Google Blames Developers for Lousy Android Battery Life

The Register

 

Creating a multitasking mobile isn't so easy after all, Google's top execs are discovering. Co-founder Larry Page was pressed with concerns about Android's iffy power management yesterday, and according to reports, all he could offer was a bigger battery. Eric Schmidt blamed third party software developers for using the phone's radio capabilities too much.

Well, duh. That's why the radio's there.

Google's realisation that there's more to mobile than 60fps graphics transitions does help Symbian and Apple, with their two radically different approaches to power management, come up smelling of roses.

Symbian had the advantage of starting from a sound basis, you might recall from our Psion retrospective. When Symbian OS was being devised, between 1994 and 1996, aggressive power management was a top priority.

"Every microamp was sacred," is how David Tupman described the hardware team's philosophy - Psion was still designing its own chips at the time. But the biggest help the hardware team had was an OS that drew very little power. The first Epoc machines used a quarter of the power draw of Microsoft's mobile OS.

It's an advantage that Symbian and Nokia, despite their missteps in recent years, have never really thrown away. If you want a smartphone with maximum power management, there's the modest (and barely promoted) Nokia E52 - eking out 6 hours of 3G talk time (and a month's standby) in a sub-100g package.

Apple has taken a different approach, basically disallowing all third party multitasking. The first iPhone only permitted multitasking for its own music player and in a very limited way, its email package. After two years, it added server-side push notifications, giving background applications the minimal information needed to respond. Still some way short of full multitasking.

This summer sees iPhone OS 4.0 released, with enhanced multitasking in seven areas, but it's closer to the notifications system of OS 3.0 than the pre-emptive multitasking a computer science course would define. An application developer foolish enough to write an application that polls constantly will get little joy. Version 4 does allow most of the use cases - receiving VoIP calls, for example - most people have asked for. But not at the expense of cell phone battery life.

In the long run, Page and Schmidt are right - you can't really improve power management easily if it isn't great to begin with, except by adding hardware. If and when Nokia and the Symbian licensees sort out the user interface problems (and there's not much sign of that yet), they'll continue to have a pretty unique advantage.

Welcome to Android

PC World

New to Android? Here’s a quick look at what Google’s mobile operating system can do.

By now, you've probably heard an earful about how great Android phones are, how they will take over the mobile world, and how they do everything the Apple iPhone can't. But if you haven't yet fully explored an Android phone, you may be wondering what the hype is all about.

First, a little history: Google's move into the mobile phone market started way back in 2005, when the Internet giant acquired a small startup company called Android, Inc. Rumors immediately began to surface that Google was developing its own challenge to the iPhone. But it wasn't just one phone--and Google wasn't the only company working on the project. In November 2007, the Open Handset Alliance--a consortium of 47 hardware, software, and telecom companies--unveiled Android, a mobile platform based on the open-source Linux operating system.

Because Android is open-source, the platform has many advantages for consumers and developers. Smartphone and other mobile device manufacturers have more freedom to tweak the software to meet their needs, opening up a wider range of options than most other cell phones can offer. For example, a few HTC- and Motorola-manufactured Android phones come with a custom user interface that runs over the base OS. Meanwhile, third-party software developers are free to create apps that improve on the operating system's standard features.

Another advantage of open-source is that Android isn't tied to a single device--whether it be a phone, a netbook, or a tablet. The HTC T-Mobile G1 was the first Android phone available to U.S. audiences, but a rapidly growing number of Android devices have crept onto the scene from various manufacturers, many of them bearing interesting and unique designs. Whether you want a built-in QWERTY keypad or a large touchscreen (or both), you can probably find an Android phone to match your preferences. There are even a few large tablet devices available to compete with Apple's iPad.

Of course, you also have considerable freedom in selecting a wireless network. Android phones are available for every major U.S. carrier. In addition, unlocked Android phones, such as the Google Nexus One, are available; you can use these devices on any carrier that has a compatible network.

Android benefits from its close ties with Google, too. Google services such as Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google search with voice are tightly integrated with the platform. And Android users get first dibs on Google apps like Google Voice, Google Latitude, Maps Editor, and Google Skymaps.

Besides having access to Google's apps, Android users can choose from thousands of third-party apps in the Android Market. Though the Android Market hasn't quite matched the iPhone App Store in number and quality of apps yet, it is getting there quickly. The Android Market stocks paid and free apps that you can download directly onto your device.

Unlike Apple, Google does not have a stringent app approval process, so developers can get their apps into the Android Market more easily and more quickly. Also, unlike the iPhone App store, the Android Market isn't the only place where Android users can obtain apps for their devices. Alternative sources include Web-based third-party Android app libraries (like AndroLib.com) and individual developers' Websites.

