Will we have have an Android in our pockets? Google new exciting project is an Operating System for mobile phones. Android is a groundbreaking idea that will probably change the market. In the future we would be able to use the same user interface for mobile phones made by different companies. An API (Application Program Interface) is already available for accessing the low-level hardware features, and a conveniently crafted Eclipse plug-in can be downloaded to start writing new applications in Java. The Android SDK (Software Development Kit) contains a nice emulator in which to preview the applications under development. Everything works smoothly, and is very easy to setup. Excellent!
The Open Handset Alliance which Google is building, holds together many big names (HTC, LG, Samsung, Motorola,Intel, Broadcom, Marvell, Qualcomm, SiRF, T-Mobile, Telefonica, Telecom Italia and Sprint, plus Google and eBay and a variety of other partners) but not Nokia or Microsoft. This means that it seem that no Nokia phone wil be equipped by Android for the moment being, but I guess that Nokia could join later. Of course Microsoft would be much harder to convince!
For motivating developers to start using the new platform, Google has launched a contest (the Android Developer Challenge), for which there are more than 10 million $ awards for the best applications made for this platform.
The idea to deliver an Operating System like Android is surprisingly in line with Google’s mission to "organize the world’s information". Once again Google proved to work smart, and once again will change the way we approach the IT, this time in our pocket.
What will happen next?
- Many developers will happily start to work with Android
- there will be several hundreds of beautiful pragrams for this platform before the commercial launch
- many manufacturers will be happy to see such audience, and will put more attention (and budget) on the platform
- mobile phone users will be able to buy phones from several companies, sure to be able to use the same android software in each of them. Now the choice for an handy will be easier, finally not based on usability, but on style, and hardware quality!
Android is good news. We have to wait until the second half of next year to be able to buy one of those phones able to run Android.