Android N Developer Preview Available For Sony Xperia Z3!

We may earn a commission for purchases made using our links.

Android N is available for just a small number of devices. It’s still a developer preview, so Google deciding to roll it up for a bunch of Nexus devices makes sense. There is some good news, though, as Sony worked closely with big G to provide a preview for their own Xperia phones.

At this moment, Android N is available for two variants of Xperia Z3 – the D6603 and D6653. Sony was kind enough to provide a screenshot of the device running the next incarnation of Android.

Here’s a short recap of what’s new in Android N:

Multi-window support – This new multi-tasking feature lets users open up two apps on the screen at once.

– This new multi-tasking feature lets users open up two apps on the screen at once. Bundled notifications – You can group messages together, for example, by message topic. Users can then take actions in one place.

– You can group messages together, for example, by message topic. Users can then take actions in one place. Direct reply notifications – Users can respond quickly to notifications directly within the notification interface.

Users can respond quickly to notifications directly within the notification interface. Efficiency – Google has improved Doze to save even more power in Android N. There are also new behaviors in Project Svelte, aiming to reduce the memory needs of Android.

If you want to put your hands on it (and we know that you do), you need to use the PC Companion software. It will work only on Windows, so make sure you have a PC or a virtual machine with it installed. Then, follow along the instructions from the blog post:

Hold down the ALT key on your computer and click on Software repair on the home screen, then follow the guide.

You’ll be asked to disconnect and turn off your device, then to reconnect whilst holding down the volume down key to start the software flashing.

You can return to factory settings at any time by connecting back to Xperia Companion and following the Software repair

Once you flash it, don’t forget to give feedback to developers.

There is one extremely important thing that we have to add – this firmware is not intended for daily use, so be prepared for some bugs and flaws that can make your experience much worse than with an official software. As such, we advise that you make adequate backups beforehand.

More info on the Android N Previews can be found on the blog post.

Have you tried the Android N Preview on your Sony Xperia Z3? Let us know your experience in the comments below!