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14,416 'Android' stories May 2011 - August 2015
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Android is Google’s mobile operating system, launched in September 2008, although its history technically began with the release of the Android alpha in November 2007. To this day, Android powers the majority of the world’s smartphones and comes in several different flavors across many phone makers.

Table of contents

What is Android?

Android Inc.

Android, before it was Android, was a company called Android Inc. That company was founded in Palo Alto, California, in 2003 by a crew of four: Andy Rubin, Rich Miner, Nick Sears, and Chris White. The company and its project was acquired by Google in 2005 for a sum of more than $50 million, although the exact number is unknown. The company’s founders joined Google as part of the deal.

In its infancy, Android was an operating system built not for touch screen smartphones like the iPhone, but rather BlackBerry-like devices with physical keyboards. It’s well documented that after Apple shocked the world with the iPhone, ahead of its nearest competition by at least a couple years, Google and Android Inc. had to go back to the drawing board to build something competitive.

Adoption by third-party makers

It didn’t take long after the launch of the iPhone for various manufacturers to enter the market with their alternatives — and Google’s Android immediately became the obvious platform of choice for just about everyone except Microsoft. HTC was the first manufacturer on board, and introduced the T-Mobile G1 running Android in September 2008. Soon after, HTC, Motorola, Samsung, and carriers like Sprint and T-Mobile jumped on board to form the Open Handset Alliance.

Android makers across the world

Iconic Android handsets

There have been thousands of Android phones released since Android’s inception, but some have been more important to the platform’s history than others. There was the original T-Mobile G1, as mentioned, but there was also the HTC One Google Play Edition, Moto G, Samsung Galaxy S4, and others. Some of the most iconic Android handsets include:

  • HTC G1
  • HTC Nexus One
  • Samsung Galaxy S, S2, S3, S4, and their successors
  • HTC Incredible S
  • Samsung Nexus S
  • Samsung Galaxy Nexus
  • Samsung Galaxy Note
  • Nokia 8
  • BlackBerry KeyOne
  • Google Pixel and its successors

In more modern times, there are several Android smartphones makers that popped up across various niches and in several international markets. Huawei is a dominant Android maker in China and many European markets, while Samsung is by far the most popular maker in the United States by far — effectively creating a duopoly with Apple. Today, there are dozens of major device makers contributing to the Android ecosystem.

Full list of Android OEMs

History of major Android versions

Android has seen countless software revisions over the course of its life, but in modern times the OS usually sees a major release on an annual cadence. In the earlier days, Google famously gave its major software releases dessert-themed codenames, but retired that practice in 2019 with the release of Android 10.

VersionNameReleaseDevices
2.3GingerbreadFebruary 9, 2011Nexus S
4.0Ice Cream SandwichOctober 19, 2011Galaxy Nexus
4.1Jelly BeanJuly 9, 2012Nexus 7
4.2Jelly BeanNovember 13, 2012Nexus 4, 10
4.3Jelly BeanJuly 24, 2013Nexus 7 (2013)
4.4KitKatOctober 31, 2013Nexus 5
5.0LollipopNovember 3, 2014Nexus 6, 9
5.1LollipopMarch 9, 2015Android One
6.0MarshmallowOctober 5, 2015Nexus 5X, 6P
7.0NougatAugust 22, 2016Nexus 5X, 6P
7.1NougatOctober 4, 2016Pixel, Pixel XL
8.0OreoAugust 21, 2017Pixel, Pixel XL
8.1OreoDecember 5, 2017Pixel, Pixel XL
9PieAugust 6, 2018Pixel 2, Pixel 2 XL
1010September 3, 2019Pixel 3, 3a
1111September 8, 2020Pixel 4

List of major Android OS platforms

While Android proper is certainly the most widespread of Google’s Android operating systems, the company has also launched many offshoots of the main OS over the years. There’s Android Auto, Android Wear (now Wear OS), Android TV (now rebranded to Google TV), as well as versions of Android built for tablets and Android Things (now defunct).

9to5Toys Lunch Break: LG G4 (unlocked) $420, Free $100 Google Play GC w/ HTC One M9 purchase, more

Avatar for Stephen Hall Aug 24 2015 - 12:24 pm PT
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Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals

Brand new LG G4 32GB 4G LTE smartphone (unlocked): $420 shipped (Reg. $550+)

HTC is offering a free $100 Google Play gift card with the purchase of an HTC One M9

Giveaway: Jaybird’s new X2 Bluetooth earbuds are the ultimate workout counterpart ($180 value)

Canon T5 DSLR w/ 18-55mm lens kit (refurb w/ 1 yr warranty): $250 shipped (Orig. $549)

More new gear from today:

