Google releases final Android 8.1 beta with support for Pixel 2’s hidden imaging chip
Google has released the final preview build of Android 8.1, a small update to Android Oreo due out next month. There isn’t a ton of new stuff in 8.1, but there is one big update coming for Pixel 2 owners: support for the phone’s “Visual Core,” an imaging chip Google included but wasn’t ready to activate at launch.
The chip has been sitting dormant, but as of today, developers can start to try it out. The Visual Core is enabled in the final 8.1 preview, allowing camera apps that use the correct API to capture shots using Google’s HDR+ and to do so using the dedicating imaging chip, which should speed things up.
You can download Android 8.1 right away by signing up for Google’s beta program, though we…
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