<s>
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
a	O
mobile	B-Operating_System
operating	I-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
based	O
on	O
a	O
modified	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
and	O
other	O
open-source	B-Application
software	I-Application
,	O
designed	O
primarily	O
for	O
touchscreen	B-Device
mobile	O
devices	O
such	O
as	O
smartphones	B-Application
and	O
tablets	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
developed	O
by	O
a	O
consortium	B-Application
of	O
developers	B-Application
known	O
as	O
the	O
Open	O
Handset	O
Alliance	O
,	O
though	O
its	O
most	O
widely	O
used	O
version	O
is	O
primarily	O
developed	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
unveiled	O
in	O
November	O
2007	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
first	O
commercial	O
Android	B-Application
device	O
,	O
the	O
HTC	B-Application
Dream	I-Application
,	O
being	O
launched	O
in	O
September	O
2008	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
its	O
core	O
,	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
is	O
known	O
as	O
Android	B-Application
Open	B-Application
Source	I-Application
Project	O
(	O
AOSP	O
)	O
and	O
is	O
free	B-License
and	I-License
open-source	I-License
software	I-License
(	O
FOSS	B-License
)	O
primarily	O
licensed	O
under	O
the	O
Apache	B-Application
License	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
most	O
devices	O
run	O
on	O
the	O
proprietary	B-Application
Android	B-Application
version	I-Application
developed	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
which	O
ship	O
with	O
additional	O
proprietary	B-Application
closed-source	B-Application
software	I-Application
pre-installed	B-Application
,	O
most	O
notably	O
Google	B-Application
Mobile	I-Application
Services	I-Application
(	O
GMS	O
)	O
which	O
includes	O
core	O
apps	B-Application
such	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
Chrome	I-Application
,	O
the	O
digital	O
distribution	O
platform	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
,	O
and	O
the	O
associated	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Services	I-Application
development	B-Device
platform	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Firebase	B-General_Concept
Cloud	B-Architecture
Messaging	O
is	O
used	O
for	O
push	O
notifications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
AOSP	O
is	O
free	O
,	O
the	O
"	O
Android	B-Application
"	O
name	O
and	O
logo	O
are	O
trademarks	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
which	O
imposes	O
standards	O
to	O
restrict	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
branding	O
by	O
"	O
uncertified	O
"	O
devices	O
outside	O
their	O
ecosystem	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Over	O
70	O
percent	O
of	O
smartphones	B-Application
based	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
Open	B-Application
Source	I-Application
Project	O
run	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
ecosystem	O
(	O
which	O
is	O
known	O
simply	O
as	O
Android	B-Application
)	O
,	O
some	O
with	O
vendor-customized	O
user	O
interfaces	O
and	O
software	O
suites	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
TouchWiz	B-Application
and	O
later	O
One	B-Application
UI	I-Application
by	O
Samsung	B-Application
and	O
HTC	B-Application
Sense	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Competing	O
ecosystems	O
and	O
forks	B-Application
of	O
AOSP	O
include	O
Fire	B-Application
OS	I-Application
(	O
developed	O
by	O
Amazon	B-Application
)	O
,	O
ColorOS	B-Application
by	O
OPPO	O
,	O
OriginOS	O
by	O
Vivo	O
,	O
MagicUI	B-Operating_System
by	O
Honor	O
,	O
or	O
custom	O
ROMs	O
such	O
as	O
LineageOS	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
source	O
code	O
has	O
been	O
used	O
to	O
develop	O
variants	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
on	O
a	O
range	O
of	O
other	O
electronics	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
game	B-Device
consoles	I-Device
,	O
digital	B-Device
cameras	I-Device
,	O
portable	O
media	O
players	O
,	O
and	O
PCs	B-Device
,	O
each	O
with	O
a	O
specialized	O
user	O
interface	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
well	O
known	O
derivatives	O
include	O
Android	B-Application
TV	I-Application
for	O
televisions	O
and	O
Wear	B-Application
OS	I-Application
for	O
wearables	O
,	O
both	O
developed	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Software	B-Application
packages	I-Application
on	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
which	O
use	O
the	O
APK	B-Application
format	O
,	O
are	O
generally	O
distributed	O
through	O
proprietary	B-Application
application	O
stores	O
like	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
,	O
Amazon	B-Application
Appstore	O
(	O
including	O
for	O
Windows	B-Application
11	I-Application
)	O
,	O
Samsung	B-Application
Galaxy	I-Application
Store	I-Application
,	O
Huawei	B-Application
AppGallery	I-Application
,	O
Cafe	O
Bazaar	O
,	O
and	O
GetJar	B-Application
,	O
or	O
open	B-Application
source	I-Application
platforms	I-Application
like	O
Aptoide	B-Application
or	O
F-Droid	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
has	O
been	O
the	O
best-selling	O
OS	O
worldwide	O
on	O
smartphones	B-Application
since	O
2011	O
and	O
on	O
tablets	B-Device
since	O
2013	O
.	O
,	O
it	O
had	O
over	O
three	O
billion	O
monthly	O
active	O
users	O
,	O
the	O
largest	O
installed	B-Operating_System
base	I-Operating_System
of	O
any	O
operating	O
system	O
,	O
and	O
,	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	B-Application
Store	I-Application
featured	O
over	O
3million	O
apps	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
13	I-Application
,	O
released	O
on	O
August	O
15	O
,	O
2022	O
,	O
is	O
the	O
latest	O
version	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
recently	O
released	O
Android	O
12.1/12L	O
includes	O
improvements	O
specific	O
to	O
foldable	B-Application
phones	I-Application
,	O
tablets	B-Device
,	O
desktop-sized	O
screens	O
and	O
Chromebooks	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
Inc	O
.	O
was	O
founded	O
in	O
Palo	O
Alto	O
,	O
California	O
,	O
in	O
October	O
2003	O
by	O
Andy	O
Rubin	O
,	O
Rich	O
Miner	O
,	O
Nick	O
Sears	O
,	O
and	O
Chris	O
White	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Rubin	O
described	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
project	O
as	O
having	O
"	O
tremendous	O
potential	O
in	O
developing	O
smarter	O
mobile	O
devices	O
that	O
are	O
more	O
aware	O
of	O
its	O
owner	O
's	O
location	O
and	O
preferences	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
early	O
intentions	O
of	O
the	O
company	O
were	O
to	O
develop	O
an	O
advanced	O
operating	O
system	O
for	O
digital	B-Device
cameras	I-Device
,	O
and	O
this	O
was	O
the	O
basis	O
of	O
its	O
pitch	O
to	O
investors	O
in	O
April	O
2004	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
then	O
decided	O
that	O
the	O
market	O
for	O
cameras	O
was	O
not	O
large	O
enough	O
for	O
its	O
goals	O
,	O
and	O
five	O
months	O
later	O
it	O
had	O
diverted	O
its	O
efforts	O
and	O
was	O
pitching	O
Android	B-Application
as	O
a	O
handset	O
operating	O
system	O
that	O
would	O
rival	O
Symbian	B-Operating_System
and	O
Microsoft	B-Operating_System
Windows	I-Operating_System
Mobile	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Rubin	O
had	O
difficulty	O
attracting	O
investors	O
early	O
on	O
,	O
and	O
Android	B-Application
was	O
facing	O
eviction	O
from	O
its	O
office	O
space	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Steve	O
Perlman	O
,	O
a	O
close	O
friend	O
of	O
Rubin	O
,	O
brought	O
him	O
$	O
10,000	O
in	O
cash	O
in	O
an	O
envelope	O
,	O
and	O
shortly	O
thereafter	O
wired	O
an	O
undisclosed	O
amount	O
as	O
seed	O
funding	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2005	O
,	O
Rubin	O
tried	O
to	O
negotiate	O
deals	O
with	O
Samsung	B-Application
and	O
HTC	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Shortly	O
afterwards	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
acquired	O
the	O
company	O
in	O
July	O
of	O
that	O
year	O
for	O
at	O
least	O
$50million	O
;	O
this	O
was	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
"	O
best	O
deal	O
ever	O
"	O
according	O
to	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
then-vice	O
president	O
of	O
corporate	O
development	O
,	O
David	O
Lawee	O
,	O
in	O
2010	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
's	O
key	O
employees	O
,	O
including	O
Rubin	O
,	O
Miner	O
,	O
Sears	O
,	O
and	O
White	O
,	O
joined	O
Google	B-Application
as	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
acquisition	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Not	O
much	O
was	O
known	O
about	O
the	O
secretive	O
Android	B-Application
Inc	O
.	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
company	O
having	O
provided	O
few	O
details	O
other	O
than	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
making	O
software	O
for	O
mobile	O
phones	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
the	O
team	O
led	O
by	O
Rubin	O
developed	O
a	O
mobile	O
device	O
platform	O
powered	O
by	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
marketed	O
the	O
platform	O
to	O
handset	O
makers	O
and	O
carriers	O
on	O
the	O
promise	O
of	O
providing	O
a	O
flexible	O
,	O
upgradeable	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
had	O
"	O
lined	O
up	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
hardware	B-Architecture
components	O
and	O
software	O
partners	O
and	O
signaled	O
to	O
carriers	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
open	O
to	O
various	O
degrees	O
of	O
cooperation	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Speculation	O
about	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
intention	O
to	O
enter	O
the	O
mobile	O
communications	O
market	O
continued	O
to	O
build	O
through	O
December	O
2006	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
early	O
prototype	B-Application
had	O
a	O
close	O
resemblance	O
to	O
a	O
BlackBerry	B-Application
phone	O
,	O
with	O
no	O
touchscreen	B-Device
and	O
a	O
physical	O
QWERTY	O
keyboard	B-Device
,	O
but	O
the	O
arrival	O
of	O
2007	O
's	O
Apple	O
iPhone	B-Operating_System
meant	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
"	O
had	O
to	O
go	B-Application
back	O
to	O
the	O
drawing	O
board	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
later	O
changed	O
its	O
Android	B-Application
specification	O
documents	O
to	O
state	O
that	O
"	O
Touchscreens	B-Device
will	O
be	O
supported	O
"	O
,	O
although	O
"	O
the	O
Product	O
was	O
designed	O
with	O
the	O
presence	O
of	O
discrete	O
physical	O
buttons	O
as	O
an	O
assumption	O
,	O
therefore	O
a	O
touchscreen	B-Device
cannot	O
completely	O
replace	O
physical	O
buttons	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
2008	O
,	O
both	O
Nokia	O
and	O
BlackBerry	B-Application
announced	O
touch-based	O
smartphones	B-Application
to	O
rival	O
the	O
iPhone	B-Operating_System
3G	I-Operating_System
,	O
and	O
Android	B-Application
's	O
focus	O
eventually	O
switched	O
to	O
just	O
touchscreens	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
commercially	O
available	O
smartphone	B-Application
running	O
Android	B-Application
was	O
the	O
HTC	B-Application
Dream	I-Application
,	O
also	O
known	O
as	O
T-Mobile	B-Application
G1	I-Application
,	O
announced	O
on	O
September	O
23	O
,	O
2008	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
November	O
5	O
,	O
2007	O
,	O
the	O
Open	O
Handset	O
Alliance	O
,	O
a	O
consortium	B-Application
of	O
technology	O
companies	O
including	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
device	O
manufacturers	O
such	O
as	O
HTC	B-Application
,	O
Motorola	O
and	O
Samsung	B-Application
,	O
wireless	O
carriers	O
such	O
as	O
Sprint	O
and	O
T-Mobile	O
,	O
and	O
chipset	O
makers	O
such	O
as	O
Qualcomm	O
and	O
Texas	O
Instruments	O
,	O
unveiled	O
itself	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
goal	O
to	O
develop	O
"	O
the	O
first	O
truly	O
open	O
and	O
comprehensive	O
platform	O
for	O
mobile	O
devices	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Within	O
a	O
year	O
,	O
the	O
Open	O
Handset	O
Alliance	O
faced	O
two	O
other	O
open	B-Application
source	I-Application
competitors	O
,	O
the	O
Symbian	B-Application
Foundation	I-Application
and	O
the	O
LiMo	B-Operating_System
Foundation	I-Operating_System
,	O
the	O
latter	O
also	O
developing	O
a	O
Linux-based	O
mobile	B-Operating_System
operating	I-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
like	O
Google	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
In	O
September	O
2007	O
,	O
InformationWeek	O
covered	O
an	O
Evalueserve	O
study	O
reporting	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
had	O
filed	O
several	O
patent	O
applications	O
in	O
the	O
area	O
of	O
mobile	O
telephony	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
2008	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
has	O
seen	O
numerous	B-Application
updates	I-Application
which	O
have	O
incrementally	O
improved	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
,	O
adding	O
new	O
features	O
and	O
fixing	O
bugs	B-Error_Name
in	O
previous	O
releases	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Each	O
major	O
release	O
is	O
named	O
in	O
alphabetical	O
order	O
after	O
a	O
dessert	O
or	O
sugary	O
treat	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
first	O
few	O
Android	B-Application
versions	I-Application
being	O
called	O
"	O
Cupcake	B-Application
"	O
,	O
"	O
Donut	B-Application
"	O
,	O
"	O
Eclair	B-Application
"	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
Froyo	B-Application
"	O
,	O
in	O
that	O
order	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
its	O
announcement	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
KitKat	I-Application
in	O
2013	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
explained	O
that	O
"	O
Since	O
these	O
devices	O
make	O
our	O
lives	O
so	O
sweet	O
,	O
each	O
Android	B-Application
version	I-Application
is	O
named	O
after	O
a	O
dessert	O
"	O
,	O
although	O
a	O
Google	B-Application
spokesperson	O
told	O
CNN	B-Architecture
in	O
an	O
interview	O
that	O
"	O
It	O
's	O
kind	O
of	O
like	O
an	O
internal	O
team	O
thing	O
,	O
and	O
we	O
prefer	O
to	O
be	O
a	O
little	O
bit	O
—	O
how	O
should	O
I	O
say	O
—	O
a	O
bit	O
inscrutable	O
in	O
the	O
matter	O
,	O
I	O
'll	O
say	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2010	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
launched	O
its	O
Nexus	B-Device
series	I-Device
of	O
devices	O
,	O
a	O
lineup	O
in	O
which	O
Google	B-Application
partnered	O
with	O
different	O
device	O
manufacturers	O
to	O
produce	O
new	O
devices	O
and	O
introduce	O
new	O
Android	B-Application
versions	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
series	O
was	O
described	O
as	O
having	O
"	O
played	O
a	O
pivotal	O
role	O
in	O
Android	B-Application
's	O
history	O
by	O
introducing	O
new	O
software	O
iterations	O
and	O
hardware	B-Architecture
standards	O
across	O
the	O
board	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
became	O
known	O
for	O
its	O
"	O
bloat-free	O
"	O
software	O
with	O
"	O
timely	O
...	O
updates	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
its	O
developer	B-Application
conference	I-Application
in	O
May	O
2013	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
a	O
special	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
Samsung	B-Application
Galaxy	I-Application
S4	I-Application
,	O
where	O
,	O
instead	O
of	O
using	O
Samsung	B-Application
's	O
own	O
Android	B-Application
customization	O
,	O
the	O
phone	O
ran	O
"	O
stock	B-Application
Android	I-Application
"	O
and	O
was	O
promised	O
to	O
receive	O
new	O
system	O
updates	O
fast	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
device	O
would	O
become	O
the	O
start	O
of	O
the	B-Application
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
edition	I-Application
program	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
followed	O
by	O
other	O
devices	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
HTC	B-Application
One	I-Application
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
edition	I-Application
,	O
and	O
Moto	B-Application
G	I-Application
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
edition	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2015	O
,	O
Ars	O
Technica	O
wrote	O
that	O
"	O
Earlier	O
this	O
week	O
,	O
the	O
last	O
of	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	O
edition	O
Android	B-Application
phones	I-Application
in	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
online	O
storefront	O
were	O
listed	O
as	O
"	O
no	O
longer	O
available	O
for	O
sale	O
"	O
and	O
that	O
"	O
Now	O
they	O
're	O
all	O
gone	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
looks	O
a	O
whole	O
lot	O
like	O
the	O
program	O
has	O
wrapped	O
up	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
From	O
2008	O
to	O
2013	O
,	O
Hugo	O
Barra	O
served	O
as	O
product	O
spokesperson	O
,	O
representing	O
Android	B-Application
at	O
press	O
conferences	O
and	O
Google	B-Application
I/O	I-Application
,	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
annual	O
developer-focused	O
conference	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
left	O
Google	B-Application
in	O
August	O
2013	O
to	O
join	O
Chinese	O
phone	O
maker	O
Xiaomi	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Less	O
than	O
six	O
months	O
earlier	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
then-CEO	O
Larry	O
Page	O
announced	O
in	O
a	O
blog	O
post	O
that	O
Andy	O
Rubin	O
had	O
moved	O
from	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
division	O
to	O
take	O
on	O
new	O
projects	O
at	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
and	O
that	O
Sundar	O
Pichai	O
would	O
become	O
the	O
new	O
Android	B-Application
lead	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pichai	O
himself	O
would	O
eventually	O
switch	O
positions	O
,	O
becoming	O
the	O
new	O
CEO	B-Application
of	O
Google	B-Application
in	O
August	O
2015	O
following	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
restructure	O
into	O
the	O
Alphabet	O
conglomerate	O
,	O
making	O
Hiroshi	O
Lockheimer	O
the	O
new	O
head	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
Android	B-Application
4.4	I-Application
Kit	O
Kat	O
,	O
shared	O
writing	O
access	O
to	O
MicroSD	O
memory	O
cards	O
has	O
been	O
locked	O
for	O
user-installed	O
applications	O
,	O
to	O
which	O
only	O
the	O
dedicated	O
directories	O
with	O
respective	O
package	O
names	O
,	O
located	O
inside	O
Android/data/	O
,	O
remained	O
writeable	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Writing	O
access	O
has	O
been	O
reinstated	O
with	O
Android	B-Application
5	I-Application
Lollipop	B-Application
through	O
the	O
backwards-incompatible	B-General_Concept
Google	B-Application
Storage	O
Access	O
Framework	O
interface	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
2014	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
Android	B-Application
One	I-Application
,	O
a	O
set	O
of	O
"	O
hardware	B-Architecture
reference	O
models	O
"	O
that	O
would	O
"	O
allow	O
[	O
device	O
makers ]	O
to	O
easily	O
create	O
high-quality	O
phones	O
at	O
low	O
costs	O
"	O
,	O
designed	O
for	O
consumers	O
in	O
developing	O
countries	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
September	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
the	O
first	O
set	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
One	I-Application
phones	O
for	O
release	O
in	O
India	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
Recode	O
reported	O
in	O
June	O
2015	O
that	O
the	O
project	O
was	O
"	O
a	O
disappointment	O
"	O
,	O
citing	O
"	O
reluctant	O
consumers	O
and	O
manufacturing	O
partners	O
"	O
and	O
"	O
misfires	O
from	O
the	O
search	O
company	O
that	O
has	O
never	O
quite	O
cracked	O
hardware	B-Architecture
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Plans	O
to	O
relaunch	O
Android	B-Application
One	I-Application
surfaced	O
in	O
August	O
2015	O
,	O
with	O
Africa	O
announced	O
as	O
the	O
next	O
location	O
for	O
the	O
program	O
a	O
week	O
later	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
report	O
from	O
The	O
Information	O
in	O
January	O
2017	O
stated	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
is	O
expanding	O
its	O
low-cost	O
Android	B-Application
One	I-Application
program	O
into	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
,	O
although	O
The	O
Verge	O
notes	O
that	O
the	O
company	O
will	O
presumably	O
not	O
produce	O
the	O
actual	O
devices	O
itself	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
introduced	O
the	O
Pixel	B-Device
and	O
Pixel	B-Device
XL	I-Device
smartphones	B-Application
in	O
October	O
2016	O
,	O
marketed	O
as	O
being	O
the	O
first	O
phones	O
made	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
and	O
exclusively	O
featured	O
certain	O
software	O
features	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Assistant	O
,	O
before	O
wider	O
rollout	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Pixel	B-Device
phones	I-Device
replaced	O
the	O
Nexus	B-Device
series	I-Device
,	O
with	O
a	O
new	O
generation	O
of	O
Pixel	B-Device
phones	I-Device
launched	O
in	O
October	O
2017	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
2019	O
,	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
became	O
entangled	O
in	O
the	O
trade	O
war	O
between	O
China	O
and	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
involving	O
Huawei	O
,	O
which	O
,	O
like	O
many	O
other	O
tech	O
firms	O
,	O
had	O
become	O
dependent	O
on	O
access	O
to	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
platform	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
summer	O
of	O
2019	O
,	O
Huawei	O
announced	O
it	O
would	O
create	O
an	O
alternative	O
operating	O
system	O
to	O
Android	B-Application
known	O
as	O
Harmony	B-Operating_System
OS	I-Operating_System
,	O
and	O
has	O
filed	O
for	O
intellectual	O
property	O
rights	O
across	O
major	O
global	O
markets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Under	O
