Android Operating System
What Is the Android Operating System?
The Android operating system is a mobile operating system that was developed by Google (GOOGL) to be primarily used for touchscreen devices, cell phones, and tablets. Its design lets users manipulate the mobile devices intuitively, with finger movements that mirror common motions, such as pinching, swiping, and tapping. Google also employs Android software in televisions, cars, and wristwatches—each of which is fitted with a unique user interface.
Android is an open source and Linux-based Operating System for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablet computers. Android was developed by the Open Handset Alliance, led by Google, and other companies.
Android offers a unified approach to application development for mobile devices which means developers need only develop for Android, and their applications should be able to run on different devices powered by Android.
The first beta version of the Android Software Development Kit (SDK) was released by Google in 2007 where as the first commercial version, Android 1.0, was released in September 2008.
On June 27, 2012, at the Google I/O conference, Google announced the next Android version, 4.1 Jelly Bean. Jelly Bean is an incremental update, with the primary aim of improving the user interface, both in terms of functionality and performance.
The source code for Android is available under free and open source software licenses. Google publishes most of the code under the Apache License version 2.0 and the rest, Linux kernel changes, under the GNU General Public License version 2.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The Android operating system was developed by Google (GOOGL) for use in all of its touchscreen devices, tablets, and cell phones.
- This operating system was first developed by Android, Inc., a software company located in Silicon Valley before it was acquired by Google in 2005.
- While the Android source code is released in an open-source format to help advance open standards across mobile devices, it is still packaged with proprietary software when sold on handset devices.
Understanding the Android Operating System
The Android operating system was first developed by Android, Inc., a software company located in Silicon Valley before Google acquired it in 2005. Investors and electronics industry analysts have questioned Google’s true intentions for entering the mobile market space since that acquisition. But in any case, soon thereafter, Google announced the impending rollout of its first commercially available Android-powered device in 2007, although that product actually hit the marketplace in 2008.
Since then, software and application developers have been able to use Android technology to develop mobile apps, which are sold through app stores, such as Google Play. And because it is developed as a Google product, Android users are given the opportunity to link their mobile devices to other Google products, such as cloud storage, email platforms, and video services.
The Android source code is released in an open-source format to help advance open standards across mobile devices. However, despite being released as “open,” Android is still packaged with proprietary software when sold on handset devices.
According to research from Trend Micro, premium service abuse is the most common type of Android malware, in which text messages are sent from infected phones to premium-rate telephone numbers with neither the knowledge nor the consent of the user.
Android Operating System vs. Apple iOS
The emergence of Android created a new rivalry between smartphone manufacturers, with Apple (AAPL) serving as Google’s chief competitor. To some, this competitive dynamic mirrors that of the “cola wars” between Coca-Cola (KO)and Pepsi (PEP) over the past 30 years, where no clear winner or loser has emerged. Android was the most popular operating system on mobile devices as of the end of 2020, with 84.8% of the global market share while Apple’s iOS was in second place with 15.2%, according to International Data Corporation.1
The increased popularity of the system has also led to a number of patent-related lawsuits, including a lawsuit brought forth by Oracle (ORCL). In 2010, the company alleged that Google unlawfully used Java APIs to develop its Android software. The case was pending as of October 2020.2
Limitations of the Android Operating System
While Android offers users a viable alternative to other mobile operating systems, several limitations still remain. On the developer side, coding complex user experiences and interfaces is an often difficult task that demands a greater reliance on Java than Objective-C. For users, the apps on the Android Market tend to have lower standards than comparable app stores.
In other words, the apps have lower security profiles and make users more susceptible to data breaches. Meanwhile, Android’s lack of a voice-controlled assistant and its heavy dependence on advertising can repel some users.
Android is a mobile operating system based on a modified version of the Linux kernel and other open source software, designed primarily for touchscreen mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets
What devices use Android OS?
Android Everywhere: 10 Types of Devices That Android Is Making Better
- Watches.
- Smart glasses.
- Home Appliances.
- Cars.
- Homes.
- Cameras.
- Smart TVs.
- DECT phones.
