Symbian feels the heat from Android

Apparently threatened by the rise of Android OS as a capable mobile platform, people from the Symbian Foundation are now lashing out at Google.  Read on...

Some folks are claiming that Google is faking the open-source funk.

OK, it's a lot to say, really. Because for all the open-source software Google has helped put forth, it's a bit of a stretch to imply that the company is faking it. But Lee Williams, executive director of the Symbian Foundation, which is in charge of advancing the development and the open-sourcing of the Symbian OS, has basically called Google out for not being as open as the company could be about its Android operating system.

It's not the first time and it won't be the last that Google's been knocked about its policies regarding openness of certain technologies or strategies—policies, by the way, that certain other companies (like Microsoft!) would be blasted for straightaway.

In basketball we had the Jordan Rules, which initially was a term used to describe the strategy some teams applied to aggressively and physically guard Michael Jordan. But later it became what people called the preferential treatment the superstar received from refs who swallowed their whistles whenever Jordan traveled or fouled someone—especially late in close games. In football we have the Brady Rule, which was enacted this season to protect quarterbacks' knees after superstar QB Tom Brady went down for most of last season following a hit to his knee (and, unfortunately, applied in a tight game against my Ravens). And in tech we seem to have the Google Rules, where Google just seems to get pass after pass for stuff others would be called on.

This isn’t to diminish the tremendous capability of any of the subjects of these rules. They’re all winners and fierce competitors without them, but let’s just say the rules help. They’re like a little reward for being so good and so valuable to the game.

In an interview with GigaOM, Williams called Google "evil" and called for the search giant to be more transparent about Android. And it's not just Williams, but some of his crew that also are banging on Google to open up.

In the GigaOM interview, Williams nailed Google for fragmenting the market and for attempting to "cookie" users.

An afterdawn.com analysis of the exchange said:

    "First and foremost the goal of a Google system would be to create a situation where you have information about the user and the use of those apps," said Williams.

    "Secondarily," he added, "it would be to cookie them, so that you get that unique identifier association with the data you've collected on the individual's habits, routines, and so on and so forth so that you can target apps toward them. So you can build more intelligent cloud-based apps for them."

In that same interview, Williams called Apple "greedy" and questioned why Google would even need to mention not being evil in its motto.

Sounds like an old-fashioned Parliament Funkadelic call-out for Google to "Give Up the Funk" or to come clean or “come correct.” Or is Williams just "Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing," as James Brown said?

It's clear Williams is doing a little more than just talking smack. Indeed, the points Williams raises are not new, and he is not alone in thinking and saying this. But he is alone in being at the helm of a very large ship that sees a fast-moving Android OS gathering steam in its wake. And rather than sit idly by, Williams is calling them out sooner rather than later.

The Symbian OS is the leading smartphone OS in terms of market share, but Android is looking quite strong, according to analyst reports. Some reports have Android coming in second to Symbian as early as 2012. According to Gartner, Android’s share will be at 18 percent of all smartphones sold globally in 2012, or about 94 million users out of 525 million, said GigaOM.

In his keynote at the Symbian Exchange & Exposition (SEE 2009) here on October 27, Williams did not single out Google specifically by name, but he did take a few generic shots, saying: “I've heard other companies stand up and say they have the world's most powerful operating system. I think they're wrong. ... If it took me six months to add cut and paste, I'd be embarrassed.”

Williams went on to give the audience a bit of the upcoming road map with the Symbian 3 and Symbian 4 platforms.

Meanwhile, during a Nokia Media Day event here, Shaun Puckrin, head of developer services at the Symbian Foundation, said Symbian represents "the biggest market available to developers. We outship our next competitor by two."

Added Puckrin: "Sure Android is open source, but we are a community that adopts things from the actual developer community; that's a difference. ... Whilst Android is open source, it's been difficult to get changes into the OS. But we're attempting to get to a genuine open-source project. I think the proof will be in the pudding."

Moreover, Puckrin said that, though Android is an open-source project, "it's more about using open source than being open source."

John Forsyth, a member of the Symbian Foundation leadership team who is responsible for technology and delivery management, echoed Puckrin and Williams. "With Android you can't get a road map," he said. "We have an entirely transparent process from that perspective. You can go to our site and see every feature that is being planned. With Android, the real source sits behind the Google firewall."

For his part, Forsyth noted, "There's a halo effect people try to get out of open source without actually playing by the rules. You almost get a grudging respect for Microsoft when you see this kind of thing."

Puckrin said he believes proof of Symbian's seriousness about open source is its move to open-source the operating system kernel. "We concentrated on the kernel, which is the crown jewel of the platform," he said. "It set a benchmark and it says we're serious about this." Both Puckrin and Forsyth added that because Symbian has successfully open-sourced the kernel of the Symbian OS, the rest of the platform will follow easily and the organization will meet its planned schedule of having the entire platform open-sourced by the second half of 2010.

"While Lee [Williams] has his personal opinion, I think how Google acts in general is open source," Forsyth said.

Meanwhile, Forsyth questioned the Android architecture itself.

"It's a late '90s architecture," he said. "It's Java—not as light and fast as an AJAX [Asynchronous JavaScript and X M L] environment. Android's a bit unnecessary, and I don't think it's in Google's best interest. But they have a bit of a 'see what sticks' mentality."

Ooooh, yeah!  Money is hot and the times are a-changing!

Source: eWeek

Review: Gameboid

by Damien McFerran

We review Gameboid, a Game Boy Advance emulator for Android phones that'll let you relive some gaming memories

Of all of yongzh’s Android-based emulators, GameBoid is the one that is tackling the most up-to-date hardware - it emulates Nintendo’s Game Boy Advance console, which was released at the start of this decade. With this in mind, you might expect the performance of this app to be sub-par. Astonishingly, it actually ends up being the best of the bunch.