such	O
sanctions	O
Huawei	O
has	O
long-term	O
plans	O
to	O
replace	O
Android	B-Application
in	O
2022	O
with	O
the	O
new	O
operating	O
system	O
,	O
as	O
Harmony	B-Operating_System
OS	I-Operating_System
was	O
originally	O
designed	O
for	O
internet	B-Operating_System
of	I-Operating_System
things	I-Operating_System
devices	O
,	O
rather	O
than	O
for	O
smartphones	B-Application
and	O
tablets	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
August	O
22	O
,	O
2019	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
announced	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
"	O
Q	O
"	O
would	O
officially	O
be	O
branded	O
as	O
Android	B-Application
10	I-Application
,	O
ending	O
the	O
historic	O
practice	O
of	O
naming	O
major	O
versions	O
after	O
desserts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
stated	O
that	O
these	O
names	O
were	O
not	O
"	O
inclusive	O
"	O
to	O
international	O
users	O
(	O
due	O
either	O
to	O
the	O
aforementioned	O
foods	O
not	O
being	O
internationally	O
known	O
,	O
or	O
being	O
difficult	O
to	O
pronounce	O
in	O
some	O
languages	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
the	O
same	O
day	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
Police	O
reported	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
had	O
commissioned	O
a	O
statue	O
of	O
a	O
giant	O
number	O
"	O
10	B-Application
"	O
to	O
be	O
installed	O
in	O
the	O
lobby	O
of	O
the	O
developers	B-Application
 '	O
new	O
office	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
10	I-Application
was	O
released	O
on	O
September	O
3	O
,	O
2019	O
,	O
to	O
Google	B-Device
Pixel	I-Device
phones	I-Device
first	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
problem	O
was	O
caused	O
by	O
a	O
combination	O
of	O
bugs	B-Error_Name
in	O
Android	B-Application
and	O
in	O
the	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Teams	I-Application
app	O
;	O
both	O
companies	O
released	O
updates	O
addressing	O
the	O
issue	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
's	O
default	O
user	O
interface	B-General_Concept
is	O
mainly	O
based	O
on	O
direct	O
manipulation	O
,	O
using	O
touch	O
inputs	O
that	O
loosely	O
correspond	O
to	O
real-world	O
actions	O
,	O
like	O
swiping	O
,	O
tapping	O
,	O
pinching	O
,	O
and	O
reverse	O
pinching	O
to	O
manipulate	O
on-screen	O
objects	O
,	O
along	O
with	O
a	O
virtual	B-Device
keyboard	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Game	B-Device
controllers	I-Device
and	O
full-size	O
physical	O
keyboards	B-Device
are	O
supported	O
via	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
or	O
USB	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
response	O
to	O
user	O
input	O
is	O
designed	O
to	O
be	O
immediate	O
and	O
provides	O
a	O
fluid	O
touch	O
interface	B-General_Concept
,	O
often	O
using	O
the	O
vibration	O
capabilities	O
of	O
the	O
device	O
to	O
provide	O
haptic	B-Device
feedback	I-Device
to	O
the	O
user	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Internal	O
hardware	B-Architecture
,	O
such	O
as	O
accelerometers	O
,	O
gyroscopes	B-Application
and	O
proximity	B-Device
sensors	I-Device
are	O
used	O
by	O
some	O
applications	O
to	O
respond	O
to	O
additional	O
user	O
actions	O
,	O
for	O
example	O
adjusting	O
the	O
screen	O
from	O
portrait	O
to	O
landscape	O
depending	O
on	O
how	O
the	O
device	O
is	O
oriented	O
,	O
or	O
allowing	O
the	O
user	O
to	O
steer	O
a	O
vehicle	O
in	O
a	O
racing	O
game	O
by	O
rotating	O
the	O
device	O
,	O
simulating	O
control	O
of	O
a	O
steering	O
wheel	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
devices	O
boot	O
to	O
the	O
home	B-Operating_System
screen	I-Operating_System
,	O
the	O
primary	O
navigation	O
and	O
information	O
"	O
hub	O
"	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
,	O
analogous	O
to	O
the	O
desktop	B-Application
found	O
on	O
personal	B-Device
computers	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
home	B-Operating_System
screens	I-Operating_System
are	O
typically	O
made	O
up	O
of	O
app	O
icons	O
and	O
widgets	B-Application
;	O
app	O
icons	O
launch	O
the	O
associated	O
app	O
,	O
whereas	O
widgets	B-Application
display	O
live	O
,	O
auto-updating	O
content	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
a	O
weather	O
forecast	O
,	O
the	O
user	O
's	O
email	O
inbox	O
,	O
or	O
a	O
news	O
ticker	O
directly	O
on	O
the	O
home	B-Operating_System
screen	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
home	B-Operating_System
screen	I-Operating_System
may	O
be	O
made	O
up	O
of	O
several	O
pages	O
,	O
between	O
which	O
the	O
user	O
can	O
swipe	O
back	O
and	O
forth	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Third-party	O
apps	B-Application
available	O
on	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
and	O
other	O
app	O
stores	O
can	O
extensively	O
re-theme	O
the	O
home	B-Operating_System
screen	I-Operating_System
,	O
and	O
even	O
mimic	O
the	O
look	O
of	O
other	O
operating	O
systems	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Windows	B-Protocol
Phone	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
manufacturers	O
customize	O
the	O
look	O
and	O
features	O
of	O
their	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
to	O
differentiate	O
themselves	O
from	O
their	O
competitors	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
status	O
bar	O
can	O
be	O
pulled	O
(	O
swiped	O
)	O
down	O
from	O
to	O
reveal	O
a	O
notification	O
screen	O
where	O
apps	B-Application
display	O
important	O
information	O
or	O
updates	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
quick	O
access	O
to	O
system	O
controls	O
and	O
toggles	O
such	O
as	O
display	O
brightness	O
,	O
connectivity	O
settings	O
(	O
WiFi	O
,	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
,	O
cellular	O
data	O
)	O
,	O
audio	O
mode	O
,	O
and	O
flashlight	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Beginning	O
with	O
Android	B-Application
4.1	I-Application
"	I-Application
Jelly	I-Application
Bean	I-Application
"	I-Application
,	O
"	O
expandable	O
notifications	O
"	O
allow	O
the	O
user	O
to	O
tap	O
an	O
icon	O
on	O
the	O
notification	O
in	O
order	O
for	O
it	O
to	O
expand	O
and	O
display	O
more	O
information	O
and	O
possible	O
app	O
actions	O
right	O
from	O
the	O
notification	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
"	O
All	O
Apps	B-Application
"	O
screen	O
lists	O
all	O
installed	O
applications	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
ability	O
for	O
users	O
to	O
drag	O
an	O
app	O
from	O
the	O
list	O
onto	O
the	O
home	B-Operating_System
screen	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
app	O
list	O
may	O
be	O
accessed	O
using	O
a	O
gesture	O
or	O
a	O
button	O
,	O
depending	O
on	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
version	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
"	O
Recents	O
"	O
screen	O
,	O
also	O
known	O
as	O
"	O
Overview	O
"	O
,	O
lets	O
users	O
switch	O
between	O
recently	O
used	O
apps	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
recent	O
list	O
may	O
appear	O
side-by-side	O
or	O
overlapping	O
,	O
depending	O
on	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
version	I-Application
and	O
manufacturer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
early	O
Android	B-Application
OS	I-Application
smartphones	B-Application
were	O
equipped	O
with	O
a	O
dedicated	O
search	O
button	O
for	O
quick	O
access	O
to	O
a	O
web	B-Application
search	I-Application
engine	I-Application
and	O
individual	O
apps	B-Application
 '	O
internal	O
search	B-Application
feature	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
dedicated	O
option	O
key	O
,	O
also	O
known	O
as	O
menu	O
key	O
,	O
and	O
its	O
on-screen	O
simulation	O
,	O
is	O
no	O
longer	O
supported	O
since	O
Android	B-Application
version	I-Application
10	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
recommends	O
mobile	B-Application
application	I-Application
developers	B-Application
to	O
locate	O
menus	O
within	O
the	O
user	O
interface	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
more	O
recent	O
phones	O
,	O
its	O
place	O
is	O
occupied	O
by	O
a	O
task	O
key	O
used	O
to	O
access	O
the	O
list	O
of	O
recently	O
used	O
apps	B-Application
when	O
actuated	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Depending	O
on	O
device	O
,	O
its	O
long	O
press	O
may	O
simulate	O
a	O
menu	O
button	O
press	O
or	O
engage	O
split	O
screen	O
view	O
,	O
the	O
latter	O
of	O
which	O
is	O
the	O
default	O
behaviour	O
since	O
stock	B-Application
Android	I-Application
version	O
7	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Native	O
support	O
for	O
split	O
screen	O
view	O
has	O
been	O
added	O
in	O
stock	B-Application
Android	I-Application
version	O
7.0	O
Nougat	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
earliest	O
vendor-customized	O
Android-based	O
smartphones	B-Application
known	O
to	O
have	O
featured	O
a	O
split-screen	O
view	O
mode	O
are	O
the	O
2012	O
Samsung	B-Application
Galaxy	I-Application
S3	I-Application
and	O
Note	B-Operating_System
2	I-Operating_System
,	O
the	O
former	O
of	O
which	O
received	O
this	O
feature	O
with	O
the	O
premium	O
suite	O
upgrade	O
delivered	O
in	O
TouchWiz	B-Application
with	O
Android	B-Application
4.1	I-Application
Jelly	B-Application
Bean	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
,	O
to	O
almost	O
all	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
come	O
with	O
preinstalled	B-Application
Google	B-Application
apps	B-Application
including	O
Gmail	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
Maps	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
Chrome	I-Application
,	O
YouTube	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Music	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Movies	O
&	O
TV	O
,	O
and	O
many	O
more	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Applications	O
(	O
"	O
apps	B-Application
"	O
)	O
,	O
which	O
extend	O
the	O
functionality	O
of	O
devices	O
(	O
and	O
must	O
be	O
64-bit	O
)	O
,	O
are	O
written	O
using	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
software	I-Application
development	I-Application
kit	O
(	O
SDK	O
)	O
and	O
,	O
often	O
,	O
Kotlin	B-Language
programming	I-Language
language	I-Language
,	O
which	O
replaced	O
Java	B-Language
as	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
preferred	O
language	O
for	O
Android	B-Application
app	I-Application
development	I-Application
in	O
May	O
2019	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
originally	O
announced	O
in	O
May	O
2017	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Java	B-Language
is	O
still	O
supported	O
(	O
originally	O
the	O
only	O
option	O
for	O
user-space	O
programs	O
,	O
and	O
is	O
often	O
mixed	O
with	O
Kotlin	B-Language
)	O
,	O
as	O
is	O
C++	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Java	B-Language
or	O
other	O
JVM	O
languages	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Kotlin	B-Language
,	O
may	O
be	O
combined	O
with	O
C/C	O
++	O
,	O
together	O
with	O
a	O
choice	O
of	O
non-default	O
runtimes	B-Library
that	O
allow	O
better	O
C++	B-Language
support	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Go	B-Application
programming	I-Application
language	I-Application
is	O
also	O
supported	O
,	O
although	O
with	O
a	O
limited	O
set	O
of	O
application	B-Application
programming	I-Application
interfaces	I-Application
(	O
API	B-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
SDK	O
includes	O
a	O
comprehensive	O
set	O
of	O
development	O
tools	O
,	O
including	O
a	O
debugger	B-Application
,	O
software	B-Library
libraries	I-Library
,	O
a	O
handset	O
emulator	B-Application
based	O
on	O
QEMU	B-Application
,	O
documentation	O
,	O
sample	O
code	O
,	O
and	O
tutorials	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Initially	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
supported	O
integrated	B-Application
development	I-Application
environment	I-Application
(	O
IDE	O
)	O
was	O
Eclipse	B-Application
using	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
Development	I-Application
Tools	O
(	O
ADT	O
)	O
plugin	O
;	O
in	O
December	O
2014	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
released	O
Android	B-Application
Studio	I-Application
,	O
based	O
on	O
IntelliJ	B-Language
IDEA	I-Language
,	O
as	O
its	O
primary	O
IDE	O
for	O
Android	B-Application
application	I-Application
development	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
development	O
tools	O
are	O
available	O
,	O
including	O
a	O
native	B-Application
development	I-Application
kit	I-Application
(	O
NDK	O
)	O
for	O
applications	O
or	O
extensions	O
in	O
C	B-Language
or	O
C++	B-Language
,	O
Google	B-Application
App	I-Application
Inventor	I-Application
,	O
a	O
visual	O
environment	O
for	O
novice	O
programmers	O
,	O
and	O
various	O
cross	B-Application
platform	I-Application
mobile	I-Application
web	I-Application
applications	I-Application
frameworks	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
January	O
2014	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
unveiled	O
a	O
framework	O
based	O
on	O
Apache	B-Protocol
Cordova	I-Protocol
for	O
porting	O
Chrome	B-Operating_System
HTML	O
5	O
web	B-Application
applications	I-Application
to	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
wrapped	O
in	O
a	O
native	O
application	O
shell	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
,	O
Firebase	B-General_Concept
was	O
acquired	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
in	O
2014	O
that	O
provides	O
helpful	O
tools	O
for	O
app	O
and	O
web	O
developers	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
has	O
a	O
growing	O
selection	O
of	O
third-party	O
applications	O
,	O
which	O
can	O
be	O
acquired	O
by	O
users	O
by	O
downloading	O
and	O
installing	O
the	O
application	O
's	O
APK	B-Application
(	O
Android	B-Application
application	I-Application
package	I-Application
)	O
file	O
,	O
or	O
by	O
downloading	O
them	O
using	O
an	O
application	O
store	O
program	O
that	O
allows	O
users	O
to	O
install	B-Application
,	I-Application
update	I-Application
,	I-Application
and	I-Application
remove	I-Application
applications	I-Application
from	O
their	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
is	O
the	O
primary	O
application	O
store	O
installed	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
that	O
comply	O
with	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
compatibility	O
requirements	O
and	O
license	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Mobile	O
Services	O
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
allows	O
users	O
to	O
browse	O
,	O
download	O
and	O
update	O
applications	O
published	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
and	O
third-party	O
developers	B-Application
;	O
,	O
there	O
are	O
more	O
than	O
three	O
million	O
applications	O
available	O
for	O
Android	B-Application
in	O
Play	B-Application
Store	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
carriers	O
offer	O
direct	O
carrier	O
billing	O
for	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
application	O
purchases	O
,	O
where	O
the	O
cost	O
of	O
the	O
application	O
is	O
added	O
to	O
the	O
user	O
's	O
monthly	O
bill	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
,	O
there	O
are	O
over	O
one	O
billion	O
active	O
users	O
a	O
month	O
for	O
Gmail	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
Chrome	B-Operating_System
,	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
and	O
Maps	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Due	O
to	O
the	O
open	O
nature	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
third-party	O
application	O
marketplaces	O
also	O
exist	O
for	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
either	O
to	O
provide	O
a	O
substitute	O
for	O
devices	O
that	O
are	O
not	O
allowed	O
to	O
ship	O
with	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
,	O
provide	O
applications	O
that	O
cannot	O
be	O
offered	O
on	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
due	O
to	O
policy	O
violations	O
,	O
or	O
for	O
other	O
reasons	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Examples	O
of	O
these	O
third-party	O
stores	O
have	O
included	O
the	O
Amazon	B-Application
Appstore	O
,	O
GetJar	B-Application
,	O
and	O
SlideMe	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
F-Droid	B-Application
,	O
another	O
alternative	O
marketplace	O
,	O
seeks	O
to	O
only	O
provide	O
applications	O
that	O
are	O
distributed	O
under	O
free	B-Application
and	I-Application
open	I-Application
source	I-Application
licenses	B-License
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
October	O
2020	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
removed	O
several	O
Android	B-Application
applications	I-Application
from	O
Play	B-Application
Store	I-Application
,	O
as	O
they	O
were	O
identified	O
breaching	O
its	O
data	O
collection	O
rules	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
firm	O
was	O
informed	O
by	O
International	O
Digital	O
Accountability	O
Council	O
(	O
IDAC	O
)	O
that	O
apps	B-Application
for	O
children	O
like	O
Number	O
Coloring	O
,	O
Princess	O
Salon	O
and	O
Cats	O
&	O
Cosplay	O
,	O
with	O
collective	O
downloads	O
of	O
20	O
million	O
,	O
were	O
violating	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
policies	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
Windows	B-Application
11	I-Application
announcement	O
event	O
in	O
June	O
2021	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
showcased	O
the	O
new	O
Windows	O
Subsystem	O
for	O
Android	B-Application
(	O
WSA	O
)	O
that	O
will	O
enable	O
support	O
for	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
Open	B-Application
Source	I-Application
Project	O
(	O
AOSP	O
)	O
and	O
will	O
allow	O
users	O
to	O
run	O
Android	B-Application
apps	B-Application
on	O
their	O
Windows	O
desktop	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
storage	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
can	O
be	O
expanded	O
using	O
secondary	O
devices	O
such	O
as	O
SD	B-Device
cards	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
recognizes	O
two	O
types	O
of	O
secondary	O
storage	O
:	O
portable	O
storage	O
(	O
which	O
is	O
used	O
by	O
default	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
adoptable	O
storage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Adoptable	O
storage	O
,	O
introduced	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
6.0	I-Application
,	O
allows	O
the	O
internal	O
storage	O
of	O
the	O
device	O
to	O
be	O
spanned	O
with	O
the	O
SD	B-Device
card	I-Device
,	O
treating	O
it	O
as	O
an	O
extension	O
of	O
the	O
internal	O
storage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
has	O
the	O
disadvantage	O
of	O
preventing	O
the	O
memory	O
card	O
from	O
being	O
used	O
with	O
another	O
device	O
unless	O
it	O
is	O
reformatted	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
4.4	I-Application
introduced	O
the	O
Storage	O
Access	O
Framework	O
(	O
SAF	O
)	O
,	O
a	O
set	O
of	O
APIs	B-Application
for	O
accessing	O
files	O
on	O
the	O
device	O
's	O
filesystem	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
11	I-Application
,	O
Android	B-Application
has	O
required	O
apps	B-Application
to	O
conform	O
to	O
a	O
data	O
privacy	O
policy	O
known	O
as	O
scoped	O
storage	O
,	O
under	O
which	O
apps	B-Application
may	O
only	O
automatically	O
have	O
access	O
to	O
certain	O
directories	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
those	O
for	O
pictures	O
,	O
music	O
,	O
and	O
video	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
app-specific	O
directories	O
they	O
have	O
created	O
themselves	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Apps	B-Application
are	O
required	O
to	O
use	O
the	O
SAF	O
to	O
access	O
any	O
other	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
filesystem	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
are	O
usually	O
battery-powered	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
designed	O
to	O
manage	O
processes	O
to	O
keep	O
power	O
consumption	O
at	O
a	O
minimum	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
an	O
application	O
is	O
not	O
in	O
use	O
the	O
system	O
suspends	B-Operating_System
its	I-Operating_System
operation	I-Operating_System
so	O
that	O
,	O
while	O
available	O
for	O
immediate	O
use	O
rather	O
than	O
closed	O
,	O
it	O
does	O
not	O
use	O
battery	O
power	O
or	O
CPU	O
resources	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
manages	O
the	O
applications	O
stored	O
in	O
memory	O
automatically	O
:	O
when	O
memory	O
is	O
low	O
,	O
the	O
system	O
will	O
begin	O
invisibly	O
and	O
automatically	O
closing	O
inactive	O
processes	O
,	O
starting	O
with	O
those	O
that	O
have	O
been	O
inactive	O
for	O
the	O
longest	O
amount	O
of	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
settings	O
for	O
use	O
by	O
developers	B-Application
for	O
debugging	O
and	O
power	B-General_Concept
users	I-General_Concept
are	O
located	O
in	O
a	O
"	O
Developer	O
options	O
"	O
sub	O
menu	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
highlight	O
updating	O
parts	O
of	O
the	O
display	O
,	O
show	O
an	O
overlay	O
with	O
the	O
current	O
status	O
of	O
the	O
touch	B-Device
screen	I-Device
,	O
show	O
touching	O
spots	O
for	O
possible	O
use	O
in	O
screencasting	B-Protocol
,	O
notify	O
the	O
user	O
of	O
unresponsive	O
background	O
processes	O
with	O
the	O
option	O
to	O
end	O
them	O
(	O
"	O
Show	O
all	O
ANRs	O
"	O
,	O
i.e.	O
</s>
<s>
"	O
App	O
's	O
Not	O
Responding	O
"	O
)	O
,	O
prevent	O
a	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
audio	O
client	O
from	O
controlling	O
the	O
system	O
volume	O
(	O
"	O
Disable	O
absolute	O
volume	O
"	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
adjust	O
the	O
duration	O
of	O
transition	O
animations	O
or	O
deactivate	O
them	O
completely	O
to	O
speed	O
up	O
navigation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Developer	O
options	O
are	O
initially	O
hidden	O
since	O
Android	B-Application
4.2	I-Application
"	I-Application
Jelly	I-Application
Bean	I-Application
"	I-Application
,	O
but	O
can	O
