In 2013, Google launched an official integrated development environment Android Studio to make app development for its mobile platform faster and more visual. That must have worked, as the Play Store is now bulging with nearly 1.6 million apps. However, it’s long overdue for an overhaul, so the search giant has launched Android Studio 2.0 with plenty of new speed and productivity features.
The most prominent addition is Instant Run, something the company has been refining in previews over the last year. When you change your code, you can instantly see how it affects the running app, with no need to recompile or reinstall the APK. That should “accelerate your edit, build and run cycles,” according to Google.
The Android device emulator now takes advantage of multi-core CPUs, making it three times faster than before. “In most situations, developing on the official Android Emulator is faster than a real device, and new features like Instant Run will work best with the new Android emulator,” Google says. The brand new interface will help you fine tune an app by letting you rotate the screen, drag-and-drop to install apps and use multi-touch controls like pinch to zoom.