Daily Deals: JBL Micro II Portable Speaker $15, Mophie 1,300mAh Power Reserve with Lightning $14, more

More deals still alive:

Beats Studio Wireless headphones: Titanium $230 (Reg. $380), Blue $264 (Reg. $380)

New products & more:

Samsung SmartThings hub comes next month with Amazon Echo-powered voice control support

Tile announces a new generation of its Bluetooth tracker

Quick Review: The Conway Electric Extō Dual-USB is the envy of all power strips

BlackBerry Passport ‘Silver Edition’ w/ Android Lollipop purportedly caught on camera [Video]

Avatar for Stephen Hall Aug 24 2015 - 8:55 am PT
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Evan Blass — otherwise known as Evleaks — shared with us an image last week showing what looks to be some silver variant of the much-rumored BlackBerry Passport running Android Lollipop. Tech blog 4GNews then went on just before the weekend to share images of what it called Passport Silver Edition. It turns out those images were from Dudu Rocha Tec., an Android-related Brazilian YouTube channel, and now we have a look at what is likely the much-rumored BlackBerry device in its full glory…
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Droid Maxx 2 back cover appears in leaked images, possible US variant of Moto X Play

Avatar for Tom Maxwell Aug 24 2015 - 8:42 am PT
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Motorola’s recently announced Moto X Play isn’t coming to the United States — not with that name, at least. It’s widely believed to be coming to the states exclusively on Verizon as the Droid Maxx 2, and the widely-sourced Hellomotohk has released new images of what is purportedly the back cover of the phone.

The most notable thing about these images is how the Verizon and DROID branding blends in with the rest of the cover — Verizon tends to plaster the back of its DROID phones with prominent logos. It depends on how the covers are manufactured and at what stage these were taken off the line to be pictured, but hopefully this is what the back will look like at its consumer release.

The reason it’s believed that the Moto X Play will come to the US as a re-branded Verizon phone is due to simple pattern-matching: Motorola builds all of Verizon’s DROID line of smartphones, and save for modifications to outward appearance and features, they tend to follow Motorola’s phones closely in terms of their baseline platform. Last year’s Droid Turbo, for example, was a tuned up Moto X. And in particular the Moto X Play compromises in places where Motorola’s other recently announced phone, the X Style, doesn’t, in favor of a larger battery. The Droid Maxx is traditionally Verizon’s line targeted at those who want large batteries.

Based on the sight of two different back plate covers, it seems possible that Moto Maker or something similar will be available for this phone, but we wouldn’t get our hopes up. Nothing pictured has been confirmed by Motorola or Verizon, and could be fake.

Google apps in Android Marshmallow neatly ask for permissions on a case by case basis

Avatar for Stephen Hall Aug 24 2015 - 7:22 am PT
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One of the more useful — and long overdue — features coming with Android M is the ability to have precise control over app permissions. And now, with Android Marshmallow developer preview 3 (which was released last week), Google’s default apps will neatly ask you for permission if you tell the app to do something that it doesn’t currently have permission to do.
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Android Marshmallow reportedly almost triples Nexus 5 standby time

Avatar for Cam Bunton Aug 24 2015 - 7:12 am PT
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Android M, now revealed as 6.0 Marshmallow, could lead to much healthier standby battery life on your favorite smartphone according to some testing done by German blog Computerbase. Taking two Nexus 5 smartphones (one running Lollipop, the other Android M), the site ran side-by-side standby time tests and discovered that the Marshmallow-flavored Nexus achieved standby time nearly three times as long as its Lollipop-powered counterpart.

It’s a case of Android 5.1.1 versus the very first Dev Preview of Android M, and the latter’s standby time is significantly improved over the former. After 24 hours of leaving both devices on standby, the Nexus running Lollipop was down 12% while the M-powered Nexus was down just 4.5%. It was similar after 48 hours with the phone running 5.1.1 down by 24% and the Android M device down by only 9%. Using some basic arithmetic the site calculated that the Nexus 5 running Android Lollipop could last a maximum of 200 hours on standby while the Nexus running Android M could go a total of 533 hours. Rounding up, that’s 2.7 times longer.
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McDonald’s preparing staff for Android Pay launch this week

Avatar for Cam Bunton Aug 24 2015 - 5:34 am PT
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McDonald’s has been circulating an update to its staff relating to changes in its mobile payment offerings. If the details being sent internally to employees are accurate, Android Pay could be available to customers from August 26th (two days away). Android Pay, of course, was one of the big announcements made at Google’s I/O conference last month and was unveiled alongside Android M, which we now know is 6.0 Marshmallow.