be	O
enabled	O
by	O
actuating	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
's	O
build	O
number	O
in	O
the	O
device	O
information	O
seven	O
times	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Hiding	O
developers	B-Application
options	O
again	O
requires	O
deleting	O
user	O
data	O
for	O
the	O
"	O
Settings	O
"	O
app	O
,	O
possibly	O
resetting	O
some	O
other	O
preferences	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
main	O
hardware	B-Device
platform	I-Device
for	O
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
ARM	B-Architecture
(	O
the	O
ARMv7	O
and	O
ARMv8-A	O
architectures	O
)	O
,	O
with	O
x86	B-Operating_System
and	O
x86-64	B-Device
architectures	O
also	O
officially	O
supported	O
in	O
later	O
versions	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
unofficial	O
Android-x86	B-Application
project	O
provided	O
support	O
for	O
x86	B-Operating_System
architectures	I-Operating_System
ahead	O
of	O
the	O
official	O
support	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
2012	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
with	O
Intel	O
processors	O
began	O
to	O
appear	O
,	O
including	O
phones	O
and	O
tablets	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
gaining	O
support	O
for	O
64-bit	O
platforms	B-Device
,	O
Android	B-Application
was	O
first	O
made	O
to	O
run	O
on	O
64-bit	B-Device
x86	I-Device
and	O
then	O
on	O
ARM64	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
unofficial	O
experimental	O
port	O
of	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
to	O
the	O
RISC-V	B-Device
architecture	I-Device
was	O
released	O
in	O
2021	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Requirements	O
for	O
the	O
minimum	O
amount	O
of	O
RAM	B-Architecture
for	O
devices	O
running	O
Android7.1	O
range	O
from	O
in	O
practice	O
2GB	O
for	O
best	O
hardware	B-Architecture
,	O
down	O
to	O
1GB	O
for	O
the	O
most	O
common	O
screen	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
supports	O
all	O
versions	O
of	O
OpenGLES	O
and	O
Vulkan	B-Application
(	O
and	O
version	O
1.1	O
available	O
for	O
some	O
devices	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
devices	O
incorporate	O
many	O
optional	O
hardware	B-Architecture
components	O
,	O
including	O
still	O
or	O
video	O
cameras	O
,	O
GPS	O
,	O
orientation	B-Algorithm
sensors	I-Algorithm
,	O
dedicated	O
gaming	O
controls	O
,	O
accelerometers	O
,	O
gyroscopes	B-Application
,	O
barometers	O
,	O
magnetometers	O
,	O
proximity	B-Device
sensors	I-Device
,	O
pressure	O
sensors	O
,	O
thermometers	O
,	O
and	O
touchscreens	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
hardware	B-Architecture
components	O
are	O
not	O
required	O
,	O
but	O
became	O
standard	O
in	O
certain	O
classes	O
of	O
devices	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
smartphones	B-Application
,	O
and	O
additional	O
requirements	O
apply	O
if	O
they	O
are	O
present	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
other	O
hardware	B-Architecture
was	O
initially	O
required	O
,	O
but	O
those	O
requirements	O
have	O
been	O
relaxed	O
or	O
eliminated	O
altogether	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
as	O
Android	B-Application
was	O
developed	O
initially	O
as	O
a	O
phone	O
OS	O
,	O
hardware	B-Architecture
such	O
as	O
microphones	O
were	O
required	O
,	O
while	O
over	O
time	O
the	O
phone	O
function	O
became	O
optional	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
used	O
to	O
require	O
an	O
autofocus	O
camera	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
relaxed	O
to	O
a	O
fixed-focus	O
camera	O
if	O
present	O
at	O
all	O
,	O
since	O
the	O
camera	O
was	O
dropped	O
as	O
a	O
requirement	O
entirely	O
when	O
Android	B-Application
started	O
to	O
be	O
used	O
on	O
set-top	O
boxes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
to	O
running	O
on	O
smartphones	B-Application
and	O
tablets	B-Device
,	O
several	O
vendors	O
run	O
Android	B-Application
natively	O
on	O
regular	O
PC	B-Architecture
hardware	I-Architecture
with	O
a	O
keyboard	B-Device
and	O
mouse	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
to	O
their	O
availability	O
on	O
commercially	O
available	O
hardware	B-Architecture
,	O
similar	O
PC	O
hardware-friendly	O
versions	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
are	O
freely	O
available	O
from	O
the	O
Android-x86	B-Application
project	O
,	O
including	O
customized	O
Android4.4	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Using	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
emulator	I-Application
that	O
is	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
SDK	I-Application
,	O
or	O
third-party	O
emulators	B-Application
,	O
Android	B-Application
can	O
also	O
run	O
non-natively	O
on	O
x86	B-Operating_System
architectures	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Chinese	O
companies	O
are	O
building	O
a	O
PC	O
and	O
mobile	B-Operating_System
operating	I-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
,	O
based	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
to	O
"	O
compete	O
directly	O
with	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
and	O
Google	B-Application
Android	I-Application
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Chinese	O
Academy	O
of	O
Engineering	O
noted	O
that	O
"	O
more	O
than	O
a	O
dozen	O
"	O
companies	O
were	O
customizing	O
Android	B-Application
following	O
a	O
Chinese	O
ban	O
on	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
Windows	O
8	O
on	O
government	O
PCs	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
developed	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
until	O
the	O
latest	O
changes	O
and	O
updates	O
are	O
ready	O
to	O
be	O
released	O
,	O
at	O
which	O
point	O
the	O
source	O
code	O
is	O
made	O
available	O
to	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
Open	B-Application
Source	I-Application
Project	O
(	O
AOSP	O
)	O
,	O
an	O
open	B-Application
source	I-Application
initiative	O
led	O
by	O
Google.The	O
first	O
source	O
code	O
release	O
happened	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
initial	O
release	O
in	O
2007	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
All	O
releases	O
are	O
under	O
the	O
Apache	B-Application
License	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
AOSP	O
code	O
can	O
be	O
found	O
with	O
minimal	O
modifications	O
on	O
select	O
devices	O
,	O
mainly	O
the	O
former	O
Nexus	B-Device
and	O
current	O
Android	B-Application
One	I-Application
series	O
of	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
most	O
original	O
equipment	O
manufacturers	O
(	O
OEMs	O
)	O
customize	O
the	O
source	O
code	O
to	O
run	O
on	O
their	O
hardware	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
's	O
source	O
code	O
does	O
not	O
contain	O
the	O
device	B-Application
drivers	I-Application
,	O
often	O
proprietary	B-Application
,	O
that	O
are	O
needed	O
for	O
certain	O
hardware	B-Architecture
components	O
,	O
and	O
does	O
not	O
contain	O
the	O
source	O
code	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Services	I-Application
,	O
which	O
many	O
apps	B-Application
depend	O
on	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
most	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
,	O
including	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
own	O
,	O
ship	O
with	O
a	O
combination	O
of	O
free	B-Application
and	I-Application
open	I-Application
source	I-Application
and	O
proprietary	B-Application
software	I-Application
,	O
with	O
the	O
software	O
required	O
for	O
accessing	O
Google	B-Application
services	O
falling	O
into	O
the	O
latter	O
category	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
response	O
to	O
this	O
,	O
there	O
are	O
some	O
projects	O
that	O
build	O
complete	O
operating	O
systems	O
based	O
on	O
AOSP	O
as	O
free	B-Application
software	I-Application
,	O
the	O
first	O
being	O
CyanogenMod	B-Application
(	O
see	O
section	O
Open-source	B-Application
community	O
below	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
provides	O
annual	O
Android	B-Application
releases	O
,	O
both	O
for	O
factory	O
installation	O
in	O
new	O
devices	O
,	O
and	O
for	O
over-the-air	O
updates	O
to	O
existing	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
latest	O
major	O
release	O
is	O
Android	B-Application
13	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
extensive	O
variation	O
of	O
hardware	B-Architecture
in	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
has	O
caused	O
significant	O
delays	O
for	O
software	O
upgrades	O
and	O
security	O
patches	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Except	O
for	O
devices	O
within	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Nexus	B-Device
and	O
Pixel	B-Device
brands	O
,	O
updates	O
have	O
often	O
arrived	O
months	O
after	O
the	O
release	O
of	O
the	O
new	O
version	O
,	O
or	O
not	O
at	O
all	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additional	O
delays	O
can	O
be	O
introduced	O
by	O
wireless	O
carriers	O
who	O
,	O
after	O
receiving	O
updates	O
from	O
manufacturers	O
,	O
further	O
customize	O
Android	B-Application
to	O
their	O
needs	O
and	O
conduct	O
extensive	O
testing	O
on	O
their	O
networks	O
before	O
sending	O
out	O
the	O
upgrade	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
also	O
situations	O
in	O
which	O
upgrades	O
are	O
impossible	O
due	O
to	O
a	O
manufacturer	O
not	O
updating	O
necessary	O
drivers	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2011	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
partnered	O
with	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
industry	O
players	O
to	O
announce	O
an	O
"	O
Android	B-Application
Update	O
Alliance	O
"	O
,	O
pledging	O
to	O
deliver	O
timely	O
updates	O
for	O
every	O
device	O
for	O
18	O
months	O
after	O
its	O
release	O
;	O
however	O
,	O
there	O
has	O
not	O
been	O
another	O
official	O
word	O
about	O
that	O
alliance	O
since	O
its	O
announcement	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2012	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
began	O
de-coupling	O
certain	O
aspects	O
of	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
(	O
particularly	O
its	O
central	O
applications	O
)	O
so	O
they	O
could	O
be	O
updated	O
through	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	B-Application
store	I-Application
independently	O
of	O
the	O
OS	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
of	O
those	O
components	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Services	I-Application
,	O
is	O
a	O
closed-source	B-Application
system-level	O
process	O
providing	O
APIs	B-Application
for	O
Google	B-Application
services	O
,	O
installed	O
automatically	O
on	O
nearly	O
all	O
devices	O
running	O
Android	B-Application
2.2	I-Application
"	I-Application
Froyo	I-Application
"	I-Application
and	O
higher	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
these	O
changes	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
can	O
add	O
new	O
system	O
functions	O
and	O
update	O
apps	B-Application
without	O
having	O
to	O
distribute	O
an	O
upgrade	O
to	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
itself	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
4.2	I-Application
and	I-Application
4.3	I-Application
"	I-Application
Jelly	I-Application
Bean	I-Application
"	I-Application
contained	O
relatively	O
fewer	O
user-facing	O
changes	O
,	O
focusing	O
more	O
on	O
minor	O
changes	O
and	O
platform	O
improvements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
HTC	B-Application
's	O
then-executive	O
Jason	O
Mackenzie	O
called	O
monthly	O
security	O
updates	O
"	O
unrealistic	O
"	O
in	O
2015	O
,	O
and	O
Google	B-Application
was	O
trying	O
to	O
persuade	O
carriers	O
to	O
exclude	O
security	O
patches	O
from	O
the	O
full	O
testing	O
procedures	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
2016	O
,	O
Bloomberg	O
Businessweek	O
reported	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
was	O
making	O
efforts	O
to	O
keep	O
Android	B-Application
more	O
up-to-date	O
,	O
including	O
accelerated	O
rates	O
of	O
security	O
updates	O
,	O
rolling	O
out	O
technological	O
workarounds	O
,	O
reducing	O
requirements	O
for	O
phone	O
testing	O
,	O
and	O
ranking	O
phone	O
makers	O
in	O
an	O
attempt	O
to	O
"	O
shame	O
"	O
them	O
into	O
better	O
behavior	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
stated	O
by	O
Bloomberg	O
:	O
"	O
As	O
smartphones	B-Application
get	O
more	O
capable	O
,	O
complex	O
and	O
hackable	O
,	O
having	O
the	O
latest	O
software	O
work	O
closely	O
with	O
the	O
hardware	B-Architecture
is	O
increasingly	O
important	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Hiroshi	O
Lockheimer	O
,	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
lead	O
,	O
admitted	O
that	O
"	O
It	O
's	O
not	O
an	O
ideal	O
situation	O
"	O
,	O
further	O
commenting	O
that	O
the	O
lack	O
of	O
updates	O
is	O
"	O
the	O
weakest	O
link	O
on	O
security	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Wireless	O
carriers	O
were	O
described	O
in	O
the	O
report	O
as	O
the	O
"	O
most	O
challenging	O
discussions	O
"	O
,	O
due	O
to	O
their	O
slow	O
approval	O
time	O
while	O
testing	O
on	O
their	O
networks	O
,	O
despite	O
some	O
carriers	O
,	O
including	O
Verizon	B-Application
Wireless	I-Application
and	O
Sprint	O
Corporation	O
,	O
already	O
shortening	O
their	O
approval	O
times	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
further	O
effort	O
for	O
persuasion	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
shared	O
a	O
list	O
of	O
top	O
phone	O
makers	O
measured	O
by	O
updated	O
devices	O
with	O
its	O
Android	B-Application
partners	O
,	O
and	O
is	O
considering	O
making	O
the	O
list	O
public	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mike	O
Chan	O
,	O
co-founder	O
of	O
phone	O
maker	O
Nextbit	O
and	O
former	O
Android	B-Application
developer	I-Application
,	O
said	O
that	O
"	O
The	O
best	O
way	O
to	O
solve	O
this	O
problem	O
is	O
a	O
massive	O
re-architecture	O
of	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
"	O
,	O
"	O
or	O
Google	B-Application
could	O
invest	O
in	O
training	O
manufacturers	O
and	O
carriers	O
'	O
to	O
be	O
good	O
Android	B-Application
citizens	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
2017	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
announcement	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
8.0	I-Application
,	O
Google	B-Application
introduced	O
Project	O
Treble	O
,	O
a	O
major	O
re-architect	O
of	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
OS	I-Application
framework	O
designed	O
to	O
make	O
it	O
easier	O
,	O
faster	O
,	O
and	O
less	O
costly	O
for	O
manufacturers	O
to	O
update	O
devices	O
to	O
newer	O
versions	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Project	O
Treble	O
separates	O
the	O
vendor	O
implementation	O
(	O
device-specific	O
,	O
lower-level	O
software	O
written	O
by	O
silicon	O
manufacturers	O
)	O
from	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
OS	I-Application
framework	O
via	O
a	O
new	O
"	O
vendor	O
interface	B-General_Concept
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Android	B-Application
7.0	I-Application
and	O
earlier	O
,	O
no	O
formal	O
vendor	O
interface	B-General_Concept
exists	O
,	O
so	O
device	O
makers	O
must	O
update	O
large	O
portions	O
of	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
code	O
to	O
move	O
a	O
device	O
to	O
a	O
newer	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
Treble	O
,	O
the	O
new	O
stable	O
vendor	O
interface	B-General_Concept
provides	O
access	O
to	O
the	O
hardware-specific	O
parts	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
enabling	O
device	O
makers	O
to	O
deliver	O
new	O
Android	B-Application
releases	O
simply	O
by	O
updating	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
OS	I-Application
framework	O
,	O
"	O
without	O
any	O
additional	O
work	O
required	O
from	O
the	O
silicon	O
manufacturers.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
September	O
2017	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
Project	O
Treble	O
team	O
revealed	O
that	O
,	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
their	O
efforts	O
to	O
improve	O
the	O
security	O
lifecycle	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
had	O
managed	O
to	O
get	O
the	B-Operating_System
Linux	I-Operating_System
Foundation	I-Operating_System
to	O
agree	O
to	O
extend	O
the	O
support	O
lifecycle	O
of	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
Long-Term	O
Support	O
(	O
LTS	O
)	O
kernel	B-Operating_System
branch	O
from	O
the	O
2	O
years	O
that	O
it	O
has	O
historically	O
lasted	O
to	O
6	O
years	O
for	O
future	O
versions	O
of	O
the	O
LTS	O
kernel	B-Operating_System
,	O
starting	O
with	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
4.4	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
2019	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
announcement	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
10	I-Application
,	O
Google	B-Application
introduced	O
Project	O
Mainline	O
to	O
simplify	O
and	O
expedite	O
delivery	O
of	O
updates	O
to	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
ecosystem	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Project	O
Mainline	O
enables	O
updates	O
to	O
core	O
OS	O
components	O
through	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	B-Application
Store	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
reported	O
rolling	O
out	O
new	O
amendments	O
in	O
Android	B-Application
12	I-Application
aimed	O
at	O
making	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
third-party	O
application	O
stores	O
easier	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
announcement	O
rectified	O
the	O
concerns	O
reported	O
regarding	O
the	O
development	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
apps	B-Application
,	O
including	O
a	O
fight	O
over	O
an	O
alternative	O
in-app	O
payment	O
system	O
and	O
difficulties	O
faced	O
by	O
businesses	O
moving	O
online	O
because	O
of	O
COVID-19	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
's	O
kernel	B-Operating_System
is	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
's	O
long-term	O
support	O
(	O
LTS	O
)	O
branches	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
,	O
Android	B-Application
uses	O
versions	O
4.14	O
,	O
4.19	O
,	O
5.4	O
,	O
5.10	O
or	O
5.15	O
of	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
(	O
and	O
since	O
modified	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernels	I-Operating_System
is	O
used	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
names	O
like	O
android13-5.15	O
or	O
android-4.19-stable	O
are	O
used	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
actual	O
kernel	B-Operating_System
depends	O
on	O
the	O
individual	O
device	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
's	O
variant	O
of	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
has	O
further	O
architectural	O
changes	O
that	O
are	O
implemented	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
outside	O
the	O
typical	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
development	O
cycle	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
inclusion	O
of	O
components	O
like	O
device	O
trees	O
,	O
ashmem	O
,	O
ION	O
,	O
and	O
different	O
out	B-General_Concept
of	I-General_Concept
memory	I-General_Concept
(	O
OOM	O
)	O
handling	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Certain	O
features	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
contributed	O
back	O
to	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
,	O
notably	O
a	O
power	O
management	O
feature	O
called	O
"	O
wakelocks	O
"	O
,	O
were	O
initially	O
rejected	O
by	O
mainline	B-Application
kernel	I-Application
developers	B-Application
partly	O
because	O
they	O
felt	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
did	O
not	O
show	O
any	O
intent	O
to	O
maintain	O
its	O
own	O
code	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
announced	O
in	O
April	O
2010	O
that	O
they	O
would	O
hire	O
two	O
employees	O
to	O
work	O
with	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
community	O
,	O
but	O
Greg	O
Kroah-Hartman	O
,	O
the	O
current	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
maintainer	O
for	O
the	O
stable	O
branch	O
,	O
said	O
in	O
December	O
2010	O
that	O
he	O
was	O
concerned	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
was	O
no	O
longer	O
trying	O
to	O
get	O
their	O
code	O
changes	O
included	O
in	O
mainstream	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
engineer	O
Patrick	O
Brady	O
once	O
stated	O
in	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
developer	B-Application
conference	I-Application
that	O
"	O
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
not	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
"	O
,	O
with	O
Computerworld	O
adding	O
that	O
"	O
Let	O
me	O
make	O
it	O
simple	O
for	O
you	O
,	O
without	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
,	O
there	O
is	O
no	O
Android	B-Application
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ars	O
Technica	O
wrote	O
that	O
"	O
Although	O
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
built	O
on	O
top	O
of	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
,	O
the	O
platform	O
has	O
very	O
little	O
in	O
common	O
with	O
the	O
conventional	O
desktop	B-Application
Linux	B-Operating_System
stack	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
August	O
2011	O
,	O
Linus	O
Torvalds	O
said	O
that	O
"	O
eventually	O
Android	B-Application
and	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
would	O
come	O
back	O
to	O
a	O
common	O
kernel	B-Operating_System
,	O
but	O
it	O
will	O
probably	O
not	O
be	O
for	O
four	O
to	O
five	O
years	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
that	O
has	O
n't	O
happened	O
yet	O
,	O
while	O
some	O
code	O
has	O
been	O
upstreamed	B-General_Concept
,	O
not	O
all	O
of	O
it	O
has	O
,	O
so	O
modified	O
kernels	B-Operating_System
keep	O
being	O
used	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2011	O
,	O
Greg	O
Kroah-Hartman	O
announced	O
