AndroidBoards

Android just announced the release of a new development branch named “cupcake“. Cupcake supposedly includes new application features including ”bug fixes, a video recorder, the ability to save MMS attachments and more.” Other improvements include better bluetooth support, HTTP handling and improved JavaScript functionality. Although this branch is strictly marked as development, these features and likely more are sure to be included in a release in the new future.

Though some may doubt Sprint’s commitment to Android, a quip from Sprint featured on InternetNews.com seems to disprove any speculation of Sprint’s infidelity to Android:

Sprint is engaged with Android — no need to question our commitment.

Thanks for the opportunity to share our perspective

Sprint is actively engaged with the Android community; for competitive reasons, we have not been specific about the timing of an Android phone from Sprint.

Sprint is a charter member of the Open Handset Alliance.

Sprint has a long history of leadership in working closely with developers to encourage them to create new content that can be offered on Sprint phones. The Titan platform is an example of Sprint’s work with the developer community. Our participation in the OHA and our work with the Android community is another example.

Though the source from Sprint is unknown, the comment seems very well-worded and confident about an upcoming involvement with Android.

Google has just released the source code for the Android software stack, timed perfectly with tomorrow’s release of the G1. Under the Apache license, anyone could conceivably utilize the entire software stack to create their own cell phone. Word comes from Google’s new open-source page for Android.

Google says that with the new open-source release, consumers can expect to see more advanced and integrated applications as well as cheaper and faster smart phones. We assume that Motorola has been waiting anxiously on this release to get started on their own social-networking phone.

It’s safe to say that Android is now poised to create some huge waves in the smartphone market, starting by creating downward pressure on smartphone market prices.

Read the rest of this entry »

Motorola has announced plans to boost it’s already strong Android team by more than 600%, bringing the total from 50 to a staggering 350 workers in the following months. However, as Motorola is key component of the Open Handset Alliance, this comes as no surprise.

The coming months will tell whether Motorola’s high stakes venture into these news markets will help rebound it from it’s previous struggles in the handset market. Once a key leader, Motorola has taken drastic tumble down the mountainous handset market.

Hopefully, Motorola’s endeavors will pay off, and we will see increasing healthy competition in the smart phone market.

The Android developer community is more than a bit upset these days with the way Google has been handling SDK releases. First it started with some minor complaints about the lack of SDK updates, but the fire has grown exponentially with recent news that Google has been “playing favorites” and releasing updated SDKs to the winners of the Developer Challenge and a select few others.

The news came through an unlikely means when Google’s Android advocate accidentally sent a note intended for the winning Developer Challenge developers to a much broader audience of developers.

“Ahhhh, now it makes sense,” one developer wrote on the Android forum. “So they’ve been making private SDK releases while the rest of us suffer with the pile of bugs from the 4+ month old release.”

Many developers have stated that they plan to leave their ambitious Android projects to take up the widely-available, well-made and popular SDK for the Apple iPhone. Google had better shape up – and quick – before the most important aspect of their entire project pulls away leaving the Android project in a smoldering heap.

Seriously, Google, get it together.

The Google I/O Conference ended with the developers taking the stage and answering questions from the audience. Fifty were answered in total, and they can all be found at ZDNet. Here are the highlights:

Q. What if my app uses location api, and service provider shuts that off, can they?
A. They can do that… it’s not a perfect world. Rather than having us dictate what carriers and OEMs support, we let developers develop killer apps that will require it.

Q. Java is more than a language. Google implemented its own VM. Could we use the Sun JVM? Explain the reasoning behind having your own.
A. We can have a more efficient interpreter and less memory pressure (by having Dalvik). You have to consider the holistic system performance. We had no choice but to run multiple VMs and processes. Share read-only memory across processes was important. Dalvik does that.

Q. Does Android have USB support? External keyboard, etc.?
A. The hardware should support it but it’s not enabled in the software. Maybe in a point release.

Q. If a small device manufufacturer wants to run Android, can they just download it and go?
A. Once it’s open source, anyone can download and port Android without joining OHA. Android will be open source before the end of the year.

Q. What is Android’s business model?
A. Somebody could rip out the Google stuff and put in Yahoo stuff. That’s ok. Our job is to continue to create killer apps that people will want to use. Google search, GMail, maps, etc.. If we ever fail to delight users our core business will go away. That’s why we felt comfortable using the Apache license.

Q. Any details on next round of the Android developer’s challenge?
A. For part 2… we don’t have a lot of details. It will be the other half of the $10 million, and will be after devices are on the market. Probably early next year.

We forgot one little tidbit about the Developer Challenge update the other day: Each recipient gets $25k to finance the further production of their application(s). Not a small chunk of change for most of these guys who are typically one or two individuals collaborating on a single project.

Google has released a list of finalists and a detailed PDF containing all 46 of the recipients who consented to share their information with the public. One great apps listed include “AndroidScan”, which allows you to scan the barcode on many different products and find price comparison data in real time. Check the link for more, and get excited to seem some great new applications for Android. The judge names and companies which they represent were released also, check the link after the jump to see both the PDF and judges.

Read the rest of this entry »

The new version is out! Check out Engadget’s new gallery or hit the download links below to get your copy now. Discussion is under the new section called “General SDK Talk” in the forums. Grab the download directly after the break.

Read the rest of this entry »