14 DAY TRIAL // First images of the Android platform have just been released by Google, hinting towards what people should expect. "There is no gPhone. Instead, I'd like to introduce you to the Android platform", said Steve Horowitz, Google's Engineering Director, shredding once and for all the gPhone myth.
The Android platform is an open source software that is supposed to allow developers to bring new applications. The operating platform was unveiled just a few days ago and came as a partnership between some big names in the mobile industry. Given the great amount of interest that this initiative coming from Google has received over the past period, a video demonstrating just what the long awaited Android platform can do is priceless and can be viewed right at the end of this article.
The interface looks like nothing spectacular at first, but the large buttons will make it excellent to use with touchscreen enabled handsets. This should also manage to make it more spectacular, although the demonstration video shows the Android platform running on a smartphone similar to those coming from Palm, with a regular display and on a touchscreen enabled device as well.
On the more evolved device, the browser application allows the user to zoom in and out of web pages and displays them just as on a desktop. Interestingly enough, the Android platform also has an internet history that displays older pages for the user to choose to go back to in a similar manner to that of the iPhone's interactive media folders.
Aside from these, there is also a Global Time application, which makes the best of 2D and 3D graphics. The same goes for 3D games that feel extremely real. The Maps application looks much more impressive on the more evolved device, as the user can use the touchscreen for easier handling.
These are just a few of the applications that Google has developed for the Android platform. The company promises that more will come in time and also expects individual developers to contribute to these efforts with new ideas. The Android platform, as seen in the few minutes, seems to have a high potential and makes the best of what the highly evolved devices have to offer at this time. This will be enough to make it the next big thing.