14 DAY TRIAL // Mobile phone carrier AT&T was a little late to the Android party with the release of Motorola Backflip on its airwaves earlier this year, but still managed to impress the Android community. However, not everybody was impressed in the best possible way, that's for sure, especially when learning that the carrier has locked down the device to being able to install only applications from the Android Market. Newer Android-based phones at AT&T came with the same limitation, and, even if users do no see it with good eyes, the carrier says that all has been made so for their protection.
Here is what the wireless operator notes on its website: Android Market, managed by Google, is open to all developers. There is no approval process for applications, they are all accepted by default and Google has stated that they place apps in the Android Market within 24 hours of their submission.
AT&T selected Android Market as the exclusive source for applications because it forces developers to be accountable for the apps they submit. If the Android community has issues with an app, the app can be flagged and removed. This minimizes the risk of malicious apps harming customers and provides more protection to the customer’s private data stored on the phone.
As one can easily see, the company has only good intentions when it comes to keeping private data of users safe on their handsets. Even if that might actually hurt the experience users receive, since they are not able to customize / personalize their devices via applications in the way they consider it would be best fitted for them.
The Android operating system is a free Linux-based open-source platform for mobile devices. It managed to appeal a lot to users around the world, mainly due to the fact that it can take great advantage of the hardware resources packed inside mobile phones. Already adopted by a wide range of manufacturers and carriers around the world, Android has all chances to lead the smartphone market in the near future.