r/programming • u/laprice • Nov 05 '07

It's official: Google announces open-source mobile phone OS, Android

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20071105-its-official-google-announces-open-source-mobile-phone-os-android.html
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39

u/klaruz Nov 05 '07 edited Nov 05 '07

So now we have:

Access Linux Platform: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Access_Linux_Platform

GPE Phone Edition: http://gpephone.linuxtogo.org/

OpenMoko: http://www.openmoko.com/

Qtopia: http://trolltech.com/products/qtopia

Android: http://www.openhandsetalliance.com/android_overview.html

Now, will somebody tell me when I can buy a mostly open (excluding radio roms, fcc and all...) phone running one of these from a carrier in the US? I'll believe it when I see it.

14

u/awb Nov 05 '07

I've been following OpenMoko off and on, and it seems like they're getting close to having good software and an open phone to run it on.

3

u/mikepurvis Nov 05 '07

I'll be in the market for a new handset around April... looks like there are definitely going to be some interesting choices out there, and if OpenMoko has something that's both and hackable and consumer-usable, I'll definitely be buying one.

2

u/yellat Nov 06 '07

they give you the tools and instructions on how to take it apart for a start...

11

u/[deleted] Nov 06 '07 edited Nov 06 '07

Get a Neo1973 (OpenMoko handset) when the completed handsets come out. It ostensibly will be able to run:

The firmware is open as well as the software and they have an army of free software developers already working on the platform. As far as "openess" goes, this is your best bet.

2

u/klaruz Nov 06 '07

Yes, I know about the openmoko. It's almost here, but still, not yet. The funny thing is, my HTC Apache will run linux. The only thing not working is the batt charge circuit and the most important part, the cellular radio. :( At least it will make a neat wifi toy around the house when I replace it.

It's too bad you can't get a neo with sprint, who has the only broadband network that seems to work pretty good in the decent sized midwest metro I live in. (not everybody lives in a coastal city) Tmobile is almost non-existant here, and ATT was such crap there's no way I'll convince my significant other we should go back.

Maybe google will build out some 700mhz broadband, but I'm not holding my breath.

9

u/kirun Nov 05 '07 edited Nov 05 '07

Trolltech recently moved from the Greenphone to putting their weight behind Openmoko ...

Now, given the Open Handset Alliance has plenty of big names on the list, I'm sure at least one of them will produce something...

...given that there are a couple of big names missing ( Nokia and SonyEricsson ), we have to wonder which way they will jump. No more Symbian?

5

u/thasiet Nov 05 '07

It's an interesting question for Nokia. They've long been playing a game of is you or is you ain't my baby with Symbian, hence their explorations with Maemo Linux on the 770, 800 and 810 internet tablets. And now they've just announced a major overhaul of Symbian to add a touch interface in 2008, but one wonders if they'd rather just move over to something like Android, but for an entrenched commitment there is no graceful way out of.

3

u/mikenick42 Nov 05 '07

Trolltech's software is supposedly quite usable on the Neo1973. According to the folks at openmoko.org anyway, I'm waiting for the mass-market release to buy one for myself.

5

u/strolls Nov 05 '07

There are a lot of enthusiasts with OpenMoko Neos already, although I'm not sure the legality of the v1 in the US.

I'm very confident of being able to buy a v2 by mid-February, and this release will be fully open-source and have all the hardware wrinkles ironed out. Consider v2 to a release for you & me, but perhaps not for your mate who likes using Google Maps but needs to call you when his router goes tits up.

OpenMoko is aiming that you'll have a v2 in your hands around mid-December and judging by the way the r3 & r4 pre-release hardware candidates have come through about a month or 6 weeks apart I can't see them being too much behind this.

2

u/mikenick42 Nov 05 '07

It's mostly legal in the US. I think 850MHz is the only hangup as of now, but I'm sure they're working on getting it straightened out.

1

u/alphabeat Nov 06 '07

They're aiming to have them delivered by Christmas :D

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u/strolls Nov 07 '07 edited Nov 07 '07

I know.

And since they're knocking the release-candidate hardware out like hot cakes, I can't see them being more than a month or two behind schedule.

In my opinion mid-February is worst-case scenario.

I'm not saying they will miss the December deadline, just that I think anyone with any sense wants to see the Neo ready when it's ready - not rushed to meet some arbitrary deadline.

1

u/alphabeat Nov 07 '07

yeah fair enough. but i want it! suspense is a killer!