the	O
start	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
Mainlining	O
Project	O
,	O
which	O
aims	O
to	O
put	O
some	O
Android	B-Application
drivers	B-Application
,	O
patches	O
and	O
features	O
back	O
into	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
,	O
starting	O
in	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
3.3	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Linux	B-Operating_System
included	O
the	O
autosleep	O
and	O
wakelocks	O
capabilities	O
in	O
the	O
3.5	O
kernel	B-Operating_System
,	O
after	O
many	O
previous	O
attempts	O
at	O
a	O
merger	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
interfaces	O
are	O
the	O
same	O
but	O
the	O
upstream	B-General_Concept
Linux	B-Operating_System
implementation	O
allows	O
for	O
two	O
different	O
suspend	O
modes	O
:	O
to	O
memory	O
(	O
the	O
traditional	O
suspend	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
uses	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
to	O
disk	O
(	O
hibernate	O
,	O
as	O
it	O
is	O
known	O
on	O
the	O
desktop	B-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
maintains	O
a	O
public	O
code	O
repository	O
that	O
contains	O
their	O
experimental	O
work	O
to	O
re-base	B-Library
Android	B-Application
off	O
the	O
latest	O
stable	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
versions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
a	O
Linux	B-Application
distribution	I-Application
according	O
to	O
the	B-Operating_System
Linux	I-Operating_System
Foundation	I-Operating_System
,	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
open-source	B-Application
chief	O
Chris	O
DiBona	O
,	O
and	O
several	O
journalists	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Others	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
engineer	O
Patrick	O
Brady	O
,	O
say	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
not	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
in	O
the	O
traditional	O
Unix-like	B-Operating_System
Linux	B-Application
distribution	I-Application
sense	O
;	O
Android	B-Application
does	O
not	O
include	O
the	O
GNU	B-Language
C	I-Language
Library	I-Language
(	O
it	O
uses	O
Bionic	B-Application
as	O
an	O
alternative	O
C	B-Language
library	I-Language
)	O
and	O
some	O
other	O
components	O
typically	O
found	O
in	O
Linux	B-Application
distributions	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
the	O
release	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
Oreo	I-Application
in	O
2017	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
began	O
to	O
require	O
that	O
devices	O
shipped	O
with	O
new	O
SoCs	B-Architecture
had	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
version	O
4.4	O
or	O
newer	O
,	O
for	O
security	O
reasons	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Existing	O
devices	O
upgraded	O
to	O
Oreo	B-Application
,	O
and	O
new	O
products	O
launched	O
with	O
older	O
SoCs	B-Architecture
,	O
were	O
exempt	O
from	O
this	O
rule	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
flash	B-Device
storage	I-Device
on	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
is	O
split	O
into	O
several	O
partitions	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
/system/	O
for	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
itself	O
,	O
and	O
/data/	O
for	O
user	O
data	O
and	O
application	O
installations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
contrast	O
to	O
typical	O
desktop	B-Application
Linux	B-Application
distributions	I-Application
,	O
Android	B-Application
device	O
owners	O
are	O
not	O
given	O
root	B-Application
access	I-Application
to	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
and	O
sensitive	O
partitions	O
such	O
as	O
/system/	O
are	O
read-only	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
root	B-Application
access	I-Application
can	O
be	O
obtained	O
by	O
exploiting	O
security	O
flaws	O
in	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
which	O
is	O
used	O
frequently	O
by	O
the	O
open-source	B-Application
community	O
to	O
enhance	O
the	O
capabilities	O
and	O
customizability	O
of	O
their	O
devices	O
,	O
but	O
also	O
by	O
malicious	O
parties	O
to	O
install	O
viruses	O
and	O
malware	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Root	B-Application
access	I-Application
can	O
also	O
be	O
obtained	O
by	O
unlocking	B-Application
the	I-Application
bootloader	I-Application
via	O
the	O
OEM	O
Unlocking	O
option	O
on	O
certain	O
devices	O
including	O
most	O
Google	B-Device
Pixel	I-Device
and	O
OnePlus	O
models	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
unlocking	O
process	O
resets	B-General_Concept
the	I-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
to	I-General_Concept
factory	I-General_Concept
state	I-General_Concept
,	O
erasing	O
all	O
user	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
top	O
of	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
,	O
there	O
are	O
the	O
middleware	B-General_Concept
,	O
libraries	B-Library
and	O
APIs	B-Application
written	O
in	O
C	B-Language
,	O
and	O
application	B-Application
software	I-Application
running	O
on	O
an	O
application	B-Application
framework	I-Application
which	O
includes	O
Java-compatible	O
libraries	B-Library
.	O
</s>
<s>
Development	O
of	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
continues	O
independently	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
's	O
other	O
source	O
code	O
projects	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
uses	O
Android	B-Application
Runtime	I-Application
(	O
ART	B-Application
)	O
as	O
its	O
runtime	O
environment	O
(	O
introduced	O
in	O
version	O
4.4	O
)	O
,	O
which	O
uses	O
ahead-of-time	B-Application
(	O
AOT	B-Application
)	O
compilation	O
to	O
entirely	O
compile	O
the	O
application	O
bytecode	O
into	O
machine	B-Language
code	I-Language
upon	O
the	O
installation	O
of	O
an	O
application	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Android4.4	O
,	O
ART	B-Application
was	O
an	O
experimental	O
feature	O
and	O
not	O
enabled	O
by	O
default	O
;	O
it	O
became	O
the	O
only	O
runtime	O
option	O
in	O
the	O
next	O
major	O
version	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
5.0	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
versions	O
no	O
longer	O
supported	O
,	O
until	O
version	O
5.0	O
when	O
ART	B-Application
took	O
over	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
previously	O
used	O
Dalvik	B-Application
as	O
a	O
process	O
virtual	O
machine	O
with	O
trace-based	O
just-in-time	O
(	O
JIT	O
)	O
compilation	O
to	O
run	O
Dalvik	B-Application
"	O
dex-code	O
"	O
(	O
Dalvik	B-Application
Executable	O
)	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
usually	O
translated	O
from	O
the	O
Java	B-Language
bytecode	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
the	O
trace-based	O
JIT	O
principle	O
,	O
in	O
addition	O
to	O
interpreting	B-Application
the	O
majority	O
of	O
application	O
code	O
,	O
Dalvik	B-Application
performs	O
the	O
compilation	O
and	O
native	B-Language
execution	I-Language
of	O
select	O
frequently	O
executed	O
code	O
segments	O
(	O
"	O
traces	O
"	O
)	O
each	O
time	O
an	O
application	O
is	O
launched	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
its	O
Java	B-Language
library	O
,	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
platform	I-Application
uses	O
a	O
subset	O
of	O
the	O
now	O
discontinued	O
Apache	B-Application
Harmony	I-Application
project	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2015	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
the	O
next	O
version	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
would	O
switch	O
to	O
a	O
Java	B-Language
implementation	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
OpenJDK	B-Language
project	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
's	O
standard	B-Language
C	I-Language
library	I-Language
,	O
Bionic	B-Application
,	O
was	O
developed	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
specifically	O
for	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
as	O
a	O
derivation	O
of	O
the	O
BSD	B-Operating_System
's	O
standard	B-Language
C	I-Language
library	I-Language
code	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bionic	B-Application
itself	O
has	O
been	O
designed	O
with	O
several	O
major	O
features	O
specific	O
to	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
main	O
benefits	O
of	O
using	O
Bionic	B-Application
instead	O
of	O
the	O
GNU	B-Language
C	I-Language
Library	I-Language
(	O
glibc	B-Language
)	O
or	O
uClibc	B-Language
are	O
its	O
smaller	O
runtime	O
footprint	O
,	O
and	O
optimization	O
for	O
low-frequency	O
CPUs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
same	O
time	O
,	O
Bionic	B-Application
is	O
licensed	O
under	O
the	O
terms	O
of	O
the	O
BSD	B-Operating_System
licence	I-Operating_System
,	O
which	O
Google	B-Application
finds	O
more	O
suitable	O
for	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
's	O
overall	O
licensing	O
model	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Aiming	O
for	O
a	O
different	O
licensing	O
model	O
,	O
toward	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
2012	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
switched	O
the	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
stack	O
in	O
Android	B-Application
from	O
the	O
GPL-licensed	O
BlueZ	O
to	O
the	O
Apache-licensed	B-Application
BlueDroid	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
new	O
Bluetooth	B-Protocol
stack	O
,	O
called	O
Gabeldorsche	O
,	O
was	O
developed	O
to	O
try	O
to	O
fix	O
the	O
bugs	B-Error_Name
in	O
the	O
BlueDroid	O
implementation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
does	O
not	O
have	O
a	O
native	O
X	B-Operating_System
Window	I-Operating_System
System	I-Operating_System
by	O
default	O
,	O
nor	O
does	O
it	O
support	O
the	O
full	O
set	O
of	O
standard	O
GNU	B-Operating_System
libraries	B-Library
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
made	O
it	O
difficult	O
to	O
port	O
existing	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
applications	O
or	O
libraries	B-Library
to	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
until	O
version	O
r5	O
of	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
Native	I-Application
Development	I-Application
Kit	I-Application
brought	O
support	O
for	O
applications	O
written	O
completely	O
in	O
C	B-Language
or	O
C++	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Libraries	B-Library
written	O
in	O
C	B-Language
may	O
also	O
be	O
used	O
in	O
applications	O
by	O
injection	O
of	O
a	O
small	O
shim	B-General_Concept
and	O
usage	O
of	O
the	O
JNI	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
current	O
versions	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
"	O
Toybox	B-Language
"	O
,	O
a	O
collection	O
of	O
command-line	B-Application
utilities	O
(	O
mostly	O
for	O
use	O
by	O
apps	B-Application
,	O
as	O
Android	B-Application
does	O
not	O
provide	O
a	O
command-line	B-Application
interface	I-Application
by	O
default	O
)	O
,	O
is	O
used	O
(	O
since	O
the	O
release	O
of	O
Marshmallow	B-Application
)	O
replacing	O
a	O
similar	O
"	O
Toolbox	O
"	O
collection	O
found	O
in	O
previous	O
Android	B-Application
versions	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
has	O
another	O
operating	O
system	O
,	O
Trusty	O
OS	O
,	O
within	O
it	O
,	O
as	O
a	O
part	O
of	O
"	O
Trusty	O
"	O
"	O
software	O
components	O
supporting	O
a	O
Trusted	O
Execution	O
Environment	O
(	O
TEE	O
)	O
on	O
mobile	O
devices.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
"	O
Trusty	O
and	O
the	O
Trusty	O
API	B-Application
are	O
subject	O
to	O
change	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
 [ .. ] 	O
Applications	O
for	O
the	O
Trusty	O
OS	O
can	O
be	O
written	O
in	O
C/C	O
++	O
(	O
C++	B-Language
support	O
is	O
limited	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
they	O
have	O
access	O
to	O
a	O
small	O
C	B-Language
library	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
's	O
source	O
code	O
is	O
released	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
under	O
an	O
open	B-Application
source	I-Application
license	O
,	O
and	O
its	O
open	O
nature	O
has	O
encouraged	O
a	O
large	O
community	O
of	O
developers	B-Application
and	O
enthusiasts	O
to	O
use	O
the	O
open-source	B-Application
code	O
as	O
a	O
foundation	O
for	O
community-driven	O
projects	O
,	O
which	O
deliver	O
updates	O
to	O
older	O
devices	O
,	O
add	O
new	O
features	O
for	O
advanced	O
users	O
or	O
bring	O
Android	B-Application
to	O
devices	O
originally	O
shipped	O
with	O
other	O
operating	O
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
community-developed	O
releases	O
often	O
bring	O
new	O
features	O
and	O
updates	O
to	O
devices	O
faster	O
than	O
through	O
the	O
official	O
manufacturer/carrier	O
channels	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
comparable	O
level	O
of	O
quality	O
;	O
provide	O
continued	O
support	O
for	O
older	O
devices	O
that	O
no	O
longer	O
receive	O
official	O
updates	O
;	O
or	O
bring	O
Android	B-Application
to	O
devices	O
that	O
were	O
officially	O
released	O
running	O
other	O
operating	O
systems	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
HP	B-Application
TouchPad	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Community	O
releases	O
often	O
come	O
pre-rooted	O
and	O
contain	O
modifications	O
not	O
provided	O
by	O
the	O
original	O
vendor	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
overclock	B-Application
or	O
over/undervolt	O
the	O
device	O
's	O
processor	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
CyanogenMod	B-Application
was	O
the	O
most	O
widely	O
used	O
community	O
firmware	B-Application
,	O
now	O
discontinued	O
and	O
succeeded	O
by	O
LineageOS	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
,	O
as	O
of	O
August	O
2019	O
,	O
a	O
handful	O
of	O
notable	O
custom	O
Android	B-Application
distributions	I-Application
(	O
ROMs	O
)	O
of	O
the	O
latest	O
Android	B-Application
version	I-Application
9.0	B-Application
Pie	I-Application
,	O
which	O
was	O
released	O
publicly	O
in	O
August	O
2018	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
See	O
List	B-Application
of	I-Application
custom	I-Application
Android	I-Application
distributions	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Historically	O
,	O
device	O
manufacturers	O
and	O
mobile	O
carriers	O
have	O
typically	O
been	O
unsupportive	O
of	O
third-party	O
firmware	B-Application
development	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Moreover	O
,	O
modified	O
firmware	B-Application
such	O
as	O
CyanogenMod	B-Application
sometimes	O
offer	O
features	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
tethering	O
,	O
for	O
which	O
carriers	O
would	O
otherwise	O
charge	O
a	O
premium	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
technical	O
obstacles	O
including	O
locked	O
bootloaders	B-Application
and	O
restricted	O
access	O
to	O
root	B-Application
permissions	O
are	O
common	O
in	O
many	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
as	O
community-developed	O
software	O
has	O
grown	O
more	O
popular	O
,	O
and	O
following	O
a	O
statement	O
by	O
the	O
Librarian	O
of	O
Congress	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
that	O
permits	O
the	O
"	O
jailbreaking	B-Application
"	O
of	O
mobile	O
devices	O
,	O
manufacturers	O
and	O
carriers	O
have	O
softened	O
their	O
position	O
regarding	O
third	O
party	O
development	O
,	O
with	O
some	O
,	O
including	O
HTC	B-Application
,	O
Motorola	O
,	O
Samsung	B-Application
and	O
Sony	O
,	O
providing	O
support	O
and	O
encouraging	O
development	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
of	O
this	O
,	O
over	O
time	O
the	O
need	O
to	O
circumvent	O
hardware	B-Architecture
restrictions	O
to	O
install	O
unofficial	O
firmware	B-Application
has	O
lessened	O
as	O
an	O
increasing	O
number	O
of	O
devices	O
are	O
shipped	O
with	O
unlocked	O
or	O
unlockable	O
bootloaders	B-Application
,	O
similar	O
to	O
Nexus	B-Device
series	I-Device
of	O
phones	O
,	O
although	O
usually	O
requiring	O
that	O
users	O
waive	O
their	O
devices	O
 '	O
warranties	O
to	O
do	O
so	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
despite	O
manufacturer	O
acceptance	O
,	O
some	O
carriers	O
in	O
the	O
US	O
still	O
require	O
that	O
phones	O
are	O
locked	O
down	O
,	O
frustrating	O
developers	B-Application
and	O
customers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Internally	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
identifies	O
each	O
supported	O
device	O
by	O
its	O
device	O
codename	O
,	O
a	O
short	O
string	O
,	O
which	O
may	O
or	O
may	O
not	O
be	O
similar	O
to	O
the	O
model	O
name	O
used	O
in	O
marketing	O
the	O
device	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
the	O
device	O
codename	O
of	O
the	O
Pixel	B-Device
smartphone	B-Application
is	O
sailfish	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
device	O
codename	O
is	O
usually	O
not	O
visible	O
to	O
the	O
end	O
user	O
,	O
but	O
is	O
important	O
for	O
determining	O
compatibility	O
with	O
modified	O
Android	B-Application
versions	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
sometimes	O
also	O
mentioned	O
in	O
articles	O
discussing	O
a	O
device	O
,	O
because	O
it	O
allows	O
to	O
distinguish	O
different	O
hardware	B-Architecture
variants	O
of	O
a	O
device	O
,	O
even	O
if	O
the	O
manufacturer	O
offers	O
them	O
under	O
the	O
same	O
name	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
device	O
codename	O
is	O
available	O
to	O
running	O
applications	O
under	O
android.os.Build.DEVICE	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2020	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
launched	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
Partner	O
Vulnerability	O
Initiative	O
to	O
improve	O
the	O
security	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
also	O
formed	O
an	O
Android	B-Application
security	O
team	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Research	O
from	O
security	O
company	O
Trend	O
Micro	O
lists	O
premium	O
service	O
abuse	O
as	O
the	O
most	O
common	O
type	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
malware	O
,	O
where	O
text	O
messages	O
are	O
sent	O
from	O
infected	O
phones	O
to	O
premium-rate	O
telephone	O
numbers	O
without	O
the	O
consent	O
or	O
even	O
knowledge	O
of	O
the	O
user	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Security	O
threats	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
are	O
reportedly	O
growing	O
exponentially	O
;	O
however	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
engineers	O
have	O
argued	O
that	O
the	O
malware	O
and	O
virus	O
threat	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
being	O
exaggerated	O
by	O
security	O
companies	O
for	O
commercial	O
reasons	O
,	O
and	O
have	O
accused	O
the	O
security	O
industry	O
of	O
playing	O
on	O
fears	O
to	O
sell	O
virus	B-Application
protection	I-Application
software	O
to	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
maintains	O
that	O
dangerous	O
malware	O
is	O
actually	O
extremely	O
rare	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
survey	O
conducted	O
by	O
F-Secure	O
showed	O
that	O
only	O
0.5	O
%	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
malware	O
reported	O
had	O
come	O
from	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	B-Application
store	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2021	O
,	O
journalists	O
and	O
researchers	O
reported	O
the	O
discovery	O
of	O
spyware	O
,	O
called	O
Pegasus	B-Application
,	O
developed	O
and	O
distributed	O
by	O
a	O
private	O
company	O
which	O
can	O
and	O
has	O
been	O
used	O
to	O
infect	O
both	O
iOS	B-Application
and	O
Android	B-Application
smartphones	I-Application
often	O
–	O
partly	O
via	O
use	O
of	O
0-day	O
exploits	O
–	O
without	O
the	O
need	O
for	O
any	O
user-interaction	O
or	O
significant	O
clues	O
to	O
the	O
user	O
and	O
then	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
exfiltrate	O
data	O
,	O
track	O
user	O
locations	O
,	O
capture	O
film	O
through	O
its	O
camera	O
,	O
and	O
activate	O
the	O
microphone	O
at	O
any	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Analysis	O
of	B-Protocol
data	I-Protocol
traffic	I-Protocol
by	O
popular	O
smartphones	B-Application
running	O
variants	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
found	O
substantial	O
by-default	O
data	O
collection	O
and	O
sharing	O
with	O
no	O
opt-out	O
by	O
this	O
pre-installed	B-Application
software	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
broader	O
2013	O
mass	O
surveillance	O
disclosures	O
it	O
was	O
revealed	O
in	O
September	O
2013	O
that	O
the	O
American	O
and	O
British	O
intelligence	O
agencies	O
,	O
the	O
National	O
Security	O
Agency	O
(	O
NSA	O
)	O
and	O
Government	O
Communications	O
Headquarters	O
(	O
GCHQ	O
)	O
,	O
respectively	O
,	O
have	O
access	O
to	O
the	O
user	O
data	O
on	O
iPhone	B-Operating_System
,	O
BlackBerry	B-Application
,	O
and	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
are	O
reportedly	O
able	O
to	O
read	O
almost	O
all	O
smartphone	B-Application
information	O
,	O
including	O
SMS	O
,	O
location	O
,	O
emails	O
,	O
and	O
notes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
January	O
2014	O
,	O
further	O
reports	O
revealed	O
the	O
intelligence	O
agencies	O
 '	O
capabilities	O
to	O
intercept	O
the	O
personal	O
information	O
transmitted	O
across	O
the	O
Internet	O
by	O
social	O
networks	O
and	O
other	O
popular	O
applications	O
such	O
as	O
Angry	B-Application
Birds	I-Application
,	O
which	O
collect	O
personal	O
information	O
of	O
their	O
users	O
for	O
advertising	O
and	O
other	O
commercial	O
reasons	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
GCHQ	O
has	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
The	O
Guardian	O
,	O
a	O
wiki-style	O
guide	O
of	O
different	O
apps	B-Application
and	O
advertising	O
networks	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
different	O
data	O
that	O
can	O
be	O
siphoned	O
from	O
each	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Later	O
that	O
week	O
,	O
the	O
Finnish	O
