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Android Oreo
Android Oreo
Android Oreo
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Android Oreo
Version of the Android operating system
Android 8.1 home screen with Pixel Launcher
DeveloperGoogle
General
availability		August 21, 2017; 8 years ago (2017-08-21) (on Android 8.0) December 5, 2017; 7 years ago (2017-12-05) (on Android 8.1)[1]
Final release8.1.0_r93 (OSN1.210329.015)[2] / October 4, 2021; 4 years ago (2021-10-04)
Final preview8.1.0 (OPP6.171019.012) / November 27, 2017; 7 years ago (2017-11-27)
Kernel typeMonolithic (Linux)
Preceded byAndroid Nougat (7.x)
Succeeded byAndroid Pie (9.x)
Support status
  • Android 8.0: Unsupported as of January 5, 2021
  • Android 8.1: Unsupported as of October 4, 2021
  • Google Play Services supported[3]

Android Oreo (codenamed Android O during development) is the eighth major release and the 15th version of the Android mobile operating system.

It was initially unveiled as an alpha quality developer preview in March 2017 and later made available to the public, on August 21, 2017.

It contains a number of major features, including notification channels, picture-in-picture support for video, performance improvements, and battery usage optimization, and support for autofillers, Bluetooth 5, system-level integration with VoIP apps, wide color gamuts, and Wi-Fi Aware. Android Oreo also introduces two major platform features: Android Go – a software distribution of the operating system for low-end devices – and support for implementing a hardware abstraction layer.

As of September 2025, Android Oreo (which has ceased receiving security updates as of October 2021) ran 1.8% of Android devices.[4]

History

[edit]
Android Oreo logo
Android 8.0 home screen

Android Oreo was internally codenamed "Oatmeal Cookie."[5] On March 21, 2017, Google released the first developer preview of Android "O",[6][7][8] available for the Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P, Nexus Player, Pixel C, and both Pixel smartphones.[9] The second, considered beta quality, was released on May 17, 2017.[10] The third developer preview was released on June 8, 2017, and offered a finalized version of the API.[11] DP3 finalized the release's API to API level 26,[11] changed the camera UI, reverted the Wi-Fi and cellular connectivity levels in the status bar back to Wi-Fi being on the left, added themed notifications, added a battery animation in Settings: Battery, a new icon and darker background for the Clock app, and a teardrop icon shape for apps.

On July 24, 2017, a fourth developer preview was released which included the final system behaviors and the latest bug fixes and optimizations.[12] Android "O" was officially released on August 21, 2017, under the name "Oreo", after the Oreo brand of sandwich cookie. Its lawn statue was unveiled at a promotional event across from Chelsea Market in New York City—a building which formerly housed a Nabisco factory where Oreo cookies were first produced. Factory images were made available for compatible Pixel and Nexus devices later that day.[13][14] The Sony Xperia XZ1 and Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact were the first devices available with Oreo pre-installed.[15]

Android 8.1 was released in December 2017 for Pixel and Nexus devices, which features minor bug fixes and user interface changes.[16]

Features

[edit]
See also: Android version history § Android 8.0, and Android version history § Android 8.1

User experience

[edit]

Notifications can be snoozed, and batched into topic-based groups known as "channels".[17][18] The 'Major Ongoing' feature orders the alerts by priority, pinning the most important application to the top slot.[19] Android Oreo contains integrated support for picture-in-picture modes.[20][21][22][23] The "Settings" app features a new design which has been reduced in size, with a white theme and deeper categorization of different settings,[24][25] while its ringtone, alarm and notification sound settings now contain an option for adding custom sounds to the list.[26][27] Tooltips can also be set for views.[28]

The Android 8.1 update supports the display of battery percentages for connected Bluetooth devices, makes the notification shade slightly translucent, and dims the on-screen navigation keys to reduce the possibility of burn-in.[16][29] Notification alert sounds are also limited to one per second for each app.[30]

Platform

[edit]

