Google has officially kicked off the next era of its mobile OS, and if the first beta is anything to go by, Android 17 is all about making your devices play nice together. Moving away from the traditional “Developer Preview” model, Google has jumped straight into Beta 1, signaling that the platform is more stable and more ambitious than ever.
For tech enthusiasts, this update brings more than just a higher version number. It represents a platform tightening up around large screens, media performance, background behaviour, and a brand-new cross-device feature called Handoff.
Here is everything you need to know about the Android 17 upgrade.
Mandatory large-screen adaptivity
One of Android 17’s most significant changes is now mandatory: apps running on large screens can no longer opt out of resizing or orientation changes.
In previous Android versions, developers could restrict their apps to specific screen orientations or fixed layouts. That approach led to poor experiences on tablets and foldables. But with Android 17:
- Apps must properly adapt to large displays.
- They must handle resizing.
- They must respond correctly to orientation changes.
This is a clear signal that Google is done tolerating poorly optimized big-screen apps. As more affordable large-screen Android devices enter emerging markets, this move ensures a consistent user experience across form factors.
For users embracing larger-screen productivity and entertainment devices, this could finally reduce awkward letterboxing and broken layouts.
Optimized configuration changes
Android apps traditionally restart Activities when certain configuration changes such as screen rotation, language change, or display adjustments occur. That can interrupt workflows or cause visible flicker.
Android 17 changes this default behaviour. Going forward, specific configuration changes will no longer automatically restart Activities. Developers can handle these transitions more gracefully.
The result? Smoother multitasking and fewer jarring interruptions, particularly noticeable on foldables and multi-window setups.
Notification restrictions
Custom notification layouts have long been a double-edged sword. While they allow rich designs, they can consume significant memory. Android 17 introduces strict size limits on custom notification views and enforcement to reduce memory usage and system strain.
This move promises to improve system stability and battery efficiency, especially on some of the sub-KES 20,000 and sub-KES 10,000 devices that dominate the Kenyan smartphone market.
Apps that abuse oversized notifications will now be forced to streamline their designs.
Camera improvements
One of the more technical but impactful changes comes to camera APIs. Android 17 allows apps to switch between use cases (e.g., Photo → Video) without closing the camera session or causing glitches.
Previously, changing modes often required tearing down and reinitializing the session, leading to lag or visual artifacts. This means fluidity when switching between camera lenses.
For camera-heavy apps, including social media platforms and third-party camera tools, this also means smoother transitions and more professional-grade performance.
Constant quality (CQ) mode for video recording
Android 17 adds support for configuring Constant Quality (CQ) mode for video encoders. Unlike constant bitrate (CBR), CQ dynamically adjusts bitrate to maintain consistent visual quality. This can improve video clarity in complex scenes, reduce unnecessary file bloat, and optimize storage usage.
For content creators shooting on Android, this could translate to better output quality without manual tweaking.
Background audio hardening
Android 17 introduces stricter enforcement for background audio behaviour. If an app is not in a valid lifecycle state, audio playback fails silently, audio focus requests fail, and volume changes fail. This improves system reliability and prevents rogue apps from misbehaving in the background.
It’s part of Android’s ongoing effort to clamp down on battery drain and background abuse, something users have long complained about.
VVC (H.266) support
Android 17 adds platform-level support for Versatile Video Coding (VVC), also known as H.266. Just like AOMedia’s AV2 video codec, VVC promises:
- Up to 50% better compression efficiency compared to H.265.
- Smaller file sizes at the same visual quality.
- Improved streaming efficiency.
As video consumption grows, especially in bandwidth-sensitive regions like Kenya, support for advanced codecs like VVC could dramatically reduce data usage over time.
However, widespread adoption depends on hardware support and ecosystem readiness.
Handoff, Android’s answer to cross-device continuity
Perhaps the headline feature of Android 17 is Handoff, a new cross-device continuity feature and API. With Handoff, users can start an activity on one Android device, see that activity surface on another nearby Android device, and even transfer the activity seamlessly.
Let’s say you’re halfway through an email on your Android phone and sit down at your tablet, the taskbar or launcher will surface the activity. Tap it, and the app opens exactly where you left off. If the receiving device doesn’t have the app installed, Android 17 can open the content in a browser instead.
Note to Devs: This isn't automatic; you’ll need to implement thesetHandoffEnabled()method to let the system know your app is ready to jump across devices.
This is Google’s clearest move yet toward deeper ecosystem integration, something that competitors like Apple have long emphasized with features like Continuity. However, developers must implement the API. Without developer support, Handoff won’t function.
If widely adopted, this could be transformative for users juggling multiple Android devices, from phones, tablets, foldables, and even ChromeOS hardware.
Android 17 isn’t flashy in the way a major visual overhaul would be. Instead, it’s foundational. It:
- Forces better large-screen app support.
- Improves media capabilities.
- Tightens background behavior.
- Introduces cross-device continuity.
- Enhances video efficiency for bandwidth-conscious regions.
For a market like Kenya, where Android overwhelmingly dominates smartphone share, these improvements will ripple across everything from fintech apps to content creation to media streaming.
The key question now is developer adoption.
Handoff will only matter if app makers embrace it. Large-screen enforcement will only shine if developers refine their layouts properly.
So yeah, Android 17 is setting the rules. But the ecosystem has to play along.
