Google releases multiple updates to the open-source Android software development kit (SDK) with Android 2.0.1, which includes bug fixes for the Droid's camera phone, among others patches.
Owners of the Motorola Droid, Verizon Wireless' handset running Google's
Android open-source operating system, will be receiving a software development
kit update soon, according to the Android developers Website. With downloads
beginning in December, the Android 2.0.1 is a minor platform release deployable
to Android-powered handsets, such as the Droid, which includes minor API
changes, bug fixes and framework behavioral changes.
In regard to Droid owners, Verizon said the update should fix the phone's
camera, specifically the auto-focus capability, as well as improve voice
reception. The Android 2.0.1 update also includes several bug fixes and
behavior changes, such as application resource selection based on API
level and changes to the value of some Bluetooth-related constants.
"To differentiate its behavior from Android 2.0, the API
level of Android 2.0.1 is 6. All Android 2.0 devices will be updated to 2.0.1
before the end of the year, so developers will no longer need to support
Android 2.0 at that time," Android SDK tech lead Xavier Ducrohet posted on the Android Developers Website. "Of
course, developers of applications affected by the behavior changes should
start compiling and testing their apps immediately."
Ducrohet noted the team is also releasing an update to the SDK Tools, now in
Revision 4, which he describes as a "minor update" with mostly bug fixes in the
SDK Manager. A new version of the Eclipse plug-in that embeds those fixes is
also available. Finally, Google is providing an update to the Android 1.6 SDK
component: Revision 2 includes fixes to the compatibility mode for applications
that don't support multiple screen sizes, as well as SDK fixes.
The Motorola Droid, which was released on Nov. 6, is estimated to have sold
around 250,000 units in its first week in U.S.
stores, according to the mobile applications analytics firm Flurry. An October
report by research firm Gartner predicted Android, which currently operates on
less than 2 percent of all smartphones, will surge to 14 percent of the global
smartphone market in 2012.
The touch-screen device, which also offers Wi-Fi networking capability, a sliding
QWERTY keyboard and a Texas Instruments OMAP 3430 processor, is the first phone
to ship with turn-by-turn Google Maps Navigation, installed with voice
commands, traffic reports and street view support. Verizon is currently
offering the Droid for $199.99 with a two-year contract and an online discount
of $100.
Nathan Eddy is Associate Editor, Midmarket, at eWEEK.com. Before joining eWEEK.com, Nate was a writer with ChannelWeb and he served as an editor at FierceMarkets. He is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
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