First up though, a short history lesson. The Game Boy Advance – or GBA as it’s often called – was an update of Nintendo’s insanely popular Game Boy line, which can trace its roots back to 1989 with the launch of the first black and white handheld.

The Game Boy Advance proved to be just as lucrative as its predecessor, shifting millions of units and playing host to countless fantastic games, including ports of notable SNES titles (The Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past) and brilliant exclusives (Metroid Fusion, Zelda: Minish Cap, Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow).

Despite the fact that the GBA offers many of the visual tricks present in SNES titles – such as sprite rotation and scaling effects – GameBoid never seems to struggle like the unfortunate SNesoid does. It’s possible to play pretty much any GBA title with sound at an acceptable speed.

As you’ll be aware if you’ve already read our reviews of yongzh’s other Android-based efforts, GameBoid comes packed with options that enable you to tailor your experience to your own personal preference. You can tinker with screen size and aspect ratio, assign action buttons to your phone’s keyboard (you’ll need an Android phone with a physical keyboard to get the most enjoyment out of this) and even save your progress using one-click save states.

As is the case with all emulators, using ROMs you’ve obtained from the internet carries with it certain legal risks, but we’re not going to bore you with those. Suffice to say, ROMs are copyrighted no matter how old there are, and unless you own the original cartridge, you’re effectively breaking copyright law.

It’s rather ironic that GameBoid ends up out-doing its fellow emulators when you consider how recent the Game Boy Advance actually is. We threw loads of different titles at the emulator and it managed to play them all; granted, there are occasional stutters and slowdown, but it’s no worse than what we’ve seen in Nesoid or Gensoid, and it blows the disappointing SNesoid clean out of the water.

We get the felling that the developer is aware of GameBoid’s quality as it’s the most expensive yongzh-created emulator at $3.99. Still, it’s well worth that price – just try out the free Lite version if you need convincing of this.

Source: Know Your Mobile

NBA introduces live games on U.S. mobile devices

By Ben Klayman

CHICAGO, Oct 29 (Reuters) - The National Basketball Association will give its digital offering the full court press, introducing complete live games on mobile phones, including Apple Inc's iPhone, for $40 a year.

Previously the NBA, whose season tipped off on Tuesday, offered only game highlights on mobile phones. The league already offers subscription packages to watch live games on PCs as well as an added package on cable and satellite TV.

NBA league attendance hit 21.5 million last year. Research firm IDC estimates there are potentially 59 million mobile phones in the U.S. that can carry the new package.

Major League Baseball began selling live games to iPhone users in June. The National Hockey League offers live games through mobile phones in Canada, but not the United States. The National Football League offers live games on mobile devices to some DirecTV (DTV.O) customers.

The NBA package allows fans to watch more than 40 live games each week. It also offers digital video recording technology to pause and rewind 30 seconds of action and access to up to two days of archived games. Users also will be able to get game statistics while watching the action.

Like the TV and Internet packages, locally broadcast games will be blocked for users in their markets, as well as nationally televised games.

Carriers include AT&T Inc (T.N), exclusive U.S. provider for Apple Inc's (AAPL.O) iPhone, and T-Mobile USA, a Deutsche Telekom (DTEGn.DE) unit that sells phones based on Google Inc's (GOOG.O) Android. Verizon Wireless, the largest U.S. mobile service provider, will begin offering its first Android phone on Nov. 6.

By year end, the NBA product also will be available to users of Research in Motion's (RIM.TO) BlackBerry. The product works on high-speed cellular networks and Wi-Fi, a short-range network technology.

Move Over Iphone, Android Offers Online Casino Gambling

The IPhone has always been revered as the most powerful cellular phone on the planet, but even it has shortcomings. These shortcomings are exemplified by the new Android phones expecting to hit the market in November.

The Android phones are allegedly capable of running widgets, browser apps, and other such amenities that some online casinos require for playing through the browser. While you can download casino oriented apps and play for fun on the IPhone, owners of the Apple/AT&T love child are unable to play for real money through their phones. Androids should alleviate this issue, allowing players to enjoy real money gambling on the go, even more so than before.

Many of the Best USA Casinos allow players to play their games through flash based casinos. Be this one of the Rival Online Casinos or an RTG Online Casinos, flash based browser casinos are an option. When the Android hits the market, players should be able to pull up casinos such as Bodog and Sloto Cash Casino and play all of the best casino games they have available.

If all goes well, these Androids will be affordable, powerful, and open to many phone providers. Even if a player did not want to shell out the extra money for the new phone, many could consider it an investment - this could become the newest tool for online gambling. Rather than turn to a PC or a Laptop, the Android could become an all inclusive online casino.

Source: USA Players

Blockdot Releases Chicktionary for Google Android Phone

Dallas-based Blockdot has released Chicktionary – one of the most popular word games on the internet – for the Google Android phone.

Your goal in Chicktionary is to unscramble a roost full of letters and create as many words as possible.  Each chicken bears a letter. Tap the chickens and spell out a word, then watch as the word appears below them. The more words you create, the more points you earn!

Besides the egg-citing game play, Chicktionary has cool features that give it depth, making for one of the most engaging game experiences on the Google Android phone:
•   Shake your phone to shuffle your chickens and get a new look at your word options.
•   Earn Eggchievements for crazy stuff or just playing the game like a pro.
•   Play 100 levels in the full version and 12 levels in the “lite” version.
•   Save your game and complete it at a later time.
•   Send a challenge-a-friend message directly from your phone.
•   Post your scores to a worldwide leaderboard.
•   Find hidden Chicktionary Easter eggs that are as fun and farm-fresh as the game itself.