Tech research firm Gartner predicts that Android phones will become the second-largest smartphone platform by 2012, right behind longtime industry leader Nokia. As Android software grows more refined and as the variety of devices on the market increases, this prediction doesn't sound at all far-fetched. Since its inception, the Android platform has shaken up the mobile world--and that alone is worth paying attention to.

GPS Shootout: Droid Vs iPhone

Washington Post

Getting lost ain't what it used to be. With most smartphones now sporting built-in GPS, we're running out of excuses for showing up late. And we wanted to find out which smartphone navigation application will get you to your destination fastest.

For this contest, we grabbed two of the most capable smartphones on the market: Apple's iPhone 3GS (AT&T) and the Motorola Droid (Verizon). Both feature large, touch-sensitive displays and robust processors that can handle serious computing tasks. More important for this test, both have GPS receivers that work with full-featured GPS navigation apps.

This is where the differences start: While the Droid comes with built-in Google Maps navigation for Android 2.0, the iPhone's top GPS tool is the TomTom for iPhone, a $100 download from the App Store. The features of these two products are so eerily similar that it's a no-brainer to make a head-to-head comparison.

For our test, we took the Droid and the iPhone 3GS on a wild, Bullitt-style ride through the streets of San Francisco. With the same destination entered on each device, we took wrong turns, changed directions, and made a generally erratic spectacle of ourselves that bordered on public menace.

As we drove, we kept a close eye on each unit, noting which updated routes faster, which provided the most effective directions, and which offered the most helpful turn-by-turn instructions.

TomTom for iPhone

TomTom's fully-loaded GPS app costs an eyebrow-raising $100, but it does give the iPhone enough navigation features to rival most stand-alone GPS devices.

The program supports the iPhone 3G and 3GS, and it can also be used on the iPod Touch in conjunction with the optional TomTom Car Kit ($120). The app takes up 1.3GB of the phone's built-in memory, which forced the owner of our 16GB test unit to delete a bunch of music files from the device before installing it.

TomTom for iPhone uses the iPhone's 480-by-320 touchscreen to full advantage, offering turn-by-turn, voice-guided navigation with both 2D and 3D maps. The home screen lets you choose between a few options: You can enter a destination address, select a recently-used destination, search for a point of interest, select a point on the map, or pull an address out of your contact list.

We particularly liked the intersection interface for entering addresses. The app narrows down the list of available cross streets to include only those that intersect with the primary street you've entered. In a big city, this greatly simplifies entering your destination; you don't have to scroll through a seemingly endless list of streets.

Out on the road, TomTom's 3D maps offer a clear view of your immediate route that make it easy to spot your next turn without taking your eyes off the road for very long.

Meanwhile, the voice guidance includes helpful information about the distance to the next turn, so you know whether you need to get over immediately to make that left turn in 300 yards, or whether you've got a half-mile to go. TomTom's voice guidance helpfully gives you the next two turns in advance, as in "Turn right on Fifth Street, then left turn."

We did encounter several GPS signal failures during our drive with the iPhone 3GS. These occurred mostly in narrow alleyways that obstructed our line-of-sight to the sky.

The Droid, however, made no corresponding complaints about loss of signal at such points, and kept on navigating without interruption throughout our test.

We don't know whether this difference in GPS continuity was due to hardware differences between the devices or to tolerances for signal loss in the apps. But for practical purposes, TomTom for iPhone was slightly less effective than the Droid's app at maintaining a seamless guidance experience through the city.

We should note that we tested both phones without any optional hardware, such as a mounting device or car kit. However, users who opt for the TomTom Car Kit should experience a better GPS experience with their iPhones, since the car kit comes equipped with its own GPS module, one that's superior to the iPhone's: It's similar to the receiver that TomTom integrates into its larger stand-alone GPS devices, and it features a more robust antenna design.

Google Maps Navigation for Android

While the TomTom iPhone app is a freestanding navigation program, Google's Android navigation software lives inside the phone's Google Maps app. Originally available only on the Android 2.0-based Motorola Droid, Google Maps navigation has now made its way to Android 1.6 devices as well. Android 1.6 users can download the app from the Android Market. We took it for a spin on a Verizon-connected Droid.

Rather than begin by picking a method of entering your destination, you're given a bird's-eye view of your current location from the start. To begin navigation, you hit the menu button in the Google Maps app and tap Directions. From there, you're presented with a field to enter your destination, and you select options to navigate by car, by public transit, or on foot.

