Run Apps on the Android Emulator

Click so the cursor changes to the zoom icon:

• Left-click the screen to zoom in by 25%, up to a maximum of about twice the screen resolution of the virtual device.
• Right-click to zoom out.
• Left-click and drag to select a box-shaped area to zoom in on.
• Right-click and drag a selection box to reset to default zoom.
• Ctrl-click to touch the screen while in zoom mode.

Click Enter Zoom Mode again to return to normal screen size.

The emulator lets you simulate “my location” information: the location where the emulated device is currently located. For example, if you click My Location in Google Maps and then send a location, the map shows it.

To send a GPS location:

1. Select Decimal or Sexagesimal.
2. Specify the location.

In decimal mode, enter a Latitude value in the range -90.0 to +90.0 degrees and a Longitude value in the range -180.0 to +180.0 degrees.

In sexigesimal mode, enter a three-part Latitude value in the range -90 to +90 degrees, 0 to 59 minutes, and 0.0 to 60.0 seconds. Enter a Longitude value in the range -180 to +180 degrees, 0 to 59 minutes, and 0.0 to 60.0 seconds.

For the latitude, - indicates south and + indicates north; for the longitude, - indicates west and + indicates east. The + is optional.

Optionally specify an Altitude value in the range -1,000.0 to +10,000.0 meters.

3. Click Send.

To use geographic data from a GPS exchange format (GPX) or Keyhole Markup Language (KML) file:

1. Click Load GPX/KML.
2. In the file dialog, select a file on your computer and click Open.
3. Optionally select a Speed.

The speed defaults to the Delay value (Speed 1X). You can increase the speed by double (Speed 2X), triple (Speed 3X), and so on.

4. Click Run .

The emulator lets you simulate various network conditions. You can approximate the network speed for different network protocols, or you can specify Full, which transfers data as quickly as your computer allows. Specifying a network protocol is always slower than Full. You can also specify the voice and data network status, such as roaming. The defaults are set in the AVD.

Select a Network type:

• GSM - Global System for Mobile Communications
• HSCSD - High-Speed Circuit-Switched Data
• GPRS - Generic Packet Radio Service
• EDGE - Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution
• UMTS - Universal Mobile Telecommunications System
• HSPDA - High-Speed Downlink Packet Access
• LTE - Long-Term Evolution
• Full (default)

Select a Signal strength:

• None
• Poor
• Moderate (default)
• Good
• Great

Select a Voice status, Data status, or both:

• Home (default)
• Roaming
• Searching
• Denied (emergency calls only)
• Unregistered (off)

You can simulate the battery properties of a device to see how your app performs under different conditions. To select a Charge level, use the slider control.

Select a Charger connection value:

• None
• AC charger

Select a Battery health value:

• Good (default)
• Failed
• Dead
• Overvoltage
• Overheated
• Unknown

Select a Battery status value:

• Unknown
• Charging (default)
• Discharging
• Not charging
• Full

The emulator lets you simulate incoming phone calls and text messages. Note that the information flow is one way, from the control to the emulator. For example, the control doesn’t change its state if the emulator hangs up; you need to end the call in the control.

To initiate a call to the emulator:

1. Select or type a phone number in the From field.
2. Click Call Device.
3. Optionally click Hold Call to put the call on hold.
4. To end the call, click End Call.

To send a text message to the emulator:

1. Select or type a phone number in the From field.
2. Type a message in the SMS message field.
3. Click Send Message.

If the AVD has the directional pad enabled in the hardware profile, you can use the directional pad controls with the emulator. However, not all devices can support the directional pad; for example, an Android watch. The buttons simulate the following actions:

This control can simulate 10 different fingerprint scans. You can use it to test fingerprint integration in your app. This feature is disabled for Android 5.1 (API level 22) and lower, and for Android Wear.

