Android 4.1 SDK hands-on

![Android 41 SDK in photo and video][1]

Too lazy to download and install the brand new Android SDK yourself, don't feel like tweaking an AVD for optimal operation? Don't know what an AVD is? We don't blame you, and that's why we're here. We fired up [Jelly Bean][2] in the Android emulator and started poking around a bit. Sadly, most of the most exciting new features -- [offline speech recognition][3], [Google Now][4] -- don't work. And we couldn't really delve deep into the new notifications system thanks to some limitations on the SDK. We could, however, play with the new version of [Maps][5] and demo the new [widget placement tweaks][6]. Most of the UI should look familiar. In fact, the only obvious changes we noticed were the new search widget and a few tweaked buttons, like notification clearing option. You'll also notice a new layout for the clock and date in the notification pull down. Mostly, from a aesthetic point of view, the refinements are minor, but welcome. Everything feels a little more spacious, less cramped, without becoming overly simple. Want to see it for yourself? Check out the gallery below and the video after the break.

**Gallery: [Android 4.1 SDK hands-on][7]**

[![][8]][9][![][10]][11][![][12]][13][![][14]][15][![][16]][17]

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[Android 4.1 SDK hands-on][18] originally appeared on [Engadget][19] on Wed, 27 Jun 2012 19:39:00 EDT. Please see our [terms for use of feeds][20].

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[1]: http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2012/06/6-27-2012-jellybean.jpg
[2]: http://www.engadget.com/2012/06/27/jelly-bean-android-4-1-revealed-by-google/
[3]: http://www.engadget.com/2012/06/27/android-jelly-bean-keyboard-offline-voice-typing/
[4]: http://www.engadget.com/2012/06/27/google-revamps-search-integration-in-android-4-1-jellybean/
[5]: http://www.engadget.com/2012/06/27/google-maps-offline-android/
[6]: http://www.engadget.com/2012/06/27/jelly-bean-home-screen-revealed-automatically-accomodates-your/
[7]: http://www.engadget.com/photos/android-4-1-sdk-hands-on/
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