Angry	B-Application
Birds	I-Application
developer	O
Rovio	O
announced	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
reconsidering	O
its	O
relationships	O
with	O
its	O
advertising	O
platforms	B-Device
in	O
the	O
light	O
of	O
these	O
revelations	O
,	O
and	O
called	O
upon	O
the	O
wider	O
industry	O
to	O
do	O
the	O
same	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
documents	O
revealed	O
a	O
further	O
effort	O
by	O
the	O
intelligence	O
agencies	O
to	O
intercept	O
Google	B-Application
Maps	O
searches	O
and	O
queries	O
submitted	O
from	O
Android	B-Application
and	O
other	O
smartphones	B-Application
to	O
collect	O
location	O
information	O
in	O
bulk	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Leaked	O
documents	O
published	O
by	O
WikiLeaks	O
,	O
codenamed	O
Vault	O
7	O
and	O
dated	O
from	O
2013	O
to	O
2016	O
,	O
detail	O
the	O
capabilities	O
of	O
the	O
Central	O
Intelligence	O
Agency	O
(	O
CIA	O
)	O
to	O
perform	O
electronic	O
surveillance	O
and	O
cyber	O
warfare	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
compromise	O
the	O
operating	O
systems	O
of	O
most	O
smartphones	B-Application
(	O
including	O
Android	B-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
August	O
2015	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
devices	O
in	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Nexus	B-Device
series	I-Device
would	O
begin	O
to	O
receive	O
monthly	O
security	O
patches	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
also	O
wrote	O
that	O
"	O
Nexus	B-Device
devices	O
will	O
continue	O
to	O
receive	O
major	O
updates	O
for	O
at	O
least	O
two	O
years	O
and	O
security	O
patches	O
for	O
the	O
longer	O
of	O
three	O
years	O
from	O
initial	O
availability	O
or	O
18	O
months	O
from	O
last	O
sale	O
of	O
the	O
device	O
via	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Store.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
following	O
October	O
,	O
researchers	O
at	O
the	O
University	O
of	O
Cambridge	O
concluded	O
that	O
87.7	O
%	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
phones	I-Application
in	O
use	O
had	O
known	O
but	O
unpatched	O
security	O
vulnerabilities	O
due	O
to	O
lack	O
of	O
updates	O
and	O
support	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ron	O
Amadeo	O
of	O
Ars	O
Technica	O
wrote	O
also	O
in	O
August	O
2015	O
that	O
"	O
Android	B-Application
was	O
originally	O
designed	O
,	O
above	O
all	O
else	O
,	O
to	O
be	O
widely	O
adopted	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
was	O
starting	O
from	O
scratch	O
with	O
zero	O
percent	O
market	O
share	O
,	O
so	O
it	O
was	O
happy	O
to	O
give	O
up	O
control	O
and	O
give	O
everyone	O
a	O
seat	O
at	O
the	O
table	O
in	O
exchange	O
for	O
adoption	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
 [ ... ] 	O
Now	O
,	O
though	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
has	O
around	O
75	O
–	O
80	O
percent	O
of	O
the	O
worldwide	O
smartphone	B-Application
market	O
—	O
making	O
it	O
not	O
just	O
the	O
world	O
's	O
most	O
popular	O
mobile	B-Operating_System
operating	I-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
but	O
arguably	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
operating	O
system	O
,	O
period	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
still	O
uses	O
a	O
software	O
update	O
chain-of-command	O
designed	O
back	O
when	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
ecosystem	O
had	O
zero	O
devices	O
to	O
update	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
just	O
does	O
n't	O
work	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
news	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
monthly	O
schedule	O
,	O
some	O
manufacturers	O
,	O
including	O
Samsung	B-Application
and	O
LG	O
,	O
promised	O
to	O
issue	O
monthly	O
security	O
updates	O
,	O
but	O
,	O
as	O
noted	O
by	O
Jerry	O
Hildenbrand	O
in	O
Android	B-Application
Central	O
in	O
February	O
2016	O
,	O
"	O
instead	O
we	O
got	O
a	O
few	O
updates	O
on	O
specific	O
versions	O
of	O
a	O
small	O
handful	O
of	O
models	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
March	O
2017	O
post	O
on	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
Security	O
Blog	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
security	O
leads	O
Adrian	O
Ludwig	O
and	O
Mel	O
Miller	O
wrote	O
that	O
"	O
More	O
than	O
735	O
million	O
devices	O
from	O
200+	O
manufacturers	O
received	O
a	O
platform	O
security	O
update	O
in	O
2016	O
"	O
and	O
that	O
"	O
Our	O
carrier	O
and	O
hardware	B-Architecture
partners	O
helped	O
expand	O
deployment	O
of	O
these	O
updates	O
,	O
releasing	O
updates	O
for	O
over	O
half	O
of	O
the	O
top	O
50	O
devices	O
worldwide	O
in	O
the	O
last	O
quarter	O
of	O
2016	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Patches	O
to	O
bugs	B-Error_Name
found	O
in	O
the	O
core	O
operating	O
system	O
often	O
do	O
not	O
reach	O
users	O
of	O
older	O
and	O
lower-priced	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
the	O
open-source	B-Application
nature	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
allows	O
security	O
contractors	O
to	O
take	O
existing	O
devices	O
and	O
adapt	O
them	O
for	O
highly	O
secure	O
uses	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
Samsung	B-Application
has	O
worked	O
with	O
General	O
Dynamics	O
through	O
their	O
Open	O
Kernel	B-Operating_System
Labs	O
acquisition	O
to	O
rebuild	O
Jelly	B-Application
Bean	I-Application
on	O
top	O
of	O
their	O
hardened	O
microvisor	O
for	O
the	O
"	O
Knox	O
"	O
project	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
smartphones	I-Application
have	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
report	O
the	O
location	O
of	O
Wi-Fi	O
access	O
points	O
,	O
encountered	O
as	O
phone	O
users	O
move	O
around	O
,	O
to	O
build	O
databases	O
containing	O
the	O
physical	O
locations	O
of	O
hundreds	O
of	O
millions	O
of	O
such	O
access	O
points	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
databases	O
form	O
electronic	O
maps	O
to	O
locate	O
smartphones	B-Application
,	O
allowing	O
them	O
to	O
run	O
apps	B-Application
like	O
Foursquare	B-Application
,	O
Google	B-Application
Latitude	I-Application
,	O
Facebook	O
Places	O
,	O
and	O
to	O
deliver	O
location-based	O
ads	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2018	O
,	O
Norwegian	O
security	O
firm	O
Promon	O
has	O
unearthed	O
a	O
serious	O
Android	B-Application
security	O
hole	O
which	O
can	O
be	O
exploited	O
to	O
steal	O
login	O
credentials	O
,	O
access	O
messages	O
,	O
and	O
track	O
location	O
,	O
which	O
could	O
be	O
found	O
in	O
all	O
versions	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
including	O
Android	B-Application
10	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
vulnerability	O
came	O
by	O
exploiting	O
a	O
bug	B-Error_Name
in	O
the	O
multitasking	O
system	O
enabling	O
a	O
malicious	O
app	O
to	O
overlay	O
legitimate	O
apps	B-Application
with	O
fake	O
login	O
screens	O
that	O
users	O
are	O
not	O
aware	O
of	O
when	O
handing	O
in	O
security	O
credentials	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
can	O
also	O
be	O
tricked	O
into	O
granting	O
additional	O
permissions	O
to	O
the	O
malicious	O
apps	B-Application
,	O
which	O
later	O
enable	O
them	O
to	O
perform	O
various	O
nefarious	O
activities	O
,	O
including	O
intercepting	O
texts	O
or	O
calls	O
and	O
stealing	O
banking	O
credentials	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Avast	O
Threat	O
Labs	O
also	O
discovered	O
that	O
many	O
pre-installed	B-Application
apps	B-Application
on	O
several	O
hundred	O
new	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
contain	O
dangerous	O
malware	O
and	O
adware	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
of	O
the	O
preinstalled	B-Application
malware	O
can	O
commit	O
ad	O
fraud	O
or	O
even	O
take	O
over	O
its	O
host	O
device	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
watchdog	O
reported	O
that	O
more	O
than	O
a	O
billion	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
released	O
in	O
2012	O
or	O
earlier	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
40%	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
worldwide	O
,	O
were	O
at	O
risk	O
of	O
being	O
hacked	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
conclusion	O
stemmed	O
from	O
the	O
fact	O
that	O
no	O
security	O
updates	O
were	O
issued	O
for	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
versions	I-Application
below	O
7.0	O
in	O
2019	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
collaborated	O
with	O
the	O
AV	O
Comparatives	O
anti-virus	B-Application
lab	O
to	O
infect	O
five	O
phone	O
models	O
with	O
malware	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
succeeded	O
in	O
each	O
case	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
refused	O
to	O
comment	O
on	O
the	O
watchdog	O
's	O
speculations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
August	O
5	O
,	O
2020	O
,	O
Twitter	B-Application
published	O
a	O
blog	O
urging	O
its	O
users	O
to	O
update	O
their	O
applications	O
to	O
the	O
latest	O
version	O
with	O
regards	O
to	O
a	O
security	O
concern	O
that	O
allowed	O
others	O
to	O
access	O
direct	O
messages	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
hacker	O
could	O
easily	O
use	O
the	O
"	O
Android	B-Application
system	I-Application
permissions	O
"	O
to	O
fetch	O
the	O
account	O
credentials	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
do	O
so	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
security	O
issue	O
is	O
only	O
with	O
Android	B-Application
8	I-Application
(	O
Android	B-Application
Oreo	I-Application
)	O
and	O
Android	B-Application
9	I-Application
(	O
Android	B-Application
Pie	I-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Twitter	B-Application
confirmed	O
that	O
updating	O
the	O
app	O
will	O
restrict	O
such	O
practices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
applications	I-Application
run	O
in	O
a	O
sandbox	O
,	O
an	O
isolated	O
area	O
of	O
the	O
system	O
that	O
does	O
not	O
have	O
access	O
to	O
the	O
rest	O
of	O
the	O
system	O
's	O
resources	O
,	O
unless	O
access	O
permissions	O
are	O
explicitly	O
granted	O
by	O
the	O
user	O
when	O
the	O
application	O
is	O
installed	O
,	O
however	O
this	O
may	O
not	O
be	O
possible	O
for	O
pre-installed	B-Application
apps	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
not	O
possible	O
,	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
to	O
turn	O
off	O
the	O
microphone	O
access	O
of	O
the	O
pre-installed	B-Application
camera	O
app	O
without	O
disabling	O
the	O
camera	O
completely	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
is	O
valid	O
also	O
in	O
Android	B-Application
versions	I-Application
7	O
and	O
8	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
February	O
2012	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
has	O
used	O
its	O
Google	B-Application
Bouncer	O
malware	B-Application
scanner	I-Application
to	O
watch	O
over	O
and	O
scan	O
apps	B-Application
available	O
in	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	B-Application
store	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
"	O
Verify	B-General_Concept
Apps	B-Application
"	O
feature	O
was	O
introduced	O
in	O
November	O
2012	O
,	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
4.2	I-Application
"	I-Application
Jelly	I-Application
Bean	I-Application
"	I-Application
operating	O
system	O
version	O
,	O
to	O
scan	O
all	O
apps	B-Application
,	O
both	O
from	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
and	O
from	O
third-party	O
sources	O
,	O
for	O
malicious	O
behaviour	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Originally	O
only	O
doing	O
so	O
during	O
installation	O
,	O
Verify	B-General_Concept
Apps	B-Application
received	O
an	O
update	O
in	O
2014	O
to	O
"	O
constantly	O
"	O
scan	O
apps	B-Application
,	O
and	O
in	O
2017	O
the	O
feature	O
was	O
made	O
visible	O
to	O
users	O
through	O
a	O
menu	O
in	O
Settings	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Before	O
installing	O
an	O
application	O
,	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	B-Application
store	I-Application
displays	O
a	O
list	O
of	O
the	O
requirements	O
an	O
app	O
needs	O
to	O
function	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Android	B-Application
6.0	I-Application
"	I-Application
Marshmallow	I-Application
"	I-Application
,	O
the	O
permissions	O
system	O
was	O
changed	O
;	O
apps	B-Application
are	O
no	O
longer	O
automatically	O
granted	O
all	O
of	O
their	O
specified	O
permissions	O
at	O
installation	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pre-installed	B-Application
apps	B-Application
,	O
however	O
,	O
are	O
not	O
always	O
part	O
of	O
this	O
approach	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
some	O
cases	O
it	O
may	O
not	O
be	O
possible	O
to	O
deny	O
certain	O
permissions	O
to	O
pre-installed	B-Application
apps	B-Application
,	O
nor	O
be	O
possible	O
to	O
disable	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	O
Services	O
app	O
cannot	O
be	O
uninstalled	O
,	O
nor	O
disabled	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
new	O
permissions	O
model	O
is	O
used	O
only	O
by	O
applications	O
developed	O
for	O
Marshmallow	B-Application
using	O
its	O
software	B-Application
development	I-Application
kit	I-Application
(	O
SDK	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
older	O
apps	B-Application
will	O
continue	O
to	O
use	O
the	O
previous	O
all-or-nothing	O
approach	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Permissions	O
can	O
still	O
be	O
revoked	O
for	O
those	O
apps	B-Application
,	O
though	O
this	O
might	O
prevent	O
them	O
from	O
working	O
properly	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
warning	O
is	O
displayed	O
to	O
that	O
effect	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
September	O
2014	O
,	O
Jason	O
Nova	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
Authority	O
reported	O
on	O
a	O
study	O
by	O
the	O
German	O
security	O
company	O
Fraunhofer	O
AISEC	O
in	O
antivirus	B-Application
software	I-Application
and	O
malware	O
threats	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Nova	O
wrote	O
that	O
"	O
The	O
Android	B-Application
operating	I-Application
system	I-Application
deals	O
with	O
software	B-Application
packages	I-Application
by	O
sandboxing	O
them	O
;	O
this	O
does	O
not	O
allow	O
applications	O
to	O
list	O
the	O
directory	O
contents	O
of	O
other	O
apps	B-Application
to	O
keep	O
the	O
system	O
safe	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
not	O
allowing	O
the	O
antivirus	B-Application
to	O
list	O
the	O
directories	O
of	O
other	O
apps	B-Application
after	O
installation	O
,	O
applications	O
that	O
show	O
no	O
inherent	O
suspicious	O
behavior	O
when	O
downloaded	O
are	O
cleared	O
as	O
safe	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
then	O
later	O
on	O
parts	O
of	O
the	O
app	O
are	O
activated	O
that	O
turn	O
out	O
to	O
be	O
malicious	O
,	O
the	O
antivirus	B-Application
will	O
have	O
no	O
way	O
to	O
know	O
since	O
it	O
is	O
inside	O
the	O
app	O
and	O
out	O
of	O
the	O
antivirus	B-Application
 '	O
jurisdiction	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
study	O
by	O
Fraunhofer	O
AISEC	O
,	O
examining	O
antivirus	B-Application
software	I-Application
from	O
Avast	O
,	O
AVG	B-Application
,	O
Bitdefender	B-Application
,	O
ESET	O
,	O
F-Secure	O
,	O
Kaspersky	O
,	O
Lookout	O
,	O
McAfee	O
(	O
formerly	O
Intel	O
Security	O
)	O
,	O
Norton	B-Application
,	O
Sophos	O
,	O
and	O
Trend	O
Micro	O
,	O
revealed	O
that	O
"	O
the	O
tested	O
antivirus	B-Application
apps	B-Application
do	O
not	O
provide	O
protection	O
against	O
customized	O
malware	O
or	O
targeted	O
attacks	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
"	O
the	O
tested	O
antivirus	B-Application
apps	B-Application
were	O
also	O
not	O
able	O
to	O
detect	O
malware	O
which	O
is	O
completely	O
unknown	O
to	O
date	O
but	O
does	O
not	O
make	O
any	O
efforts	O
to	O
hide	O
its	O
malignity	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
August	O
2013	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
Android	B-Application
Device	O
Manager	O
(	O
renamed	O
Find	O
My	O
Device	O
in	O
May	O
2017	O
)	O
,	O
a	O
service	O
that	O
allows	O
users	O
to	O
remotely	O
track	O
,	O
locate	O
,	O
and	O
wipe	O
their	O
Android	B-Application
device	O
,	O
with	O
an	O
Android	B-Application
app	O
for	O
the	O
service	O
released	O
in	O
December	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2016	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
introduced	O
a	O
Trusted	O
Contacts	O
app	O
,	O
letting	O
users	O
request	O
location-tracking	O
of	O
loved	O
ones	O
during	O
emergencies	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2020	O
,	O
Trusted	O
Contacts	O
was	O
shut	O
down	O
and	O
the	O
location-sharing	O
feature	O
rolled	O
into	O
Google	B-Application
Maps	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
October	O
8	O
,	O
2018	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
new	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
store	I-Application
requirements	O
to	O
combat	O
over-sharing	O
of	O
potentially	O
sensitive	O
information	O
,	O
including	O
call	O
and	O
text	O
logs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
issue	O
stems	O
from	O
the	O
fact	O
that	O
many	O
apps	B-Application
request	O
permissions	O
to	O
access	O
users	O
 '	O
personal	O
information	O
(	O
even	O
if	O
this	O
information	O
is	O
not	O
needed	O
for	O
the	O
app	O
to	O
function	O
)	O
and	O
some	O
users	O
unquestionably	O
grant	O
these	O
permissions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
promised	O
to	O
work	O
with	O
developers	B-Application
and	O
create	O
exceptions	O
if	O
their	O
apps	B-Application
require	O
Phone	O
or	O
SMS	O
permissions	O
for	O
"	O
core	O
app	O
functionality	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Furthermore	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
a	O
new	O
"	O
target	O
API	B-Application
level	O
requirement	O
"	O
(	O
targetSdkVersion	O
in	O
manifest	O
)	O
at	O
least	O
Android	B-Application
8.0	I-Application
(	O
API	B-Application
level	O
26	O
)	O
for	O
all	O
new	O
apps	B-Application
and	O
app	O
updates	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
API	B-Application
level	O
requirement	O
might	O
combat	O
the	O
practice	O
of	O
app	O
developers	B-Application
bypassing	O
some	O
permission	O
screens	O
by	O
specifying	O
early	O
Android	B-Application
versions	I-Application
that	O
had	O
a	O
coarser	O
permission	O
model	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Android	B-Application
Open	B-Application
Source	I-Application
Project	O
implements	O
a	O
verified	O
boot	O
chain	O
with	O
intentions	O
to	O
verify	B-General_Concept
that	O
executed	O
code	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
kernel	B-Operating_System
or	O
bootloader	B-Application
,	O
comes	O
from	O
an	O
official	O
source	O
instead	O
of	O
a	O
malicious	O
actor	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
implementation	O
establishes	O
a	O
full	O
chain	O
of	O
trust	O
,	O
as	O
it	O
initially	O
starts	O
at	O
a	O
hardware	B-Architecture
level	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Subsequently	O
,	O
the	O
boot	B-Application
loader	I-Application
is	O
verified	O
and	O
system	O
partitions	O
such	O
as	O
system	O
and	O
vendor	O
are	O
checked	O
for	O
integrity	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Furthermore	O
,	O
this	O
process	O
verifies	O
that	O
a	O
previous	O
version	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
has	O
not	O
been	O
installed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
effectively	O
provides	O
rollback	O
protection	O
,	O
which	O
mitigates	O
exploits	O
that	O
are	O
similar	O
to	O
a	O
downgrade	B-Protocol
attack	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
(	O
all	O
supported	O
versions	O
,	O
as	O
far	O
back	O
as	O
version	O
4.4	O
of	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
Open	B-Application
Source	I-Application
Project	O
)	O
has	O
the	O
option	O
to	O
provide	O
a	O
verified	O
boot	O
chain	O
with	O
dm-verity	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
is	O
a	O
feature	O
in	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
that	O
allows	O
for	O
transparent	O
integrity	O
checking	O
of	O
block	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Dependence	O
on	O
proprietary	B-Application
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Services	I-Application
and	O
customizations	O
added	O
on	O
top	O
of	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
by	O
vendors	O
who	O
license	O
Android	B-Application
from	O
Google	B-Application
is	O
causing	O
privacy	O
concerns	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
source	O
code	O
for	O
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
open-source	B-Application
:	O
it	O
is	O
developed	O
in	O
private	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
with	O
the	O
source	O
code	O
released	O
publicly	O
when	O
a	O
new	O
version	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
released	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
publishes	O
most	O
of	O
the	O
code	O
(	O
including	O
network	O
and	O
telephony	O
stacks	B-Application
)	O
under	O
the	O
non-copyleft	B-License
Apache	B-Application
License	I-Application
version	O
2.0	O
.	O
which	O
allows	O
modification	O
and	O
redistribution	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
license	O
does	O
not	O
grant	O
rights	O
to	O
the	O
"	O
Android	B-Application
"	O
trademark	O
,	O
so	O
device	O
manufacturers	O
and	O
wireless	O
carriers	O
have	O
to	O
license	O
it	O
from	O
Google	B-Application
under	O
individual	O
contracts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Associated	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
changes	O
are	O
released	O
under	O
the	O
copyleft	B-License
GNU	B-License
General	I-License
Public	I-License
License	I-License
version	O
2	O
,	O
developed	O
by	O
the	O
Open	O
Handset	O
Alliance	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
source	O
code	O
publicly	O
available	O
