October 29th, 2009
Android 2.0 (Eclair) FAQ
This is the last of a series of articles on Android 2.0 (”Eclair”). In part 1, we examined the user-oriented features of the new release, and in part 2 we discussed several features intended for developers. For this final part we’ll switch gears and answer some frequently asked questions about Eclair from both users and developers. Just for fun I’ve tossed in a few questions about the Motorola DROID as well.
By the way, if you have any questions that I didn’t cover, just ask them in the talkback area.
Q. When can I get Android 2.0?
The Android 2.0 Software Development Kit is available now. This includes an emulator that lets you run a virtual Android device on your desktop computer.
The first phone with Android 2.0 installed is the Motorola DROID, which will be carried by Verizon in the US starting November 6th. The second one will probably be Sony Ericsson’s Xperia X3/Infinity/Rachael . A release date for that model hasn’t been announced but it’s widely expected to be out before the end of the year as well.
Q. Will the Acer A1 Liquid phone with Snapdragon have 2.0?
Liquid is set to be released with Android 1.6.
Q. Can I upgrade my ___ (fill in the blank) phone to 2.0?
The only one we know for sure that will be upgraded is the HTC Hero.
It has been rumored that the first Android phone, the HTC G1/Dream, doesn’t have enough memory to run 2.0. However, I don’t think that will necessarily be the case. If you remember, they said the same thing about version 1.6. Like 1.6, 2.0 is a little too big to fit into the G1’s memory. But with a few optimizations, 1.6 was slimmed down enough to fit, so the current speculation is that 2.0 can be made to fit also. …
Continue reading: Android 2.0 FAQ >
Ed Burnette is a professional developer and author of several articles and books about computing including Hello, Android: Introducing Google's Mobile Development Platform, 2nd Edition. For disclosure of Ed's industry affiliations, click here or to view his full profile click here.
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| 10/30/09
