Google has announced Android 13 Go, Go being the toned-down version of the full-blown OS meant to run on lower-spec devices. Up until Android 12 Go, users needed more than 1GB of RAM, however the new release doubles this to 2GB and pushes the storage requirement to 16GB. 

The latest version of the Go lineup tries to further bridge the gap between the mainline Android and these lighter versions, however, entry-level smartphones rarely have the processing power or memory capabilities required to give users a good experience. That said, the new version does bring Material You, Google’s streamlined Google Play System Updates pipeline and other Android 13 features including notification permissions and security enhancements. 

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Bridging the gap between Go and Stock

As mentioned before, this release of Android Go further reduces the gap between the Go and Stock versions of the OS. Now, of course, there are going to be differences considering the hardware the two systems run on, but Google has been pushing Android Go for quite some time ensuring users have the most consistent user experience possible. 

Android 13 Go brings a lot of Android 13 features such as notification permissions, app language preferences, system UI changes, Material You and Google’s Play System Update pipeline among other things to lower-powered devices. 

Better security

Speaking of the Google Play System Update pipeline, Android Go phones can now quickly receive important standalone software and security updates, all without compromising the storage available on the device. 

So far, while Google posts the update for the OS, different manufacturers are responsible for pushing these updates to individual models. As you can probably images, lower-spec models aren’t exactly high on the list of phones getting new updates leaving Android Go users in the dark.

The implementation of this update pipeline ensures that Android Go users keep their phones updated without having to rely on the manufacturers to push updates individually. 

Discover more, maybe?

The new release also brings the Discover feature, you know, the one where you swipe right from the home screen to see a curated list of articles. Yes, Android Go didn’t have it until now. 

You see, Google Assistant works differently on Android Go. First up, it only works when you summon it, saving a lot of battery and background system resources. Features like Google Lens have also just arrived in the lightweight operating system. 

While AI capabilities will remain severely limited on the Go editions of Android due to hardware limitations and just the very nature of the OS itself, these new features, even in a limited form bring these features to a section of users or 250 million as Google claims that run Android Go as monthly active users, that would otherwise miss out on a lot that Android has to offer. 

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