Android 2.2 (Froyo) features(blogs.zdnet.com)
blogs.zdnet.com
Android 2.2 (Froyo) features
http://blogs.zdnet.com/Google/?p=2010
58 comments
I'm worried about developer-side automatic update. I can think of more than a few times where I wouldn't want such an update, or bad things that a developer could do to a user. As a developer, I'd like it, but I'm not so sure as a user.
From the screenshot (of dubious authenticity) I saw on a different website, it seemed like the automatic updates was a setting that the user controls per app. There are still some problems with automatic updates (as there also are with non-automatic updates), but at least the control is relatively fine-grained.
True, but currently I have fifteen apps that say they have updates, and I am by no means a heavy app user. To update them (which requires FOUR clicks per app) is a waste of my time, to be quite honest. Yes, I am incurring a slight risk (depending on whether the apps I d/l are trusted), but I for one would be more than happy to automate this part of my life.
For the cautious users, perhaps there could be a "wait x days after release before update" option.
For the cautious users, perhaps there could be a "wait x days after release before update" option.
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it is actually quite surprising that an update all button is not available in Android.
I did'nt know until you mentioned it here.
Fail!
I did'nt know until you mentioned it here.
Fail!
There was a streaming music app not too long ago that accidentally wiped people's SD cards entirely if the update was installed. Definitely glad I waited a few days and checked the comments before updating.
It would be nice if they added a few options, I would like to see a "don't notify me about updates" checkbox. If an app is working fine and not a security risk (much more likely on android), then I don't want it to bug me.
You already can, although it's not per application, it's all-or-nothing. The setting is located at Market->Downloads->Menu->Notifications (at least on T-Mobile's brand of Android 1.6 -- I think it was in a slightly different place on 1.5, but it was there somewhere.)
Can anyone elaborate on how JIT is new to 2.2 and how that compares to how <=2.1 handles it? I haven't touched Java in ages, but I thought JIT was a fundamental part of how Java works, so I'm a bit confused.
Android does not have a JVM. While Android applications are written in Java, and initially compiled to Java bytecode, that bytecode is then translated into Davlik bytecode, and saved to a compact .dex executable, and run in the Davlik virtual machine. The Davlik virtual machine is quite different from the JVM. It is optimized for small devices. It is register-based rather than stack-based. It does not (currently) include a JIT compiler.
Wow, I had no idea! Thanks for the summary. :)
Yup, seems like a really clever way to give developers a familiar language with a huge library without having to make a deal with Sun (err Oracle) for a JVM license
Isn't the JVM OSS?
Here's an article on this: "Dalvik: how Google routed around Sun’s IP-based licensing restrictions on Java ME" http://www.betaversion.org/~stefano/linotype/news/110/
The clever part is getting anyone to believe that a VM with the exact same semantics as Java doesn't infringe Java patents.
"I thought JIT was a fundamental part of how Java works, so I'm a bit confused."
Suns JDK has had JIT since 1.2 (J2SE in marketspeak), but it is not a prerequisite for Java. It just speeds things up (after a short pause for compile to native).
Suns JDK has had JIT since 1.2 (J2SE in marketspeak), but it is not a prerequisite for Java. It just speeds things up (after a short pause for compile to native).
Here's hoping for a software fix for the N1's crappy multi-touch: http://androidandme.com/2010/03/news/is-multitouch-broken-on...
I used multi-touch only once or twice but it seemed to work as expected in maps and browser on my N1.
When i first got multitouch on the G1 i was pretty much underwhelmed, everyone with an iPhone told me "but it doesn't do multi touch!". And then? What i never thought of.. Why would i want to use two hands to operate my mobile when every app has good means to zoom, etc. with only one hand. Most overrated feature on phones nowadays, imo.
I guess others use multi touch a lot.. but well.. for me..
Anyway, how do i see this non-working multi touch in a real app, again? Because.. well, if this bug would be as bad as the movie makes it look like, a test at HTC would have found it instantly before production.
When i first got multitouch on the G1 i was pretty much underwhelmed, everyone with an iPhone told me "but it doesn't do multi touch!". And then? What i never thought of.. Why would i want to use two hands to operate my mobile when every app has good means to zoom, etc. with only one hand. Most overrated feature on phones nowadays, imo.
I guess others use multi touch a lot.. but well.. for me..
Anyway, how do i see this non-working multi touch in a real app, again? Because.. well, if this bug would be as bad as the movie makes it look like, a test at HTC would have found it instantly before production.
It has been working great for me. Course, I am using Cyanogen's ROM, so that might be part of it.
I'm using Cyanogen's ROM too, and I don't think it helps. Run the Spare Parts app and select Pointer Location. If you touch the screen in two places and move them around it's pretty easy to get it to report bogus locations.
It's a hardware limitation. The touchscreen used in the N1 is a Synaptics ClearPad 2000 (http://www.synaptics.com/solutions/products/clearpad) which is capable of dual-touch at best (can't really differentiate the two fingers).
Still a great phone, though.
Still a great phone, though.
umm, people disagree that it's broken? I don't get downvotes.
I believe it's been fixed: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWPsM2EdXPw&feature=playe...
That video shows it still broken on the N1. The droid (and droid incredible) never had the issue.
It fails to mention the 802.11n support to be added.
Has there been any update on the Nexus Two rumors from a month or two ago? I want an Android phone and I'm tempted to get the Nexus One, but I don't want it to instantly be obsolete... Recommendations?
