C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
Every year, Google launches a new version of the Android operating system. In 2023, we’re being treated to Android 14. Along with a new operating system comes a new Easter egg. In this article, we’re going to tell you everything you need to know about the Android 14 Easter egg!
If you want to know about the 2022 version, be sure to check out our Android 13 Easter egg hub. And, if you’d like to learn all about Android Easter eggs, we’ve got you covered there, too. For now, though, let’s dive into 2023’s secret Android surprise!
What’s the Android 14 Easter egg?
In the world of software development, an Easter egg is a hidden feature. Generally, because it’s hidden, it is not essential for using the software. Instead, it exists as a fun thing people can find if they have the wherewithal to hunt for it.
Google always puts an Easter egg into Android and it’s always accessible the same exact way (we cover that in the next section). Historically, the Easter egg centers around the number, name, or theme of that particular Android release. For example, Android 8 Oreo involved — you guessed it — an Oreo cookie. Android 11’s Easter egg focused on the This Is Spinal Tap! film’s running gag of “this one goes to 11.” You get the idea!
The Android 14 Easter egg centers on space. We’ll show you how you can see it for yourself and give you a sneak peek at what to expect.
How do I find the Android 14 Easter egg?
It is incredibly easy to see the Android 14 Easter egg on your phone or tablet running the latest version of the operating system. Since Android 14 hasn’t reached a stable launch yet, you’ll need to be running Android 14 beta 4 to see the Easter egg. Earlier betas and developer previews will not work — you’ll see the Android 13 Easter egg instead.
On your compatible device, follow these instructions to see the Android 14 Easter egg:
- Head to Android Settings by opening the app in your drawer or swiping down the notification shade and tapping the gear icon.
- In Settings, scroll down to About Phone and tap it.
- In the About Phone section, tap Android Version.
- Once in the Android Version section, tap the Android version number (which should be 14) repeatedly at a quick pace.
- After some taps of your version number, you should see the Android 14 Easter egg.
What the Android 14 Easter egg does
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
When you first activate the Easter egg, you’ll see the official Android 14 logo. It looks a lot like the logo from NASA’s Apollo 14 mission patch. The logo will be floating in space.
However, the Easter egg doesn’t end there. If you hold down on the logo for some time, you’ll feel your phone vibrate. This is to simulate the take-off of a space vessel. If you hold it long enough, the logo will disappear, and you’ll see controls for a tiny ship as it floats around in the vastness of space.
At the bottom left, you’ll see the status of your ship’s thrusters, your current coordinates, and your velocity. If you hold down the ship and move your finger, you can move around space. In the upper left, you’ll see a bunch of information, including the name of the star closest to your position, the class of that star, its radius, its mass, and how many objects orbit it.
Using this information, you can navigate your ship to the star. Just move the ship until your coordinates at the bottom left read (0, 0). You can even crash into the star if you like. If you don’t, though, you can hunt around the star’s orbit to find its celestial bodies and then crash into them.
There is no way to “win” this mini-game. Its entertainment value is purely the exploration of space, which is very Star Trek.
That’s the Android 14 Easter egg! If you’re wondering when you’ll see the stable version of Android 14 on your Pixel phone, check out the Android 14 release schedule. For non-Pixel phones, check out our update hub.