Android Oreo adds support for Neighborhood Aware Networking (NAN) for Wi-Fi based on Wi-Fi Aware,[31] Bluetooth 5,[32] wide color gamuts in apps,[33] an API for autofillers, multiprocess and Google Browsing support for WebViews, an API to allow system-level integration for VoIP apps, and launching activities on remote displays.[6] Android Runtime (ART) features performance improvements.[6] Android Oreo contains additional limits on apps' background activities to improve battery life.[34] Apps can specify "adaptive icons" for differently-shaped containers specified by themes, such as circles, squares, and squircles.[35]

Android Oreo adds native support for Advanced Audio Coding, aptX, aptX HD and LDAC Bluetooth codecs.[36] Android Oreo supports new emoji that were included in the Unicode 10 standard. A new emoji font was also introduced, which notably redesigns its face figures to use a traditional circular shape, as opposed to the "blob" design that was introduced on KitKat.[37][38] Support for downloadable fonts was introduced in Android Oreo; this functionality is also available for older versions of Android via the AndroidX Core library.[39][40]

The underlying architecture of Android was revised so that low-level, vendor-specific code for supporting a device's hardware can be separated from the Android OS framework using a hardware abstraction layer known as the "vendor interface". Vendor interfaces must be made forward compatible with future versions of Android. This new architecture, called Project Treble,[41] allows the quicker development and deployment of Android updates for devices, as vendors would only need to make the necessary modifications to their bundled software.[42][43] All devices shipping with Oreo must support a vendor interface, but this feature is optional for devices being updated to Oreo from an earlier version.[44] The "seamless updates" system introduced in Android 7.0 was also modified to download update files directly to the system partition, rather than requiring them to be downloaded to the user partition first. This reduces storage space requirements for system updates.[45]

Android Oreo introduces a new automatic repair system known as "Rescue Party"; if the operating system detects that core system components are persistently crashing during startup, it will automatically perform a series of escalating repair steps. If all automatic repair steps are exhausted, the device will reboot into recovery mode and offer to perform a factory reset.[46][47]

The Android 8.1 update also introduces a neural network API, which is designed to "[provide] apps with hardware acceleration for on-device machine learning operations." This API is designed for use with machine learning platforms such as TensorFlow Lite, and specialized co-processors such as the Pixel Visual Core (featured in Google's Pixel 2 smartphones, but dormant until 8.1 is installed), but it also provides a CPU fallback mode.[48][49]

Android Go

[edit]
Main article: Android Go

A tailored distribution for low-end devices known as Android Go was unveiled for Oreo; it is intended for devices with 1 GB of RAM or less. This mode has platform optimizations designed to reduce mobile data usage (including enabling Data Saver mode by default), and a special suite of Google Mobile Services designed to be less resource- and bandwidth-intensive. The Google Play Store would also highlight lightweight apps suited for these devices.[50][51] The operating system's interface is also modified, with the quick settings panel providing greater prominence to information regarding the battery, mobile data limit, and available storage, the recent apps menu using a modified layout and being limited to four apps (to reduce RAM consumption), and an API for allowing mobile carriers to implement data tracking and top-ups within the Android settings menu.[32] Google Play Services was also modularized to reduce its memory footprint.[32]

Android Go was made available to OEMs for Android 8.1.[48]

Security

[edit]

Android Oreo re-brands multiple security features provided by Google Play Services under the blanket name "Google Play Protect", including automatic scanning of Google Play Store and sideloaded apps, and Android Device Manager—which is now branded as "Find My Device". As opposed to a single, system-wide setting for enabling the installation of apps from sources outside of the Google Play Store, this function is now implemented as a permission that can be granted to individual apps (i.e. clients for third-party app repositories such as Amazon Appstore and F-Droid). A verified boot now includes a "Rollback Protection" feature, which enforces a restriction on rolling back the device to a previous version of Android, aimed at preventing a potential thief from bypassing security measures by installing a previous version of the operating system that doesn't have them in place.[32][52]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Android Oreo

