Google has released the final software development kit (SDK) for Android 6.0, revealing that the next version of its operating system will be labelled “Marshmallow”.
Developers can now download the Android 6.0 SDK via Android Studio, which offers access to the final APIs for the OS.
A final Marshmallow software preview can also be loaded on Google’s Nexus 5, 6 and 9 devices, as well as onto the Nexus Player.
Android Marshmallow includes new features like support for fingerprint authentication and a “Doze” power saving mode.
A new apps permission model has been also included to better streamline updates and installations, while personal assistant service Google Now has been made more pervasive throughout.
Android Pay, Google’s revised mobile payments system, will also come pre-installed on Android 6.0 devices when the software touches down this autumn.
While Android M was unveiled at May’s Google I/O conference, the company didn’t provide details on what moniker it would go by or whether it would be the successor to Android 5.0 Lollipop, or simply an iterative update.
[Read more: Google launches open-source BLE beacon platform]
In a blog post on the Android Developers Blog, Jamal Eason, Product Manager of Android, said: “Whether you like them straight out of the bag, roasted to a golden brown exterior with a molten centre, or in fluff form, who doesn’t like marshmallows?
“Today with the final Developer Preview update, we’re introducing the official Android 6.0 SDK and opening Google Play for publishing your apps that target the new API level 23 in Android Marshmallow.
“Along with the Android 6.0 SDK, we also updated the Android Support Library to v23. The new Android Support library makes it easier to integrate many of the new platform APIs, such as permissions and fingerprint support, in a backwards-compatible manner.”