You can purchase the full version of Chicktionary for only $1.99 by visiting the Android Market.

Source: PRLog

First Google Android 2.0 phone arrives

by Marguerite Reardon

Initial response to the new Motorola Droid smartphone on the Verizon Wireless network have been very good, thanks in large part to the updated Android 2.0 operating system.

The new updated version of the open-source operating system offers new Android phones a series of enhancements as well as improved performance. The updated software is being credited with enabling many of the cool new features, such as the updated version of the Google Maps service, which allows for voice command turn-by-turn directions.

The Motorola Droid for Verizon will be the first device that will use the new software. Sprint Nextel and T-Mobile USA will also be selling Android devices this holiday season, but neither carrier has announced a device that will use the updated version of the operating system.

But that doesn't mean that the Droid will be the only device running the 2.0 software this year. A Google representative said it's very likely at least one other phone will be introduced that uses the new version of the open source operating system.

One of the features that the updated software has added allows for the integration of multiple social-networking and e-mail accounts into the phone's contact list. This means that contact and calendar information can be synced with Microsoft Exchange e-mail services and also other Web e-mail accounts, as well as, social-networking sites like Facebook.

The new version of the software has support for Microsoft Exchange, which is a huge deal because it means that corporate users can sync their work e-mail with their phones. A search function was added to the SMS and MMS messaging feature. The software has also been updated to support a camera that includes a built-in flash, digital zoom, scene mode, white balance, color effect, and macro focus.

The new software has also improved the virtual keyboard layout to make it easier to hit the right keys as well as improved the typing speed. The 2.0 version of software supports an enhanced browser that allows users to directly tap the address bar for instant searches and navigation. It allows bookmarks with Web page thumbnails. It offers double-tap zoom. And there is full HTML5 support, which among other things allows for geolocation applications to be developed to provide location information about the device.

Overall the new improvements to the software should make the Android devices operate much faster than the previous generation of software. A Google representative said the software is backwards compatible with older versions of Google Android hardware. But it is up the carriers whether or not they allow users to upgrade their devices to the new operating system. And the carriers will be controlling the timing of these upgrades.

As for the new Android devices coming from Sprint Nextel and T-Mobile, they won't likely immediately have the Android 2.0 operating system, but it's likely these devices, along with new Android phones will come with the new version of the OS.

A Sprint representative said that traditionally the company pushes out or allows users to upgrade software when it's made available.

T-Mobile, which was the first carrier to offer an Android phone, will have four Google Android phones available for the holidays. Two are available today: the original T-Mobile G1, which launched in October of last year, and the T-Mobile myTouch 3G, which went on sale this summer and is available now for $149.99. T-Mobile is adding two more devices to line-up in time for the holidays: the Motorola Cliq which goes on sale November 2, and the Samsung Behold II, which does not yet have a launch date but will be available before Christmas.

As of November 1, Sprint will have two Android-powered devices as part of its lineup: the HTC Hero and the Samsung Moment, which costs $180 with a $50 mail-in rebate and a two-year Sprint contract.

Source: CNET NEWS

Android 2.0 Creates New Possibilities for Gaming

Google has released their Android 2.0 software development kit (SDK), lovingly named Eclair, to developers. Eclair boasts many new interface options upon release. Device synchronisation and Bluetooth technology are among some of the popular features that Android 2.0 developers can expect to get their hands on. But perhaps the most exciting feature is the new multitouch interaction.

This is definitely not the first time that multitouch technology has made headlines, but it very well may be the biggest. Adding multitouch technology to Google's Android 2.0 OS opens up an entire world of possibilities for interface developers to improve current UI experiences. It also means that we can expect newer and more creative interfaces once Andriod 2.0 hits later this year. Beyond every-day application use, we are also incredibly hopeful that this multitouch technology will quickly make its way into the mobile gaming market.

Even the most popular portable gaming platforms, including Sony's Playstation Portable (PSP) and Nintendo's wildly popular DS, may soon feel pressure from Google's new Android 2.0 OS. The Nintendo DS, which sold successfully as the first portable video game system that fully employed touchscreen technology, suffers from the limitation of a single stylus pointing device. Though hundreds of games have found entertaining and creative ways to utilize this technology, they have had to rely perhaps too heavily on additional gestures (tapping, swiping, spinning, etc...) in situations where having a multitouch experience would be ideal.

Multitouch gaming would be an especially welcome improvement to Android's mobile game market for current interfaces that have to divide control between the touchscreen and a device's physical keys. For example, a directional pad might be well emulated within the touchscreen area, but additional play buttons must be mapped to keys on a number pad or other physical keys. If Google's Eclair and Android 2.0 are as well received as the industry currently predicts, the mobile gaming industry may very well explode into new and exciting directions. The possibility of standardizing a multitouch game market that is open to ALL developers, regardless of their device, is the exact moment we've been waiting for.

Source: Stage Select

More Prognostications on Developing Games for Android

Here's another article on the future of developing games for Android by Derek James at Gamasutra:

Developing Games for Android
By Derek James

The advent of smartphones has opened up an entire new range of platforms for game development, particularly for independent game developers. The iPhone's App Store model has been enormously successful, with a recent estimate of $2.4 billion in annual sales.

From a developer's perspective, app stores have the incentive of a distribution channel with powerful search and marketing capabilities. They also provide an intermediary that handles the logistics of selling and downloading -- generally for a cut of 30%.

You've probably heard the Cinderella stories of developers like Steve Demeter, whose triangular variant on match-3 games, Trism, reportedly earned him $250,000 in just two months in the iPhone App Store. Take also Ethan Nicholas' iShoot, which reportedly earned $600,000 in a single month. With the gold rush mentality and the iPhone's undeniable success with the App Store, why would a game developer choose to make a game for any other smartphone platform?