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from Grokipedia
Android is the eighth major release and the 15th version of the Android , developed by as its open-source successor to and predecessor to . It consists of Android 8.0 ( level 26), initially released on August 21, 2017, and its minor update Android 8.1 ( level 27), released on December 5, 2017. Named after the popular cookie brand in a continuation of Android's dessert-themed versioning, introduced significant enhancements focused on , performance, security, and developer tools, making the platform smarter, faster, and more powerful. One of the defining user-facing features of Android Oreo was the introduction of notification channels, which allowed users to customize notification settings for different categories within apps, such as distinguishing between alerts, sounds, and vibrations to reduce unwanted interruptions. This was complemented by notification dots, small badges on app icons indicating unread notifications, enabling quick access to updates with a long press. For multitasking, Oreo added , permitting video playback to continue in a resizable floating while users switch to other apps, initially supporting select video players and later expanding across more devices. Additionally, the Autofill framework streamlined logins and form filling by integrating with password managers, remembering credentials for faster access to apps and websites. On the performance front, Android Oreo optimized battery life through adaptive battery features that used to prioritize power usage for frequently accessed apps while limiting background activity for others. Boot times were improved by up to two times on supported devices like the , thanks to enhancements in the ART runtime and garbage collection. Security was bolstered with Google Play Protect, a built-in scanner that continuously checks apps for , and stricter background app limits to prevent unauthorized data access. Developers benefited from new APIs including downloadable fonts to reduce app sizes by fetching typefaces on demand, adaptive icons for consistent visuals across launchers, and Wi-Fi Aware for peer-to-peer connectivity without internet. Android 8.1 further refined these with neural network API improvements for , and the introduction of Android Oreo (Go edition) for low-end devices with optimized memory usage. Overall, Android Oreo marked a shift toward more intelligent, battery-efficient, and secure mobile experiences, with initial rollout to and devices, followed by updates from manufacturers like and in 2018. By 2018, it had achieved significant adoption, powering a substantial portion of active Android devices and influencing subsequent versions with its notification and multitasking innovations.

Development History

Preview Builds

The development of Android Oreo began with the announcement of its first developer preview on March 21, 2017, marking the start of an iterative testing phase for what was then codenamed Android O. released four previews in total between March and July 2017, allowing developers and early testers to experiment with upcoming features and provide input to refine the platform before its stable launch. These previews progressively stabilized the system, with the second released on May 17, 2017, at , the third on June 8, 2017, which finalized the APIs at level 26, and the fourth on July 24, 2017, serving as a release candidate build. Key testing in these previews centered on core enhancements such as notification channels for granular user control over app alerts, picture-in-picture mode to enable multitasking with floating video windows, and background app restrictions to improve battery life and performance by limiting resource usage. Developers were encouraged to test app compatibility with these changes, including background location limits, networking behaviors, and security updates, to identify potential issues early. The previews also provided an initial testing ground for Project Treble, a modular architecture aimed at separating vendor implementations from the Android framework to streamline future updates. Eligible devices for the previews included the , , , Pixel XL, Pixel C, and select devices like the Nexus Player, ensuring broad hardware coverage for testing across form factors. Feedback was gathered through the public Android Beta Program, where users could enroll their devices to receive over-the-air updates and submit bug reports or suggestions via dedicated channels. This program facilitated real-world testing on production hardware, helping iterate based on diverse user experiences. The previews culminated with the fourth release on July 24, 2017, which incorporated extensive developer input to achieve API stability and near-final system images, paving the way for the transition to the version later that summer. By this point, the builds were suitable for final app validation, ensuring compatibility and optimizations were in place before public rollout.

Stable Releases

Android 8.0 Oreo, corresponding to API level 26, was officially released on August 21, 2017. The initial rollout began immediately with over-the-air (OTA) updates to Google's and device lineup, including the , Pixel XL, , , Nexus Player, and . System images for these devices were made available on the Android site on the same day, enabling developers and advanced users to sideload the update. Following the Google devices, the stable release extended to early OEM partners, notably the Essential Phone (PH-1), which received its first Oreo beta in November 2017 ahead of stable deployment. This phased approach ensured a smooth transition from developer previews to production stability, with the final API finalized in the preceding preview build. The development of Android 8.1 included two developer previews to test refinements and new capabilities. The first was released on October 25, 2017, introducing API level 27 along with initial support for features like the Neural Networks API for on-device machine learning. The second and final preview followed on November 27, 2017, incorporating optimizations for Android Go edition devices and enabling third-party access to Pixel Visual Core for HDR+ processing via the Camera API. Android 8.1 Oreo, building on API level 27, arrived as a point release on December 5, 2017, starting with OTA updates to the same Pixel and Nexus devices. This update introduced enhancements such as a new storage manager via the Files Go app for better file organization and space management on low-end devices, alongside extensions to the Camera API enabling HDR+ support for third-party apps. Core Google apps received bundled updates for improved integration, while developer tools saw advancements including the Neural Networks API for on-device machine learning and IDE optimizations in Android Studio for faster builds. These changes addressed post-launch feedback from 8.0, refining platform stability without overhauling the core Oreo experience.