at	O
all	O
times	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
only	O
Android	B-Application
release	O
which	O
was	O
not	O
immediately	O
made	O
available	O
as	O
source	O
code	O
was	O
the	O
tablet-only	O
3.0	O
Honeycomb	O
release	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
reason	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
Andy	O
Rubin	O
in	O
an	O
official	O
Android	B-Application
blog	O
post	O
,	O
was	O
because	O
Honeycomb	O
was	O
rushed	O
for	O
production	O
of	O
the	O
Motorola	B-Application
Xoom	I-Application
,	O
and	O
they	O
did	O
not	O
want	O
third	O
parties	O
creating	O
a	O
"	O
really	O
bad	O
user	O
experience	O
"	O
by	O
attempting	O
to	O
put	O
onto	O
smartphones	B-Application
a	O
version	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
intended	O
for	O
tablets	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Only	O
the	O
base	O
Android	B-Application
operating	I-Application
system	I-Application
(	O
including	O
some	O
applications	O
)	O
is	O
open-source	B-Application
software	I-Application
,	O
whereas	O
most	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
ship	O
with	O
a	O
substantial	O
amount	O
of	O
proprietary	B-Application
software	I-Application
,	O
such	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
Mobile	I-Application
Services	I-Application
,	O
which	O
includes	O
applications	O
such	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
,	O
Google	B-Application
Search	O
,	O
and	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Services	I-Application
a	O
software	O
layer	O
that	O
provides	O
APIs	B-Application
for	O
the	O
integration	O
with	O
Google-provided	O
services	O
,	O
among	O
others	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
applications	O
must	O
be	O
licensed	O
from	O
Google	B-Application
by	O
device	O
makers	O
,	O
and	O
can	O
only	O
be	O
shipped	O
on	O
devices	O
which	O
meet	O
its	O
compatibility	O
guidelines	O
and	O
other	O
requirements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Custom	O
,	O
certified	O
distributions	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
produced	O
by	O
manufacturers	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
Samsung	B-Application
Experience	I-Application
)	O
may	O
also	O
replace	O
certain	O
stock	B-Application
Android	I-Application
apps	B-Application
with	O
their	O
own	O
proprietary	B-Application
variants	O
and	O
add	O
additional	O
software	O
not	O
included	O
in	O
the	O
stock	B-Application
Android	I-Application
operating	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
the	O
advent	O
of	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Pixel	B-Device
line	O
of	O
devices	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
itself	O
has	O
also	O
made	O
specific	O
Android	B-Application
features	O
timed	O
or	O
permanent	O
exclusives	O
to	O
the	O
Pixel	B-Device
series	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
may	O
also	O
be	O
"	O
binary	O
blob	O
"	O
drivers	B-Application
required	O
for	O
certain	O
hardware	B-Architecture
components	O
in	O
the	O
device	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
best	O
known	O
fully	O
open	B-Application
source	I-Application
Android	B-Application
services	O
are	O
the	O
LineageOS	B-Application
distribution	O
and	O
MicroG	B-Application
which	O
acts	O
as	O
an	O
open	B-Application
source	I-Application
replacement	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Services	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Richard	O
Stallman	O
and	O
the	B-Operating_System
Free	I-Operating_System
Software	I-Operating_System
Foundation	I-Operating_System
have	O
been	O
critical	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
and	O
have	O
recommended	O
the	O
usage	O
of	O
alternatives	O
such	O
as	O
Replicant	B-Application
,	O
because	O
drivers	B-Application
and	O
firmware	B-Application
vital	O
for	O
the	O
proper	O
functioning	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
are	O
usually	O
proprietary	B-Application
,	O
and	O
because	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	B-Application
Store	I-Application
application	O
can	O
forcibly	O
install	O
or	O
uninstall	O
applications	O
and	O
,	O
as	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
invite	O
non-free	B-Application
software	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
both	O
cases	O
,	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
closed-source	B-Application
software	I-Application
causes	O
the	O
system	O
to	O
become	O
vulnerable	O
to	O
backdoors	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
has	O
been	O
argued	O
that	O
because	O
developers	B-Application
are	O
often	O
required	O
to	O
purchase	O
the	O
Google-branded	O
Android	B-Application
license	O
,	O
this	O
has	O
turned	O
the	O
theoretically	O
open	O
system	O
into	O
a	O
freemium	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
licenses	B-License
their	O
Google	B-Application
Mobile	I-Application
Services	I-Application
software	O
,	O
along	O
with	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
trademarks	O
,	O
only	O
to	O
hardware	B-Architecture
manufacturers	O
for	O
devices	O
that	O
meet	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
compatibility	O
standards	O
specified	O
in	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
Compatibility	O
Program	O
document	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Thus	O
,	O
forks	B-Application
of	O
Android	B-Application
that	O
make	O
major	O
changes	O
to	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
itself	O
do	O
not	O
include	O
any	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
non-free	B-Application
components	O
,	O
stay	O
incompatible	O
with	O
applications	O
that	O
require	O
them	O
,	O
and	O
must	O
ship	O
with	O
an	O
alternative	O
software	O
marketplace	O
in	O
lieu	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
prominent	O
example	O
of	O
such	O
an	O
Android	B-Application
fork	I-Application
is	O
Amazon	B-Application
's	O
Fire	B-Application
OS	I-Application
,	O
which	O
is	O
used	O
on	O
the	O
Kindle	B-Application
Fire	I-Application
line	O
of	O
tablets	B-Device
,	O
and	O
oriented	O
toward	O
Amazon	B-Application
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
shipment	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
without	O
GMS	O
is	O
also	O
common	O
in	O
mainland	O
China	O
,	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
does	O
not	O
do	O
business	O
there	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2014	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
also	O
began	O
to	O
require	O
that	O
all	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
which	O
license	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Mobile	O
Services	O
software	O
display	O
a	O
prominent	O
"	O
Powered	O
by	O
Android	B-Application
"	O
logo	O
on	O
their	O
boot	O
screens	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
has	O
also	O
enforced	O
preferential	O
bundling	O
and	O
placement	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
Mobile	I-Application
Services	I-Application
on	O
devices	O
,	O
including	O
mandated	O
bundling	O
of	O
the	O
entire	O
main	O
suite	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
applications	O
,	O
mandatory	O
placement	O
of	O
shortcuts	O
to	O
Google	B-Application
Search	O
and	O
the	O
Play	B-Application
Store	I-Application
app	O
on	O
or	O
near	O
the	O
main	O
home	B-Operating_System
screen	I-Operating_System
page	O
in	O
its	O
default	O
configuration	O
,	O
and	O
granting	O
a	O
larger	O
share	O
of	O
search	O
revenue	O
to	O
OEMs	O
who	O
agree	O
to	O
not	O
include	O
third-party	O
app	O
stores	O
on	O
their	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
March	O
2018	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
reported	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
had	O
begun	O
to	O
block	O
"	O
uncertified	O
"	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
from	O
using	O
Google	B-Application
Mobile	I-Application
Services	I-Application
software	O
,	O
and	O
display	O
a	O
warning	O
indicating	O
that	O
"	O
the	O
device	O
manufacturer	O
has	O
preloaded	O
Google	B-Application
apps	B-Application
and	O
services	O
without	O
certification	O
from	O
Google	B-Application
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
of	O
custom	O
ROMs	O
can	O
register	O
their	O
device	O
ID	O
to	O
their	O
Google	B-Application
account	O
to	O
remove	O
this	O
block	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
stock	O
applications	O
and	O
components	O
in	O
AOSP	O
code	O
that	O
were	O
formerly	O
used	O
by	O
earlier	O
versions	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
such	O
as	O
Search	O
,	O
Music	O
,	O
Calendar	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
location	O
API	B-Application
,	O
were	O
abandoned	B-General_Concept
by	O
Google	B-Application
in	O
favor	O
of	O
non-free	B-Application
replacements	O
distributed	O
through	O
Play	B-Application
Store	I-Application
(	O
Google	B-Application
Search	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Music	O
,	O
and	O
Google	B-Application
Calendar	O
)	O
and	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Services	I-Application
,	O
which	O
are	O
no	O
longer	O
open-source	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Moreover	O
,	O
open-source	B-Application
variants	O
of	O
some	O
applications	O
also	O
exclude	O
functions	O
that	O
are	O
present	O
in	O
their	O
non-free	B-Application
versions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
measures	O
are	O
likely	O
intended	O
to	O
discourage	O
forks	B-Application
and	O
encourage	O
commercial	O
licensing	O
in	O
line	O
with	O
Google	B-Application
requirements	O
,	O
as	O
the	O
majority	O
of	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
's	O
core	O
functionality	O
is	O
dependent	O
on	O
proprietary	B-Application
components	O
licensed	O
exclusively	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
and	O
it	O
would	O
take	O
significant	O
development	O
resources	O
to	O
develop	O
an	O
alternative	O
suite	O
of	O
software	O
and	O
APIs	B-Application
to	O
replicate	O
or	O
replace	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Apps	B-Application
that	O
do	O
not	O
use	O
Google	B-Application
components	O
would	O
also	O
be	O
at	O
a	O
functional	O
disadvantage	O
,	O
as	O
they	O
can	O
only	O
use	O
APIs	B-Application
contained	O
within	O
the	O
OS	O
itself	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
turn	O
,	O
third-party	O
apps	B-Application
may	O
have	O
dependencies	O
on	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Services	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Members	O
of	O
the	O
Open	O
Handset	O
Alliance	O
,	O
which	O
include	O
the	O
majority	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
OEMs	O
,	O
are	O
also	O
contractually	O
forbidden	O
from	O
producing	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
based	O
on	O
forks	B-Application
of	O
the	O
OS	O
;	O
in	O
2012	O
,	O
Acer	O
Inc	O
.	O
was	O
forced	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
to	O
halt	O
production	O
on	O
a	O
device	O
powered	O
by	O
Alibaba	O
Group	O
's	O
Aliyun	B-Protocol
OS	I-Protocol
with	O
threats	O
of	O
removal	O
from	O
the	O
OHA	O
,	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
deemed	O
the	O
platform	O
to	O
be	O
an	O
incompatible	O
version	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Alibaba	O
Group	O
defended	O
the	O
allegations	O
,	O
arguing	O
that	O
the	O
OS	O
was	O
a	O
distinct	O
platform	O
from	O
Android	B-Application
(	O
primarily	O
using	O
HTML5	B-Application
apps	B-Application
)	O
,	O
but	O
incorporated	O
portions	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
's	O
platform	O
to	O
allow	O
backwards	B-General_Concept
compatibility	I-General_Concept
with	O
third-party	O
Android	B-Application
software	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Indeed	O
,	O
the	O
devices	O
did	O
ship	O
with	O
an	O
application	O
store	O
which	O
offered	O
Android	B-Application
apps	B-Application
;	O
however	O
,	O
the	O
majority	O
of	O
them	O
were	O
pirated	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
received	O
a	O
lukewarm	O
reaction	O
when	O
it	O
was	O
unveiled	O
in	O
2007	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
analysts	O
were	O
impressed	O
with	O
the	O
respected	O
technology	O
companies	O
that	O
had	O
partnered	O
with	O
Google	B-Application
to	O
form	O
the	O
Open	O
Handset	O
Alliance	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
unclear	O
whether	O
mobile	O
phone	O
manufacturers	O
would	O
be	O
willing	O
to	O
replace	O
their	O
existing	O
operating	O
systems	O
with	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
idea	O
of	O
an	O
open-source	B-Application
,	O
Linux-based	O
development	B-Device
platform	I-Device
sparked	O
interest	O
,	O
but	O
there	O
were	O
additional	O
worries	O
about	O
Android	B-Application
facing	O
strong	O
competition	O
from	O
established	O
players	O
in	O
the	O
smartphone	B-Application
market	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Nokia	O
and	O
Microsoft	O
,	O
and	O
rival	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
mobile	B-Operating_System
operating	I-Operating_System
systems	I-Operating_System
that	O
were	O
in	O
development	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
established	O
players	O
were	O
skeptical	O
:	O
Nokia	O
was	O
quoted	O
as	O
saying	O
"	O
we	O
do	O
n't	O
see	O
this	O
as	O
a	O
threat	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
member	O
of	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
Windows	B-Operating_System
Mobile	I-Operating_System
team	O
stated	O
"	O
I	O
do	O
n't	O
understand	O
the	O
impact	O
that	O
they	O
are	O
going	O
to	O
have.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
then	O
Android	B-Application
has	O
grown	O
to	O
become	O
the	O
most	O
widely	O
used	O
smartphone	B-Operating_System
operating	I-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
and	O
"	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
fastest	O
mobile	O
experiences	O
available	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Reviewers	O
have	O
highlighted	O
the	O
open-source	B-Application
nature	O
of	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
as	O
one	O
of	O
its	O
defining	O
strengths	O
,	O
allowing	O
companies	O
such	O
as	O
Nokia	O
(	O
Nokia	O
X	B-Operating_System
family	O
)	O
,	O
Amazon	B-Application
(	O
Kindle	B-Application
Fire	I-Application
)	O
,	O
Barnes	O
&	O
Noble	O
(	O
Nook	B-Application
)	O
,	O
Ouya	B-Application
,	O
Baidu	B-Application
and	O
others	O
to	O
fork	B-Application
the	O
software	O
and	O
release	O
hardware	B-Architecture
running	O
their	O
own	O
customised	O
version	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
it	O
has	O
been	O
described	O
by	O
technology	O
website	O
Ars	O
Technica	O
as	O
"	O
practically	O
the	O
default	O
operating	O
system	O
for	O
launching	O
new	O
hardware	B-Architecture
"	O
for	O
companies	O
without	O
their	O
own	O
mobile	B-Operating_System
platforms	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
openness	O
and	O
flexibility	O
is	O
also	O
present	O
at	O
the	O
level	O
of	O
the	O
end	O
user	O
:	O
Android	B-Application
allows	O
extensive	O
customisation	O
of	O
devices	O
by	O
their	O
owners	O
and	O
apps	B-Application
are	O
freely	O
available	O
from	O
non-Google	O
app	O
stores	O
and	O
third	O
party	O
websites	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
have	O
been	O
cited	O
as	O
among	O
the	O
main	O
advantages	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
phones	I-Application
over	O
others	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Despite	O
Android	B-Application
's	O
popularity	O
,	O
including	O
an	O
activation	O
rate	O
three	O
times	O
that	O
of	O
iOS	B-Application
,	O
there	O
have	O
been	O
reports	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
has	O
not	O
been	O
able	O
to	O
leverage	O
their	O
other	O
products	O
and	O
web	O
services	O
successfully	O
to	O
turn	O
Android	B-Application
into	O
the	O
money	O
maker	O
that	O
analysts	O
had	O
expected	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Verge	O
suggested	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
is	O
losing	O
control	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
due	O
to	O
the	O
extensive	O
customization	O
and	O
proliferation	O
of	O
non-Google	O
apps	B-Application
and	O
services	O
Amazon	B-Application
's	O
Kindle	B-Application
Fire	I-Application
line	O
uses	O
Fire	B-Application
OS	I-Application
,	O
a	O
heavily	O
modified	O
fork	B-Application
of	O
Android	B-Application
which	O
does	O
not	O
include	O
or	O
support	O
any	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
proprietary	B-Application
components	O
,	O
and	O
requires	O
that	O
users	O
obtain	O
software	O
from	O
its	O
competing	O
Amazon	B-Application
Appstore	O
instead	O
of	O
Play	B-Application
Store	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2014	O
,	O
in	O
an	O
effort	O
to	O
improve	O
prominence	O
of	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
brand	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
began	O
to	O
require	O
that	O
devices	O
featuring	O
its	O
proprietary	B-Application
components	O
display	O
an	O
Android	B-Application
logo	O
on	O
the	O
boot	O
screen	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
has	O
suffered	O
from	O
"	O
fragmentation	O
"	O
,	O
a	O
situation	O
where	O
the	O
variety	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
,	O
in	O
terms	O
of	O
both	O
hardware	B-Architecture
variations	O
and	O
differences	O
in	O
the	O
software	O
running	O
on	O
them	O
,	O
makes	O
the	O
task	O
of	O
developing	O
applications	O
that	O
work	O
consistently	O
across	O
the	O
ecosystem	O
harder	O
than	O
rival	O
platforms	B-Device
such	O
as	O
iOS	B-Application
where	O
hardware	B-Architecture
and	O
software	O
varies	O
less	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
data	O
from	O
OpenSignal	B-Application
in	O
July	O
2013	O
,	O
there	O
were	O
11,868	O
models	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
,	O
numerous	O
screen	O
sizes	O
and	O
eight	O
Android	B-Application
OS	I-Application
versions	O
simultaneously	O
in	O
use	O
,	O
while	O
the	O
large	O
majority	O
of	O
iOS	B-Application
users	O
have	O
upgraded	O
to	O
the	O
latest	O
iteration	O
of	O
that	O
OS	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Critics	O
such	O
as	O
Apple	O
Insider	O
have	O
asserted	O
that	O
fragmentation	O
via	O
hardware	B-Architecture
and	O
software	O
pushed	O
Android	B-Application
's	O
growth	O
through	O
large	O
volumes	O
of	O
low	O
end	O
,	O
budget-priced	O
devices	O
running	O
older	O
versions	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
maintain	O
this	O
forces	O
Android	B-Application
developers	I-Application
to	O
write	O
for	O
the	O
"	O
lowest	O
common	O
denominator	O
"	O
to	O
reach	O
as	O
many	O
users	O
as	O
possible	O
,	O
who	O
have	O
too	O
little	O
incentive	O
to	O
make	O
use	O
of	O
the	O
latest	O
hardware	B-Architecture
or	O
software	O
features	O
only	O
available	O
on	O
a	O
smaller	O
percentage	O
of	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
OpenSignal	B-Application
,	O
who	O
develops	O
both	O
Android	B-Application
and	O
iOS	B-Application
apps	B-Application
,	O
concluded	O
that	O
although	O
fragmentation	O
can	O
make	O
development	O
trickier	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
's	O
wider	O
global	O
reach	O
also	O
increases	O
the	O
potential	O
reward	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
the	O
most	O
used	O
operating	O
system	O
on	O
phones	O
in	O
virtually	O
all	O
countries	O
,	O
with	O
some	O
countries	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
India	O
,	O
having	O
over	O
96%	O
market	O
share	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
tablets	B-Device
,	O
usage	O
is	O
more	O
even	O
,	O
as	O
iOS	B-Application
is	O
a	O
bit	O
more	O
popular	O
globally	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Research	O
company	O
Canalys	O
estimated	O
in	O
the	O
second	O
quarter	O
of	O
2009	O
,	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
had	O
a	O
2.8	O
%	O
share	O
of	O
worldwide	O
smartphone	B-Application
shipments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
May	O
2010	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
had	O
a	O
10%	O
worldwide	O
smartphone	B-Application
market	O
share	O
,	O
overtaking	O
Windows	B-Operating_System
Mobile	I-Operating_System
,	O
whilst	O
in	O
the	O
US	O
Android	B-Application
held	O
a	O
28%	O
share	O
,	O
overtaking	O
iPhone	B-Operating_System
OS	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
the	O
fourth	O
quarter	O
of	O
2010	O
,	O
its	O
worldwide	O
share	O
had	O
grown	O
to	O
33%	O
of	O
the	O
market	O
becoming	O
the	O
top-selling	O
smartphone	B-Application
platform	O
,	O
overtaking	O
Symbian	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
US	O
it	O
became	O
the	O
top-selling	O
platform	O
in	O
April	O
2011	O
,	O
overtaking	O
BlackBerry	B-Application
OS	I-Application
with	O
a	O
31.2	O
%	O
smartphone	B-Application
share	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
comScore	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
the	O
third	O
quarter	O
of	O
2011	O
,	O
Gartner	O
estimated	O
that	O
more	O
than	O
half	O
(	O
52.5	O
%	O
)	O
of	O
the	O
smartphone	B-Application
sales	O
belonged	O
to	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
the	O
third	O
quarter	O
of	O
2012	O
Android	B-Application
had	O
a	O
75%	O
share	O
of	O
the	O
global	O
smartphone	B-Application
market	O
according	O
to	O
the	O
research	O
firm	O
IDC	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
July	O
2011	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
said	O
that	O
550,000	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
were	O
being	O
activated	O
every	O
day	O
,	O
up	O
from	O
400,000	O
per	O
day	O
in	O
May	O
,	O
and	O
more	O
than	O
100million	O
devices	O
had	O
been	O
activated	O
with	O
4.4	O
%	O
growth	O
per	O
week	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
2013	O
,	O
at	O
Google	B-Application