About six months ago, I started developing games for Google's Android OS, somewhat by chance. A friend who works for Google gave me a G1 developer's phone as a gift. At that point, I hadn't even heard of Android. In the process of learning about the OS, I came across the Android SDK, and downloaded it to give it a spin. I was instantly hooked.

While iPhone apps are written in Objective C, the Android SDK uses relatively more programmer-friendly Java. The iPhone store charges developers $99 a year to distribute their apps, while Android has a one-time $25 fee for developers. And the review process for iPhone apps grows increasingly lengthy -- sometimes weeks or more -- and it's somewhat arcane. Android apps go live as soon as the developer hits the publish button. Google handles the review process post-hoc, and is much more lax in terms of content.

With the greater ease of producing and distributing apps through the Android Market, why aren't game developers large and small clambering to produce quality games for the system? There are a number of reasons, but number one is, of course, money.

Mobile ad company AdMob released its July 2009 report which notes the following:

* 45 million estimated combined iPhone and iPod Touch users, compared to 3 million Android users
* 50% of iPhone users bought at least one paid app during a month period, compared to 19% of Android users
* The estimated market value of the iPhone App Store is about $200M per month, compared to an estimate of about $5M per month for the Android Market

So a major part of the equation is pure size. But another factor is the population makeup of Android users and their perception of the platform. The iPhone user population is likely much more diverse, with a greater cross-section of users representing more diverse demographics, while the Android user population is still likely predominantly tech-centric early adopters. Since Android is an open-source system, the perception may also be that the software that runs it should follow the same model. Thus many users may be reticent to spend money on apps.

Of course, the hope among Android game developers is that an influx of new phones on a variety of new carriers will increase and diversify the user base, increasing sales. However, current reports are gloomy. One case study is Larva Labs, a New York based mobile game developer. Larva recently shared its sales stats for August, and they weren't pretty. Despite having two games in the market that both spent time in the top 10 among paid apps in their categories, the daily average income for August was $62.39.

The developer laments issues with the market interface (poor organization and search) and a lax return policy (24-48 hour returns, no questions asked). But the issue of piracy is also raised, and is another likely source of poor performance of games in the Android Market. A cursory search of popular torrent sites reveals bundles of Android games for download.

The next release of Android is bringing much needed revisions to the market interface. As for piracy, as with any game market, it is difficult to determine the impact. The Android Market includes optional DRM, but it is unlikely to slow or deter would-be pirates.

Unlike the iPhone, an Android device does not need to be jailbroken in order to allow installation of pirated apps. A user can simply install pirated apps onto their SD card and use one of the freely-available app installers from the market. The return policy even allows a would-be pirate to download an app, make a copy, and then get a full refund. They don't even have to pay for the original copy they pirate!

One viable way to mitigate the effects of piracy is to monetize apps through advertising, rather than relying on direct sales. About half of the revenue from my games has come from ads as opposed to direct sales.

Despite the seemingly poor state of the Android market, the Larva Labs developers remain upbeat about the potential. The mobile analytics company Flurry notes the growth of new Android projects next to the relative decline of new iPhone ones. The AdMob market report mentioned earlier also notes that ad requests from Android have now edged out requests from Windows Mobile, both internationally and domestically. While iPhone is still the king of the hill, Android is pushing its way into the market.

There are currently only two handsets that run Android available in the U.S.: the T-Mobile G1 (aka HTC Dream) and the T-Mobile myTouch (aka HTC Magic). The G1 has a hardware keyboard, while the myTouch does not. Other than that, both devices have the same screen size, and so far cross-device development is still pretty straightforward. I've heard that both HTC and T-Mobile are pleased with the sales performance of both devices, though I'm not aware of hard figures. Based on analytics from my own apps, about 20% of my existing user base own the myTouch.

The good news: a spate of new devices are on the way. Motorola just unveiled its Android-powered Cliq, which will soon be available through T-Mobile. Another Motorola phone announcement is expected soon. Earlier this year, the estimate was that 18-20 Android-powered devices would be released by the end of the year. That remains to be seen, but there it is extremely likely that by the holiday season there will be at least half a dozen Android smartphones, probably on multiple carriers.

Things could get very interesting with this new wave of devices. The myTouch alone hasn't changed the game, but the incremental influx of new hardware, especially with the openness and customizability of Android, and choice of carrier, could start to see Android carving out a significant portion of the market.

On the one hand, that seems like good news to Android developers. An increase in the market can only be good, right? Well, an open issue is one of device compatibility. The current HTC devices have a trackball, while other devices may or may not, opting for a touchpad or alternative input device. Another issue is screen resolution. The current devices all have a 3.2 inch screen with a resolution of 480x320, but newer devices may have resolutions that are smaller or larger (e.g. there are already tablet PCs running Android slated for release).

In terms of RAM and processing power, there are not significant differences in the devices rolled out thus far. Although continued improvements and custom builds of Android can get the most out of existing specs, the newer generation of Android smartphones -- those poised to be released by the end of this year -- should have more RAM and more powerful chipsets. So building more CPU-intensive games for the platform will only get easier, but the decision to do so may become more difficult.

One advantage of programming for the iPhone is not having to worry (much) about hardware compatibility. This could potentially be a problem for Android game developers as new handsets emerge. The possibility of a backlash exists if users buy a new Android smartphone only to find that the most popular games in the market don't render properly on their screen, or that the control scheme for the game doesn't work. A developer can try to work their way around these issues by designing for multiple screen resolutions and including multiple input methods, but this of course means extra work.