Core Features

User Interface and Experience

Android Oreo introduced several enhancements to the , emphasizing adaptability, , and seamless interactions. Adaptive icons represent a significant update, enabling app icons to conform to various shapes—such as rounded squares or circles—imposed by different while supporting dynamic scaling and visual effects like shadows or blurs. This design allows developers to provide a foreground layer, background, and optional effects, ensuring consistent appearance across devices without requiring multiple icon variants. Notification dots provide a subtle yet effective way to indicate pending interactions, appearing as small badges on app icons in the launcher for any undismissed notifications. Users can long-press these dots to access quick actions or the notification shade directly, streamlining access to content without cluttering the home screen. Complementing this, the Autosizing TextView feature enables automatic adjustment of text size within a view to fit available space, supporting uniform scaling or granular steps for better readability across screen sizes. System-wide font scaling and display size adjustments further empower users to customize text enlargement and screen zoom in accessibility settings, promoting inclusivity for those with visual impairments. The Autofill Framework simplifies form completion by securely suggesting and filling details like usernames, passwords, and addresses from trusted services, reducing repetitive input. Integrated with apps such as password managers, it operates in the background while prioritizing user through authentication prompts. Additionally, edge-to-edge app support facilitates full-screen immersion by allowing content to extend behind system bars, minimizing interference from the during experiences like mode.

Notifications and Multitasking

Android Oreo introduced significant enhancements to notification management, allowing users greater control over alerts to reduce interruptions and improve focus. A key feature is notification channels, which enable apps to categorize notifications into distinct groups that users can customize independently. For instance, an app might separate channels for promotions, alerts, and social updates, with users able to adjust settings like sound volume, vibration patterns, and priority levels for each. This includes the ability to set custom notification sounds for individual apps or their specific notification categories (channels). This granular control over sounds (along with volume, vibration, and other behaviors) reduces interruptions while allowing users to remain informed about important alerts. The process for setting custom notification sounds was introduced with notification channels in Android Oreo and remains largely consistent in later versions, including Android 15 and 16. On stock Android devices like Pixel phones, users can do this through the Settings app as follows:
  1. Open the Settings app.
  2. Tap Notifications > App notifications.
  3. Select the desired app.
  4. Tap Notification categories (or directly on a category if listed).
  5. Choose the category you want to customize.
  6. Tap Sound, select a new sound, and tap Save.
Note: Not all apps have multiple categories; some use a single default. If categories are not visible, ensure notifications are enabled for the app. Complementing channels, Oreo added the ability to snooze notifications directly from the notification shade, temporarily postponing alerts until a more convenient time. Users can select snooze durations such as 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour, or 2 hours, after which the notification reappears. This feature streamlines alert handling by providing quick dismissal options without permanent removal, enhancing workflow efficiency. On the multitasking front, Android Oreo introduced (PiP) mode, a multi-window capability primarily for video playback apps. When supported by the device hardware, users can enter PiP by pressing the home button during video viewing, resulting in a resizable, floating that overlays other activities. This allows seamless switching between apps, such as watching a while taking notes, without interrupting . App shortcuts received further integration in Oreo, building on prior support by enabling long-press actions on icons to reveal quick-access menus for common tasks. Developers can pin these shortcuts and widgets directly within apps for easier launcher integration, providing faster navigation to features like composing a or navigating to a specific . Adaptive icons serve as visual cues in these shortcut interfaces, adapting to different launcher shapes and themes. Oreo also improved support for instant apps, facilitating the execution of app-like experiences without requiring full installation from the Play Store. These lightweight modules can be triggered via various entry points, including deep links in notifications, allowing users to interact with content—such as booking a ride or viewing a product—directly from an alert without committing to a download. This ties into notification workflows by enabling immediate, contextual actions that enhance multitasking without additional setup.