I/O	I-Application
,	O
Sundar	O
Pichai	O
announced	O
that	O
900million	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
had	O
been	O
activated	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
market	I-Application
share	O
varies	O
by	O
location	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
July	O
2012	O
,	O
"	O
mobile	O
subscribers	O
aged	O
13+	O
"	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
using	O
Android	B-Application
were	O
up	O
to	O
52%	O
,	O
and	O
rose	O
to	O
90%	O
in	O
China	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
the	O
third	O
quarter	O
of	O
2012	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
's	O
worldwide	O
smartphone	B-Application
shipment	O
market	O
share	O
was	O
75%	O
,	O
with	O
750million	O
devices	O
activated	O
in	O
total	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
April	O
2013	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
had	O
1.5million	O
activations	O
per	O
day	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
48billion	O
application	O
(	O
"	O
app	O
"	O
)	O
installation	O
have	O
been	O
performed	O
from	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	B-Application
store	I-Application
,	O
and	O
by	O
September	O
2013	O
,	O
one	O
billion	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
had	O
been	O
activated	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	B-Application
store	I-Application
had	O
over	O
3million	O
Android	B-Application
applications	I-Application
published	O
,	O
and	O
apps	B-Application
had	O
been	O
downloaded	O
more	O
than	O
65billion	O
times	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
operating	O
system	O
's	O
success	O
has	O
made	O
it	O
a	O
target	O
for	O
patent	O
litigation	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
so-called	O
"	O
smartphone	B-License
wars	I-License
"	O
between	O
technology	O
companies	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
devices	O
account	O
for	O
more	O
than	O
half	O
of	O
smartphone	B-Application
sales	O
in	O
most	O
markets	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
US	O
,	O
while	O
"	O
only	O
in	O
Japan	O
was	O
Apple	O
on	O
top	O
"	O
(	O
September	O
–	O
November	O
2013	O
numbers	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
2013	O
,	O
over	O
1.5billion	O
Android	B-Application
smartphones	I-Application
had	O
been	O
sold	O
in	O
the	O
four	O
years	O
since	O
2010	O
,	O
making	O
Android	B-Application
the	O
most	O
sold	O
phone	O
and	O
tablet	B-Device
OS	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Three	O
billion	O
Android	B-Application
smartphones	I-Application
were	O
estimated	O
to	O
be	O
sold	O
by	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
2014	O
(	O
including	O
previous	O
years	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Gartner	O
research	O
company	O
,	O
Android-based	O
devices	O
outsold	O
all	O
contenders	O
,	O
every	O
year	O
since	O
2012	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
has	O
the	O
largest	O
installed	B-Operating_System
base	I-Operating_System
of	O
all	O
operating	O
systems	O
;	O
Since	O
2013	O
,	O
devices	O
running	O
it	O
also	O
sell	O
more	O
than	O
Windows	O
,	O
iOS	B-Application
and	O
Mac	O
OSX	O
devices	O
combined	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
StatCounter	O
,	O
which	O
tracks	O
only	O
the	O
use	O
for	O
browsing	O
the	O
web	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
the	O
most	O
popular	O
mobile	B-Operating_System
operating	I-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
since	O
August	O
2013	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
the	O
most	O
popular	O
operating	O
system	O
for	O
web	O
browsing	O
in	O
India	O
and	O
several	O
other	O
countries	O
(	O
e.g.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
StatCounter	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
most	O
used	O
on	O
mobile	O
in	O
all	O
African	O
countries	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
stated	O
"	O
mobile	O
usage	O
has	O
already	O
overtaken	O
desktop	B-Application
in	O
several	O
countries	O
including	O
India	O
,	O
South	O
Africa	O
and	O
Saudi	O
Arabia	O
"	O
,	O
with	O
virtually	O
all	O
countries	O
in	O
Africa	O
having	O
done	O
so	O
already	O
(	O
except	O
for	O
seven	O
countries	O
,	O
including	O
Egypt	O
)	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Ethiopia	O
and	O
Kenya	O
in	O
which	O
mobile	O
(	O
including	O
tablets	B-Device
)	O
usage	O
is	O
at	O
90.46	O
%	O
(	O
Android	B-Application
only	O
,	O
accounts	O
for	O
75.81	O
%	O
of	O
all	O
use	O
there	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
Android	B-Application
phones	I-Application
in	O
the	O
Western	O
world	O
almost	O
always	O
include	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
proprietary	B-Application
code	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
)	O
in	O
the	O
otherwise	O
open-source	B-Application
operating	O
system	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
proprietary	B-Application
code	O
and	O
trademark	O
is	O
increasingly	O
not	O
used	O
in	O
emerging	O
markets	O
;	O
"	O
The	O
growth	O
of	O
AOSP	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
goes	O
way	O
beyond	O
just	O
China	O
 [ .. ] 	O
ABI	O
Research	O
claims	O
that	O
65	O
million	O
devices	O
shipped	O
globally	O
with	O
open-source	B-Application
Android	B-Application
in	O
the	O
second	O
quarter	O
of	O
[2014],	O
up	O
from	O
54	O
million	O
in	O
the	O
first	O
quarter	O
"	O
;	O
depending	O
on	O
country	O
,	O
percent	O
of	O
phones	O
estimated	O
to	O
be	O
based	O
only	O
on	O
AOSP	O
source	O
code	O
,	O
forgoing	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
trademark	O
:	O
Thailand	O
(	O
44%	O
)	O
,	O
Philippines	O
(	O
38%	O
)	O
,	O
Indonesia	O
(	O
31%	O
)	O
,	O
India	O
(	O
21%	O
)	O
,	O
Malaysia	O
(	O
24%	O
)	O
,	O
Mexico	O
(	O
18%	O
)	O
,	O
Brazil	O
(	O
9%	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
a	O
January	O
2015	O
Gartner	O
report	O
,	O
"	O
Android	B-Application
surpassed	O
a	O
billion	O
shipments	O
of	O
devices	O
in	O
2014	O
,	O
and	O
will	O
continue	O
to	O
grow	O
at	O
a	O
double-digit	O
pace	O
in	O
2015	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
26	O
percent	O
increase	O
year	O
over	O
year.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
made	O
it	O
the	O
first	O
time	O
that	O
any	O
general-purpose	O
operating	O
system	O
has	O
reached	O
more	O
than	O
one	O
billion	O
end	O
users	O
within	O
a	O
year	O
:	O
by	O
reaching	O
close	O
to	O
1.16billion	O
end	O
users	O
in	O
2014	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
shipped	O
over	O
four	O
times	O
more	O
than	O
iOS	B-Application
and	O
OS	O
X	B-Operating_System
combined	O
,	O
and	O
over	O
three	O
times	O
more	O
than	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Gartner	O
expected	O
the	O
whole	O
mobile	O
phone	O
market	O
to	O
"	O
reach	O
two	O
billion	O
units	O
in	O
2016	O
"	O
,	O
including	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Describing	O
the	O
statistics	O
,	O
Farhad	O
Manjoo	O
wrote	O
in	O
The	O
New	O
York	O
Times	O
that	O
"	O
About	O
one	O
of	O
every	O
two	O
computers	O
sold	O
today	O
is	O
running	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
a	O
Statistica	B-Application
's	O
estimate	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
smartphones	I-Application
had	O
an	O
installed	B-Operating_System
base	I-Operating_System
of	O
1.8billion	O
units	O
in	O
2015	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
76%	O
of	O
the	O
estimated	O
total	O
number	O
of	O
smartphones	B-Application
worldwide	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
has	O
the	O
largest	O
installed	B-Operating_System
base	I-Operating_System
of	O
any	O
mobile	B-Operating_System
operating	I-Operating_System
system	I-Operating_System
and	O
,	O
since	O
2013	O
,	O
the	O
highest-selling	O
operating	O
system	O
overall	O
with	O
sales	O
in	O
2012	O
,	O
2013	O
and	O
2014	O
close	O
to	O
the	O
installed	B-Operating_System
base	I-Operating_System
of	O
all	O
PCs	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
second	O
quarter	O
of	O
2014	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
's	O
share	O
of	O
the	O
global	O
smartphone	B-Application
shipment	O
market	O
was	O
84.7	O
%	O
,	O
a	O
new	O
record	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
had	O
grown	O
to	O
87.5	O
%	O
worldwide	O
market	O
share	O
by	O
the	O
third	O
quarter	O
of	O
2016	O
,	O
leaving	O
main	O
competitor	O
iOS	B-Application
with	O
12.1	O
%	O
market	O
share	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
an	O
April	O
2017	O
StatCounter	O
report	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
overtook	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
to	O
become	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
operating	O
system	O
for	O
total	O
Internet	O
usage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
September	O
2015	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
had	O
1.4billion	O
monthly	O
active	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Despite	O
its	O
success	O
on	O
smartphones	B-Application
,	O
initially	O
Android	B-Application
tablet	B-Device
adoption	O
was	O
slow	O
,	O
then	O
later	O
caught	O
up	O
with	O
the	O
iPad	B-Device
,	O
in	O
most	O
countries	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
of	O
the	O
main	O
causes	O
was	O
the	O
chicken	O
or	O
the	O
egg	O
situation	O
where	O
consumers	O
were	O
hesitant	O
to	O
buy	O
an	O
Android	B-Application
tablet	B-Device
due	O
to	O
a	O
lack	O
of	O
high	O
quality	O
tablet	B-Device
applications	O
,	O
but	O
developers	B-Application
were	O
hesitant	O
to	O
spend	O
time	O
and	O
resources	O
developing	O
tablet	B-Device
applications	O
until	O
there	O
was	O
a	O
significant	O
market	O
for	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
content	O
and	O
app	O
"	O
ecosystem	O
"	O
proved	O
more	O
important	O
than	O
hardware	B-Architecture
specs	O
as	O
the	O
selling	O
point	O
for	O
tablets	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Due	O
to	O
the	O
lack	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
tablet-specific	O
applications	O
in	O
2011	O
,	O
early	O
Android	B-Application
tablets	B-Device
had	O
to	O
make	O
do	O
with	O
existing	O
smartphone	B-Application
applications	I-Application
that	O
were	O
ill-suited	O
to	O
larger	O
screen	O
sizes	O
,	O
whereas	O
the	O
dominance	O
of	O
Apple	O
's	O
iPad	B-Device
was	O
reinforced	O
by	O
the	O
large	O
number	O
of	O
tablet-specific	O
iOS	B-Application
applications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Despite	O
app	O
support	O
in	O
its	O
infancy	O
,	O
a	O
considerable	O
number	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
tablets	B-Device
,	O
like	O
the	O
Barnes	B-Application
&	I-Application
Noble	I-Application
Nook	I-Application
(	O
alongside	O
those	O
using	O
other	O
operating	O
systems	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
HP	B-Application
TouchPad	I-Application
and	O
BlackBerry	B-Application
PlayBook	I-Application
)	O
were	O
rushed	O
out	O
to	O
market	O
in	O
an	O
attempt	O
to	O
capitalize	O
on	O
the	O
success	O
of	O
the	O
iPad	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
InfoWorld	O
has	O
suggested	O
that	O
some	O
Android	B-Application
manufacturers	O
initially	O
treated	O
their	O
first	O
tablets	B-Device
as	O
a	O
"	O
Frankenphone	O
business	O
"	O
,	O
a	O
short-term	O
low-investment	O
opportunity	O
by	O
placing	O
a	O
smartphone-optimized	O
Android	B-Application
OS	I-Application
(	O
before	O
Android	B-Application
3.0	O
Honeycomb	O
for	O
tablets	B-Device
was	O
available	O
)	O
on	O
a	O
device	O
while	O
neglecting	O
user	O
interface	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
approach	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
with	O
the	O
Dell	B-Application
Streak	I-Application
,	O
failed	O
to	O
gain	O
market	O
traction	O
with	O
consumers	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
damaging	O
the	O
early	O
reputation	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
tablets	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Furthermore	O
,	O
several	O
Android	B-Application
tablets	B-Device
such	O
as	O
the	O
Motorola	B-Application
Xoom	I-Application
were	O
priced	O
the	O
same	O
or	O
higher	O
than	O
the	O
iPad	B-Device
,	O
which	O
hurt	O
sales	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
exception	O
was	O
the	O
Amazon	B-Application
Kindle	I-Application
Fire	I-Application
,	O
which	O
relied	O
upon	O
lower	O
pricing	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
access	O
to	O
Amazon	B-Application
's	O
ecosystem	O
of	O
applications	O
and	O
content	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
began	O
to	O
change	O
in	O
2012	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
release	O
of	O
the	O
affordable	O
Nexus	B-Device
7	O
and	O
a	O
push	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
for	O
developers	B-Application
to	O
write	O
better	O
tablet	B-Device
applications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
International	O
Data	O
Corporation	O
,	O
shipments	O
of	O
Android-powered	O
tablets	B-Device
surpassed	O
iPads	B-Device
in	O
Q3	O
2012	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
2013	O
,	O
over	O
191.6million	O
Android	B-Application
tablets	B-Device
had	O
sold	O
in	O
three	O
years	O
since	O
2011	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
made	O
Android	B-Application
tablets	B-Device
the	O
most-sold	O
type	O
of	O
tablet	B-Device
in	O
2013	O
,	O
surpassing	O
iPads	B-Device
in	O
the	O
second	O
quarter	O
of	O
2013	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
StatCounter	O
's	O
web	O
use	O
statistics	O
,	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
tablets	B-Device
represent	O
the	O
majority	O
of	O
tablet	B-Device
devices	I-Device
used	O
in	O
Africa	O
(	O
70%	O
)	O
,	O
South	O
America	O
(	O
65%	O
)	O
,	O
while	O
less	O
than	O
half	O
elsewhere	O
,	O
e.g.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
countries	O
on	O
all	O
continents	O
where	O
Android	B-Application
tablets	B-Device
are	O
the	O
majority	O
,	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
Mexico	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
March	O
2016	O
,	O
Galen	O
Gruman	O
of	O
InfoWorld	O
stated	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
could	O
be	O
a	O
"	O
real	O
part	O
of	O
your	O
business	O
 [ .. ] 	O
there	O
's	O
no	O
longer	O
a	O
reason	O
to	O
keep	O
Android	B-Application
at	O
arm	B-Architecture
's	O
length	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
can	O
now	O
be	O
as	O
integral	O
to	O
your	O
mobile	O
portfolio	O
as	O
Apple	O
's	O
iOS	B-Application
devices	O
are	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
year	O
earlier	O
,	O
Gruman	O
had	O
stated	O
that	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
own	O
mobile	B-Application
Office	I-Application
apps	I-Application
were	O
"	O
better	O
on	O
iOS	B-Application
and	O
Android	B-Application
"	O
than	O
on	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
own	O
Windows	B-Operating_System
10	I-Operating_System
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
recently	O
released	O
Android	B-Application
12	I-Application
is	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
Android	B-Application
version	I-Application
on	O
smartphones	B-Application
and	O
tablets	B-Device
combined	O
,	O
usage	O
is	O
at	O
78%	O
for	O
all	O
supported	O
versions	O
,	O
i.e.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
10	I-Application
and	O
newer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
,	O
Android	B-Application
12	I-Application
is	O
most	O
popular	O
on	O
smartphones	B-Application
at	O
22%	O
,	O
followed	O
by	O
Android	B-Application
11	I-Application
almost	O
even	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
13	I-Application
,	O
the	O
most	O
recent	O
version	O
,	O
is	O
3rd	O
most	O
popular	O
at	O
18%	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Usage	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
10	I-Application
and	O
newer	O
,	O
i.e.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
13	I-Application
is	O
most	O
popular	O
in	O
the	O
US	O
,	O
Canada	O
and	O
most	O
European	O
countries	O
and	O
e.g.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
tablets	B-Device
,	O
Android	B-Application
9.0	I-Application
Pie	B-Application
is	O
again	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
single	O
version	O
,	O
at	O
18%	O
,	O
and	O
Android	B-Application
12	I-Application
that	O
was	O
ahead	O
at	O
19%	O
is	O
down	O
to	O
11%	O
,	O
4th	O
,	O
while	O
Android	B-Application
11	I-Application
is	O
now	O
2nd	O
at	O
17%	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Usage	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
10	I-Application
and	O
newer	O
,	O
i.e.	O
</s>
<s>
supported	O
versions	O
,	O
is	O
at	O
47%	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
tablets	B-Device
,	O
with	O
Pie	B-Application
9.0	O
,	O
until	O
recently	O
supported	O
,	O
at	O
65%	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
9.0	I-Application
Pie	B-Application
is	O
the	O
version	O
with	O
the	O
greatest	O
usage	O
share	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
(	O
also	O
in	O
the	O
UK	O
)	O
at	O
36%	O
,	O
while	O
countries	O
ahead	O
include	O
Canada	O
,	O
Mexico	O
and	O
most	O
Nordic	O
countries	O
mostly	O
using	O
Android	B-Application
13	I-Application
,	O
Android	B-Application
11	I-Application
is	O
also	O
very	O
popular	O
e.g.	O
</s>
<s>
most	O
used	O
in	O
Australia	O
,	O
Russia	O
and	O
Oreo	B-Application
8.1	O
most	O
used	O
in	O
China	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
January	O
2023	O
,	O
85%	O
of	O
devices	O
have	O
Vulkan	B-Application
graphics	O
support	O
(	O
77.0	O
%	O
are	O
on	O
newer	O
Vulkan	B-Application
1.1	O
)	O
,	O
the	O
successor	O
to	O
OpenGL	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
general	O
,	O
paid	O
Android	B-Application
applications	I-Application
can	O
easily	O
be	O
pirated	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
May	O
2012	O
interview	O
with	O
Eurogamer	O
,	O
the	O
developers	B-Application
of	O
Football	B-Application
Manager	I-Application
stated	O
that	O
the	O
ratio	O
of	O
pirated	O
players	O
vs	O
legitimate	O
players	O
was	O
9:1	O
for	O
their	O
game	O
Football	B-Application
Manager	I-Application
Handheld	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
not	O
every	O
developer	O
agreed	O
that	O
piracy	O
rates	O
were	O
an	O
issue	O
;	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
in	O
July	O
2012	O
the	O
developers	B-Application
of	O
the	O
game	O
Wind-up	O
Knight	O
said	O
that	O
piracy	O
levels	O
of	O
their	O
game	O
were	O
only	O
12%	O
,	O
and	O
most	O
of	O
the	O
piracy	O
came	O
from	O
China	O
,	O
where	O
people	O
cannot	O
purchase	O
apps	B-Application
from	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2010	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
released	O
a	O
tool	O
for	O
validating	O
authorized	O
purchases	O
for	O
use	O
within	O
apps	B-Application
,	O
but	O
developers	B-Application
complained	O
that	O
this	O
was	O
insufficient	O
and	O
trivial	O
to	O
crack	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
responded	O
that	O
the	O
tool	O
,	O
especially	O
its	O
initial	O
release	O
,	O
was	O
intended	O
as	O
a	O
sample	O
framework	O
for	O
developers	B-Application
to	O
modify	O
and	O
build	O
upon	O
depending	O
on	O
their	O
needs	O
,	O
not	O
as	O
a	O
finished	O
piracy	O
solution	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
"	O
Jelly	B-Application
Bean	I-Application
"	O
introduced	O
the	O
ability	O
for	O
paid	O
applications	O
to	O
be	O
encrypted	O
,	O
so	O
that	O
they	O
may	O
work	O
only	O
on	O
the	O
device	O
for	O
which	O
they	O
were	O
purchased	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
success	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
has	O
made	O
it	O
a	O
target	O
for	O
patent	O
and	O
copyright	O
litigation	O
between	O
technology	O
companies	O
,	O
both	O
Android	B-Application
and	O
Android	B-Application
phone	I-Application
manufacturers	O
having	O
been	O
involved	O
in	O
numerous	O
patent	O
lawsuits	O
and	O
other	O
legal	O
challenges	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
August	O
12	B-Application
,	O
2010	O
,	O
Oracle	B-Application
sued	O
Google	B-Application
over	O
claimed	O
infringement	O
of	O
copyrights	O
and	O
patents	O
related	O
to	O
the	O
Java	B-Language
programming	I-Language
language	I-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Oracle	B-Application
originally	O
sought	O
damages	O
up	O
to	O
$6.1	O
billion	O
,	O
but	O
this	O
valuation	O
was	O
rejected	O
by	O
a	O
United	O
States	O
federal	O
judge	O
who	O
asked	O
Oracle	B-Application
to	O
revise	O
the	O
estimate	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
response	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
submitted	O
multiple	O
lines	O
of	O
defense	O
,	O
counterclaiming	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
did	O
not	O
infringe	O
on	O
Oracle	B-Application
's	O
patents	O
or	O
copyright	O
,	O
that	O
Oracle	B-Application
's	O
patents	O
were	O
invalid	O
,	O
and	O
several	O
other	O
defenses	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
said	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
's	O
Java	B-Language
runtime	O
environment	O
is	O
based	O
on	O
Apache	B-Application
Harmony	I-Application
,	O
a	O
clean	O
room	O
implementation	O
of	O
the	O
Java	B-Language
class	O
libraries	B-Library
,	O
and	O
an	O
independently	O
developed	O
virtual	O
machine	O
called	O
Dalvik	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
2012	O
,	O
the	O
jury	O
in	O
this	O
case	O
found	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
did	O
not	O
infringe	O
on	O
Oracle	B-Application
's	O
patents	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
trial	O
judge	O
ruled	O
that	O
the	O
structure	O
of	O
the	O
Java	B-Language
APIs	B-Application
used	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
was	O
not	O
copyrightable	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
