Android

About Android

Android is a software stack for mobile devices that includes an operating system, middleware and key applications.

Android's mobile operating system is based on the Linux kernel.

Google acquired Android Inc. in August, 2005, making Android Inc

 Android has been available under a free software/open source license since October, 21 2008.

Android Versions

Recent released versions of Android are:

2.0/2.1 (Eclair), which revamped the user interface and introduced HTML5 and Exchange ActiveSync 2.5 support.

2.2 (Froyo), which introduced speed improvements with JIT optimization and the Chrome V8 JavaScript engine, and added Wi-Fi hotspot tethering and Adobe Flash support

2.3 (Gingerbread), which refined the user interface, improved the soft keyboard and copy/paste features, and added support for Near Field Communication

3.0 (Honeycomb), a tablet-oriented release which supports larger screen devices and introduces many new user interface features, and supports multicore processors and hardware acceleration for graphics.

	Version name	Key features added	Android market share	Screen size support	API Level	Based on Linux kernel version	Release date
Android 0.9				320x480 HVGA			2008 Aug 18
Android 1.0	Apple pie			320x480 HVGA	1		2008 Sep 23
Android 1.1	Banana bread			320x480 HVGA	2	2.6	2009 Feb 9
Android 1.5	Cupcake	Bluetooth A2DP, AVRCP support	0.60%	320x480 HVGA	3	2.6.27	2009 Apr 30
		Soft-keyboard with text-prediction
		Record/watch videos
Android 1.6	Donut	Gesture framework	1.10%	800×480 WVGA	4	2.6.29	2009 Sep 15
		Turn-by-turn navigation
Android 2.0	Eclair	HTML		800×480 WVGA	5	2.6.29	2009 Oct 26
		Digital zoom
		Microsoft Exchange support
		Bluetooth 2.1
		Live Wallpapers
		Updated UI
Android 2.0.1	Eclair			800×480 WVGA	6	2.6.29	2009 Dec 3
Android 2.1	Eclair		8.5 % (2.0 - 2.1)	800×480 WVGA	7	2.6.29	2010 Jan 12
Android 2.2	Froyo	Speed improvements	30.40%	800×480 WVGA	8	2.6.32	2010 May 20
		JIT implementation
		USB Tethering
		Applications installation to the expandable memory
		Upload file support in the browser
		Animated GIFs
Android 2.3	Gingerbread	Updated UI	0.6 % (2.3 - 2.3.2)	1366×768 WXGA	9	2.6.35	2010 Dec 6
		WebM video playback capability
		Improved copy/paste
		Social networking features
		Near Field Communication support
		Native VoIP/SIP support
		Video call support
Android 2.3.3	Gingerbread	NFC API improvements (peer to peer communication...)			10	2.6.35	2011 Feb 9
Android 2.3.4	Gingerbread	Open Accessory API			10	2.6.35	2011 May 10
		Voice or video chat using Google Talk
Android 2.3.5	Gingerbread	Improved network performance for the Nexus S 4G			10	2.6.35	2011 Jul 25
		Fixed Bluetooth issues on the Samsung Galaxy S
		Gmail app. improvements
Android 2.3.6	Gingerbread	Voice search issue fixed			10	2.6.35
Android 2.3.7	Gingerbread	Google Wallet support for the Nexus S 4G	54.9 % (2.3.3 - 2.3.7)		10	2.6.35
Android 3.0	Honeycomb	Multi core support	0.10%		11	2.6.36	2011 Feb 22
		Better tablet support
		Updated 3D UI
		Google Talk video chat
		Google eBooks
		"Private browsing"
Android 3.1	Honeycomb	UI improvements	1.50%		12	2.6.36	2011 May 10
		Open Accessory API
		USB host API
		Mice, joysticks, gamepads... support
		Resizable Home screen widgets
		MTP notifications
		RTP API for audio
Android 3.2	Honeycomb	Optimizations for a wider range of tablets			13	2.6.36	2011 Jul 15
		Compatibility display mode (zoom for fixed-sized apps)
		Media sync from SD card
Android 3.2.1	Honeycomb	Android Market updates including easier automatic updates	1.7 % (3.2 - 3.2.1)		13	2.6.36	2011 Sep 20
		Google Books updates
		Wi-Fi improvements
		Chinese handwriting prediction improved
Android 3.2.2	Honeycomb	Minor fixes			13	2.6.36	2011 Sep 30
Android 4.0.1	Ice Cream Sandwich	Facial recognition (Face Unlock)			14		2011 Oct 19
		UI use Hardware acceleration
		Better voice recognition (dictating/Voice typing)
		Web browser, allows up to 16 tabs
		Updated launcher (customizable)
		Android Beam app to exchange data through NFC
		Resizeable widgets
Android 4.0.2	Ice Cream Sandwich	Minor fixes	0.3 % (4.0.1 - 4.0.2)		14		2011 Nov 28
Android 4.0.3	Ice Cream Sandwich	Social stream API in Contacts provider to show updates associated to your contacts	0.30%
		Video stabilization and QVGA video resolution API access
		Accessibility API refinements for screen readers
		Calendar provider updates