I picked up the HTC Desire a few weeks back and I have never been happier with a phone, I would sincerely recommend it. It runs Android 2.1 out of the box.
http://www.htc.com/www/product/desire/overview.html
I have to say, though, it actually looks better in real than it does on the pictures, if looks is anything you care about. Not sure how HTC botched the pictures, can't really put my finger on it.
http://www.htc.com/www/product/desire/overview.html
I have to say, though, it actually looks better in real than it does on the pictures, if looks is anything you care about. Not sure how HTC botched the pictures, can't really put my finger on it.
The Nexus One is the same way. It looks kind of plastic and cheap in pictures, but is damn good looking in person. A couple of the iPhone users at work have commented that it's the first non-iPhone phone that they've been tempted by.
isn't the problem with those HTC Android phones that you'll get such updates at least half a year later than most other people, which is time needed for HTC to upgrade it's Sense UI?
That is a risk. But if you don't mind rooting the phone, you can run Cyanogen and other's mods on it with plain Android. That way you will get the latest version really fast, if you feel you need it and is willing to sacrifice Sense.
Also Google is working on making future versions of Android modular, so users can download minor updates through Android Market. Big OS number changes will then hopfully come much more seldom and be reserved for major kernel updates and so on. Hopefully this will make it easier for HTC and others to release updates faster.
Also Google is working on making future versions of Android modular, so users can download minor updates through Android Market. Big OS number changes will then hopfully come much more seldom and be reserved for major kernel updates and so on. Hopefully this will make it easier for HTC and others to release updates faster.
I don't follow Android phones that closely, but the HTC Incredible[1] and HTC Evo[2] both look very nice, I'm not sure of the details but it looks like the Incredible is Verizon and the Evo is Sprint...?
[1] http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/19/droid-incredible-review/
[2] http://www.geekogle.com/2010/htc-evo-the-soon-to-be-released...
[1] http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/19/droid-incredible-review/
[2] http://www.geekogle.com/2010/htc-evo-the-soon-to-be-released...
Err, just because a newer more powerful phone come out doesn't mean the older one is obsolete! The Nexus One is still more powerful than almost every Android phone that's been released or announced so far.
As I see it, the top Android phones on each US provider currently are:
* Tmobile - N1
* ATT - N1 (actually, the only decent Android choice on ATT so far is the N1)
* Verizon - HTC Droid Incredible
* Sprint - HTC EVO.
For those who absolutely insist on a hardware keyboard, the only decent options I know of are the Moto Droid on Verizon, and the upcoming MyTouch Slide on Tmobile. Both are less powerful than the phones listed above, but the Moto Droid is still a pretty darn nice phone (particularly after the recent update to 2.1), and the MyTouch Slide looks like it'll be the next best hardware keyboard option.
(HTC Desire looks nice also, it's almost identical to the N1. But I haven't heard confirmation of it landing on a US carrier yet. :-( )
As I see it, the top Android phones on each US provider currently are:
* Tmobile - N1
* ATT - N1 (actually, the only decent Android choice on ATT so far is the N1)
* Verizon - HTC Droid Incredible
* Sprint - HTC EVO.
For those who absolutely insist on a hardware keyboard, the only decent options I know of are the Moto Droid on Verizon, and the upcoming MyTouch Slide on Tmobile. Both are less powerful than the phones listed above, but the Moto Droid is still a pretty darn nice phone (particularly after the recent update to 2.1), and the MyTouch Slide looks like it'll be the next best hardware keyboard option.
(HTC Desire looks nice also, it's almost identical to the N1. But I haven't heard confirmation of it landing on a US carrier yet. :-( )
It looks like Dell is going to be releasing a hardware keyboard w/ the upcoming Dell Smoke: http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/21/dell-smoke-slaps-android-...
2.8 inch screen though.. ick. That kind of screen size might have worked on the BlackBerry's, but I can't imagine how sucky it's gonna be to use a touch screen focused OS on a screen that small.
I don't think you have much to worry about, the N1 is hardly going to become obsolete the moment a better Android phone comes out. My droid wasn't obsoleted by the N1 and likely won't be obsoleted by an N2 either; afaik there aren't any apps that require an N1 or even run poorly on the Droid.
Until Google seeks the professional services of a graphic designer and a user experience designer to improve the core UI metaphors (like navigation based, tab bar apps, split view based concepts on the iPhone), I won't consider it a serious alternative to the iPhone. This isn't about skin deep beauty. The user experience on the iPhone is better in nearly every way and it deserves just as much attention as technical improvements.
Have you tried Sense on a current gen device? The experience leapfrogs iPhone.
It sounds like a beta version of Android 2.2 (Froyo) is out in the wild for testing — and it has some interesting features that I’m sure Android users will find interesting.
Hmm, how interesting.
Hmm, how interesting.
Are there any existing android phones that have FM hardware? I assume the FM radio support is for future phones...right?
The HTC Desire does, but it already works there. Most people are speculating that this is one of the "secrets" Google claims is still hiding away in the Nexus One, given that the Desire and the N1 are basically the same inside, and their Broadcom chipset's specs include FM receiver/transmitter.
It's on the HTC Incredible running 2.1 and it works today. I believe it's on others too.
I feel the same way as you do... until I realized that for the vast majority of consumers
FM <<<<<<< Pandora = Last.fm
FM <<<<<<< Pandora = Last.fm
Some great stuff in here. I'm hoping a couple of Android's browser quirks get worked out as well with this release.
Froyo as in frozen yogurt right?
Yeah. Although how this is supposed to be an improvement over cupcake is anyone's guess.
you forgot donut and eclair?
>interesting features that I’m sure Android users will find interesting.
Really, copy-editor?
Really, copy-editor?