Other issues include the limitations of the first-generation hardware that's currently running Android. Specifically, battery life and storage space are both big issues on the G1, and games can tend to hog both, especially the more features they use. I just finished a game for the second iteration of the Android Developers Challenge -- more on that in a moment -- and it uses the GPS functionality of the device. Unfortunately, the GPS finder is a huge drain on the battery.

As for storage space, the G1 only has 70MB of storage allocated for apps. That means designing lean games in terms of music and art assets, since users may not want to delete a bunch of existing apps to make way for your 10MB masterpiece. The newer generation devices have several times the capacity, so in a sense these problems are being resolved as new hardware rolls off the shelves. But the limitations are in place for most of the current generation of users and developers.

Likely because Google is behind the curve in the smartphone game, it has instituted a strategy designed to lure developers to the platform with the promise of cash -- not in the form of market profit, but in prize money. Last year Google held an open contest for the best apps, the Android Developer Challenge, a free-for-all in which candidate apps were selected by a panel of judges.

This year, it kicked off the Android Developer Challenge II, with $2M in prizes. Rather than lumping all entries into one bin, ADC II is divided into 10 categories, including two for games (Casual/Puzzle and Arcade/Action). The deadline for submissions closed on August 31st, and winners are to be decided by two rounds of judging: one by users and one by a panel of judges.

However, If you hadn't heard of the challenge, you're probably not alone. Google didn't do much to spread the word, probably assuming that the lure of large cash prizes would carry the news effectively. With the overall winner set to take home $250,000, the strategy seems sound. But the jury is out on whether or not the ADC II has been effective in drawing game developers to the platform. The first contest had about 1,700 entrants, but no numbers on the second challenge have been released as of this writing.

I spent the summer working on an entrant into the ADC II, a puzzle/RPG hybrid along the lines of Puzzle Quest, with the twist that the player must physically visit locations near them, such as coffee shops and grocery stores, in order to unlock content.

Developing the game presented some unique challenges, learning how to incorporate the Google Map API, for example. And some aspects of development still need a lot of work. For example, the functionality for playing sounds and music is extremely limited and has been historically buggy. However, overall the experience was very rewarding, and grassroots developer communities provided answers to nearly every issue I encountered. In particular, the sites anddev.org and the Android Developers Google Group have been helpful.

Still, there are existing issues that are problematic for the platform. There are quite a few games for the iPhone that utilize an underlying physics engine, but I'm currently not aware of any games for Android that are physics-based. Ports of some existing 2D engines to Android have apparently not performed well enough to use them for games. Again, as with the other issues related to developing on first-generation hardware, newer devices will probably render them obsolete.

For now, if a developer decides to implement a game exclusively for a particular smartphone platform, and the choice is between the iPhone and Android, the tradeoff is between trying to get noticed in an incredibly crowded and competitive market where the potential payoff is huge for those at the top, or entering a market with low barriers, little competition, currently low returns, but the possibility of potential growth. Hopefully there will continue to be developers that take both roads, and the smartphone market will continue to grow as a diverse outlet for game development.

 Source: Gamasutra

Android's Spread Could Become a Problem

By Olga Kharif

As more handset makers adopt Android, there's a danger of multiple versions of the operating system. Software developers may have to build several iterations of a single app.

For the mobile-phone software Android, popularity may carry a high price tag. The operating system created by a Google-led consortium is being adopted by a growing number of mobile-phone manufacturers and wireless service providers.

Yet as Android is woven into more phones, developing add-on tools and games and other software-based features for it may become more difficult. "We are very careful about not splintering the code," says Eric Heiser, director of business development at Kyocera Communications, one of the manufacturers that plans to build Android into devices next year. "That's definitely a concern, that's something Google (GOOG) has been talking about every day." What's more, the widening variety of Android devices could have the unintended consequence of confusing consumers and diluting its brand appeal.

Manufacturers, carriers, and developers have grown more concerned about the prospects for Android amid news that the operating system is being adopted by a who's who of wireless players. Motorola (MOT), Samsung, Verizon Wireless, and Sprint Nextel (S) are just some of the companies that have recently become big supporters, joining the ranks of early adopters HTC and T-Mobile USA, owned by Deutsche Telekom (DT). PC giant Dell (DELL) and Sony Ericsson are working on devices based on the operating system.

Possible Splintering of Software Code

As many as 20 phones based on Android are likely to be released this year, and Gartner (IT) analyst Ken Dulaney expects to see 40 more devices in 2010. "There's a lot of horsepower behind it," he says. Android's share of the mobile operating system market is expected to skyrocket to 14.5% in early 2012 from 1.6% in the first quarter, he estimates. That would make Android the world's second-most popular mobile operating system, behind the current leader Symbian.

The more wireless service providers behind Android, the greater the likelihood of one-upmanship. Carriers and handset makers are already competing on the look and feel of their Android devices and have begun encouraging third-party developers to tailor applications to work better on their phones, and not those made by others.

A result could be so-called splintering of software code, where developers work on multiple versions of software, rather than contribute collaboratively to a single project. So if programmers want software available on more than one or two phones, they'll have to build multiple versions of it. In the past, developers who wanted to write for such systems as Java and mobile Linux had to create dozens of iterations of a single app if they wanted it adopted widely.

Google may have increased the likelihood of splintering when, on Aug. 21, it said developers can now create games, calendars, and other mobile applications for specific carriers. So an Android app for T-Mobile USA, for example, may not be available to Sprint Nextel subscribers. There's rampant but unconfirmed speculation that developers in China even used Android code to build their own version of the software that's not compatible with the main effort.

Threat of Brand Fragmentation

If carriers and handset makers try to make their Android products too unique, developers will have to tweak their apps to work on these devices, and that would make application development for all Android gadgets more expensive and time-consuming. It could reduce the appeal of Android over rivals such as Apple's (AAPL) iPhone, Research In Motion's (RIMM) BlackBerry, and the Palm (PALM) Pre.

