The wait is finally over as we now have the latest version of the Linux based open source mobile operating system from Google, the Android 2.2. Codenamed Froyo which stands for frozen yoghurt and carries on with Google’s convention of naming their OS after sweet desserts, the Android 2.2 has been officially announced at the Google IO conference held at San Francisco. And going by initial reports, the Froyo is thoroughly impressive and can well revolutionize the way mobile operating systems have been operating till now though Google has announced there’s still some waiting to be done for the Froyo to make its way into the mass market.
The coming of the Android 2.2 will also be a sweet piece of news for makers of e-readers and Tablet or Slates considering the plethora of such devices that runs the Android OS. And for those who have been praying for an Android device that not only matches the iPad in sheer performance but also out classes it, they have their prayers answered with the new Froyo.
Coming to the smart features of the Froyo, the Android 2.2 version will have painless support for WiFi tethering, which means it will now be possible for the sharing of a 3G connection on an Android phone to another device like the iPad. The Froyo is also fully compliant with the Flash format though as of now, the same can’t be said of Hulu.
One of the major aspects of the Froyo is the manner it can turbo charge the way things move so that there is now a two to three times boost in speed, something that can be attributed to the new Javascript engine that really hots things up. So the new Android 2.2 does not only boast of a significant performance upgrade compared Android 2.1, but is also way ahead of what the iPad can show off. Support for the open source HTML 5 gets enhanced too, which in turn ensures better support for features like accelerometer, camera or speech input in webapps.
Another interesting feature of the Froyo is its new speech recognition system that makes it possible for the device to comprehend complex phrases like ”pictures of the volcanic activity in Iceland spewing ash throughout Europe” or “pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge at sunset” followed by instant search against these terms. The speech recognition system was put up for demonstration at the IO conference where its shown to be effective for voice dialing or for opening up the dialer. There was also a webapp on display that would recognize spoken phrases automatically and then convert them into foreign languages.
There’s also the provision to save the apps in an SD card with it being upon Froyo to choose automatically whether it going to make use of internal or memory card storage. However, the users also have the discretion to override the choice if they so wish. Then there is in place a new system that makes reporting bugs to the developers a simple process. The Froyo also has the feature that allows the user to browse online for apps followed by installing them to the device OTA.
And lastly, there’s support for Flash that the Apple had so famously excluded from being part of their iPad. This, in spite of Google’s self proclaimed fondness for open source systems but explained the move by saying they’d like to include everyone out there which also includes those who love to deal with Flash and is in stark contrast to what Apple has done by completely eliminating Flash in favor of HTML 5.
Keep watching for more interesting updates on this including the latest e-reader news.
Also make sure you subscribe to our Good E-Reader Magazine that has all the big stories from the e-reader as well as the Tablet/Slate segment. A must read if you wish to remain informed of all the latest happenings in this segment.
With a keen interest in tech, I make it a point to keep myself updated on the latest developments in technology and gadgets. That includes smartphones or tablet devices but stretches to even AI and self-driven automobiles, the latter being my latest fad. Besides writing, I like watching videos, reading, listening to music, or experimenting with different recipes. The motion picture is another aspect that interests me a lot, and I'll likely make a film sometime in the future.