FEATURES OF ANDROID OS
Features of Android
Android is a powerful operating system competing with Apple 4GS and supports great features. Few of them are listed below −
| Sr.No. | Feature & Description |
|---|---|
| 1 | Beautiful UIAndroid OS basic screen provides a beautiful and intuitive user interface. |
| 2 | ConnectivityGSM/EDGE, IDEN, CDMA, EV-DO, UMTS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, LTE, NFC and WiMAX. |
| 3 | StorageSQLite, a lightweight relational database, is used for data storage purposes. |
| 4 | Media supportH.263, H.264, MPEG-4 SP, AMR, AMR-WB, AAC, HE-AAC, AAC 5.1, MP3, MIDI, Ogg Vorbis, WAV, JPEG, PNG, GIF, and BMP. |
| 5 | MessagingSMS and MMS |
| 6 | Web browserBased on the open-source WebKit layout engine, coupled with Chrome’s V8 JavaScript engine supporting HTML5 and CSS3. |
| 7 | Multi-touchAndroid has native support for multi-touch which was initially made available in handsets such as the HTC Hero. |
| 8 | Multi-taskingUser can jump from one task to another and same time various application can run simultaneously. |
| 9 | Resizable widgetsWidgets are resizable, so users can expand them to show more content or shrink them to save space. |
| 10 | Multi-LanguageSupports single direction and bi-directional text. |
| 11 | GCMGoogle Cloud Messaging (GCM) is a service that lets developers send short message data to their users on Android devices, without needing a proprietary sync solution. |
| 12 | Wi-Fi DirectA technology that lets apps discover and pair directly, over a high-bandwidth peer-to-peer connection. |
| 13 | Android BeamA popular NFC-based technology that lets users instantly share, just by touching two NFC-enabled phones together. |
FUNCTIONS OF ANDROID OS
Features of Android
Android is a powerful operating system competing with Apple 4GS and supports great features. Few of them are listed below −
| Sr.No. | Feature & Description |
|---|---|
| 1 | Beautiful UIAndroid OS basic screen provides a beautiful and intuitive user interface. |
| 2 | ConnectivityGSM/EDGE, IDEN, CDMA, EV-DO, UMTS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, LTE, NFC and WiMAX. |
| 3 | StorageSQLite, a lightweight relational database, is used for data storage purposes. |
| 4 | Media supportH.263, H.264, MPEG-4 SP, AMR, AMR-WB, AAC, HE-AAC, AAC 5.1, MP3, MIDI, Ogg Vorbis, WAV, JPEG, PNG, GIF, and BMP. |
| 5 | MessagingSMS and MMS |
| 6 | Web browserBased on the open-source WebKit layout engine, coupled with Chrome’s V8 JavaScript engine supporting HTML5 and CSS3. |
| 7 | Multi-touchAndroid has native support for multi-touch which was initially made available in handsets such as the HTC Hero. |
| 8 | Multi-taskingUser can jump from one task to another and same time various application can run simultaneously. |
| 9 | Resizable widgetsWidgets are resizable, so users can expand them to show more content or shrink them to save space. |
| 10 | Multi-LanguageSupports single direction and bi-directional text. |
| 11 | GCMGoogle Cloud Messaging (GCM) is a service that lets developers send short message data to their users on Android devices, without needing a proprietary sync solution. |
| 12 | Wi-Fi DirectA technology that lets apps discover and pair directly, over a high-bandwidth peer-to-peer connection. |
| 13 | Android BeamA popular NFC-based technology that lets users instantly share, just by touching two NFC-enabled phones together. |
Features of Android
Android is a powerful operating system competing with Apple 4GS and supports great features. Few of them are listed below −
| Sr.No. | Feature & Description |
|---|---|
| 1 | Beautiful UIAndroid OS basic screen provides a beautiful and intuitive user interface. |
| 2 | ConnectivityGSM/EDGE, IDEN, CDMA, EV-DO, UMTS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, LTE, NFC and WiMAX. |
| 3 | StorageSQLite, a lightweight relational database, is used for data storage purposes. |
| 4 | Media supportH.263, H.264, MPEG-4 SP, AMR, AMR-WB, AAC, HE-AAC, AAC 5.1, MP3, MIDI, Ogg Vorbis, WAV, JPEG, PNG, GIF, and BMP. |
| 5 | MessagingSMS and MMS |
| 6 | Web browserBased on the open-source WebKit layout engine, coupled with Chrome’s V8 JavaScript engine supporting HTML5 and CSS3. |
| 7 | Multi-touchAndroid has native support for multi-touch which was initially made available in handsets such as the HTC Hero. |
| 8 | Multi-taskingUser can jump from one task to another and same time various application can run simultaneously. |
| 9 | Resizable widgetsWidgets are resizable, so users can expand them to show more content or shrink them to save space. |
| 10 | Multi-LanguageSupports single direction and bi-directional text. |
| 11 | GCMGoogle Cloud Messaging (GCM) is a service that lets developers send short message data to their users on Android devices, without needing a proprietary sync solution. |
| 12 | Wi-Fi DirectA technology that lets apps discover and pair directly, over a high-bandwidth peer-to-peer connection. |
| 13 | Android BeamA popular NFC-based technology that lets users instantly share, just by touching two NFC-enabled phones together. |
FUNCTIONS OF ANDROID OS
The Android operating system is a mobile operating system that was developed by Google (GOOGL) to be primarily used for touchscreen devices, cell phones, and tablets.
WHAT IS ANDROID SYSTEM WEBVIEW?
Android WebView is a system component powered by Chrome that allows Android apps to display web content. This component is pre-installed on your device and should be kept up to date to ensure you have the latest security updates and other bug fixes.
BENEFITS OF ANDROID SYSTEM WEBVIEW
It is believed that for the finest performance it is recommended to enable it in your device. This system is found on Android 4.4 and up.
Such as if you want to see your Facebook then you will simply click a link and it would launch the web page within the app browser, it won’t go all the way by opening up in Firefox or chrome. So, it provides you a tiny browser that have all the functionalities of a browser, for instance you can zoom in, you can have history, a text search etc. So, you just tap the link and you are there.
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