Brand fragmentation and consumer confusion is a danger, too. Today, all Android handset makers' phones appear to have different digital menus, look different, and feature varied controls, such as touchscreens and buttons. "Everyone wants to have its own take on the Android device," says Ramon Llamas, senior research analyst at IDC. "It could potentially dilute what Android is." The carriers and handset makers have also not come up with a unified way to market these devices under the Android brand. "Each of these [players] may have a different message, and users may not see it as one thing," Dulaney says.

Android backers have tried to avoid splintering by corralling several companies into the Open Handset Alliance. "We are trying to do all we can to make sure fragmentation doesn't happen," says Google spokeswoman Katie Watson. Yet, because thousands of developers, handset makers, and carriers use and contribute to the code, Android is harder to control than rival efforts, such as the software running the iPhone.

Carriers Encouraging Tailored Apps

Developers may want to tweak their apps to run well on devices with unique controls and keys, such as the Motorola Cliq, which features a five-way navigation button. Kyocera is working on a phone that's small yet manages to give consumers an opportunity to interact with a large screen (the company won't provide details on the exact design). While apps created for the device should work on other makers' Android phones, "these apps are not as compelling if you don't put them on the right device," says Kyocera's Heiser.

Carriers are encouraging developers to tweak their wares as well. At a developer conference later this month, Sprint Nextel is likely to encourage attendees to create apps that take advantage of features of its wireless network that some other carriers don't offer, says Len Barlik, a Sprint vice-president. For instance, the carrier will tell developers they can collect information on the location of cell towers nearest to a particular phone. The feature would allow apps that depend on precise location information, such as those used for managing corporate truck fleets, to function better on Sprint's network than they would on networks of competitors that don't provide that cell-tower information to applications.

Android has a lot to gain from ending up on a range of devices with a host of applications. But its backers will have to avoid code splintering and brand dilution if they want to reap the benefits.

Source: BusinessWeek

Android lures Casino Games

Casino gamblers are now eyeing the new Android phones.  Here's one article from Casino News Authority:

What Motorola & Verizon Droid Does For Casino Games

The Motorola & Verizon Droid is a new hand-held mobile phone that may just rival the iPhone. Online gamblers are already using their iPhone to play casino games online, but this new mobile device will make the experience so much better.

This is a smart phone where you will experience a PC-like browsing experience on a mobile device that has a massive high-resolution display, the thinnest touch QWERTY slider available, and twice the speed of the leading competitor. This is the first mobile device developed in partnership with Google to feature its Android platform.

It shatters the standard mobile web experience with high-speed, high-resolution browsing expected from a PC, now in a sleek mobile device. Its industry-leading 3.7-inch display provides the best view of the casino games. All of the online casino games load up quickly, in crisp 16-million color high-definition with fast gameplay.

Living at a fast pace, taking risks and embracing change, Gamblers are more likely to have and be excited by the latest technology, that will greatly improve the online gambling experience over a mobile device.

Source: Casino News Authority

Game Review: Abduction! World Attack

by Damien McFerran

If UFO spotters are to be believed and we really aren't alone in this universe then the kind of activities our extraterrestrial visitors get up to don't really paint them in the best light.

Creating obscure crop circles and buzzing military aircraft strike us as pretty low-level pranks. Perhaps Douglas Adams was right when he hypothesised (via his excellent Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy book series) that these occurrences were down to bored, rich alien kids with nothing better to do than confuse us dim-witted earthlings.

Stealing cows is another rather daft activity that our xenomorphic guests seem to get up to, and this unusual pastime is the focus of the cute-looking Abduction! World Attack.

Produced by Sydney-based ex-pat bedroom coder Phil Symonds, Abduction! World Attack is based on his earlier Abduction! game, which is still available free of charge via the Android Marketplace and essentially serves as the 'Lite' version of this release.

The aim in both titles remains the same: you assume the role of a heroic cow (other animals are available as you unlock them) whose herd has been sucked up by an alien tractor-beam.

Thankfully the alien abductors have unwittingly ripped up several parts of the landscape as well and these hover peculiarly in mid-air, providing ideal platforms for your bovine avatar to jump on.

As you bounce up the screen from platform to platform you'll get the opportunity to rescue some of your beloved herd, who are parachuting down from the alien mother ship. You can also pick up various present-shaped bonus items, although it should be noted that not all of these are beneficial.

Granted, some of the packages will give you an additional life (so should your cow fall off the bottom of the screen – an event that usually leads to instant death and a rather unsightly mess on the ground below – you actually bounce back up unharmed) or even give you a higher bounce, but others temporarily make it hard for you by reducing the number of platforms or making them crumble beneath your hooves when you jump on them.

The game is controlled using the phone's accelerometer, so tilting from right to left affects the direction in which your heroic cow bounces. We were pleasantly surprised by the accuracy and effectiveness of this interface – even the most subtle of movements is picked up by the game and translated perfectly on-screen.

While the general gameplay in both the original Abduction! and Abduction! World Attack is essentially the same, the sequel adds a little more longevity to the concept by including additional characters to unlock (so you can choose to be other courageous animals, such as a goat or deer), more backgrounds and even an objective-based challenge mode.

These tasks range from getting to the top of the screen in a certain time to successfully rescuing a set number of friendly animals. You're awarded a grade upon completing each assignment and securing a gold in each one results in a neat unlockable bonus.

However, the core part of the game is the Adventure mode, which sees you traversing a map level-by-level until you've liberated all of the unfortunate beasts that have been kidnapped by the unkindly spacemen.

All of this additional content clearly makes Abduction! World Attack a worthwhile investment if you liked the original, but the biggest issue is that while the game is fun in short bursts, it fares less well under intense scrutiny.