Performance Optimizations

Android 8.0 introduced several system-level optimizations to enhance efficiency, focusing on reducing consumption, improving battery life, and accelerating application performance. These changes primarily target background activities and runtime behaviors to ensure smoother operation on a wider range of devices, including those with limited RAM. One key optimization limits background app execution to minimize resource drain. Apps running in the background face restrictions on services, which are allowed only a few minutes of execution time before being stopped when the app becomes idle; foreground services remain exempt to support user-visible tasks. Implicit broadcasts are also curtailed for apps targeting level 26 or higher, preventing registration in the manifest except for explicit or signature-protected ones, while runtime registration is permitted. These measures reduce the overall impact of background processes on system resources like CPU and . Developers are encouraged to use JobScheduler for deferred tasks previously handled by services or broadcasts. Enhancements to Doze mode make battery saving more aggressive during idle states. Building on prior versions, Android 8.0 integrates tighter background execution controls that defer network access, alarms, and jobs when the device is unused, further restricting app activity to preserve power without user intervention. This complements the existing App Standby feature by limiting non-essential operations, leading to noticeable reductions in standby battery drain. The just-in-time (JIT) compiler in the () received significant upgrades for faster execution and reduced overhead. Improvements include a concurrent compacting garbage collector that cuts heap size by 32% and boosts allocation speeds by 70% compared to Android 7.0, alongside loop optimizations like bounds check elimination and SIMDization for better efficiency. Profile now informs dex file reordering via dexlayout, enabling quicker app startups through targeted optimizations, while expanded inlining across dex files minimizes runtime overhead. These changes result in smaller pause times—up to 85% reduced in benchmarks—and overall smoother app performance as the system profiles and refines dynamically. Wi-Fi scanning was optimized to curb unnecessary battery consumption. For apps in the background, the WifiManager's startScan() method is throttled to a few scans per hour, preventing frequent location-based queries that drain power when the screen is off. This limit applies alongside similar restrictions on background location access, ensuring scans occur only when essential. Storage management tools were integrated directly into the system settings for easier maintenance. Users can access a "Free up space" option in Settings > Storage, which scans for and suggests removing cache files, unused apps, and other junk data automatically. Additionally, the platform enforces disk space quotas on cached content, prioritizing deletion of excess files to maintain available storage without manual intervention.

Platform Enhancements

Project Treble

Project Treble represents a foundational architectural initiative introduced in Android 8.0 Oreo to decouple the core Android operating system framework from OEM- and silicon vendor-specific code, thereby enabling faster and less resource-intensive delivery of major OS updates. Previously, Android updates required close coordination between Google, silicon manufacturers, and device makers to modify and test intertwined codebases, often resulting in delays of several months. By establishing a standardized interface between these components, Project Treble allows the framework to evolve independently, reducing the complexity and cost associated with porting new Android versions to diverse hardware configurations. This change debuted in the Android Oreo developer preview and became a core part of the stable 8.0 release. At its core, the implementation relies on the Vendor Interface (VINTF), a set of XML-based manifests that declare the required , kernel configurations, and compatibility rules between the vendor partition and the system framework. The Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) is restructured to use binderized interfaces—specifically HIDL (HAL Interface Definition Language)—which encapsulate hardware-specific functionality and ensure without altering underlying vendor drivers. Vendor implementations must adhere to these specifications, and the system verifies compatibility at boot time using the VINTF objects. This separation moves device-specific code into a dedicated vendor partition, while the AOSP framework resides in the system partition, allowing updates to the latter without recompiling or recertifying vendor elements. The primary benefits include a dramatic in update timelines; for instance, the average time for OEMs to roll out major Android upgrades decreased by more than three months following Treble's adoption, shifting from protracted multi-party efforts to weeks of focused integration and testing. It also laid the groundwork for the Vendor Test Suite (VTS), an automated testing framework that validates HAL and kernel behaviors against Treble standards, marking the first systematic approach to ensuring vendor compliance without exhaustive manual verification. These advancements not only streamline OS deployments but also enhance overall stability by minimizing fragmentation caused by inconsistent implementations. Compatibility with Project Treble is mandated for all devices launching with Android 8.0 or subsequent versions, requiring OEMs to certify their hardware against the updated architecture to obtain approval. For existing devices predating , support can be retrofitted via over-the-air updates to Android 8.0 or later, though implementation remains optional and depends on manufacturer resources; many legacy flagships, such as certain and models, received such updates to enable Treble. This phased rollout ensured broad applicability while accommodating the installed base. For developers, Project Treble introduces new APIs and tools within the VTS that facilitate isolated testing of vendor HAL implementations, allowing validation of hardware interfaces on emulated or minimal device setups without necessitating full physical device access or custom ROM builds. This empowers both app developers and OEM engineers to iterate on compatibility issues more efficiently, using Generic System Images (GSIs) derived from AOSP to simulate pure Android environments atop vendor partitions.

