Google knows all this about Dalvik, of course, which is why it’s been working on its replacement — Android Runtime (ART) — for more than two years. An early version of ART is included with Android 4.4 and can be enabled in Settings > Developer Options > Select Runtime.
ART straddles an interesting mid-ground between compiled and interpreted code, called ahead-of-time (AOT) compilation. Currently with Android apps, they are interpreted at runtime (using the JIT), every time you open them up. This is slow. (iOS apps, by comparison, are compiled native code, which is much faster.) With ART enabled, each Android app is compiled to native code when you install it. Then, when it’s time to run the app, it performs with all the alacrity of a native app.
It obviously takes some time to perform the AOT compilation at install time, but the long-term gains from apps that load and run faster will easily make up for it. You probably won’t even notice the AOT compilation of small apps; but for larger apps, we’re talking about a noticeable delay. If you switch an existing device from Dalvik to ART, you’re talking about a wait time of a few minutes while Android performs AOT for all your installed apps.
The main advantage of ART is that it allows Android developers to continue writing the exact same code, and having their apps work across a wide range of hardware specs and form factors — but now their apps will now run significantly faster, feel more responsive, and your device’s battery life should improve. Early testing indicates that ART is twice as fast as Dalvik. ART’s compiled code should also perform more consistently than JIT Dalvik, too, reducing UI latency and stuttering. The biggest gains will probably be for computationally intensive apps, such as photo and video editors, but if this early build of ART is anything to go by, there should be significant improvements across the board. ART could be change that finally makes Android as responsive and snappy feeling as iOS.