Google releases Android 2.0, the long-awaited OS build code-named ??½clair that is expected to appear first on the upcoming Motorola Droid smartphone from Verizon Wireless. A feature called Quick Contact lets users tap a contact photo to call, SMS or e-mail that person. The Android 2.0 SDK features new sync, contacts and account manager APIs. The first in a series of Droid smartphones will run the latest Android build and is expected to launch Nov. 6 on Verizon Wireless, according to the Boy Genius Report.
Google's Android mobile operating system team Oct. 27
released Android 2.0, the long-awaited build also known as
??½clair that is expected to appear first on the Motorola Droid smartphone from
Verizon Wireless Nov. 6.
The Android 2.0 SDK (software development kit) features new APIs for sync,
account manager and contacts. These programming interfaces will allow Android developers
to write applications that allow users to sync their devices to various contact
sources.
Specifically, the sync adapter API
supports two-way contact sync to any back end, the account manager API
lets developers centrally store user credential information on phones and the
contacts API supports syncing and aggregates
e-mail and contact data from multiple accounts, including Exchange.
What features
will users get from the Android 2.0 build?
A new feature called Quick Contact lets users instantly contact each other.
For example, a user can tap a contact photo to call, SMS (Short Message Service)
or e-mail the person. E-mail, messaging and calendar applications can also be
programmed to surface the Quick Contact widget when users touch a contact photo
or status icon.
There is a combined inbox feature to let users browse e-mail from multiple
accounts in one page, as well as the ability to search all saved SMS and MMS
(Multimedia Messaging Service) messages and automatically delete the oldest
messages in a conversation when a defined limit is reached. New calendar
features allow infinite scrolling, while events will indicate the attending
status for each invitee and give the ability to invite new guests to events.
The virtual keyboard is easier to use, while a new browser URL bar enables
users to directly tap the address bar for instant searches and navigation.
There is also browser support for HTML5. A new Bluetooth API
supports Bluetooth 2.1 and enables developers to add peer-to-peer connectivity
or gaming to their applications. Android's camera functionality has been
greatly improved, supporting built-in flash, digital zoom, scene mode and other
changes.
Google's Android team provided this
video demo of the features.
Current developers can use the SDK Manager to add Android 2.0 support to
their SDK as well as update their
SDK Tools to
Revision 3, which is required for the new build and features Mac OS X 10.6
support. New developers can download the Android SDK from the download site.
Android SDK Tech Lead Xavier Ducrohet said Google expects to see more and
more Android devices being released, running Android 1.5, 1.6 or 2.0. Moreover,
the Android team will release a "minor" version update of Android 2.0
toward the end of the year as the last update for 2009.
Ducrohet is asking programmers to download the Android 2.0 platform and make
sure their existing applications continue to work on new devices running Android
2.0. He particularly urged developers to be certain their Android applications work
when using the WVGA and FWVGA emulator skins, as he said he expects devices
with these types of screen to be launched soon, running Android 2.0.
Speaking of devices built on Android 2.0, the first in a series of Droid
smartphones runs the latest Android build and is expected to launch Nov. 6 on
the Verizon Wireless network, according to the
Boy Genius Report. Others are reporting
different due dates for the Droid.
The Motorola-designed phone is
receiving rave reviews early on, as well as sparking a lot of
hope that programmers will be able to write hot applications for
a winning mobile platform that isn't Apple's iPhone.
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