Connectivity and Hardware Support

Android 8.0 Oreo introduced support for Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) 5.0, enabling devices with compatible hardware to leverage the standard's enhanced capabilities for improved connectivity in IoT and wearable applications. This includes the 2M PHY mode, which doubles the data rate to up to 2 Mbps for faster transmission over short distances, compared to the 1 Mbps of previous versions. Additionally, coded PHY modes extend the effective range up to 240 meters in line-of-sight conditions by using forward error correction, making it suitable for broader coverage scenarios like smart home networks. Oreo also added extended advertising sets, allowing up to eight times more broadcast data capacity for efficient device discovery and synchronization without establishing a full connection. These features are integrated into the Android Bluetooth stack, alongside support for the Sony LDAC codec for high-resolution audio streaming over Bluetooth. Wi-Fi Aware, based on the Neighbor Awareness Networking (NAN) specification, was added in Android 8.0 to facilitate device discovery and direct communication without relying on an point or traditional infrastructure. This enables nearby devices to exchange information and establish connections efficiently for use cases such as , location-based services, and collaborative apps, reducing latency and dependency on cellular or networks. Developers can use the Aware API to publish services, subscribe to nearby advertisements, and form data paths, with built-in ranging capabilities introduced in later updates building on this foundation. also introduced companion device pairing, providing a customizable UI for associating , BLE, or peripherals, streamlining hardware integration for users. The Camera2 received extensions in Android 8.0 through enhancements to the Camera service, including shared surfaces that enable multiple surfaces to share the same OutputConfiguration and system graph optimization to reduce latency in camera operations. Oreo's MediaRecorder updates support the MPEG2_TS format for streaming and enable simultaneous multi-track recording from camera hardware via MediaMuxer, which handles multiple audio, video, and metadata streams (e.g., gyro signals for stabilization), facilitating applications that combine these elements for sophisticated content creation. These changes prioritize compatibility with high-end camera sensors and provide format flexibility without overhauling the core . While full multi-camera logical devices were formalized in Android 9, Oreo's updates support advanced hardware configurations. Audio hardware support saw significant advancements with the introduction of the AAudio API, a low-level C interface designed for high-performance, low-latency playback on Android 8.0 devices. AAudio provides exclusive or shared modes for audio streams, achieving latencies as low as 10 ms on supported hardware, which is critical for real-time applications like music production and gaming. It supports high-resolution formats up to 24-bit/192 kHz, enabling richer sound quality from compatible DACs and speakers, while features like VolumeShaper allow precise control for fade-ins, fade-outs, and crossfades to optimize hardware output. These enhancements tie into broader media optimizations, such as improved audio focus management for and session monitoring, ensuring efficient use of device audio resources.

