Android Dreaming

Been wondering about what this Android is all about? Is it a cell phone? Is it an operating system? What is it? This article will delve into those questions and more.

Android is an operating system for mobile devices. It is an open source project which involves access to the source code among other things. Adopters of this phone OS includes T-Mobile. Currently T-Mobile has two phones that run this platform: the G1 and the MyTouch. A full listing of Android mobile phones can be found on Android’s website (www.androphones.com)

What can the Android cell phone do? That depends on what version of Android the phone is running. This article will focus on the Android 1.6 phone OS. Android 1.6 comes with what one expects from a touch screen mobile phone: calendar, email, internet, qwerty keyboard, camera. The T-Mobile G1 cell phone has integration with Google which provides one click access Google searches and Google applications such as Gmail.

What separates these new phones is the Android Marketplace. This is where you find applications for your Android cell phone. iPhone and other manufacturers of touch screen phones (e.g. Nokia, LG) have similar marketplaces to buy applications. Since Android is open source, anyone who accepts the license can have access to the source code and APIs and start developing software for the phone which gives Android phones an advantage over others. Application developers do not have to enter into a legal labyrinth to start developing for the Android OS.