use launchers or root the mobile.
Android 5.0 lollipop
Ivan Ramirez:
Lollipop introduced material design and slammed the door on a Holo that already felt pretty closed off, even though the redesign would take years to reach most Google apps (and even longer for the rest).
Plus, the candy version included Performance improvements needed with Project Volta. Since that first Material Design, the design has evolved into today’s Material You, but by no means does this seem like such a drastic change as the original Material Design versus Holo, rest in peace.
Ricardo Aguilar:
The other big release, although it didn’t come without a hitch, was Android 5.0 Lollipop. I still remember when I installed it on my Nexus 5 and everything completely changed. was one of Android’s most drastic design changes and the basis for everything we have now.
Android 2.3 Gingerbread
Ricardo Aguilar:
Going back to older versions, I have an excellent memory of Android 2.3 Gingerbread running on my HTC Tattoo under CyanogenMOD. It was a significant leap over the 1.X versions of Android and, while not without bugs, I have excellent memories of how it worked..
Alvaro Garcia:
I find it completely impossible to be objective in my choice. Nostalgia makes me fall for the system of my first Android, which in turn was my first smartphone, the Sony Ericcson Xperia Neo V. It had Android 2.3 Gingerbread, version which now summarizes the information, it is noted that it was still in its infancy compared to the progress Apple had made with iOS 4.
However, everything was new to me even though it was not new to this release. From the famous little curtain that came down from the top to see the notifications, to the creepy Easter egg that it was hiding (although he would find out much later).
Android Pie 9
Enrique Perez:
With Android 9 Pie, what could be called “modern Android” has been achieved. The stability is already excellent and options such as adaptive brightness or intelligent battery saving are integrated. The sound is also improved, mainly the ability to remember the volume level for different Bluetooth devices.
Finally, in terms of privacy sensitive permissions such as microphone or camera are restricted for background apps. If right now I had to choose a “minimal” version of Android that I would consider day to day, it would surely be the one released in 2018.
Android 4.4 Kit Kat
Ivan Linares:
My favorite version of Android is KitKat, number 4.4. At the design level, this did not imply excessive jumping, not in vain Holo was already quite mature. In my opinion, this caused a noticeable leap in knowledge of the operating system: thanks to the campaign in collaboration with Nestlé, Google managed to make Android KitKat a real name. I remember the KitKat chocolate bars with the green android on the back, Nestlé took the opportunity to raffle off all kinds of Android-related products.
And not only commercially, Google introduced Dalvik’s replacement as a virtual machine: ART (Android Runtime) debuted in experimental mode.Android KitKat reinforced the great improvements with which Google frequently renewed its mobile operating system. And I miss these collaborations with brands, Android 8 Oreo was the second and last time. With the decision to hide dessert names in favor of numbers, Android has lost a lot of its freshness.
Android 6.0 Marshmallow
Ivan Ramirez:
A When choosing my favorite version of Android I debate between Lollipop and Marshmallow, but for me the number 1 would be Marshmallow by execute permissions, which eliminated the previous all-or-nothing paradigm. The permit system we have today is nothing more than an evolution, version after version, of this one.
Other new additions to Marshmallow worth mentioning were Doze mode, “battery police” and native fingerprint reader, 4K and USB-C support, as well as the groundbreaking-for-the-time – Now On Tap.
Android 3.0 Honeycomb
Ivan Linares:
I would say my second favorite is Android Honeycomb 3.0, although only released for tablets and for a specific model: the Motorola Xoom. It was the system that introduced virtual on-screen navigation buttons and the basis for the drastic change in interface design that later came with Holo. It doesn’t usually get much attention and Honeycomb broke the mould.
Android 7 Nougat
Caesar Grind:
Then I’m splitting between Android 8 or Android 7, although I’m thinking Android 7 and 7.1 (Nougat), for the arrival of Google Assistant within the Pixel systemit was much more relevant to what came later in the mobile ecosystem (now all androids come with the built-in assistant).
In Xatakandroid | How to install Android 14 and what new features you can try before anyone else
Table of Contents
