Wednesday, 28 October 2026

Five things that changed in Android on 28 Oct.

2 min read

1. Grab cut ANRs by a third with R8 and app profiles
If your app still uses old ProGuard rules or has no Baseline Profile, this is a measured case for fixing both.
The Android Developers Blog describes how Grab, the Southeast Asian superapp, tuned its build. It first switched on R8 optimization, then moved to R8 full mode, and added custom Baseline and Startup Profiles for its startup paths. Overall, freezes known as ANRs fell about 32 percent, cold start improved about 35 percent, and the app shrank about 30 percent.
Android Developers Blog · OfficialRead the source
2. New MANAGE_CONTACTS access replaces direct contact writes
Contact-saving code needs a plan now, because the right path depends on whether your app qualifies for the new access.
The details
Google detailed the contacts change. Apps that target the 2027 Android release cannot write contacts with WRITE_CONTACTS. Most apps should open the system editor with insert or edit intents, which need no permission. Apps whose main job is managing contacts, such as backup or caller ID apps, can ask for a new special access called MANAGE_CONTACTS, arriving in Android 17 QPR2 with a Play declaration.
Android Developers Blog · OfficialRead the source
3. Glance adaptive widgets take shape in AndroidX code
Teams maintaining several widget sizes may soon replace them with a single adaptive Glance widget.
The details
New changes in AndroidX, Android's set of support libraries, add a receiver for adaptive app widgets in Glance, the library for building widgets with Compose-style code. Related changes prepare adaptive templates for public API and give Wear widgets a profile builder with padding and corner radius. Together they point to widgets that fit many sizes from one layout.
AndroidX merged API changes · AOSP insiderRead the source
4. Did AI really change native versus cross-platform?
If AI makes native code cheap, the main argument for cross-platform frameworks weakens, which affects how teams plan Android and iOS work.
The details
Shopify said it is leaving React Native because AI coding tools changed the trade-off between native and cross-platform apps. Vasiliy Zukanov of TechYourChance reviewed the evidence behind that claim. The post asks whether writing the same feature twice really got cheap enough with AI help to beat sharing code across platforms.
TechYourChance (Vasiliy Zukanov) · ExpertRead the source
5. Gemini may soon set up your eSIM
System tasks moving behind assistant connectors is a hint that apps will be expected to expose actions to Gemini too.
The details
An Android Authority teardown of the Google app found a new Gemini connector for eSIMs, the digital SIM cards built into phones. It can already start the eSIM setup process from a few simple prompts. This is a leak, so details and timing may change, but it follows other connectors that let Gemini act inside apps and settings.
Android Authority · EcosystemRead the source