There are reasons to be skeptical about this date. Mostly, the two communications shown by Android Police state that McDonald’s is rolling out Samsung Pay support on August 21st (last Friday). That date, we know, is incorrect. Friday may have been the release date for the Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 Edge+, but Samsung’s mobile payment solution isn’t expected until next month. This could simply be an honest mistake. If so, it seems strange that we’ve heard nothing about McDonald’s higher-ups not informing staff of its error. Another explanation is possibly that the company is rolling out support way ahead of launch to make sure they’re ready. After all, they have some 14,000 stores in the U.S. alone.

There is a chance that the Android Pay launch date is accurate even if the Samsung Pay one isn’t. If it is accurate it would come as something of a surprise. We’d initially expected that Android Pay would be publicly available around the same time as Android 6.0 Marshmallow to tie the two launches together. In fact, Google stated as much when it was announced. Saying that, it was also announced that Android versions from KitKat and later would support it, suggesting that it would at least be possible to launch Pay before Marshmallow, even if it isn’t probable.

If I had to guess, I’d say McDonald’s got its dates wrong by about one month. Still, I’ll be delighted if Android Pay does launch this week.

Huawei Nexus prototype leaked in photos, corroborates rumors of metal chassis and rear fingerprint sensor

Avatar for Cam Bunton Aug 24 2015 - 2:25 am PT
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Update: The same source has posted more images of the purported Huawei Nexus, this time showing the bottom half rocking a USB Type-C port. The new USB-C standard is reversible, meaning there isn’t a right-side up and the male side of the cable can be flipped on either side and it’ll still plug into the device. They’re also bidirectional, able to send data and power in either direction. Google announced during its I/O conference that it has been working closely with device manufacturers to introduce phones which take advantage of it.

The purported upcoming Huawei Nexus is one of this year’s biggest rumors so far. It would mark the first time we’ve seen Google partner with a Chinese manufacturer for its ‘Pure Google’ smartphone, and could help the search giant finally get its Play Services running in China. Despite seeing multiple rumors, schematics and leaks, we’ve not seen any real physical evidence of the device’s existence. Until now. Steve Hemmerstoffer has published a couple of photos to his blog showing off what looks to be a pre-release or prototype model of Huawei’s stock Android phone.


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LG G Pad II 10.1 announced: 2GB RAM, Snapdragon 800 chip and 7,400mAh battery in tow

Avatar for Cam Bunton Aug 24 2015 - 1:38 am PT
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LG has announced a brand new tablet ready to compete at the 10-inch screen size category, and by all accounts, it looks to be a decent piece of hardware. The LG G Pad II 10.1 is going to make a full appearance at IFA in a couple of weeks. Pricing and availability details won’t be announced until then, but in the mean time, LG has given us the lowdown on all the tablet’s internal specifications.


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2nd-gen Moto 360 allegedly shows up in the wild, complete with “flat tire” and regular watch strap lugs

Avatar for Cam Bunton Aug 23 2015 - 6:12 am PT
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Not long ago, we revealed that Motorola’s next generation smart watch has made its way through testing and registration with the FCC in Brazil. That was after Motorola itself ‘accidentally’ leaked it. Now it seems, people testing the device in Chicago are just walking around and hopping on public transport wearing the unreleased wearable. Google Plus user, Gerrit Gödecke spotted one being worn while riding a Chicago commuter train and managed to snap a few shots.

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Microsoft Universal Foldable Keyboard review: Ultra-thin, versatile keyboard for your Android tablet or smartphone

Avatar for Cam Bunton Aug 22 2015 - 7:19 am PT
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The Android tablet accessory market may not be as full of keyboards as the iPad market is, but even when you find one, chances are it’s terrible. The Microsoft Universal Foldable Keyboard wants to be the one to change that trend. It’s small enough to carry around in your pocket when folded, and works with Android, Windows and iOS devices. What’s more, you can have it paired to two devices at once and switch between them with the press of a button. It’s safe to say that this is one of the most versatile and portable Bluetooth keyboards on the market. This review was written entirely on it.


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Google Maps for Android update makes it easier to access Street View

Avatar for Tom Maxwell Aug 21 2015 - 1:52 pm PT
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If you’re like me, you sometimes use the Street View feature of Google Maps to see a place you’re about to visit and what its surrounding area looks like. Maybe you’re apartment hunting and want to see if the neighborhood looks safe. Regardless of why you do it, Google understands us and has made this previewing a tad easier.

Google Maps version 9.13.0 for Android places a thumbnail preview of a location in the bottom left corner of the screen for inputted addresses and places for which you’ve pressed and held on the map. It looks like this:

Tapping one of these previews brings up your standard Street View:

This version is available from Google Play, and an APK can be downloaded from APKMirror.

