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Android N Developer Preview : How to Install It

Android N Developer Preview : How to Install It

By Ketan Pratap | Updated: 10 March 2016 15:26 IST

Google has released Android N Developer Preview and it has given us a glimpse of all the new features like multi-window support, notification enhancements, revamped Doze, and many more. If you are wondering how to install Android N Developer Preview, follow these steps.

How to install Android N Developer Preview
The Android N Developer Preview is now available in the form of factory images to download for the Nexus 6P, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6, General Mobile GM 4G, Nexus Player, Nexus 9, and Pixel C devices. Before going ahead with our how to install the Android N Developer Preview, we warn readers that the version of the operating system is not yet ready to be a daily driver for consumers, and is primarily meant for developers.

We would also warn users before downloading the Android N Developer Preview that there is a good chance that there are bugs to iron out at this stage. Before you do that, it's vital to take a full backup of your Android smartphone.

Install Android N Developer Preview via factory image
Before proceeding to download the developer preview, make sure to install the latest Android Studio Preview on your system. The program runs on the system helping connect to the Android device via Micro-USB cable and flash the new Android build to the device.

With Android Studio Preview, the ADB and Fastboot programmes are also installed which can be accessed through the command terminal on your PC. Make sure to have slight knowledge of how the ADB and Fastboot function while flashing a new OS.

Here's how to manually download Android N Developer Preview and install it on your device.

1) Download the correct factory image for your device from here.

2) Go to Settings > Developer options and tick USB debugging.

3) Extract the images and save on your computer.

4) Connect your device to your computer over USB.

5) Start the device in fastboot mode.

You may be required to boot into fastboot mode using the ADB tool: With the device powered on, go to the command terminal and execute the following: adb reboot bootloader. This will give access to device's bootloader.

6) Navigate to the unzipped system image directory.

7) Execute "flash-all.bat", which should unzipped image files and install the necessary bootloader, baseband firmware(s), and operating system. This will take time and will see several reboots. The step will install Android N Developer preview on device.

Install Android N Developer Preview via OTA update
The simplest way to install the Android N Developer Preview is via the Android Beta Program. Not only do you get the update over-the-air, but you do not need to flash your device. Users also get future pre-release Android N beta updates as and when they become available, as well as maintenance releases (MRs).

At the end of the program, you will begin to receive regular public updates. Users can opt-out of the program at any time to return to the stable, public version of Android. However, they should note that if they opt-out when their device is running a beta version of Android, all user data on the device will be wiped. Users are recommended to backup their data before beginning the process.

1) Visit g.co/androidbeta on your desktop or mobile browser

2) Sign into your Google account associated with an eligible device (devices eligible are the Nexus 6, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P, Nexus 9, Nexus Player, Pixel C, and General Mobile 4G.)

3) Under Your Eligible Devices, select Enroll Device for the device you'd like to enroll.

4) Agree to the terms and conditions, and then click Join Beta

5) A system update will then be offered to your device. Users can check to see if an update is pending by navigating to Settings > About > System updates.

For more tutorials, head to our How To section.

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Further reading: Android, Android N, Android N Developer Preview, Google, Mobiles, Tablets

Ketan Pratap

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Ketan Pratap is the editor at Gadgets 360 - with over 12 years of experience covering the technology domain. With a breadth and depth of knowledge in the field, he's done extensive work across news, features, reviews, and opinion pieces. But what's truly inspiring about Ketan is how he spends his free time. He's often found gazing at snow-capped mountains from over 20,000 feet while sitting on the hood of his car, taking in the breathtaking beauty of nature. His passion for the great ...More

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