It has been quite a journey for the Android. And yeah nearly everyone is familiar with the word android. From the day it was inaugurated till now, Android has transformed so much ranging from visual, concept and the functions. Google’s mobile operating system might have not started that good, but look at what it has achieved. The smooth working of android and the immense number of features that is provides. Even today keeping the budget aside if people are given a chance to select among android and apple, majority of the people will be choosing the android because of the user-friendly interface. In this blog we will be going through the full journey of android till now.
Android made its official debut back in 2008 with android 1.0. Things were pretty basic at that time, but the software also included a suite of early google apps like Gmail, maps, calendar, and YouTube.
Later in 2009, Android 1.5 Cupcake was released. The tradition of naming Android versions was born with cupcake. Cupcake introduced numerous advancements to the Android interface, including the first on-screen keyboard. Cupcake also brought the framework for third-party app widgets, which would quickly turn into one of Android’s most distinguishing elements and it also the first ever option for video recording.
Android 1.6, Donut, came in the fall of 2009. Donut came with the ability to operate on a variety of different sizes and resolutions.
Android 2.0 and 2.1 was the next one names as Éclair. Éclair was the first Android release to enter mainstream consciousness thanks to the original Motorola droid. The most revolutionizing element was the voice-guided turn-by-turn navigation and real-time traffic info. Éclair also brought live wallpapers to Android as well as the platform’s first speech-to-text function.
Froyo was the next android version which arrived only four months after the Éclair. Froyo brought with itself the voice actions which allowed the user to perform basic functions like getting directions and making notes by tapping an icon and then speaking a command. Froyo also brought the compatibility of flash in the Android’s web browser.
After Froyo was Gingerbread which was the version 2.3. Android’s first true visual identity started coming into focus with the release of Gingerbread. Bright green had long been the color of Android’s robot mascot, and with Gingerbread, it became, it became an integral part of the operating system’s appearance. Black and green seeped all over the UI as android started its slow march toward distinctive design.
It has been a long time throughout the full journey of android.
In 2011, Honeycomb was introduced. But ill admit that was a rough time for android. Android 3.0 came into the world as a tablet-only release to accompany the launch of the Motorola Xoom. Honeycomb introduced a dramatically reimagined UI for Android. It had a space-like ‘holographic’ design that traded the platform’s trademark green for blue and placed an emphasis on making the most of a tablet’s screen space.
Android 4.0 was also released in 2011 with a name of Ice Cream Sandwich. This version was the entry into the modern design world for android. This version of android combined the visual concepts of Honeycomb for tablet and phone into one unified UI. The Ice cream sandwich was the version in which the app switching was introduced where we can even close the apps which are running in background.
Jelly Bean came with a lot of polish in the operating system and went a long way in making Android more inviting for the average user. In Jelly bean we got the notification drag down menu, and an expanded voice search. Multiuser support also came into play.
Later KitKat came which was the version 4.4. With KitKat in the scene the blacks and blue were out of the operating system and this time the OS looked a bit more towards the bright side. Apart from that there were some modifications in the hands-free working of the OS.
Android 5.0 and 5.1 were named Lollipop and they were launched in 2014. The card-based concept that had been scattered throughout android became a core UI pattern. Lollipop introduced a plenty of new features. ‘OK, Google’ command, support for multiple users on a single phone and a priority mode for the notifications. