Android 5.0 Lollipop

The moment of Android fans have been eagerly waiting for months finally arrived on Wednesday the 15^th October 2014 as Google finally announced release details for Android 5.0 Lollipop. Android L's most obvious new feature is the inclusion of Material Design, a new design interface that is notable for flatter icons and its physics based animations that will give both Android apps and the platform itself a smoother and more consistent user experience.

Although Material Design is the most noticeable change with Android 5.0, it's far from the only one.Google has implemented a new lock screen that comes with notifications that wont force you to open an app to take action on them. So for instance, you'll be able to delete email messages from your device's lock screen or from your notifications center now without having to actually open up Gmail to trash them.

Android 5.0 is also the first version of Android that's been optimized for 64 bit architecture, which will presumably open the floodgates for hardware manufactures to start cranking out 64 bit Android smartphones and tablets. And finally Android 5.0 features bunch of improvements in battery efficiency thanks to Google's Project Volta, which has been working on ways to extend Android device's battery life as much as 90 extra minutes when it's low on power.

Some Features of Android 5.0 Lollipop

Material Design
A bold, colorful, and responsive UI design for consistent , intuitive experiences across all your device. 

• Responsive, natural motion, realistic lighting and shadows, and familiar visual elements make it easier to navigate your device.
• Vivid new colors, typography, and edge-to-edge imagery help to focus your attention.

Notifications

New ways to control when and how you receive messages- only get interrupted when you want to be.

• View and respond to messages directly from your lock screen. Includes the ability to hide sensitive content for these notifications.
• For fewer disruptions, turn on Priority mode via your device’s volume button so only certain people and notifications get through. Or schedule recurring downtime like 10pm to 8am when only Priority notifications can get through.
• With Lollipop, incoming phone calls won’t interrupt what you’re watching or playing. You can choose to answer the call or just keep doing what you’re doing.
• Control the notifications triggered by your apps; hide sensitive content and prioritize or turn off the app’s notifications entirely.
• More intelligent ranking of notifications based on who they’re from and the type of communication. See all your notifications in one place by tapping the top of the screen.

Battery

Power for the long haul.

• A battery saver feature which extends device use by up to 90 mins.
• Estimated time left to fully charge is displayed when your device is plugged in.
• Estimated time left on your device before you need to charge again can now be found in battery settings.

Runtime & performance

A faster, smoother and more powerful computing experience.

• ART, an entirely new Android runtime, improves application performance and responsiveness.
• Up to 4x performance improvements.
• Smoother UI for complex, visually rich applications.
• Compacting backgrounded apps and services so you can do more at once.
• Support for 64 bit devices, like the Nexus 9, brings desktop class CPUs to Android.
• Support for 64-bit SoCs using ARM, x86, and MIPS-based cores.
• Shipping 64-bit native apps like Chrome, Gmail, Calendar, Google Play Music, and more.
• Pure Java language apps run as 64-bit apps automatically.

• Click here for more details about Android 5.0 Lollipop.