Android Inc. founded in 2003
Android, Inc. was founded in Palo Alto, California, United States in October, 2003 by Andy Rubin (co-founder of Danger),[22] Rich Miner (co-founder of Wildfire Communications, Inc.),[23] Nick Sears (once VP at T-Mobile),[24] and Chris White (headed design and interface development at WebTV)[25] to develop, in Rubin's words "...smarter mobile devices that are more aware of its owner's location and preferences."[26] Despite the obvious past accomplishments of the founders and early employees, Android Inc. operated secretively, revealing only that it was working on software for mobile phones.[26]
Android Inc. acquired by Google
Google acquired Android Inc. in August 2005, making Android Inc. a wholly owned subsidiary of Google Inc. Key employees of Android Inc., including Andy Rubin, Rich Miner and Chris White, stayed at the company after the acquisition.[23]
Not much was known about Android Inc. at the time of the acquisition, but many assumed that Google was planning to enter the mobile phone market with this move.
Development accelerates
At Google, the team led by Rubin developed a mobile device platform powered by the Linux kernel. Google marketed the platform to handset makers and carriers on the premise of providing a flexible, upgradable system. Google had lined up a series of hardware component and software partners and signaled to carriers that it was open to various degrees of cooperation on their part.[27][28][29]
Speculation about Google's intention to enter the mobile communications market continued to build through December 2006.[30] Reports from the BBCand The Wall Street Journal noted that Google wanted its search and applications on mobile phones and it was working hard to deliver that. Print and online media outlets soon reported rumors that Google was developing a Google-branded handset.[31] Some speculated that as Google was defining technical specifications, it was showing prototypes to cell phone manufacturers and network operators.
In September 2007, InformationWeek covered an Evalueserve study reporting that Google had filed several patent applications in the area of mobile telephon
Open Handset Alliance
Main article: Open Handset Alliance]
On November 5, 2007, the Open Handset Alliance, a consortium of several companies which include Broadcom Corporation, Google, HTC, Intel, LG,Marvell Technology Group, Motorola, Nvidia, Qualcomm, Samsung Electronics, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile and Texas Instruments unveiled itself. The goal of the Open Handset Alliance is to develop open standards for mobile devices.[10] On the same day, the Open Handset Alliance also unveiled their first product, Android, a mobile device platform built on the Linux kernel version 2.6.[10]
On December 9, 2008, 14 new members joined, including ARM Holdings, Atheros Communications, Asustek Computer Inc, Garmin Ltd, Huawei Technologies, PacketVideo, Softbank, Sony Ericsson, Toshiba Corp, and Vodafone Group Plc.[34][35]
Licensing
With the exception of brief update periods, Android has been available under a free software/open source license since October, 21 2008. Google published the entire source code (including network and telephony stacks)[36] under an Apache License.[37] Google also keeps the reviewed issues list publicly open for anyone to see and comment.[38]
Even though the software is open-source, device manufacturers cannot use Google's Android trademark unless Google certifies that the device complies with their Compatibility Definition Document (CDD). Devices must also meet this definition to be eligible to license Google's closed-source applications, including the Android Market.[39]
In September 2010, Skyhook Wireless filed a lawsuit against Google in which they alleged that Google had used the compatibility document to block Skyhook's mobile positioning service (XPS) from Motorola's Android mobile devices.[40] In December 2010 a judge denied Skyhook's motion for preliminary injunction, saying that Google had not closed off the possibility of accepting a revised version of Skyhook's XPS service, and that Motorola had terminated their contract with Skyhook because Skyhook wanted to disable Google's location data collection functions on Motorola's devices, which would have violated Motorola's obligations to Google and its carriers.[41]
In early 2011 Google chose to temporarily withhold the source code to the tablet-only Honeycomb release, which called into question the "open-ness" of this Android release.[42] The reason, according to Andy Rubin in an official Android blog post, was because Honeycomb was rushed for production of the Motorola Xoom,[43] and they didn't want third parties creating a "really bad user experience" by attempting to put onto smartphones a version of Android intended for tablets.[44] Google later confirmed that the Honeycomb source code would not be released until after it was merged with the Gingerbread release in Ice Cream Sandwich.[45]
Version history
Main article: Android version history
Android has seen a number of updates since its original release. These updates to the base operating system typically fix bugs and add new features. Generally, each new version of the Android operating system is developed under a code name based on a dessert item. Past updates included Cupcake and Donut. The code names are in alphabetical order (Cupcake, Donut, Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread, Honeycomb, and the upcoming Ice Cream Sandwich). Below is a list of the most recent versions, and what they include:
- 2.0 (Eclair) included a new web browser, with a new user interface and support for HTML5 and the W3C Geolocation API. It also included an enhanced camera app with features like digital zoom, flash, color effects, and more.[46]
- 2.1 (Eclair) included support for voice controls throughout the entire OS. It also included a new launcher, with 5 homescreens instead of 3, animated backgrounds, and a button to open the menu (instead of a slider). It also included a new weather app, and improved functionality in the Email and Phonebook apps.[46]
- 2.2 (Froyo) introduced speed improvements with JIT optimization and the Chrome V8 JavaScript engine, and added Wi-Fi hotspot tethering and Adobe Flash support[47]
- 2.3 (Gingerbread) refined the user interface, improved the soft keyboard and copy/paste features, and added support for Near Field Communication[48]
- 3.0 (Honeycomb) was a tablet-oriented[49][50][51] release which supports larger screen devices and introduces many new user interface features, and supports multicore processors and hardware acceleration for graphics.[52] The Honeycomb SDK has been released and the first device featuring this version, the Motorola Xoom tablet, went on sale in February 2011.[53]
- 3.1 (Honeycomb) was announced at the 2011 Google I/O on 10 May 2011.[54]
- 3.2 (Honeycomb) is "an incremental release that adds several new capabilities for users and developers." Highlights include optimization for a broader range of screen sizes; new "zoom-to-fill" screen compatibility mode; capability to load media files directly from the SD card; and an extended screen support API, providing developers with more precise control over the UI.[55]
Below is a list of future releases that have been announced:
- 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) is said to be a combination of Gingerbread and Honeycomb into a "cohesive whole." It will be released in Q4 2011.
