American technology behemoth Google announced earlier this week that the latest version of its Android operating system will be officially called Android 10. By this decision, the company has also broken on the long going tradition of naming the versions after sweet treats or desserts. The latest release also marks the tenth version of the platform, as is evident from the name. The operating system may have had a rocky start back in the year 2008, it has significantly evolved over the years. So to mark the landmark release of Android 10, we look at the extensive history of the software over the years.
Android 1.0 and 1.1
The one that started it all. The first [...]
In the last couple of hours, we have received two major news from Google and Nokia. First, that Google’s Android Q’s official name is Android 10. Second, Nokia has announced its Android 10 schedule for its existing smartphones that are part of the Android One program. The announcements came one after the other and here’s a short breakdown of it.
Nokia Update TimelineNokia had re-entered the global market with its Android One smartphones two years ago. Since then, the company has seen a warm welcome owing to a bloatware-free experience its devices offer. Most of the handsets offered by Nokia are targetted towards mid to budget range which is uncommon [...]
Google released the Android operating system for mobile devices back in the year 2008. The latest version of the OS is Android 9 Pie, which is its ninth major release. Before the launch of its successor, dubbed Android 10 Q in the following months, Google has released the Android Distribution list on the software’s official website. The list showcases the statistic of how many devices are running a particular version, and if a new version has been successful or not. The company refreshes the list every six months and this time it revealed Android version 8, named Oreo, is most popular worldwide.
The ResultAs mentioned above, Google refreshes the Android [...]
Mozilla first launched the Firefox Lite browser in Indonesia in August 2018. With a size of under 4 MB, the lightweight Android browser was developed to provide a smoother browsing experience on budget Android devices. The Firefox Lite is actually a rebrand of Firefox Rocket which was also released in 2018 and aimed towards a privacy-focused environment. On March 13, 2019, the Firefox Lite browser was formally launched in India.
FeaturesMozilla Firefox Lite is available with a host of features to improve web browsing in Android devices. The company claims that the “Turbo Mode” in the browser can automatically block third party ad-tracking code, helping websites [...]
Google released the latest generation of its Operating System, Android 9 Pie back in August last year for Pixel smartphones. The update marked the ninth major release of the software by the company. But, despite the latest generation of Android out almost seven months ago, many of the modern devices are still stuck at one or more generations older software. What’s even more surprising is that some OEMs are launching new smartphones with old software on purpose.
This disparity in Android devices makes the mind think about what problems could there be that restrict some manufacturers into providing older versions of the software. The alarming number of different [...]
Google’s operating system Android has been really popular because of the millions of apps available on the platform. What also helps its case is the level of customisation Android devices offer. This includes the ability to sideload apps from third party sources. But, some of these sources have been known to spread spyware through bypassing the app permissions as they support older Android’s Application Programming Interface(API). Google in a bid to counter the problem, has announced that all the new apps submitted to the Play Store in the year 2019 will have to support the latest API level 28, that is Android 9 Pie.
What Does This Mean?According to [...]
Following on the heels of PUBG, Fortnite has also has made the game available for everyone instead of an invite-only model of business. This Battle Royale game, first released in 2017 was previously available for Windows, macOS, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. With time, it has now been made available for Nintendo Switch, iOS and Android devices. The role playing game will take android users by storm. This move is to combat the likes of PUBG, which is trying to draw in more users using new maps, daily skin drops and more. First launched back in August exclusively for Samsung Galaxy devices, Fortnite has with its own installer. So it will not be available in the Play Store but one has [...]
Amazon has just released a new browser for Android users in India. The new browser, named ‘Internet’ is specifically designed for to consume much less data than usual browsers. Apparently, the Amazon Internet browser also provides a very private user experience as it does not ask for any permissions to collect private data. The app is available to download via Google Play Store and is compatible with Android devices running Android 5.0 Lollipop and above. However, we were not able to install the app on our Redmi Note 5 Pro running Android 7.1.1 Nougat.
Just like any other browser, the Internet browser app from Amazon Internet has basic features like fullscreen [...]
The smart TV space in India is getting more exciting. All this started when Xiaomi launched the most affordable Xioami Mi TV 4 with 50 inch 4K display. The smart TV had best in class features with a slim form factor. Kodak has officially launched the Kodak 50 inch 4K smart TV in India for Rs 34,999. The smart TV comes with a 50 inch Samsung made LED panel with 60 Hz refresh rate for blur-free picture quality. The TV is exclusively available on Flipkart.
Avneet Singh Marwah, Director, SPPL said:
We are delighted in announcing the newest addition to our 4K product family. Through the KODAK 4K 50UHDX Smart TV, we are looking to provide our customers a superior viewing [...]
Google Assistant is one of the most used voice assistants in the world. The Google Assistant is available on Android smartphones running on Android 6 Marshmallow or newer versions. In fact, the company is also working to bring this feature to Android 5 Lollipop running devices.
It is also available for iOS, JioPhone, and Android Oreo Go edition smartphones as well. Google today announced that the Google Assistant will be now available in Hindi. Hindi is the first Indian language to support Google Assistant, which is the most commonly used language in India. Similarly, this will enable Google to onboard the next million users to use the Assistance, who cannot understand [...]
Back in August 2017, Google officially launched Android 8.0 Oreo. In September, iOS 11 started seeding to compatible iPhones. According to a recent market share data, it was revealed that Android 8 Oreo is present in about 1% of Android devices. In late-January, it was revealed that iOS 11 is present in about 65% iPhones. This margin is enormous and Android OEMs need to address it.
Android and iOS are the two most popular mobile operating systems in the world. WindowsPhone OS came to the fore but, slowly faded into oblivion. Top smartphone makers like Samsung, LG, Huawei, Xiaomi, OnePlus use Android OS to power their devices. Although it seems unfair to compare the adoption [...]
There is no denying the fact that the Android smartphone space is extremely fragmented. That leads to more and more smartphones getting left behind in the software game. Even today, in 2018, Samsung recently launched a budget tablet running Android 5.1 Lollipop which was launched back in 2015. Such decisions should not be acceptable for consumers regardless of the price point of the smartphone/tablet in question.
A new report by Google further solidifies the argument that Android smartphones rarely get updated to new software in their entire lifecycle. Even in 2018, Android versions Lollipop, Marshmallow and Nougat dominate the market share. Android 8 Oreo running [...]
The tablet industry has been going through a dwindling phase where Apple and Samsung are the only two companies consistently bring out tablets that interest the buyers. Samsung is continuing the trend of tablets with the launch of the Galaxy Tab A 7.0. The new tablet is Samsung’s most affordable tablet yet, priced at Rs. 9500. The tablet will be available across retail stores and Amazon from the 5th of January 5.
With the launch of the Galaxy Tab A, the South Korean tech giant also believed that the tablet industry will see a rise in 2018. Vishal Kaul, Director at Samsung India, said the segment has seen de-growth in the past quarters, but the company has been [...]
The Google Assistant was introduced with Android 7 Nougat and with it, came the ability talk to your AI assistant. There has been the ability to search for anything on the Google app via voice commands but, a new feature is rolling out to devices that have Google Assistant which is different than just a voice search. Using the hotword “Hey Google” or “OK Google,” people can launch the Google Assistant and invoke a search.
This feature was introduced back in October but, it was only available on a handful of devices. Now, a larger rollout of this feature has begun for devices that have Google Assistant support. Google also recently started seeding out [...]