The differences between pedestrian navigation and automotive navigation can be significant, particularly since pedestrians aren't restricted by one-way streets or footpaths that would be inaccessible by car. Having the option to toggle between these modes is a massive point in Google Maps' favor. Add to that the ability to automatically compile a list of bus, ferry, and train routes complete with schedule information, and you've already got the best navigation experience I've seen on any phone.

The navigation itself is great, too. As I've already mentioned, the Droid managed to maintain a GPS signal throughout our test, even at times when the iPhone lost communication with the satellites. What's more, the Droid established its connection more quickly than the iPhone at the time the app launched, and it refreshed its directions more quickly than the iPhone whenever we took a wrong turn or otherwise deviated from its instructions.

On a couple of occasions, the directions from the two devices varied. Though judging the efficiency of the directions is unavoidably subjective, my copilot and I both agreed that the Droid's choice of routes was a bit better than the iPhone's. Google Maps also includes real-time traffic information as a data layer, which adds value by letting you see which parts of your journey are likely to result in delays.

While both devices offer voice-guided turn-by-turn directions, we preferred the clarity of the Droid's voice directions to the iPhone's, but felt the iPhone gave us distance information more effectively. In our tests, the Droid did a much better job at pronouncing street names than did the iPhone.

When we arrived at our destination, Google Maps capped off its superior run on the course by presenting us with a Google Street View image of the address we were looking for.

We Have a Winner

Both TomTom for iPhone and Google Maps for Android are excellent GPS tools that should get their owners to their destinations with ample efficiency. However, it wasn't hard to choose a winner in this showdown.

The Droid's free, built-in software is so well integrated with its Maps app that it offers a seamless navigation experience the iPhone just can't rival at this time. Though we liked the simplicity of TomTom's 3D map images better than the slightly more complex images afforded by the Droid's higher-res display, the Droid beat the iPhone in quickly refreshing directions to compensate for wrong turns. In the end, the Android navigation tool was simply superior on most counts--including, obviously, the price.

Of course, these two apps are available only on totally separate platforms, and almost nobody is likely to switch handsets over the quality of the phone's GPS experience. If you haven't noticed, iPhone users have built a reputation for loyalty to that device.

However--assuming you're on the fence about your next smartphone purchase and are not locked in to a particular carrier--which phone will do a better job of getting you where you want to go? The answer to that question today is the Droid.

Put Droid To Work With Google Services

PC World

The countdown is underway to the Droid invasion. Verizon has unveiled the official specs and contract details, and pre-orders are already underway at Best Buy. By this time next week the Motorola Droid will be unleashed and we will find out if the reality can come close to the hype.

The Droid is the first device built on Android 2.0, the latest version of Google's open-source mobile operating system. Android is a capable mobile platform that offers benefits for any user, but small and medium businesses have even more to gain by embracing Android-based mobile phones like the Verizon Droid.

Building on a Google Foundation

For starters, if you are an owner or IT manager of a small to midsized business and haven't looked into Google Apps, you should. Even large enterprises like Genentech and Delta Hotels have adopted Google Apps in place of more traditional solutions like Microsoft Office and Microsoft Exchange Server.

It is relatively simple to set up Google Apps on your own domain. Google offers two different plans for Google Apps: Standard and Premium. The Standard edition is free and serves up to 50 users with up to 7Gb of storage space per user--more than adequate for many SMB's. For larger companies the Premium Edition costs $50 per year per user (but non-profit and educational institutions can get Premium Edition for free as well).

Google on the Go

Google Apps is not yet fully integrated with the Android operating system, but Google says it is working on it. However, the most critical components--e-mail and calendar--can be leveraged from the Droid right out of the box.

Business professionals on the go need to be able to keep in touch and maintain their schedules. Droid provides access to Gmail and Google Calendar as part of its core feature set, so roaming workers can send and receive e-mails, check their calendar, and schedule meetings while away from the office.

Droid also includes Google's newest free service, Google Nav. The turn-by-turn navigation service is integrated into Android. Comparable to portable GPS devices, or iPhone apps that cost $100 or more, the free tool can help roaming professionals get from point A to point B.

Small and medium businesses can also leverage Google Voice for advanced voice features. Google Voice provides call routing, simultaneous ringing of the desk and mobile phone, custom ring tones based on caller, voicemail transcription, and other features for free.

Enterprise Tools on an SMB Budget

Let's set aside all iPhone comparisons. The bottom line is that the Droid appears to be a more than capable hardware platform, built on an impressive operating system, that is capable of providing small and medium businesses with the communications and productivity tools they need while on the go.

Much of the promise and potential of what Google Apps can do and how all of the Google tools will integrate with Android is yet to be realized. But, the basic business functionality of email, calendaring, and voice can be achieved today, and the foundation is there for the combination of Droid and Android 2.0 with Google Apps to rival RIM Blackberry given time.

