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Android 11 comes to Android TV today, roll out starts with only 1 device!!

Tech Glass
Sep 22, 2020
1 min read

Spoiler alert: it's probably not your device.

Google started testing Android 11 for Android TVs back in June, and we saw the official Android 11 release land earlier this month for Pixel devices. Now Google has announced that its latest platform update is making its way to the big(ger) screen with the stable release of Android 11 for Android TV — starting with just a single device. Many of the biggest Android 11 features don't necessarily apply to Android TV devices. Instead, the changes here largely revolve around performance and privacy, with some new capabilities tailored just for TVs. That said, Android TV also picks up some foundational things like enhanced memory management and one-time permissions. Since one of Android 11's major focuses was making media playback better, the new release brings support for Auto Low Latency Mode to Android TV to improve the experience.

Extended gamepad support, inactivity prompts, and a silent boot mode for system updates are also included. OEMs will be able to take advantage of configurable wake keys, and there are also plenty of behind-the-scenes changes like a new Tuner Framework, extensions to the HAL implementation of HDMI CEC, and a new test harness mode for app developers. Just like on phones, the Android 11 update won't be rolling out to all Android TV boxes right away. In fact, only the ADT-3 device meant for developers is receiving the upgrade today. Google says that other models like the Nvidia Shield will get Android 11 over the coming months — guess it's time to go put on some popcorn while we wait.