The launcher is, but not everything new in Android 16 could be just an app. The new desktop mode, for example likely requires much deeper integration with the OS.
I mean yeah, you’re right about the desktop mode, but 90% of new user facing features are going to be in one app or another generally.
Technically the desktop mode itself might also be an app, though a window manager or desktop environment isn’t something we conventionally think of as an app.
No idea when I’ll get to touch a new enough Android to play with it. My old Oneplus is on shaky custom rom support and my daily driver is an iPhone (which will likely get much longer software support and is newer to begin with)
I suppose the distinctions between the OS and “just an app” are blurred on any OS. One might argue anything that isn’t the kernel is just userland software on conventional Linux.
On Android, anything a third party could deliver without system or root privileges is “just an app”. That includes keyboards, launchers, messaging apps, image editors, and smarthome device managers, but not direct management of network connections, notifications, or direct interaction with other apps (i.e. outside of intents or over the network).
If you’ve used an Android device with root access, you’ve seen things that fail this test. Anything that needs root to work can’t be delivered to most Android users unless it’s part of the OS or a system app.
Everything in Android is an app tbh, even the launcher is a completely normal app.
The launcher is, but not everything new in Android 16 could be just an app. The new desktop mode, for example likely requires much deeper integration with the OS.
I mean yeah, you’re right about the desktop mode, but 90% of new user facing features are going to be in one app or another generally.
Technically the desktop mode itself might also be an app, though a window manager or desktop environment isn’t something we conventionally think of as an app.
No idea when I’ll get to touch a new enough Android to play with it. My old Oneplus is on shaky custom rom support and my daily driver is an iPhone (which will likely get much longer software support and is newer to begin with)
I suppose the distinctions between the OS and “just an app” are blurred on any OS. One might argue anything that isn’t the kernel is just userland software on conventional Linux.
On Android, anything a third party could deliver without system or root privileges is “just an app”. That includes keyboards, launchers, messaging apps, image editors, and smarthome device managers, but not direct management of network connections, notifications, or direct interaction with other apps (i.e. outside of intents or over the network).
If you’ve used an Android device with root access, you’ve seen things that fail this test. Anything that needs root to work can’t be delivered to most Android users unless it’s part of the OS or a system app.