Modern technology has evolved over a long period of time. Every new day, there is something new invented or launched in market with the development in science and technology. Arguably, the piece of technology that has become a crucial part in our lives today is mobile phones. In the past, mobile phones are just used to communicate to anyone and anywhere. But in this present time, they are more than just a communication device.
Mobile devices such as mobile phones, smartphones, PDAs, tablet computers and other handheld devices has a specifically designed operating systems installed in it. Android is an operating system developed by Google Inc. based on Linux Kernel. The openness of android has made it a favourite for app developers and it is the largest installed base of any operating systems. Other popular mobile operating systems include Symbian, iOS, BlackBerry OS and Windows Mobile.
Android is an open source software stack consisting of applications primarily written in a customised version of Java. The Android SDK (Software Development Kit) provides the tools and APIs necessary to begin developing applications on the Android platform using the Java Programming Language. It provides a wonderful platform for creating applications for android users. Most of the developers prefer android over other OS as it allows them to access unlocked hardware and develop new programs as they wish. It also provides an open market place for distributing the third-party applications.
An early model of the android phone had a QWERTY keyboard and no touchscreen. The first android smartphone was HTC Dream, developed by HTC. Each major release version of android is named after a sugary treat, the first few versions of android are Android 1.0, Cupcake, Doughnut and, Éclair. Android has seen many significant changes after each version that improved the operating system by adding better features. The newest release from android is Oreo with an API level of 8.0, released in December 2017.
Android is considered as the fastest growing operating system with hundreds of hardware, software and carrier partners worldwide. Apps like skype, Google Hangout, WhatsApp have dramatically changed our way of life. With a large number of apps available on Android mobile devices, it has gained tremendous popularity among users. No doubt, Android has revolutionized the mobile technology during the past few years.