A less fragmented approach to Android updates should allow users to immediately download new features as they become available.
Go out and buy an Android handset today, and it might run any one of an array of different Android revisions. Google Android 1.5, 1.6, 2.0, and 2.1 all come standard on current Android handsets, and all come with different features and limitations. Consumers are confused. And Google is paying attention.
According to Engadget, Google’s next major Android update, codenamed Froyo, will attempt to divvy up new features into downloadable packages while keeping the core operating system stable. Full operating system updates will still trickle out, but new bells and whistles should roll out through the Android Market when they’re available.
In other words: Faster, more stable operating system? Time for a new decimal point and dessert codename. New keyboard, improved photo browsing or added features for the browser? That should be a simple, immediate download.
Currently, features arrive with OS updates, but Android owners must wait for both the manufacturer of their phones and carriers to greenlight it for download. That can result in older Android phones lacking the speed and features of newer ones, even though they have the computational horsepower to run the latest Android OS.
Engadget claims Google will implement the new update strategy with the upcoming Froyo update, which hasn’t yet been pegged with a release date.
Photo credit: Android Authority
Showing 9 comments
RSS