Good ol Android. It has been with us a whole 365 days(just about it). Seems like yesterday folks were getting excited over your inaugural arrival. Don’t get me wrong, Android still gets people excited. Android has come a long way since being a small startup company that Google acquired in July 2005.
Carriers and handset/tech companies appear to be coming out of the woodwork to use the Android OS on its device or create a device for the OS. It originally started with the Open Handset Alliance with just select group of companies/carriers to now all four of the top US carriers and many overseas carriers as well. It still has quite the road ahead as Android attempts to enter a market where iPhone & Blackberry covers most of the US and Symbian has the overseas market. The new kid on the block of devices/OSs has already made an imprint in the mobile world.
Carriers and handset/tech companies appear to be coming out of the woodwork to use the Android OS on its device or create a device for the OS. It originally started with the Open Handset Alliance with just select group of companies/carriers to now all four of the top US carriers and many overseas carriers as well. It still has quite the road ahead as Android attempts to enter a market where iPhone & Blackberry covers most of the US and Symbian has the overseas market. The new kid on the block of devices/OSs has already made an imprint in the mobile world.
Android is a free and open source software that can be used with almost any compatible device. Its software supports GSM/EDGE, CDMA, 3G, Bluetooth and Wifi connectivity along with standard audio/video media formats, acclerated 3D graphics, GPS radios, camera/video recording capabilities, accelerometers, and touchscreen support. A lot of people may or may not know that Android does have a native multi-touch support but is disabled for unknown reasons, some say to avoid copyright infringement from Apple’s touchscreen patents.
Android is a very impressive OS but it has its problems. Google has put their stamp behind Android by providing devices with Google Search, Gmail, Google Maps, and Google Calendar integrated within. They still missed out by not providing Google Docs support.
Multitasking acts as a double-edge sword for Android since the apps keep running in the background without being able to stop them. The G1 and the MyTouch3G have limited onboard memory which can create a usual lagging in between processes as well as effecting Android’s responsiveness. Apps aren’t able to be installed on or run from an SD card. The default Instant Messenging apps are one of the worst I have seen unfortunately, gonna have to wait for BeeJive to support Android. Exchange support was non-existent in the G1, MyTouch3G but has been resolved. With the new Sense and Motoblur User Interface coming with the newer devices running on top of Android will definitely improve your user experience. While Android software isn’t that big of a problem, I think Android hardware (devices) is holding it back from its full potential. Like the G1 & MyTouch has a horrible battery life, not very good speakerphone quality, and lack of a 3.5mm audio jack. None of the Android devices thus far has a flash for the camera which takes away from using the camera. The audio jack issue has been resolved on the future models along with bigger batteries shipping with the device.
There are plenty of devices out and coming within a year’s span tooting the green robot horn. T-Mobile has been a strong Android supporter since day one by being the first carrier to offer Android on its devices. T-Mo started with the G1(touchscreen device with slide-out QWERTY keyboard a la Sidekick) then followed it up with the MyTouch3G ( basically a G1 w/o the physical keyboard)and continues with the Behold 2 and the Motorola Cliq coming soon. Sprint who was an original OHA member, will be releasing their variant of the HTC Hero and the Samsung Moment soon. Verizon has recently just got on board with Android and will be releasing the Motorola Droid & the Calgary before the year is out. AT&T is also along for the Android ride but no word on devices as yet. Rumors of an Android device they had in mind got cancelled but there are rumors that Dell is working on a device for them. There are Android devices all over the world via different international carriers along with rumored Android-powered netbooks and e-book readers.
A great start off to a great OS, I say. While Android isn’t a perfect operating system it still has a lot of advantages over other OSs. Still has a way longer road ahead to actually take the iPhone off its throne. While I grip my crackberry tight, I’m still rooting for the Android takeover within the mobile industry but can we have some tethering please.
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