Android 11 beta is now available for Pixel and OnePlus 8 owners, but not all of the features that early adopters are enjoying will be available on all devices

XDA Developers obtained the Compatibility Definition Document (CDD) If manufacturers ignore the mandatory features, they will not be able to include Google Apps, and third parties will suddenly find themselves in a Huawei-like position

However, there is a second class of semi-mandatory features These are marked "strongly recommended," and according to the leak, there are three big Android 11 features that get this treatment, meaning that your next Android smartphone may not support them

First up: this is an Android 11 feature that allows you to control smart home devices like lights and thermostats with a long press of the power button Interestingly, according to XDA Developers, this was initially in the mandatory category, but was demoted to optional by May Perhaps third parties were concerned that adding an extra feature to the on/off button would confuse users

Conversations is the second Android 11 feature that is optional With this feature, notifications from messaging apps are grouped together above all other alerts in the notification bar This is intended to keep messages from getting lost in the sea of app alerts But again, this is optional and perhaps implicit in the fact that the notification panel is one of the primary areas in which OEMs customize the Android experience

Finally, there is the IdentityCredential API This is the system that allows Android 11 to securely store identity forms, such as driver's licenses, on cell phones in a secure offline environment according to XDA Developers, this API was demoted from mandatory to optional on March 18, and the relaxation of this rule was due to implementation difficulties In other words, it is not mandatory now In other words, it is not mandatory now, but may be by the time Android 12 comes out

It is important to note that just because OEMs are not forced to implement these Android 11 features does not mean they will not While these are hardly the big headline improvements in Android 11, it is not hard to imagine that manufacturers may be reluctant to omit features and give rivals an advantage, since there is little difference between devices

For those not currently in the Android 11 beta, highlights include new media controls, chat head bubbles and screen recording For more details on the biggest new features, check out the Android 11 hub