Security and Privacy

Built-in Protections

Android Oreo introduced several built-in security mechanisms designed to safeguard user data and device integrity against common threats such as , unauthorized modifications, and privilege abuse. These protections operate at the system level, leveraging cryptographic techniques and runtime checks to minimize vulnerabilities without relying on external updates. Central to this framework is Protect, an on-device service that employs algorithms to scan installed applications for malicious behavior, verifying over 50 billion apps daily across the ecosystem. A key boot-time defense in Android Oreo is Verified Boot 2.0, also known as Android Verified Boot (AVB), which performs cryptographic verification of the operating system's partitions during startup to ensure no tampering has occurred. This process establishes a from the hardware root of trust to the bootable partitions, using digital signatures to detect and prevent the execution of altered or corrupted system images. Complementing this, rollback protection prevents devices from booting into older, potentially exploitable versions of the OS by storing anti-rollback metadata in hardware-backed storage, such as the (RPMB), which blocks downgrades once a more secure version has been installed. To address runtime risks, Android Oreo enhanced permission controls for sensitive operations, particularly those involving and phone functions, by enforcing runtime permission requests that users must explicitly grant. These controls, part of the broader dangerous permissions framework, restrict apps from accessing or phone state without justification, thereby preventing abuse such as unauthorized message interception or call monitoring; for instance, new permissions like ANSWER_PHONE_CALLS and READ_PHONE_NUMBERS require user approval at runtime to mitigate potential violations. Additionally, file-based , the default for new devices since Android 7.0, is used in Android Oreo, encrypting individual files with unique keys while supporting Direct Boot mode, which allows essential device functions—like alarms and notifications—to operate before full user , without compromising overall . These protections also indirectly bolster privacy through background app limits, which curtail unrestricted access to location and other sensors by idle apps, reducing opportunities for persistent tracking.

Update Mechanisms

Android Oreo introduced seamless updates through A/B partitioning, allowing over-the-air (OTA) installations to occur in the background without interrupting device usage. This mechanism utilizes two separate system partitions, known as slots A and B, where the active slot runs the current operating system while the update is applied to the inactive slot. Upon completion, a reboot switches to the updated slot, minimizing downtime to the duration of a standard reboot and providing a fallback to the previous slot if the update fails. The platform supported monthly security patches starting from September 2017, addressing vulnerabilities in the Android framework and related components. For Android 8.1 Oreo, these patches continued until the final release in October 2021, providing extended protection against emerging threats. In contrast, Android 8.0 Oreo received security updates until early 2021, highlighting the incremental support enhancements in the 8.1 revision. Post-end-of-life, System Updates deliver modular enhancements to core system components via the Store, ensuring continued reliability and for Android Oreo devices even after traditional OTA support ceased. These updates target non-OS elements like media codecs and permissions frameworks, bypassing the need for full revisions and extending device viability beyond the primary support timeline.

Android Go Edition

Design and Purpose

Android Go, officially known as , represents a streamlined variant of Android Oreo tailored for entry-level smartphones with constrained hardware resources. It was initially announced by at its I/O developer conference in May 2017, with further details revealed alongside the Android 8.1 update in December 2017. The edition became available for device manufacturers to implement shortly thereafter, with the first commercial shipments occurring in March 2018. The primary purpose of Android Go is to deliver a complete and efficient Android experience on low-cost devices prevalent in emerging markets, where access to high-end hardware is limited. It targets smartphones equipped with 512 MB to 1 GB of RAM, enabling billions of potential new users—particularly in regions like and other developing areas—to access modern features without performance compromises due to bloatware or resource-intensive software. By focusing on these ultra-budget devices, Android Go addresses the needs of users facing challenges such as limited data connectivity and storage, ensuring broader adoption of Android in underserved global markets. At its core, Android Go emphasizes principles of efficiency through data compression, reduced app footprints, and improved launch speeds to minimize strain on modest hardware. For instance, optimized apps consume up to 50% less storage space compared to their standard counterparts, while features like data saver modes in apps such as Go can reduce data usage by up to 40%. This results in app launches that are approximately 15% faster on average, alongside quicker overall boot times. Initial devices included the Alcatel 1X, Lava Z50, and Micromax Bharat Go, all launched with 1 GB of RAM and positioned for markets in , , and beyond. integrates seamlessly with by sharing the same level (primarily 27 for the 8.1 release) but employs scaled-down system resources and lightweight versions of core apps to maintain compatibility while enhancing usability on low-spec hardware.

