Droid Cell Phone

Over the last few weeks Android has been talking about the newest update 2.0.1. In our Dec. 4 SDK Update Post we had mentioned we heard the update would begin on the 10th. As small group of Droid Phone users have reported getting the update already.
A slow roll out of the Android update appears to have begune with a group of 10K and will start being sent to 200.000 user each day until the downloads are complete. This according to the Verizon forums.
Verizon has also released documentation in the support area of there site. Many of the issues reported have been addressed and should make the UI even better. Android, Google, Motorola and Verizon Wireless all said they wanted this update to be out by the end of December. Looks like that goal was easly reached.
The following enhancements to the Droid by Motorola have been made:
xx OS stability is improved.
xx Battery life is improved.
xx Camera auto focus functionality is improved, and time between
shots is reduced.
xx Enhancements for three-way calling.
xx Audio for incoming calls is improved.
xx When receiving a call on call waiting, the speakerphone now
remains on.
xx Bluetooth® functionality is improved; background echo is eliminated.
xx Improved Bluetooth phone book transfer of contacts to in-vehicle
Bluetooth solutions.
xx After closing a GPS application, the GPS icon will now automatically
be removed from the notification panel.
xx Users can now receive SMS and MMS messages after an EMS
message is received.
xx SMS and MMS may now be sent to seven-digit addresses.
xx Google® contact merging has been updated to accommodate
seven-digit numbers.
xx Visual Voice Mail notices now arrive instantaneously.
• The corporate calendar widget user interface is updated.

This update will be sent to your phones message center. Once you recieve it make sure your phone is powered up. The "Install now" and "Restart & install" options will not be available if your device does not have enough power availability. The system update requires 40% or more power availability if not connected to an external power source and 20% power availability if connected to a power source.

System Update Instructions included for Droid 2.0.1

1. You will be notified that a system update is available on your device. Press "Install now" and your device will power off and back on and the installation process will begin.

Note: If you choose "Install later" this will delay installation and you will be taken back to the home screen. The system update message will appear every 30 minutes until you install the update.

After you've received first notification of the system update you can manually initiate by going to "Home" > "Menu" > "Settings" > "About phone" > "System updates". Press "Restart & install". Your device will power off and back on and the installation process will begin.

We have not recieved this updated yet, but will report on it as soon as it is sent. If you have downloaded and used the update please let us know what you think.

For developers, the Android 2.0.1 platform is available as a downloadable component for the Android SDK. The downloadable platform includes a fully compliant Android library and system image, as well as a set of emulator skins, sample applications, and more. The downloadable platform includes no external libraries.

Over on the Android Developers site they announced a update for the SDK which will also include a update for the devices. Developers are being asked to test there application right away to insure compatibility.
We have heard that a update for The Droid By Motorola is to be released 12/10/09, but that is not direct from Android as far as we know. The fix's for the phone is said to be for WiFi and Camera issues being reported. We havnt seen any of these issues yet. That doesn't mean they don't exist. Whenever a new piece of technology is introduced issues arise.

The Android based operating system has a entire community working on a problem. Being open source anyone is welcome to work on updates and contribute.
Here a excerpt from the Developers Site. Please go check it out. "Android 2.0.1 is a minor update to Android 2.0. This update includes several bug fixes and behavior changes, such as application resource selection based on API level and changes to the value of some Bluetooth-related constants. For more detailed information, please see the Android 2.0.1 release notes.

To differentiate its behavior from Android 2.0, the API level of Android 2.0.1 is 6. All Android 2.0 devices will be updated to 2.0.1 before the end of the year, so developers will no longer need to support Android 2.0 at that time. Of course, developers of applications affected by the behavior changes should start compiling and testing their apps immediately." LINK You can read the Developers Site Headlines below.

So unless you live under a rock you have probably heard of Android? No!

Lots techies and internet enthusiasts think everyone knows what Android is. Not the case we have found that lots of people have no clue what Android is or what it's for.

Android is a Open Source development platform Google Started about 2 years ago. The very smart people at Google knew all the information they had would one day help us with our lives.

Android is the first free, open source, and fully customizable mobile platform. Android offers a full stack: an operating system, middleware, and key mobile applications. It also contains a rich set of APIs that allows third-party developers to develop great applications. All you need to do is download some software and you are on your way to building your on application, widget or tool.

Android 1.6 first appeared on T-Mobile Cell Phones and are now moving into the next phase of development by teaming up with Verizon

What more can we ask for than the power of the biggest Internet empire and all there data knowledge. Over the next several weeks will be making many posts about developing apps as we hope build some with you. Check out the great video from the developer website. We hope you join us in developing with Android.