Android N Release Date: Android 7.0 Nougat Is Full Name For Upcoming OS

The forthcoming Android N system was officially unveiled as “Android Nougat” Thursday as Google showcased its latest Android lawn statues at the Googleplex in Mountain View, California. Now the tech giant has announced the full name of the OS, Android 7.0 Nougat. Google revealed the full name in a YouTube video about the naming process.

After several years of deciding Android names internally, Google decided to get the public’s opinion for Android N, with a public contest where fans could submit suggestions for “tasty treats” that begin with the letter “N.” Google announced the contest at Google I/O in May, but noted it would ultimately be up to the Android team as to what Android N would be called. Clearly Nougat got overwhelming support both in-house and from the public.

Since the unveiling, there has been much commentary about Nougat. Many had wanted Android N to be “Nutella,” while others felt Nougat was the only choice for the name. Some expressed not knowing what Nougat was until Google’s unveiling. Nougat is described as a “confection made with sugar or honey, roasted nuts, whipped egg whites, and sometimes chopped candied fruit.”

As for 7.0, that is pretty straightforward. Often jumping up to a new number indicates Google has included many major systems. In recent years, Google has gone from Android 5.0 to 6.0 and now to 7.0 and all of these systems have included major overhauls to the Android system. Prior to that Android was stuck at version 4 From “Ice Cream Sandwich” to “Jelly Bean” to “KitKat,” and had pretty minor, incremental upgrades.

New and updated features for Android 7.0 Nougat include an emoji overhaul in accordance with Unicode 9, Java 8 support, multi-window, direct reply notifications, bundled notifications and enhancements to Doze mode.

Currently there is no word on just when Android 7.0 Nougat will release, but Google says users should expect official software before the end of summer.