Android

Android is an open source software stack for mobile devices, and a corresponding open source project led by Google.

Developer comments

We created Android in response to our own experiences launching mobile apps. We wanted to make sure that there was no central point of failure, so that no industry player can restrict or control the innovations of any other. That's why we created Android, and made its source code open.

The Android Open Source Project (AOSP), led by Google, is tasked with the maintenance and further development of Android. Many device manufacturers have brought to market devices running Android, and they are readibly available around the world.

Our primary purpose is to build an excellent software platform for everyday users. A number of companies have committed many engineers to achieve this goal, and the result is a full production quality consumer product whose source is open for customization and porting.

What is new in this release:

• New user features:
• Optimizations for a wider range of tablets
• Android 3.2 includes a variety of optimizations across the system to ensure a great user experience on a wider range of tablet devices.
• Compatibility zoom for fixed-sized apps
• Android 3.2 introduces a new compatibility zoom mode that gives users a new way to view fixed-sized apps on larger devices. The new mode provides a pixel-scaled alternative to the standard UI stretching for apps that are not designed to run on larger screen sizes, such as on tablets. The new mode is accessible to users from a menu icon in the system bar, for apps that need compatibility support.
• Media sync from SD card
• On devices that support an SD card, users can now load media files directly from the SD card to apps that use them. A system facility makes the files accessible to apps from the system media store.
• New developer features:
• Extended API for managing screens support
• Android 3.2 introduces extensions to the platform's screen support API to give developers additional ways to manage application UI across the range of Android-powered devices. The API includes new resource qualifiers and new manifest attributes that give you more precise control over how your apps are displayed on different sizes, rather than relying on generalized size categories.
• To ensure the best possible display for fixed-sized apps and apps with limited support for various screen sizes, the platform also provides a new zoom compatibility mode that renders the UI on a smaller screen area, then scales it up to fill the space available on the display. For more information about the screen support API and the controls it provides, see the sections below.

What is new in version 2.2:

• Performance & speed:
• The new Dalvik JIT compiler in Android 2.2 delivers between a 2-5X performance improvement in CPU-bound code vs. Android 2.1 according to various benchmarks.
• New enterprise capabilities:
• We've added Exchange capabilities such as account auto-discovery and calendar sync. Device policy management APIs allow developers to write applications that can control security features of the device such as the remote wipe, minimum password, lockscreen timeout etc.
• Faster, more powerful browser:
• We have brought the V8 JavaScript engine to the Android browser as part of 2.2. This has resulted in a 2-3X improvement in JavaScript performance vs. 2.1.
• Rich set of new APIs and services:
• New data backup APIs enable apps to participate in data backup and restore, allowing an application's last data to be restored when installed on a new or a reset device. Apps can utilize Android Cloud to Device Messaging to enable mobile alert, send to phone, and two-way push sync functionality. Developers can now declare whether their app should be installed on internal memory or an SD card. They can also let the system automatically determine the install location. On the native side, a new API now gives access to Skia bitmaps.
• Additions to Android Market:
• Android Market provides Android Application Error Reports, a new bug reporting feature, giving developers access to crash and freeze reports from users. Developers will be able to access these reports via their account on the Android Market publisher website.