Features
Current features and specifications:
| Handset layouts | The platform is adaptable to larger, VGA, 2D graphics library, 3D graphics library based on OpenGL ES 2.0 specifications, and traditional smartphone layouts. |
|---|---|
| Storage | SQLite, a lightweight relational database, is used for data storage purposes |
| Connectivity | Android supports connectivity technologies including GSM/EDGE, IDEN, CDMA, EV-DO, UMTS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi (no connections throughProxy server[62] and no Ad hoc wireless network),[63] LTE, NFC and WiMAX. |
| Messaging | SMS and MMS are available forms of messaging, including threaded text messaging and now Android Cloud To Device Messaging Framework(C2DM) is also a part of Android Push Messaging service. |
| Multiple language support | Android supports multiple human languages. The number of languages more than doubled for the platform 2.3 Gingerbread. Android lacks font rendering of several languages even after official announcements[citation needed] of added support (e.g. Hindi). |
| Web browser | The web browser available in Android is based on the open-source WebKit layout engine, coupled with Chrome's V8 JavaScript engine. The browser scores a 93/100 on the Acid3 Test. |
| Java support | While most Android applications are written in Java, there is no Java Virtual Machine in the platform and Java byte code is not executed. Java classes are compiled into Dalvik executables and run on Dalvik, a specialized virtual machine designed specifically for Android and optimized for battery-powered mobile devices with limited memory and CPU. J2ME support can be provided via third-party applications. |
| Media support | Android supports the following audio/video/still media formats: WebM, H.263, H.264 (in 3GP or MP4 container), MPEG-4 SP, AMR, AMR-WB(in 3GP container), AAC, HE-AAC (in MP4 or 3GP container), MP3, MIDI, Ogg Vorbis, FLAC, WAV, JPEG, PNG, GIF (though earlier versions do not support animated GIFs),[64] BMP.[61] |
| Streaming media support | RTP/RTSP streaming (3GPP PSS, ISMA), HTML progressive download (HTML5 <video> tag). Adobe Flash Streaming (RTMP) and HTTP Dynamic Streaming are supported by the Flash plugin.[65] Apple HTTP Live Streaming is supported by RealPlayer for Mobile,[66] and by the operating system in Android 3.0 (Honeycomb).[52] Microsoft Smooth Streaming is planned to be supported through the awaited port of Silverlight plugin to Android. |
| Additional hardware support | Android can use video/still cameras, touchscreens, GPS, accelerometers, gyroscopes, magnetometers, dedicated gaming controls, proximityand pressure sensors, thermometers, accelerated 2D bit blits (with hardware orientation, scaling, pixel format conversion) and accelerated 3D graphics. |
| Multi-touch | Android has native support for multi-touch which was initially made available in handsets such as the HTC Hero. The feature was originally disabled at the kernel level (possibly to avoid infringing Apple's patents on touch-screen technology at the time).[67] Google has since released an update for the Nexus One and the Motorola Droid which enables multi-touch natively.[68] |
| Bluetooth | Supports A2DP, AVRCP, sending files (OPP), accessing the phone book (PBAP), voice dialing and sending contacts between phones. Keyboard, mouse and joystick (HID) support is available through manufacturer customizations and third-party applications. Full HID support is planned for Android 3.0 (Honeycomb).[52] |
| Video calling | Android does not support native video calling, but some handsets have a customized version of the operating system that supports it, either via the UMTS network (like the Samsung Galaxy S) or over IP. Video calling through Google Talk is available in Android 2.3.4 and later. |
| Multitasking | Multitasking of applications is available.[69] |
| Voice based features | Google search through voice has been available since initial release.[70] Voice actions for calling, texting, navigation, etc. are supported on Android 2.2 onwards.[71] |
| Tethering | Android supports tethering, which allows a phone to be used as a wireless/wired hotspot. Before Android 2.2 this was supported by third-party applications or manufacturer customizations.[72] |
| Screen capture | Android does not support screenshot capture as of 2011. This is supported by manufacturer and third-party customizations.[73] |
Main article: List of Android devices
The Android operating system is used on smartphones, netbooks, tablets, Google TV, and other devices
The main hardware platform for Android is the ARM architecture. There is support for x86 from the Android-x86 project,[76] and Google TV uses a special x86 version of Android.
The first commercially available phone to run Android was the HTC Dream, released on 22 October 2008. In early 2010 Google collaborated with HTC to launch its flagship[78] Android device, theNexus One. This was followed later in 2010 with the Samsung-made Nexus S.
iOS and Android 2.3.3 'Gingerbread' may be set up to dual boot on a jailbroken iPhone or iPod Touch with the help of OpeniBoot and iDroid
Applications
Applications are usually developed in the Java language using the Android Software Development Kit, but other development tools are available, including a Native Development Kit for applications or extensions in C or C++, and Google App Inventor, a visual environment for novice programmers.
