New features from Android 2.1 to Android 2.2 Froyo
With all the hoopla lately about Android 2.2 (aka Froyo, which means frozen yogurt by the way) I figured I would write a brief rundown of some of the new features you can expect from the latest and greatest version of the Android OS.
Home screen
A new tips widget will grace your homescreen. This widget will assist new users on how to configure the home screen, adding shortcuts, adding widgets and how to use multiple home screens.
Another new home screen feature, as you can see, are dedicated buttons for the Phone, Launcher and the Browser.
Exchange Support
No doubt, one of Android's most lacking features is exchange support. Well that will be changing with Android 2.2. Froyo's new and improved Exchange support will include the following features:
- Improved security – Exchange admins can enforce a password policy across devices with support for numeric or alpha numeric passwords to unlock a device
- Remote wipe – Exchange admins can remotely wipe the phone to factory defaults if the device was lost or stolen
- Exchange calendars – Will be supported in the Calendar application
- Auto-discovery – With just your username and password, you will easily be able to set up and sync an Exchange account (requires Exchange 2007+)
- Global address look-up – Will now be available from within the Email application allowing users to auto-complete recipient names from the directory
Camera and Gallery
A new and improved Gallery will allow you to peek into picture stacks using a zoom gesture.
The camera now will have on-screen buttons that will provide easy access via a new user interface for controlling the zoom, flash, white balance, focus, geo-tagging and exposure.
In addition, the camcorder now allows you to easily choose the size and quality desired for your video to make uploading to the web or sending video by MMS easier and more efficient. Shooting video at night or low-light conditions will be better now as well as the LED flash will become a light source when shooting video.
Make your phone a mobile hotspot
Apparently, not all devices will support this feature, but phones like the Nexus One will. When configured as a hotspot, your Froyo device share it's connectivity with up to 8 other devices. Also, you can use the 3G connection on your phone (via a USB connection) to provide access to the internet on your Windows or Linux laptop. (Yes you can get apps for this on Android 2.1, but it will now be supported natively)
Multiple keyboard languages
Users that speak multiple languages will love this feature. You can now add multiple languages to the keyboard and effortlessly switch between Latin-based input languages by swiping across the space bar. Not only does this effect the keys but it effects the auto-correct dictionary as well.
Improved Performance
Performance increases are coming from all over with the Android 2.2 update, here's the highlights:
- Browser – By enabling faster loading of JavaScript, the V8 engine will boost the speed of the browser
- Dalvik performance boost – in CPU-intensive duties, an increase of 2x to 5x can be seen
- Kernel memory management boost – Memory reclamation by up to 20x. Applications will switch faster on devices with less memory
Flash!
Flash game addicts rejoice! Adobe just recently released Flash 10.1 for devices running Android 2.2 (there are some beta builds of the OS out there). So not only will you now be able to play flash games on your Android 2.2 device, but any type of interactive content will now work flawlessly on your device.
There is one downside to this though, you will now see those annoying flash ads when browsing the web. But in this writers opinion, it's a small price to pay for the many other benefits of flash.
Misc Improvements
Bluetooth
- Share contacts with other phones
- Voice dialing
- Support for BT enabled car & desk docks
- Improved compatibility with car kits & headsets
2.6.32 kernel upgrade
- HIGHMEM support for RAM > 256MB
- SDIO scheduling and Bluetooth improvements
Applications
- App Error Reports – A new bug reporting feature enables developers to receive crash and freeze reports from users of their Android Market apps
- Apps can be installed on external storage (microSD card for example)
- Apps can participate in data back up and restore, allowing users to reset their device to factory defaults and not lose any personal data
Cloud to Device messaging – Android apps can use the Android Cloud to Device messaging to allow mobile alert, send to phone and 2-way push sync abilites
Camera/Camcorder
- Video FPS doubled from 10 to 20
- Camera now supports portrait orientation, zoom controls, exposure data and a thumbnail utility
- Camcorder also allows apps to determine hardware capabilities
User Interface – Users are now able to select "car mode" and "night mode" controls to configure their UI however they like.
Looks pretty good doesn't it? No official word has been said on when the Android 2.2 update will be pushed out over the air, but the word around the web speculates it to be within a month. So cross your fingers and keep checking back with TalkAndroid as we'll be sure to make a lot of noise when the official update gets rolled out.
Questions and Answers
Article Tags:
android applications
,android
,google phone
,froyo
,android device
,android 2 2
,android 2 1
Almost every major electronics manufacturer has joined the race to create an internet tablet with Android.
Android is a powerful open source Linux based Operating System (OS) used especially for smart phones and tablets. It's one of the most widely used mobile operating system (OS). The main platform of Android is Java.
While all four major U.S. carriers will sell Samsung Galaxy Tab Froyo run this fall, and Google the executive has said that the tablet PC does not work well with Android Applications market. analyst, agreed today that the Android Market applica...
Devices running on Android OS are dominating the smart phone and tablet device market and this is proof of the popularity of android open source platform.
Android isn't just for cellphones anymore. Which means that there will come a day when Android is more important than the iPhone, more important than Windows, and more important than any one device.
Since it came out with the first android enabled smart phone, HTC has been on a roll. The markets abroad have accepted HTC products very easily and are happy to see that the company is faring exactly in accordance with the demands put forward in the market by the customers.
In an atmosphere of ever-increasing digital social inter-connectivity, more and more people every day are turning to their mobile devices rather than their laptops or PCs for the way they get their information.
Iphone is introduces by Apple company. It is hot selling product all over the world since its launch. Iphone is not just a phone from which you receive call or make call or send sms. Iphone is more than a mobile phone, it's a mini super computer. Iphone has amazing features and huge variety of iphone apps are available. You can buy and download iphone apps according to your interest and need.
Google android phones are the recent fad and craze which has taken more than the mobile telephone purchasers.
Connectivity on international trips is no longer a major problem with an international SIM card. Long distance mobile calls while traveling used to be very expensive, and moreover, efficient coverage was another hurdle. But with the coming of international SIM cards targeted at travelers, all these things have changed. This article highlights two types of international SIMs – a universal SIM card, and a country specific SIM card:
The T-Mobile G1 was the world's first Android-powered phone. Launched nearly two years ago, it created an entirely new class of mobile phones and apps. Its successor, the T-Mobile G2 with Google, will continue the revolution. The T-Mobile G2 will deliver tight integration with Google services and break new ground as the first smartphone designed to run at 4G speeds on our new HSPA+ network.
RemoteDroid is an app that you can use via Wi-Fi to turn your Android phone into a wireless keyboard and mouse for your computer.
The update to Android 1.5, code-named Cupcake, is a major upgrade to the operating system that includes a host of new features. The upgrade is so dramatic that one wonders why Google did not market it as Android 2.0.
Android is a revolutionary operating system produced in part by internet giant Google . It is most known for running the Nexus 1, Samsung Galaxy, LG Fender,and other mobile phones. While some refer to this phone as a standalone "Google Phone," Google has made efforts to increase awareness that there is no such thing.
Discuss this Article