To simulate a fingerprint scan on the virtual device:

1. Prepare an app to receive a fingerprint.
2. Select a Fingerprint value.
3. Click Touch Sensor.

This control lets you test your app against changes in device position, orientation, or both. For example, you can simulate gestures such as tilt and rotation. The accelerometer doesn't track the absolute position of the device: it just detects when a change is occurring. The control simulates the way accelerometer and magnetometer sensors would respond when you move or rotate a real device.

The control reports TYPE_ACCELEROMETER events on the x, y, and z axis. These values include gravity. For example, if the device is suspended in outer space, it would experience zero acceleration (all of x, y, and z will be 0). When the device is on Earth and laying screen up on top of a table, the acceleration is 0, 0, and 9.8 because of gravity.

The control also reports TYPE_MAGNETIC_FIELD events, which measure the ambient magnetic field on the x, y and z axis in micro-Tesla (μT).

To rotate the device around the x, y, and z axes, select Rotate and do one of the following:

• Adjust the Yaw, Pitch, and Roll sliders and observe the position in the upper pane.
• Move the device representation in the upper pane and observe the Yaw, Pitch, and Roll and how the resulting accelerometer values change.

See Computing the Device's Orientation for more information about how yaw, pitch, and roll are calculated.

To move the device horizontally (x) or vertically (y), select Move and do one of the following:

• Adjust the X and Y sliders and observe the position in the upper pane.
• Move the device representation in the upper pane and observe the X and Y slider values and how the resulting accelerometer values change.

To position the device at 0, 90, 180, or 270 degrees:

• In the Device rotation area, select a button to change the rotation.

As you adjust the device, the Resulting Values fields change accordingly. These are the values that an app can access.

For more information about these sensors, see Sensors Overview, Motion Sensors, and Position Sensors.

You can import the AccelerometerPlay app to try out the Accelerometer control. Select File > New > Import Sample and select the app in the dialog. This app is showcased in the emulator video on this page.

The emulator can simulate various position and environment sensors. It lets you adjust the following sensors so you can test them with your app:

• Ambient temperature - This environmental sensor measures ambient air temperature.
• Magnetic field - This position sensor measures the ambient magnetic field at the X, Y and Z axis, respectively. The values are in micro-Tesla (μT).
• Proximity - This position sensor measures the distance from an object; for example, it can notify a phone that a face is close to it to make a call.
• Light - This environmental sensor measures illuminance.
• Pressure - This environmental sensor measures ambient air pressure.
• Relative Humidity - This environmental sensor measures ambient relative humidity.

For more information about these sensors, see Sensors Overview, Position Sensors, and Environment Sensors.

You can specify the following settings:

• Emulator window theme - Select Light or Dark.
• Send keyboard shortcuts to - By default, some keyboard combinations will trigger emulator control shortcuts. If you’re developing an app that includes keyboard shortcuts, such as one targeted at devices with Bluetooth keyboards, you can change this setting to send all keyboard input to the virtual device, including input that would be a shortcut in the emulator.
• Screenshot save location - Click the folder icon to specify a location to save screenshots of the emulator screen.
• Use detected ADB location - If you're running the emulator from Android Studio, you should select this setting (the default). If you run the emulator from outside Android Studio and want it to use a specific adb executable, deselect this option and specify the SDK Tools location. If this setting is incorrect, features such as drag-and-drop app install and file copy, and screenshot capture, won't work.
• When to send crash reports - Select Always, Never, or Ask.

See the keyboard shortcuts that the emulator accepts. For the shortcuts to work, you need to:

• Select Settings > Send keyboard shortcuts to > Emulator controls (default).

To go to the online documentation for the emulator, click Documentation.

To file a bug against the emulator, click File a Bug.

To make suggestions, click Send Feedback.

All of these links require an internet connection and a browser.

See which adb port the emulator uses, as well as the Android and emulator version numbers. Compare the latest available emulator version with your version to determine if you have the latest software installed.

The emulator serial number is emulator-adb_port, which you can specify as an adb command line option, for example.