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Details of Android 3.0, SIP, Video Chat
dkd903 was one of several folks to note that a bunch of details about Google's Android 3.0 are
beginning to leak out. The platform is codenamed Gingerbread; it includes video chat to compete with the iPhone, and a graphical overhaul to try to make it look a bit better compared to its rivals.
How about video chat that works with the iPhone as well?
Would be nice to use my Epic to video chat with a friends iPhone.
but google wants to compete with google talk video chat with the rest of video providers.
They better have API support for front cameras and all that new stuff, because thats something that is clearly missing in todays API, while there are already several phones with front-facing cameras in the market.
Its possible to interact with them by setting the appropiate parameters in the API, but those parameters are not consistent across devices.
Overall, I think the biggest 3.0 change should be look&feel.
And I hope they don't just overhaul the UI and write beautiful google apps. I hope they do a complete UI tools overhaul so develpers can effortlessly create beautiful apps. Im not buying any of that fragmentation nonsense crap. The real issue is a lack of a "Interface builer" so we can build beautiful apps with no extra effort.
Combine a really good "interface builder", "default layout settings" or whatever it might be with Android's customization and we got a clear winner in the UI and UX space.
Thats my 2c
Touchdown sucks.
It is fugly and outdated. There are *far* better options out there now. Try going into the Android market once in a while....
Unfortunately, I think SIP support in Google Voice is going to be gutted in the US like how the Skype app works. I'm sure everybody in Europe will be free to make calls over SIP, but all us Americans will be stuck with Wifi only. Even if we could make calls over 3G, it's fairly difficult to find a carrier that will sell you only a data plan at a reasonable rate. For example, Sprint will sell you a 3G plan, but it's $50 a month, which is only $10 a month less than the data+voice bundle.
Shouldn't be flamebait - taking an accurate shot at a company like Motorola for being evil is not flameworthy.
It's disappointing that they are now playing catchup again. How about some features that the iPhone doesn't have that it would want to copy? Android may have some great devs behind it but they surely don't seem to have anyone that is trying to come up with new and interesting things to put on the Android (like some sort of "idea man"). Everything they seem to do is to make it more and more commoditized and more generic. I'm not saying they shouldn't work on things like Video Chat, but I think they should also try to come up with that one "great new shiny thing" at least once a release. Flash was a complete bomb since it took months and months for it to roll out to everyone and then it was super buggy and slow. Pretty soon, phone manufacturers aren't even going to advertise "This phone is using Android"... because there's no buzz about it anymore. Consumers could hardly care less about building in "me too" features 6-12 months after a competitor's phone has it.
This is from a long time Android user.
Android is completely destroying all other cellphone OSes on the market.
Android sales are accelerating at an insane rate quarter after quarter.
Android is selling so well that Steve Jobs just embarrassed himself with an angry tirade after Google dumped his cellphone into third place in sales.
Yeah, dipshit, "there's no buzz about it anymore."
As someone who uses his phone and complains about the battery life constantly- I'd rather that any dev who thinks these are a good idea gets his hands smashed with a hammer so he can never code again.
I still have more fans than freaks. WTF is wrong with you people?
As someone with a visual impairment and education in human-machine interactions, I'd rather that anyone who thinks transition animations are just for show get their face smashed in with a hammer so they can understand why they're an important visual cue for performed actions.
People don't get it. UI animations -- done correctly -- aren't just bling. They tell people what happened, where things went, and where they're at in the application. The classic example is minimizing a window to an icon in the dock. The zooming rects reinforce what happened, where the window went, and where to find it again.
On the iPhone such things are implemented as GPU effects, with a totally insignificant impact on battery life. If you're on Android, firing up the 3G radios for a single background check on Twitter posts burns through more power than all the daily UI animations on your phone combined.
And if your battery life is really that bad, then buy a better phone next time...
Any sect, cult, or religion will legislate its creed into law if it acquires the political power to do so.
really? ever seen touchwiz? ADW? What slick effects magically exist on iphone that aren't on android?
I really hope you have actual examples in your next post, not just "wah iphone is better than android"
I believe, as a developer of apps, he means the API's he has available to use those effects in *his app*. Not just the UI overlay that Samsung or HTC provides.
But go on knee-jerking.
My Motorola Droid isn't locked down. I probably would have gotten a Nexus One if it had made it to Verizon, but it didn't. And switching to AT&T or T-Mobile wasn't an option, since Verizon is the only network with halfway decent coverage where I spend most of my time.
Unless things change drastically, however, my next phone will not be a Motorola.
End of line..
We know you know and we acknowledge your geekiness. But I believe we are referring to the general populace which may not be as enlightened as you are. Give noobs a chance
hmm. keyword:"most of the time" - I for one wouldn't like something like my brakes to work "most of the time" Just thought i'd chip that in. while i'm a huge fan of android. I think we have to grow up from the geeky mentality and deliver solutions that are excellent, stable and consistent. People want stuff that works. period.
I know what happens when I minimize a window.
You, sir, are not a typical user then. I know us geeks like to think we are a huge market segment that can dictate how things should be done but that is fantasy.
Alas! We nerds are but a small pimple on the market's arse.
+/- keys are a lot better then pull down menus and dials will get ridiculously annoying with 30 days in a month, 24 hours a day and 60 minutes in an hour.
+/- is very scalable, if I want the count to go faster I just hold the button down, moving your thumb around in a circle is a very unnatural motion even for someone who's been playing video-games for 25 years. The wheel interface needs to die.
Further more, if the +/- arent up to the task, I'll just type in the fucking date/time.
If Google want to improve it, I'd suggest adding a few buttons for common usages or perhaps even a dial-pad (12 key interchangeable between 0-9 and months). On 800x400 screens, this should be easily doable.
Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
As someone who uses his phone and complains about the battery life constantly- I'd rather that any dev who thinks these are a good idea gets his hands smashed with a hammer so he can never code again.
Most people don't understand how battery life is related to application behavior, unless there is one particular app that is extrememly bad about it. They most certainly wouldn't understand that turning off animations might help. What they DO understand, is that if your app looks like trash they'll ignore it and go with a flashy application which drains the battery, even if they bitch about the short battery life the entire time they are downloading the rival application.
So as a dev, you can either add the 'bling' and have your app used, or remove it and watch everybody else use the competition's bling-heavy product. They will still bitch about battery life either way, since to most users battery life is a problem with the phone, not the application.