Google tools and services are web-based to begin with, so technically speaking any web-enabled mobile phone is capable of leveraging Google to some extent. Google also has a vested interest in having users adopt its tools and services no matter what mobile device they use, so there are tools and connectors available for other platforms as well. But, there is no need to try to fit a square peg in a round hole when the Android OS offers the potential of seamless integration with all that Google has to offer.

By embracing Google Apps and other Google tools, and adopting the Verizon Droid (or other Android-based device), small businesses can create a cost-effective alternative on par with large enterprise Blackberry or Microsoft server implementations.

Verizon Pushing Motorola Droid Vs. iPhone

From eWeek

Less than two weeks after promising to sell smartphones, netbooks and other devices based on Google's Android mobile operating system, Verizon Wireless kicked off a television ad touting its Motorola Droid phone and shredding Apple's iPhone in the process. Verizon Wireless will begin selling the Droid on Oct. 30, as far as anyone can tell. Boy Genius tested a Droid and said the device is blazingly fast, running Version 2.0 of Android. Jefferies Research said that such traction will lead to a boon in Google's mobile applications, noting that Google's location-based services such as Local Search, Google Maps, Search by Voice and Latitude should be readily monetizable over time.

Google CEO Eric Schmidt said on the search engine company's earnings call last week that Android was about to take off.

Time will tell on that score, but if it doesn't happen it won't be for lack of trying. Less than two weeks after promising to sell smartphones, netbooks and other devices based on Google's Android mobile operating system, Verizon Wireless kicked off a television ad touting its Motorola Droid phone and shredding Apple's iPhone in the process.

Shown on Fox and CBS in between the action of NFL football games Sunday afternoon, the 32-second clip blitzes the iPhone for what it doesn't have, including a keyboard, 5-megapixel camera, and the ability to run simultaneous apps, widgets and even take pictures in the dark. It also knocks the iPhone for not being open and allowing developers to customize apps for it, ending the ad by noting, "Everything iDon't, Droid Does."

The ad campaign would be devastating, if only Apple hadn't already sold more than 50 million iPhones and iPod Touch devices under the aegis of exclusive iPhone carrier AT&T. Even so, the ad reminds everyone that Verizon Wireless and Google are at full war with AT&T and Apple. Verizon Wireless also launched a dedicated Website Droid here.

Verizon Wireless will begin selling the Droid on Oct. 30, as far as anyone can tell. Boy Genius tested a Droid, and said the device is blazingly fast, running Version 2.0 of Android.

It's thin, metal and comes with a non-spring-assisted slide, with soft-touch plastic, but has easily the best screen of any Android handset to date, including the T-Mobile Android G1, T-Mobile myTouch 3G, Sprint HTC Hero and the half dozen other Android phones. Boy Genius wrote:

    "Have we mentioned this phone flies? It's the Android device to beat, and easily the most impressive. From what we've been told, Google had a direct hand in the Motorola Droid. Something to the point of almost dictating every move Motorola made when designing and making the phone. Interesting, huh? ... No one wants to listen, but it makes the [Motorola's Android-based] CLIQ looks like a child's toy (partly because it is, and partly because the Droid, even in its non-final form, is the most impressive phone we've used since the iPhone. It's positively amazing)."

That's the kind of gushing that will make Google and its Android partners smile, savoring a coup over iPhone, provided people buy the Droid when it comes out. In any event, Android is on the rise.

Today, Android is available on nine devices across 26 countries on 32 carriers. Dell even said it will sell an Android-based phone on AT&T's network, and Sprint is working with Samsung to deliver its second Android-based phone. Android devices should be available on all four major carrier networks in the United States in 2010. This is exactly the kind of broad adoption Google was hoping for when it unveiled Android almost two years ago in November.

Jefferies Research analyst Youssef Squali said in an Oct. 8 research note that such traction will be a boon to Google's mobile applications, noting that Google's location-based services such as Local Search, Google Maps, Search by Voice and Latitude, as well as core apps such as Gmail, YouTube and others, should be readily monetizable over time:

    "Such a trend should stimulate search volume and drive mobile page views, two crucial elements to Google's successful monetization strategy. We estimate that Google's worldwide gross search revenue in mobile will cross the $500 million mark in 2011, up from roughly $180 million in 2009."

No wonder why Schmidt said Oct. 15 during the earnings call:

    "Android adoption is literally about to explode. You have all the necessary conditions, you have the vendors, you have the distribution and so forth. This is a very critical period with all of everything being delivered."

Will Schmidt's comments prove prescient?