The score-attack element is naturally a big draw, but only if you have friends that are also hooked on the game. The ability to post your best scores online (you have to install the separate ScoreNinja Android application in order to do this) will obviously give the more competitive gamers out there the excuse to pour hours into this title, but even then it won't be long before boredom sets in.

It's just not well-suited for longer periods of play, see, and if you're craving for something meaty to get your teeth into on Android you're probably better off beaming up another experience. But in short bursts, you'll find Abduction! World Attack to be an ideal way to fill the odd spare moment.

Source: Pocket Gamer

Dell Officially Joins the Android Bandwagon!

by Michelle Megna

Dell (NASDAQ: DELL) CEO Michael Dell today confirmed that his company will begin selling an Android smartphone in the U.S. next year, but industry watchers say the computer maker must also deliver a consumer experience backed by apps to be successful.

Dell said his namesake firm will issue an Android handset in the U.S. by early 2010, although he did not provide any further details. The news came during a question-and-answer period with a mocoNews reporter at the Firemobile conference in Seattle. A Dell spokesman declined to comment on the report.

Dell's Android play isn't entirely surprising, given it already sells an Android handset in China and there has been speculation for some time that it would parlay that experience into a stateside venture.

Recent reports say the Dell Android phone would arrive on AT&T (NYSE: T), which would be the carrier's first handset based on Google's (NASDAQ: GOOG) open source mobile platform.

The news of "Delldroid" comes at a time when smartphone sales continue to climb. In the second quarter, 40 million smartphone sales worldwide -- a 27 percent gain from the same period last year -- showed that high-end handsets are sustaining the ability to outperform regular phones in the mobile market, according to research firm Gartner.

Naturally, Dell, like Acer and other tech firms, would like to get a slice of that action, said Jim McGregor, chief technology strategy analyst at In-Stat, but it may not be the company's best use of resources.

"Everyone goes after the smartphone market because it's the billion-unit pot of gold, the fastest-growing segment in handsets. And, for a lot of these companies, there's nowhere else to expand. Intel is facing this dilemma: After you're dominating servers, PCs, where do you go next? So everyone wants to go mobile," McGregor told InternetNews.com.

"But Dell's core competency is computers, and they're losing market share, do they have the resources to invest to make this successful? I've got to question that, as well as if it's in their best interest as opposed to focusing resources on what they do."

McGregor also cites the complexity of the mobile ecosystem as a challenge for Dell's smartphone venture. "For Dell to do well in smartphones, they have to deliver more than a useful device, they have to offer a content, an experience people have come to expect," he said. "And they're not going to pull it off by themselves."

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), he said, was able to spark a cultural and consumer phenomenon with its entry to the space because the approach was not device-specific. "Few tech companies do well when they expand out of their core. Apple did well because they don't focus on the device, they focus on the experience."

The confirmation of Dell's handset comes on the heels of Acer's plan to sell an Android smartphone this year. The computer manufacturer formally unwrapped some details of the Acer Liquid but declined to disclose any pricing, release and carrier information.

McGregor is more optimistic about the Taiwan-based firm's chances for smartphone success than he is about Dell.

"A couple of years ago, I went to see all these tech companies, and I told them, if you just focus on computers, in five years you'll be dead. Most of them freaked out, but Acer, they said, 'You're right.' And they showed me demos of a whole bunch of consumer electronics they were working on," he said. "They're already on the way to being a mobile consumer electronics powerhouse."

Allen Nogee, principal analyst for wireless technology at In-Stat, said the Acer Liquid, will likely come to the U.S. on AT&T as well.

"This is a tri-band (850, 1900, 2100MHz) HSPA phone, so that rules out Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile. It would work on AT&T's network, but to date AT&T hasn't been a strong proponent of Android. It's rumored that AT&T will get the Dell Android phone next year, and this phone is similar to that one, so I wouldn't say its out of the question. In any case, I think it will be available in the U.S., if not from AT&T directly," Nogee told InternetNews.com.

Nogee said it may be hard for Acer to gain traction in the U.S. market, as its brand is unfamiliar with consumers outside of the low-cost PC space.

In the PC area, Acer has a name in low-cost PCs, but all smartphones are priced at roughly the same range of prices, and users tend to favor the bigger names over the lesser brands in this case, he said.

"It's not about the phone as much as it is about the applications you can run on it. You see the latest Apple ads talking about the 85,000 applications for the iPhone. This is genius, because it says any app you ever need in the future is here, even if you don't know what you need today. Android and Google are also starting to take advantage of this in their latest ads, but there's a long way to go."

Source: Internetnews.com

Game Review: Trap!

AndroidGuys have rediscovered an old PC game refitted with the coolness of Android. Here's an excerpt of their review:

Ok call me crazy, but up until now I really haven’t used my phone for gaming purposes.  Perhaps it’s just that I haven’t been in any situations that have called for something to simply occupy my time.  All that changed on Friday when I was stuck waiting for a friend in a very public place with little to do.  I jumped into the Android Market and perused through the new applications available.  When nothing piqued my interest I thought to myself, “Why not?” and I went into some unknown territory… the games section.


What a wellspring of awesomeness!  I was soon downloading games like a madman: Amazed, Abduction, Colorix, Bonsai Blast, etc.  There is one game, however, that has managed to consume a great deal of my time as of late.  It’s called Trap! I can’t explain why it is so addictive, but whenever I start playing, I have a hard time putting it down.

Read here for more, or simply go to the Android Market and stuff your phone with games!

Can Android Games Compete with iPhone?

Stage Select has come up with a very interesting article on the future of games on Android phones.

Gaming on Google Android Phones - Can It Compete With iPhone?

There's a war on: iPhone versus everyone else.

