Google Releases the SDK For Version 1.6 of Android

Qwavel writes "This release includes improvements to the Android Market, the Search Framework, and Text-to-Speech. It now has support for more screen resolutions and CDMA phones. Android 1.6 is based on v2.6.29 of the Linux kernel and is expected in phones that will be available next month. The mystery of Android 1.6, however, is Google's continued unwillingness to commit to a Bluetooth API and any Bluetooth functionality beyond the basic audio functions."

Re:Why the hate towards bt?

[cdgeorge]

There's no hate, just a matter of time. From http://source.android.com/projects/bluetooth-faq [android.com]: "Q. When will Java Bluetooth API's be released in an SDK? A. We are not ready to announce a release target for Bluetooth API's. We do understand there is demand for a Bluetooth API, and it is a top priority for the Android Bluetooth team."

Re:Why the hate towards bt?

[Qwavel]

If you want to create a peripheral or software that works with the Bluetooth of the iPhone or the iPod (excepting the basic audio peripherals) you have to apply for Apple's "Made for iPod Licensing" program.
http://developer.apple.com/ipod/apply.html [apple.com]

If you need a Bluetooth chipset supporting the Apple protocols you can buy them from CSR.
http://www.embeddedstar.com/weblog/2009/07/28/csr-ipod-touch/ [embeddedstar.com]

If Apple can achieve the sort of dominance in the consumer smartphone market that they have achieved with their iPods then this will pay off very well for them. They will make money from licensing and other companies phones won't be able to communicate with iPhones/iPods.

On the other hand, whether they are successful or not, this is bad for their users. This being /. I probably don't have to explain why standards are good.

At this time, if you want to e.g. sell a Bluetooth garage door opener for smartphones (yes, this really exists) you could support it on RIM, Nokia, MS, and even some LG and Samsung phones. I hope that Android phones join this camp.

I'm interested to see some of the things that people will do with Bluetooth now that the quality of the hardware and software support is getting good enough (it wasn't good enough on a lot of the older phones). It would be sad if the lure of proprietary were to curtail the potential of Bluetooth.

Re:I'd rather have an N900

[guest235]

Well... see http://wiki.maemo.org/Why_the_closed_packages [maemo.org] . not nearly all of n900 userland is opensource :-(. Nokia seems to make packages closed by default, and only opensources when they see benefit _for them_...

Re:I'd rather have an N900

[RedK]

Because Linux is more than a kernel ? There's a lot of userland stuff that is missing from Android.

Re:Already using 1.6 more or less.

[Anonymous Coward]

Its irrating how slow development on the official Android source seems to be

But it isn't, it's just that Android is such an enormous project. The full source tree is a whopping 2.5 GB!

Multitouch is coming to Android, now that Google is no longer affraid of Apple.

Apple probably has little or nothing to do with it. To a certain extent, Android already supports multi-touch (for example, the zoom in/zoom out functionality in the HTC Hero's browser). Check out this article by Luke Hutch, the guy that originally unlocked multi-touch on Android.

Google *is* interested in multitouch capabilities, it's just nowhere near the top of their priority list. Anyone in the community could step forward today with a well-designed extension to the MotionEvent class that properly supports MT, and the Google guys and gals would vet it just like any other community submission, and it would stand as good a chance of making it into the codebase as anything else.

http://lukehutch.wordpress.com/2009/02/10/multi-touch-and-more-tinfoil-hats/ [wordpress.com]

Re:No Calendar-app, no SyncML

[kidblast]

Not only BT is missing. There's no calendar-app, and still no SyncML. Why? Even the Siemens S55 I bought in 2003 had a really pleasing set of Bluetooth-profiles, had SyncML, a calendar and J2ME... In my book, these are default, but required features. (ok, J2ME not so, since there's an alternative)

Google calendar was available on the G1 by default.

Re:Already using 1.6 more or less.

[Anonymous Coward]

Some corrections:

1) The Cupcake branch released Android 1.5.
2) Donut is the experimental branch of Android.
3) Donut is not "Android 2.0"
4) Nobody knows what Android 2.0 will be, or when it will come out.
5) If you're on a community ROM, yes, if you're using Donut code, by definition you are also using Cupcake code.

Carriers have significant testing requirements for phone software. Just because Android is open source and linux based doesn't mean you can take the linux geek approach and just release new versions into the wild on a whim. Google is mindful of this, and the companies that develop Android for their products are also mindful of this.

Re:Why the hate towards bt?

[Darkness404]

All of which don't add "revolutionary" features, but only things that should have been in 1.0. Its almost as bad as the iPhone OS releases, but at least Android is free.

Re:Why is it?

[double07]

If there was a phone with the openness of Android/WebOS, the polish of the iPhone, the large amount of networks like the BlackBerry, all in one phone it would sell like crazy.

You may be interested in this: http://maemo.nokia.com/n900/ [nokia.com]