Beta 1 came out on 10 June 2020, a week after the new date. On 29 May Google postponed the 3 June event and beta release, saying “now is not the time to celebrate”. It then cancelled the virtual event “to allow people to focus on important discussions around racial justice in the United States” and released the beta through short videos and web pages instead.
| Release date | 10 June 2020 |
| Build | RPB1.200504.018 |
| Devices | Pixel 2, 3, 3a and 4, with their XL models; Android Emulator |
| How to get it | Over the air through Android Beta, open for the first time, or by flash |
| Platform stability | No; SDK and NDK APIs final, system behaviors not yet |
The SDK and NDK APIs were final from this build, and Google Play accepted apps targeting Android 11. Google framed the release around three themes: People, Controls and Privacy. Conversation notifications and bubbles led the first; device controls on a long press of the power button and media controls led the second. Media controls were behind Developer options here, with Google saying they would be on by default in a later beta.
Permissions auto-reset joined one-time permissions: Android would reset the runtime permissions of an app not used for a long time. Autofill apps and keyboards could now show suggestions in the keyboard’s suggestion strip.
Beta 1.5 (RPB1.200504.020) followed on 17 June. It fixed reboots during
gesture navigation, contactless payments with Google Pay, and Bluetooth
unpairing.