Feature Adaptations

Android Go Edition adapts core Oreo features by incorporating lightweight versions of essential applications tailored for devices with limited storage and processing power. These include Go, Go, and Maps Go, which are built to occupy roughly 50% less storage space than their full counterparts, enabling quicker installations and reduced memory demands on entry-level hardware. For instance, Go weighs about 29 MB compared to 122 MB for the standard app, while maintaining core functionality through offline video downloads and data-efficient streaming modes that can save up to 40% on mobile data usage. Similarly, Maps Go prioritizes navigation with data compression, ensuring accessibility without excessive resource consumption. Data management is enhanced through built-in tools providing seamless compression and monitoring to curb usage on bandwidth-limited networks. Data Saver is enabled by default, compressing images and videos in apps like Chrome to achieve up to 50% savings on web content. This adaptation helps extend battery life and affordability for users in emerging markets, where data costs remain a barrier. To support smooth operation on devices with 1 GB of RAM or less, Android Go implements reduced animations and simplified visual elements, lowering the default DPI and minimizing transition effects to cut computational overhead. These UI tweaks, combined with optimized rendering, result in apps launching 15% faster. Security features from Oreo are preserved but tuned for efficiency, with Protect fully integrated to scan apps for threats in real-time and offline modes, though prioritized to avoid excessive battery drain on low-end devices. This ensures baseline protection without compromising the lightweight profile. Notification handling leverages Oreo's channel system but streamlines processing to minimize memory allocation, grouping alerts efficiently to prevent overload on constrained RAM while retaining user controls for prioritization.

Adoption and Legacy

Device Rollout and Market Share

Android Oreo began its rollout in August 2017, initially available on and devices, before expanding to other manufacturers' flagships in late 2017 and 2018. The received the update in early 2018, while the launched with Oreo pre-installed in June 2017, and the series shipped with it out of the box starting in October 2017. By 2019, major original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) like , , and had achieved full coverage for their eligible devices from the prior two years. Adoption peaked in May 2019, when (combining versions 8.0 and 8.1) held a 28.3% global among active Android devices, surpassing previous versions like at that stage. Regional differences in rollout were notable, with higher adoption in —driven by Google's aggressive promotion of devices, which received timely updates—compared to , where fragmented OEM ecosystems and varying carrier requirements slowed deployment. Project Treble, introduced with , significantly influenced this process by separating vendor implementations from the Android framework, enabling over 70% of new devices launching with Android 8.0 or higher to receive faster updates by late . As of November 2025, 's market share has declined to approximately 2.3%, primarily persisting on legacy hardware and budget devices, including those running the lightweight Edition variant.

End of Life and Ongoing Support

Official support for Android 8.0 ended with the cessation of security patches on January 1, 2021, while Android 8.1 concluded on January 10, 2021. No feature updates have been issued for either variant since their respective releases in August 2017 and December 2017. Following the end of official OS support, Google Play Services updates persist for Android Oreo devices, delivering security fixes and maintaining compatibility with modern applications, including support for APIs up to level 34 through backward-compatible features. These updates help mitigate some risks but do not address core OS vulnerabilities. As of August 2025, ceased support for Android Oreo, limiting security updates and new features for the browser on these devices. Certain original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) extended security patching beyond Google's timeline for devices capped at . For instance, ended support for on eligible devices in July 2025. Additionally, third-party custom ROMs like enable ongoing maintenance, with community-driven builds offering security enhancements and feature stability for compatible hardware. Devices remaining on face heightened vulnerability to emerging exploits due to the lack of base OS patches, increasing risks from and zero-day attacks. Security experts recommend upgrading to or subsequent versions to access comprehensive protections and extended support lifecycles. In comparison to Android Oreo's roughly four-year support duration, which aligned with pre-2018 standards, later releases such as benefited from progressively longer commitments, with and OEMs guaranteeing up to seven years of updates for newer flagships by 2023. This evolution reflects industry shifts toward enhanced longevity amid growing cybersecurity demands.

References

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