May	O
9	B-Application
,	O
2014	O
,	O
the	O
Federal	O
Circuit	O
partially	O
reversed	O
the	O
district	O
court	O
ruling	O
,	O
ruling	O
in	O
Oracle	B-Application
's	O
favor	O
on	O
the	O
copyrightability	O
issue	O
,	O
and	O
remanding	O
the	O
issue	O
of	O
fair	O
use	O
to	O
the	O
district	O
court	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2015	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
the	O
next	O
major	O
release	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
(	O
Android	B-Application
Nougat	I-Application
)	O
would	O
switch	O
to	O
OpenJDK	B-Language
,	O
which	O
is	O
the	O
official	O
open-source	B-Application
implementation	O
of	O
the	O
Java	B-Device
platform	I-Device
,	O
instead	O
of	O
using	O
the	O
now-discontinued	O
Apache	B-Application
Harmony	I-Application
project	O
as	O
its	O
runtime	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
its	O
announcement	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
claimed	O
this	O
was	O
part	O
of	O
an	O
effort	O
to	O
create	O
a	O
"	O
common	O
code	O
base	O
"	O
between	O
Java	B-Language
on	O
Android	B-Application
and	O
other	O
platforms	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
later	O
admitted	O
in	O
a	O
court	O
filing	O
that	O
this	O
was	O
part	O
of	O
an	O
effort	O
to	O
address	O
the	O
disputes	O
with	O
Oracle	B-Application
,	O
as	O
its	O
use	O
of	O
OpenJDK	B-Language
code	O
is	O
governed	O
under	O
the	O
GNU	B-License
General	I-License
Public	I-License
License	I-License
(	O
GPL	B-License
)	O
with	O
a	O
linking	B-Application
exception	I-Application
,	O
and	O
that	O
"	O
any	O
damages	O
claim	O
associated	O
with	O
the	O
new	O
versions	O
expressly	O
licensed	O
by	O
Oracle	B-Application
under	O
OpenJDK	B-Language
would	O
require	O
a	O
separate	O
analysis	O
of	O
damages	O
from	O
earlier	O
releases	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
2016	O
,	O
a	O
United	O
States	O
federal	O
court	O
ruled	O
in	O
favor	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
stating	O
that	O
its	O
use	O
of	O
the	O
APIs	B-Application
was	O
fair	O
use	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
April	O
2021	O
,	O
the	O
United	O
Supreme	O
Court	O
ruled	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
use	O
of	O
the	O
Java	B-Language
APIs	B-Application
was	O
within	O
the	O
bounds	O
of	O
fair	O
use	O
,	O
reversing	O
the	O
Federal	O
Circuit	O
Appeals	O
Court	O
ruling	O
and	O
remanding	O
the	O
case	O
for	O
further	O
hearing	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
majority	O
opinion	O
began	O
with	O
the	O
assumption	O
that	O
the	O
APIs	B-Application
may	O
be	O
copyrightable	O
,	O
and	O
thus	O
proceeded	O
with	O
a	O
review	O
of	O
the	O
factors	O
that	O
contributed	O
to	O
fair	O
use	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2013	O
,	O
FairSearch	O
,	O
a	O
lobbying	O
organization	O
supported	O
by	O
Microsoft	O
,	O
Oracle	B-Application
and	O
others	O
,	O
filed	O
a	O
complaint	O
regarding	O
Android	B-Application
with	O
the	O
European	O
Commission	O
,	O
alleging	O
that	O
its	O
free-of-charge	O
distribution	O
model	O
constituted	O
anti-competitive	O
predatory	O
pricing	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Operating_System
Free	I-Operating_System
Software	I-Operating_System
Foundation	I-Operating_System
Europe	O
,	O
whose	O
donors	O
include	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
disputed	O
the	O
Fairsearch	O
allegations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
April	O
20	O
,	O
2016	O
,	O
the	O
EU	O
filed	O
a	O
formal	O
antitrust	O
complaint	O
against	O
Google	B-Application
based	O
upon	O
the	O
FairSearch	O
allegations	O
,	O
arguing	O
that	O
its	O
leverage	O
over	O
Android	B-Application
vendors	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
mandatory	O
bundling	O
of	O
the	O
entire	O
suite	O
of	O
proprietary	B-Application
Google	B-Application
software	O
,	O
hindering	O
the	O
ability	O
for	O
competing	O
search	O
providers	O
to	O
be	O
integrated	O
into	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
and	O
barring	O
vendors	O
from	O
producing	O
devices	O
running	O
forks	B-Application
of	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
constituted	O
anti-competitive	O
practices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
August	O
2016	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
was	O
fined	O
US	O
$6.75	O
million	O
by	O
the	O
Russian	O
Federal	O
Antimonopoly	O
Service	O
(	O
FAS	O
)	O
under	O
similar	O
allegations	O
by	O
Yandex	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
European	O
Commission	O
issued	O
its	O
decision	O
on	O
July	O
18	O
,	O
2018	O
,	O
determining	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
had	O
conducted	O
three	O
operations	O
related	O
to	O
Android	B-Application
that	O
were	O
in	O
violation	O
of	O
antitrust	O
regulations	O
:	O
bundling	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
search	O
and	O
Chrome	B-Operating_System
as	O
part	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
blocking	O
phone	O
manufacturers	O
from	O
using	O
forked	O
versions	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
and	O
establishing	O
deals	O
with	O
phone	O
manufacturers	O
and	O
network	O
providers	O
to	O
exclusively	O
bundle	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
search	O
application	O
on	O
handsets	O
(	O
a	O
practice	O
Google	B-Application
ended	O
by	O
2014	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
EU	O
fined	O
Google	B-Application
for	O
(	O
about	O
)	O
and	O
required	O
the	O
company	O
to	O
end	O
this	O
conduct	O
within	O
90	O
days	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
filed	O
its	O
appeal	O
of	O
the	O
ruling	O
in	O
October	O
2018	O
,	O
though	O
will	O
not	O
ask	O
for	O
any	O
interim	O
measures	O
to	O
delay	O
the	O
onset	O
of	O
conduct	O
requirements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
October	O
16	O
,	O
2018	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
it	O
would	O
change	O
its	O
distribution	O
model	O
for	O
Google	B-Application
Mobile	I-Application
Services	I-Application
in	O
the	O
EU	O
,	O
since	O
part	O
of	O
its	O
revenues	O
streams	O
for	O
Android	B-Application
which	O
came	O
through	O
use	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
Search	O
and	O
Chrome	B-Operating_System
were	O
now	O
prohibited	O
by	O
the	O
EU	O
's	O
ruling	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
the	O
core	O
Android	B-Application
system	I-Application
remains	O
free	O
,	O
OEMs	O
in	O
Europe	O
would	O
be	O
required	O
to	O
purchase	O
a	O
paid	O
license	O
to	O
the	O
core	O
suite	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
applications	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Gmail	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
Maps	O
and	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	B-Application
Store	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
Search	O
will	O
be	O
licensed	O
separately	O
,	O
with	O
an	O
option	O
to	O
include	O
Google	B-Application
Chrome	I-Application
at	O
no	O
additional	O
cost	O
atop	O
Search	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
OEMs	O
will	O
no	O
longer	O
be	O
barred	O
from	O
selling	O
any	O
device	O
running	O
incompatible	O
versions	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
in	O
Europe	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
to	O
lawsuits	O
against	O
Google	B-Application
directly	O
,	O
various	O
proxy	O
wars	O
have	O
been	O
waged	O
against	O
Android	B-Application
indirectly	O
by	O
targeting	O
manufacturers	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
effect	O
of	O
discouraging	O
manufacturers	O
from	O
adopting	O
the	O
platform	O
by	O
increasing	O
the	O
costs	O
of	O
bringing	O
an	O
Android	B-Application
device	O
to	O
market	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Both	O
Apple	O
and	O
Microsoft	O
have	O
sued	O
several	O
manufacturers	O
for	O
patent	O
infringement	O
,	O
with	O
Apple	O
's	O
ongoing	O
legal	O
action	O
against	O
Samsung	B-Application
being	O
a	O
particularly	O
high-profile	O
case	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
January	O
2012	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
said	O
they	O
had	O
signed	O
patent	O
license	O
agreements	O
with	O
eleven	O
Android	B-Application
device	O
manufacturers	O
,	O
whose	O
products	O
account	O
for	O
"	O
70	O
percent	O
of	O
all	O
Android	B-Application
smartphones	I-Application
"	O
sold	O
in	O
the	O
US	O
and	O
55%	O
of	O
the	O
worldwide	O
revenue	O
for	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
include	O
Samsung	B-Application
and	O
HTC	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Samsung	B-Application
's	O
patent	O
settlement	O
with	O
Microsoft	O
included	O
an	O
agreement	O
to	O
allocate	O
more	O
resources	O
to	O
developing	O
and	O
marketing	O
phones	O
running	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
Windows	B-Protocol
Phone	I-Protocol
operating	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
has	O
also	O
tied	O
its	O
own	O
Android	B-Application
software	I-Application
to	O
patent	O
licenses	B-License
,	O
requiring	O
the	O
bundling	O
of	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Office	I-Application
Mobile	I-Application
and	O
Skype	B-Application
applications	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
to	O
subsidize	O
the	O
licensing	O
fees	O
,	O
while	O
at	O
the	O
same	O
time	O
helping	O
to	O
promote	O
its	O
software	O
lines	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
has	O
publicly	O
expressed	O
its	O
frustration	O
for	O
the	O
current	O
patent	O
landscape	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
,	O
accusing	O
Apple	O
,	O
Oracle	B-Application
and	O
Microsoft	O
of	O
trying	O
to	O
take	O
down	O
Android	B-Application
through	O
patent	O
litigation	O
,	O
rather	O
than	O
innovating	O
and	O
competing	O
with	O
better	O
products	O
and	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
August	O
2011	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
purchased	O
Motorola	O
Mobility	O
for	O
US	O
$12.5	O
billion	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
viewed	O
in	O
part	O
as	O
a	O
defensive	O
measure	O
to	O
protect	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
since	O
Motorola	O
Mobility	O
held	O
more	O
than	O
17,000	O
patents	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2011	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
bought	O
over	O
a	O
thousand	O
patents	O
from	O
IBM	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Turkey	O
's	O
competition	O
authority	O
investigations	O
about	O
default	O
search	B-Application
engine	I-Application
in	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
started	O
in	O
2017	O
,	O
led	O
to	O
a	O
US	O
$17.4	O
million	O
fine	O
in	O
September	O
2018	O
and	O
a	O
fine	O
of	O
0.05	O
percent	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
revenue	O
per	O
day	O
in	O
November	O
2019	O
when	O
Google	B-Application
did	O
n't	O
meet	O
the	O
requirements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2019	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
stopped	O
issuing	O
licenses	B-License
for	O
new	O
Android	B-Application
phone	I-Application
models	O
sold	O
in	O
Turkey	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
has	O
developed	O
several	O
variations	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
for	O
specific	O
use	O
cases	O
,	O
including	O
Android	B-Application
Wear	I-Application
,	O
later	O
renamed	O
Wear	B-Application
OS	I-Application
,	O
for	O
wearable	O
devices	O
such	O
as	O
wrist	O
watches	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
TV	I-Application
for	O
televisions	O
,	O
Android	B-Device
Things	I-Device
for	O
smart	O
or	O
Internet	B-Operating_System
of	I-Operating_System
things	I-Operating_System
devices	O
and	O
Android	B-Application
Automotive	I-Application
for	O
cars	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
,	O
by	O
providing	O
infrastructure	O
that	O
combines	O
dedicated	O
hardware	B-Architecture
and	O
dedicated	O
applications	O
running	O
on	O
regular	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
Google	B-Application
have	O
opened	O
up	O
the	O
platform	O
for	O
its	O
use	O
in	O
particular	O
usage	O
scenarios	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
Auto	I-Application
app	O
for	O
cars	O
,	O
and	O
Daydream	B-Application
,	O
a	O
Virtual	B-Application
Reality	I-Application
platform	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
open	O
and	O
customizable	O
nature	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
allows	O
device	O
makers	O
to	O
use	O
it	O
on	O
other	O
electronics	O
as	O
well	O
,	O
including	O
laptops	O
,	O
netbooks	B-Device
,	O
and	O
desktop	B-Device
computers	I-Device
,	O
cameras	O
,	O
headphones	O
,	O
home	O
automation	O
systems	O
,	O
game	B-Device
consoles	I-Device
,	O
media	O
players	O
,	O
satellites	O
,	O
routers	B-Protocol
,	O
printers	O
,	O
payment	O
terminals	O
,	O
automated	O
teller	O
machines	O
,	O
and	O
robots	B-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
,	O
Android	B-Application
has	O
been	O
installed	O
and	O
run	O
on	O
a	O
variety	O
of	O
less-technical	O
objects	O
,	O
including	O
calculators	O
,	O
single-board	B-Device
computers	I-Device
,	O
feature	B-Device
phones	I-Device
,	O
electronic	B-Device
dictionaries	I-Device
,	O
alarm	O
clocks	O
,	O
refrigerators	O
,	O
landline	B-Application
telephones	I-Application
,	O
coffee	O
machines	O
,	O
bicycles	O
,	O
and	O
mirrors	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ouya	B-Application
,	O
a	O
video	B-Device
game	I-Device
console	I-Device
running	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
became	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
successful	O
Kickstarter	O
campaigns	O
,	O
crowdfunding	O
US	O
$8.5	O
m	O
for	O
its	O
development	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
later	O
followed	O
by	O
other	O
Android-based	O
consoles	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Nvidia	O
's	O
Shield	B-Application
Portable	I-Application
an	O
Android	B-Application
device	O
in	O
a	O
video	B-Device
game	I-Device
controller	I-Device
form	O
factor	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2011	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
demonstrated	O
"	O
Android	B-Application
@Home	O
"	O
,	O
a	O
home	O
automation	O
technology	O
which	O
uses	O
Android	B-Application
to	O
control	O
a	O
range	O
of	O
household	O
devices	O
including	O
light	O
switches	O
,	O
power	O
sockets	O
and	O
thermostats	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Prototype	B-Application
light	O
bulbs	O
were	O
announced	O
that	O
could	O
be	O
controlled	O
from	O
an	O
Android	B-Application
phone	I-Application
or	O
tablet	B-Device
,	O
but	O
Android	B-Application
head	O
Andy	O
Rubin	O
was	O
cautious	O
to	O
note	O
that	O
"	O
turning	O
a	O
lightbulb	O
on	O
and	O
off	O
is	O
nothing	O
new	O
"	O
,	O
pointing	O
to	O
numerous	O
failed	O
home	O
automation	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
,	O
he	O
said	O
,	O
was	O
thinking	O
more	O
ambitiously	O
and	O
the	O
intention	O
was	O
to	O
use	O
their	O
position	O
as	O
a	O
cloud	B-Architecture
services	I-Architecture
provider	I-Architecture
to	O
bring	O
Google	B-Application
products	O
into	O
customers	O
 '	O
homes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parrot	O
unveiled	O
an	O
Android-based	O
car	O
stereo	O
system	O
known	O
as	O
Asteroid	O
in	O
2011	O
,	O
followed	O
by	O
a	O
successor	O
,	O
the	O
touchscreen-based	O
Asteroid	O
Smart	O
,	O
in	O
2012	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2013	O
,	O
Clarion	O
released	O
its	O
own	O
Android-based	O
car	O
stereo	O
,	O
the	O
AX1	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
January	O
2014	O
,	O
at	O
the	O
Consumer	O
Electronics	O
Show	O
(	O
CES	O
)	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
the	O
formation	O
of	O
the	O
Open	B-Application
Automotive	I-Application
Alliance	I-Application
,	O
a	O
group	O
including	O
several	O
major	O
automobile	O
makers	O
(	O
Audi	O
,	O
General	O
Motors	O
,	O
Hyundai	O
,	O
and	O
Honda	O
)	O
and	O
Nvidia	O
,	O
which	O
aims	O
to	O
produce	O
Android-based	O
in-car	O
entertainment	O
systems	O
for	O
automobiles	O
,	O
"[bringing]	O
the	O
best	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
into	O
the	O
automobile	O
in	O
a	O
safe	O
and	O
seamless	O
way.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
comes	O
preinstalled	B-Application
on	O
a	O
few	O
laptops	O
(	O
a	O
similar	O
functionality	O
of	O
running	O
Android	B-Application
applications	I-Application
is	O
also	O
available	O
in	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
ChromeOS	B-Operating_System
)	O
and	O
can	O
also	O
be	O
installed	O
on	O
personal	B-Device
computers	I-Device
by	O
end	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
those	O
platforms	B-Device
Android	B-Application
provides	O
additional	O
functionality	O
for	O
physical	O
keyboards	B-Device
and	O
mice	B-Device
,	O
together	O
with	O
the	O
"	O
Alt-Tab	O
"	O
key	O
combination	O
for	O
switching	O
applications	O
quickly	O
with	O
a	O
keyboard	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2014	O
,	O
one	O
reviewer	O
commented	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
's	O
notification	O
system	O
is	O
"	O
vastly	O
more	O
complete	O
and	O
robust	O
than	O
in	O
most	O
environments	O
"	O
and	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
"	O
absolutely	O
usable	O
"	O
as	O
one	O
's	O
primary	O
desktop	B-Application
operating	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
October	O
2015	O
,	O
The	O
Wall	O
Street	O
Journal	O
reported	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
will	O
serve	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
future	O
main	O
laptop	O
operating	O
system	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
plan	O
to	O
fold	O
ChromeOS	B-Operating_System
into	O
it	O
by	O
2017	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
Sundar	O
Pichai	O
,	O
who	O
led	O
the	O
development	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
explained	O
that	O
"	O
mobile	O
as	O
a	O
computing	O
paradigm	O
is	O
eventually	O
going	O
to	O
blend	O
with	O
what	O
we	O
think	O
of	O
as	O
desktop	B-Application
today.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Also	O
,	O
back	O
in	O
2009	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
co-founder	O
Sergey	O
Brin	O
himself	O
said	O
that	O
ChromeOS	B-Operating_System
and	O
Android	B-Application
would	O
"	O
likely	O
converge	O
over	O
time.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Lockheimer	O
,	O
who	O
replaced	O
Pichai	O
as	O
head	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
and	O
ChromeOS	B-Operating_System
,	O
responded	O
to	O
this	O
claim	O
with	O
an	O
official	O
Google	B-Application
blog	O
post	O
stating	O
that	O
"	O
While	O
we	O
've	O
been	O
working	O
on	O
ways	O
to	O
bring	O
together	O
the	O
best	O
of	O
both	O
operating	O
systems	O
,	O
there	O
's	O
no	O
plan	O
to	O
phase	O
out	O
ChromeOS	B-Operating_System
[	O
which	O
has ]	O
guaranteed	O
auto-updates	O
for	O
five	O
years	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
That	O
is	O
unlike	O
Android	B-Application
where	O
support	O
is	O
shorter	O
with	O
"	O
EOL	O
dates	O
being	O
..	O
at	O
least	O
3	O
years	O
[	O
into	O
the	O
future ]	O
for	O
Android	B-Application
tablets	B-Device
for	O
education	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
Google	B-Application
I/O	I-Application
in	O
May	O
2016	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
Daydream	B-Application
,	O
a	O
virtual	B-Application
reality	I-Application
platform	O
that	O
relies	O
on	O
a	O
smartphone	B-Application
and	O
provides	O
VR	O
capabilities	O
through	O
a	O
virtual	B-Device
reality	I-Device
headset	I-Device
and	O
controller	O
designed	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
itself	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
platform	O
is	O
built	O
into	O
Android	B-Application
starting	O
with	O
Android	B-Application
Nougat	I-Application
,	O
differentiating	O
from	O
standalone	O
support	O
for	O
VR	O
capabilities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
software	O
is	O
available	O
for	O
developers	B-Application
,	O
and	O
was	O
released	O
in	O
2016	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
mascot	O
of	O
Android	B-Application
is	I-Application
a	O
green	O
android	B-Application
robot	B-Algorithm
,	O
as	O
related	O
to	O
the	O
software	O
's	O
name	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
it	O
has	O
no	O
official	O
name	O
,	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
team	O
at	O
Google	B-Application
reportedly	O
call	O
it	O
"	O
Bugdroid	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
designed	O
by	O
then-Google	O
graphic	O
designer	O
Irina	O
Blok	O
on	O
November	O
5	O
,	O
2007	O
,	O
when	O
Android	B-Application
was	O
announced	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Contrary	O
to	O
reports	O
that	O
she	O
was	O
tasked	O
with	O
a	O
project	O
to	O
create	O
an	O
icon	O
,	O
Blok	O
confirmed	O
in	O
an	O
interview	O
that	O
she	O
independently	O
developed	O
it	O
and	O
made	O
it	O
open	B-Application
source	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
robot	B-Algorithm
design	O
was	O
initially	O
not	O
presented	O
to	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
but	O
it	O
quickly	O
became	O
commonplace	O
in	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
development	I-Application
team	O
,	O
with	O
various	O
variations	O
of	O
it	O
created	O
by	O
the	O
developers	B-Application
there	O
who	O
liked	O
the	O
figure	O
,	O
as	O
it	O
was	O
free	O
under	O
a	O
Creative	O
Commons	O
license	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Its	O
popularity	O
amongst	O
the	O
development	O
team	O
eventually	O
led	O
to	O
Google	B-Application
adopting	O
it	O
as	O
an	O
official	O
icon	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
logo	O
when	O
it	O
launched	O
to	O
consumers	O
in	O
2008	O
.	O
</s>
