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Google Outlines Feature Set For Android 2.2
evdotorrey writes "Google announced new features and improvements for Android 2.2. New features include Flash and HTML 5 support, faster browser performance using the V8 engine, Microsoft Exchange support, a Portable Hotspot feature that makes your phone a Wi-Fi hotspot, and many more exciting features." An anonymous reader adds some more on the new release, codenamed Froyo: "Google claims the operating system will be from two to five times faster thanks to advances made in the compilers and the Dalvik virtual machine it uses, and how it is ported to new processors and platforms. On the enterprise front the new operating system comes with full support for Microsoft Exchange, including access to the global address book and the ability to translate native security features to mobile handsets. APIs have also been added to allow controls such as the automatic wiping of missing handsets and other remote management features. Google is also making its voice translation and search APIs open to developers, and showed off an application developed for the handset that allowed real time translation from English to French."
That clunky looking new iPhone and Apple's pathetic and half-assed fake multi-tasking and wallpapers sure as hell is no Android-killer.
Every time I to look into my future I find the screen blocked by the sheer amount of cash I have by not having apple in my pocket.
Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
I have real, functional Wifi tethering on my 2.1 Droid, complete with basic or absolute access control, notification of new connections, et cetera. It works well.
Even though I have all access control and encryption disabled, so that anyone within earshot could use it freely, I leave it turned off unless I'm using it myself. This, despite the fact that I also carry an iPod Touch (which certainly benefits from having an always-on connection), and could easily lock the connection down to just the iPod and my laptop if I chose to do so.
Why? The answer is very practical: I don't care if anyone benefits from using my bandwidth, but as long as it impacts my battery life, I'm not game. Not even for myself.
That said, there's technical reasons why your idea won't work. A sea of miscellaneous open APs, moving about in cars and sidewalks (while you might also be doing the same) sounds like a good idea, until you realize that hopping from one to another kills any existing TCP connections, trashes any UDP sessions, and would be generally unreliable.
I currently pay $30 per month for unlimited data on my phone. And even in a world of free, cellular-backed mobile access points: I'd be very happy to continue paying that every month, just so I don't have to fuck with restarting connections (or wait while software takes care of it for me) every few dozen feet.
We'd need some new protocols, or better-tailored support from existing ones, before your idea would become useful for the sorts of things that people actually use this stuff for.
Kid-proof tablet..
Well great,
the new android is almost on the shelves, but nowhere i read if they are gonna support setting
a proxy for WiFi. Up until now you are unable to make use of a proxy. As far as i can tell this feature
was there in 1.x (with or without the use of 3th-party apps) , but in 2.x it is not possible to set a proxy for
WiFi.
Despite the 344-and-growing comments on http://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=1273 ,
in which the feature was first reported missing on Nov. 12 2008 (Two thousand and eight!!!, we're in 2010 now)
They have failed to respond or shed some light on this. And looking at:
Status: New
Owner: ----
Type-Enhancement
Priority-Medium
Component-Device
Subcomponent-Wifi
It doens't give me a lot of convidence that they are really looking into it.
Don't get me wrong, WiFi thetering is great and all but compared to making use of a proxy for WiFi,
if you are dependend on a (corporate) proxy due to missing signal from your provider, slow connections
(3G or even G),are at the whim of corporate policy or you have to pay extra for data per mb to you provider,
it's pretty insignificant to have WiFi thetering if you are unable to use the internet on droid at all...
So my 2ct's are first things first, you can't not support proxy for WiFi and push your OS as someting that
can be used in an corporate enviroment...
If you don't like my sig then don't read it.
A crappy browser that makes you look at crappy Flash?
Independently of how arguable the "crappy browser" part is (I haven't found a better or faster browser for a mobile device yet - maybe my needs are minimal on a minimalistic device?), no one is making you look at anything - you can disable Flash on Android 2.2 and continue your flashless experience, which I will probably do as soon as it's officially rolled out.
Coming from nowhere, reaching the 3rd spot in a few years isn't something I would call bad by any means, especially when you're selling your phones at a premium, compared to some of other companies' offerings.
My guess is that the Android user base will be larger than that of the iPhone/iPad/iwhatever in the near future, in part due to the larger number of available devices and the variety that brings. However, I think iPhoneOS will remain popular, and a larger part of Android's growth will come from other smarphone operating systems...
on Google's giant hairy man-breasted teat. To quote from TFA:
>> Android 2.2 will be the first mobile operating system that will have native flash support.
Excuse me, you mean that Android will finally get Flash, following in the footsteps of the non-corporate bastardized Maemo for Nokia N900 smart phone which has had native flash support for months, if not a year. Obviously this Google fanboi didn't want to pass the word along. After all, somebody might go out and buy a phone you can get flash on TODAY. Instead of in some indefinite time in the future, for a phone that's locked down to the bastards at Sprint. Ehhhh.
I have a theory that the truth is never told during the nine-to-five hours. - Hunter S. Thompson