How to fix the Galaxy Note 5 and S6 Edge+ YouTube live streaming ‘already enabled’ error

Avatar for Dom Esposito Aug 21 2015 - 10:54 am PT
11 Comments

One of the latest and greatest features with Samsung’s Galaxy Note 5 and S6 Edge+ is the ability to instantly live stream from the Camera app via YouTube. It’s pretty neat, but unfortunately I ran into an issue when attempting this for the first time. I’d get the “error message” shown in the above image after the quick sign-in process and nothing else would happen.

I’ve been poking around within the Google Plus and YouTube settings and I’ve come across a working solution for this problem. For those who are new to this thread in the future, here’s a rundown of the issue…


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ASUS ZenPad 8.0 (Z380C) + Power Case unboxing and first impressions [Video]

Avatar for Cam Bunton Aug 21 2015 - 10:29 am PT
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ASUS is making a big push to disrupt the Android smartphone and tablet markets with its latest lineup of devices. Everyone’s talking about the ZenFone 2, and plenty more will be talking about the ZenPad 8.0 pretty soon. Along with a bunch of cases — including the battery boosting Power Case —  I was sent the low-end Z380C model which costs just $240 in the US and just £120 in the UK. Although its spec list isn’t quite as awe-inspiring as the ZenPad 8.0 Z580, it still seems great value for money. 


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Samsung is showing ads to device owners through push notifications

Avatar for Tom Maxwell Aug 21 2015 - 10:04 am PT
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Not you too, Samsung. After reporting early this month that HTC was sending advertisements to owners of its devices through push notifications, it appears that Samsung is doing something similar.

Android Police is today reporting that owners of Samsung devices have reached out to the site to share with them screenshots of ads appearing in the slide-down menu that includes all their notifications. The ads — one for the Galaxy S6 Edge+ is pictured — appear inside cards that looks just like every other notification. They’re delivered via the Samsung Push Service, a piece of software Samsung pre-installs on its Android devices to send helpful information to device owners. Not exactly helpful this time, though.

We weren’t terribly surprised when HTC started doing this, being in the kind of financial straits they are, but it’s definitely surprising coming from a technology giant like Samsung. The company’s software is already notoriously bloated and known to kill running apps a little too quickly, so this is just another blow for a company that has only just began to produce great phones again after an uninteresting Galaxy S5.

Aside from people just not liking ads in general, much of the frustration here centers around the distrust it creates. While we pay for cable television and still see ads there, it hasn’t become acceptable practice to see ads in and around the gadgets we buy with our hard earned money. Hopefully OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) don’t think they can make it okay.

Samsung allegedly working on ‘Tahoe’, a giant 18.4-inch Android tablet

Avatar for Cam Bunton Aug 21 2015 - 5:16 am PT
1 Comment

With Samsung’s most recent device launches being surprisingly restrained, you could almost be forgiven for thinking the company didn’t care so much about the showmanship of releasing high-specced products with ridiculous features anymore. Case in point being the elegant and well-made Galaxy S6 and Note 5 phones. No longer are they smartphones packed with eye-watering feature lists, or a slew of gimmicky features no one needs. But that doesn’t mean the company is completely giving up on trying new, interesting things. At least, not if a recent rumor from SamMobile is anything to go by.

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Sony Xperia Z5 Compact shows up in leaked promo image

Avatar for Cam Bunton Aug 21 2015 - 3:18 am PT
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A fresh, official-looking, image of the upcoming Xperia Z5 Compact has shown up in a new leaked promotional photo courtesy of Dutch tech blog, TechTastic. There’s nothing entirely remarkable about the image itself, but the very fact the device is showing up in promotional images prior to launch is a good indication that Sony is preparing its marketing ready for its arrival.


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Review: The OnePlus 2 is an integer away from the perfect flagship killer [Video]

Avatar for Dom Esposito Aug 20 2015 - 11:44 am PT
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It’s no surprise that the OnePlus One was a huge hit. Flagship specs at a mid-range price wasn’t something normal for the mobile industry. OnePlus made waves with this “flagship killer’s” announcement more than 15 months ago, and now its much-anticipated successor is available for purchase (if you can get your hands on an invite), but does the OnePlus 2 live up to the hype? Let’s go ahead and find out…
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Jolla tablet pre-orders go live today, Android app-compatible 64GB model for €299

Avatar for Cam Bunton Aug 20 2015 - 9:43 am PT
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Jolla today opened up pre-orders to everyone for its Sailfish OS-powered tablet. Customers in all EU countries, the States, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Norway, Switzerland, India and Russia can pre-order both the 32GB and 64GB models for €267 ($298) and €299 ($335) respectively. Devices are available in limited quantities from Jolla’s own online store.


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