[MW Forums]

Google released the Android SDK and announced it will award up to $10 million in prizes to developers. more

[vfx2k4]

Hmm fairly bland looking. Maybe when someone like Google says "New OS" these days I just expect to see Minority Report holograms rather than window dressed Linux.

[iMacAttack]

Wow, pretty substantial for just a 'press release'. http://www.macworld....llmer/index.php

[jedi228]

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Wow, pretty substantial for just a 'press release'.

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Agreed. Google is being aggressive in spreading the Android around and is putting both time and active effort into it. Apple could actually learn a few lessons for iPhone here. So far Apple seems passive and begrudging when it comes to the iPhone SDK.

[robco]

I hope this improves and Google wipes the floor with the iPhone. This is how you release a platform. The SDK comes out before the device ships. The software is known and open. With any luck, there will be a host of apps available when the "gPhones" start to ship next year. This is stark contrast to the closed, still-missing-even-basic-features, "you'll get what we think you want when we think you can have it" approach of Apple. Personally I'll take greater freedom and choice. The big one for me being a choice of carriers. The iPhone is decent (not great), but the exclusivity with AT&T is a deal-killer. With the OHA, I can keep my current carrier (Sprint) or go with others. This should be great news for smaller, regional carriers.

[jdb8167]

There is a video on Google's code site where Steve Horowitz says that "living" with the device is necessary to develop great applications. Android
The problem here is that you can't currently do any such thing. Google is supplying an Intel only emulator (no PPC Macs) for testing your applications. This isn't going to be sufficient in a lot of cases. Google needs to get phones like those in the demo to developers as quickly as possible.
I doubt that I will retain interest in the platform until next year if I can't play with real hardware.

[jdb8167]

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. With the OHA, I can keep my current carrier (Sprint) or go with others.

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Lots of luck on that. Sprint/Nextel's website makes it pretty clear that they aren't interested in Android for their current phones, just for their failed WiMAX initiative. Sprint Android Press Release
Sprint's phones are completely locked to their network and no manufacturer can release a phone for Sprint without Sprint's cooperation. Their press release talks about their ADP program. This is a completely locked down licensing arrangement where your application is approved by Sprint. See here for more details:Developer Device Activation
Maybe I'm wrong on this but I doubt it. US cell phone companies are pretty consistent in their desire to control everything on their networks.

[Tidewind]

I completely agree with the poster immediately above me. If you look at the video released this morning by Google, it's underwhelming. There are some similar features and functions to some parts of the iPhone, but Android is both sluggish and clunky by comparison. It takes a lot of clicks to get to functions that you can get to in one click with an iPhone. And the elegance of the iPhone's interface is missing.
Add to that what the poster mentioned above: what if Google makes a mobile phone OS but nobody shows up? That is, it's one thing to make a mobile phone OS, but if the powers that be in the boardrooms of AT&T, Sprint, Verizon and T-Mobile don't show any interest, Android will be a bust. As it is, Google, to its credit, is trying to outmaneuver the telcos in January's spectrum auction. While one of the telcos might be interested in accepting phones running Android, they don't have to. In fact, the telcos could simply close ranks and not accept any phones running Android if they wanted to make things tough against Google for daring to compete with them in spectrum auctions.
While I am an ardent fan of the iPhone, competition will only improve the breed. And I welcome Google's attempts to compete with the telcos, to shake up the market. Android will be a loss-leader in trying to change the business model of mobile phones quite possibly to an ad-supported method. If anything, that will make the task of Google's handset partners a tougher sell to the telcos, and this is Google's first shot across the bow against them as well as Microsoft.
For all the whining about an SDK for the iPhone, it will be with us soon enough. Fast forward a couple of months, and there should be a plethora of applications available for the iPhone. Frankly, I'm not too rattled about Android from what I have seen, and I think Apple will compete on its own terms. We would be wise not to view announcements like this as yet another "Apple is doomed" piece of FUD. If anything, it validates all that Apple has accomplished with the iPhone in very little time.

[ReeceTarbert]

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There are some similar features and functions to some parts of the iPhone, but Android is both sluggish and clunky by comparison. It takes a lot of clicks to get to functions that you can get to in one click with an iPhone. And the elegance of the iPhone's interface is missing.

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True, but let's not forget this is a very early SDK, running on makeshift devices.
I don't know about you, but I didn't have the privilege to check any iPhone prototype and the SDK... well, that one is still pretty much in the air! /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
Regarding Android's success, I should say it mostly depends on the handset makers rather than the service providers but, since it's using Java as the development language, it could appeal to a large base of mobile developers.
If nothing else, Android and (hopefully) the iPhone SDK are going to make things more interesting for both developers and consumers alike.

[wintomac]

I saw the android demo (watch the you tube video) and the functionality looks and feels very similar to Apple. The thing at the bottom was reminiscent of the dock and the flow between functions is similar to iPhone in that functions aren't buried in sub menus.
The android phones don't have to be as good as the iPhone. It will likely come on cheap or free phones and may adopt other features like 3g and wimax faster than Apple bring to the iphone. Oh yeah, and it may have a lot of third party apps as well.
It's a real threat to the iPhone IMO. And it should really put a hurt on RIM, Palm and Win mobile.

[cnorth3]

If I understand Google's business model correctly, the gPhone is all about advertising. Ad-based services are, essentially, the same business model that we all love to hate in broadcast media. Do I want my cellphone to be a platform for Google ads? No thanks.
And another thing, while it's great to have an open development platform, one thing that the applications it spawns will not have is the consistant look and feel that makes Mac applications a joy to use (okay, the iPhone aps need a little work here, but you know that they'll improve).
So, I think it's great that Google is fostering competition in this market, but I'm far from sold on their approach. It will be interesting to see how this thing unfolds.

[jedi228]

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what if Google makes a mobile phone OS but nobody shows up?

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That certainly could happen, but at least Google is trying to make good with developers.

[jdb8167]

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what if Google makes a mobile phone OS but nobody shows up?

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T-Mobile is on board. The problem with T-Mobile is that they don't own much 3G bandwidth and are trying to make do with WiFi access points. I'm not sure how well that is going to work out. The good thing is if the T-Mobile gPhones are unlocked, you can use them on AT&T anyway.

[jdb8167]

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I saw the android demo (watch the you tube video) and the functionality looks and feels very similar to Apple. ...
The android phones don't have to be as good as the iPhone. It will likely come on cheap or free phones and may adopt other features like 3g and wimax faster than Apple bring to the iphone. Oh yeah, and it may have a lot of third party apps as well.
It's a real threat to the iPhone IMO. And it should really put a hurt on RIM, Palm and Win mobile.

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I'm already looking at the Android SDK. I think it has real potential. But like I said above, the current SDK is not even close to what a developer needs for developing an innovative mobile application like those suggested in the video. Someone needs to get hardware to developers in order to make real progress. I hope they don't wait for the first commercial phones before developers see real Android compatible hardware.
When Apple moved to Intel, they didn't have any hardware available for sale to regular users. But they still managed to get developers working hardware to start developing on. Google can do the same thing. Find a phone that can run the Linux/Android stack and make it available to developers through T-Mobile or something.