This war against the iPhone has largely been by necessity.  Since the iPhone is exclusive to AT&T in the States, other carriers have watched helplessly as more than 17 million customers switched for the sole purpose of owning the iPhone. When you combine that 17 million with the iPod Touch's sales, there are more than 30 million of these devices in the hands of the public. 

These past six months have seen an explosion of phones and other devices intended to take on the iPhone, feature by feature. Competing with the iPhone would have been difficult, were it not for Google Android.  Like Microsoft's Windows Mobile, Google has developed an operating system that can be used (mostly) on phones, but other devices as well.  Unlike the iPhone, the Android OS is open to all comers; any phone carrier or laptop manufacturer can use Android in their own devices.  Unlike Windows Mobile, Android has been stable and crash-free since its first release, and frequent updates are making Windows Mobile devices look positively antique in comparison.

Android is making headlines, especially this weekend.  Have you seen Verizon's new "teaser" commercial for The Droid?  Verizon is about to take on the iPhone head to head, much like T Mobile, Sprint, and other carriers have.

I recently picked up a myTouch 3G (T Mobile).  I also had the chance to evaluate several other Android devices.  Given Apple's recent push to position the iPhone and iTouch as gaming devices, how does Android stack up for gaming?  What's the furture of gaming on Android?  Will Android serve to unify the mobile gaming market, or bring additional confusion?

Cell phone users on non-AT&T networks will have a lot to cheer about when they get an Android phone.  Android, at least in its current form (called Cupcake), could be described as a "geeky" iPhone.  This is apparent in how most of the current Android phones are laid out (multiple home screens, kind of like Linux), the developers its attracting, and the policies of Apple versus Google (in regards to the Android Market).  Most of the features of the iPhone/iTouch are available on the myTouch:

*Custom apps, both free and purchased, are available in droves for Android
*Google runs the Android Market, their equivalent of the iPhone/iTouch app store (more on this later)
*Music playback (paused when getting a call) is very good, and features album art, shuffle, etc
*voice dialing
*a touchscreen interface (although my device isn't multitouch, Verizon's "The Droid" should be)
*Accelerometer (tilt controls / sensitivity)
*Multi-megapixel camera / video camera
*An "underground" application development scene (more on this later as well)

Here's where they are notably different:

*Really good voice powered search on Android
*Openness of the Android Marketplace
*Better graphics on the iPhone
*A larger variety of games on the iPhone
*Different mindsets in each respective development community
*Total screen customization on Android
*Android works on different service providers
*Android doesn't suspend apps - it uses true multitasking

Here's a video of a 3D game on Android, to wheat your appetite:



To read more, go to the Stage Select article.

Android OS gathers critical mass

Here's an interesting article on WIRED foretelling an imminent explosion of the popularity of Android phones considering the achievement of a critical mass of available phone models running on the Android operating system:

If you’ve thought about picking up an Android-powered phone but found yourself turned off by the hardware choices (ahem, G1), you may soon wish to reconsider.
“Android adoption is about to explode,” said Eric Schmidt, Google’s CEO, in an earnings conference call Thursday. “You have all the necessary conditions.”
Schmidt’s forecast may prove accurate with 12 Android-powered devices available in 26 countries on 32 carriers. Recent Android rumors, announcements and releases further fuel the rumble in the mobile community.
By handing out Android as an open source platform, Google aims to help manufacturers focus more time, money and energy on their hardware and specific usability for each device. Using the Android OS, there is no need to re-invent the wheel when it comes to the mobile software. Developmental resources can instead be allocated to innovation and quicker adaptation of emerging technology. This direction in mobile development does seem to create the “necessary conditions” for Android to appeal to an extremely broad range of users.
When the first Android phone, the HTC G1, was released in September 2008, some developers questioned how Google would address making the Android OS and third-party apps work smoothly with various types of hardware. Screen resolution was a primary concern among developers polled by Wired.com: How could an app designed to work with the G1’s resolution, for example, work with another Android phone sporting a different resolution?
Fortunately, the Android team at Google is working to ensure their platform is compatible with every mobile phone, specifically when it comes to screen resolution. The Android 1.6 SDK, the developer’s kit, allows a manufacturer or developer to add code in their application to conform to different handset’s resolutions. (For example, “Do this when the phone has a resolution of 320×480; do that when the resolution is larger.”) They have created three categories of resolution sizes that any given device will fall into, ensuring a single third-party app will work across all phones. There is also a “compatibility mode” developers can incorporate into their applications built prior to 1.6, aka Donut.
Excited by the Android mobile-nova? We’ve created a list of the 12 Android-powered smartphones so you can begin researching and deciding which one is best for you:

• Motorola Cliq (T-Mobile / Available October 19)
• Motorola Sholes (Verizon / Available October 30)
• Samsung Behold II (T-Mobile / Holidays 2009)
• Samsung Moment (Sprint / November 1)
• Huawei Pulse (T-Mobile UK / Available)
• HTC Hero (Sprint / Available)
• HTC Tattoo (Vodafone UK / Available)
• HTC Magic /myTouch 3G (T-Mobile / Available)
• HTC Dream/G1 (T-Mobile / Available)
• Dell Mini i13 (China Mobile / Confirmed, Release Date TBA)
• Acer Liquid (Unknown / Confirmed, Release Date TBA)
• LG GW620 (Unknown / Confirmed, Q4 2009)

Indeed this also bodes well for Android gaming enthusiasts.

Writing real time games for Android

Phones being with much limited resources compared to your desktop computer, writing real time games for Android requires some considerations that you often take for granted on the desktop-based or web-based environments.  Google's Chris Pruett talks about these issues and how to deal with them in this video:


The PDF slides are available here.

Let there be... Android games!

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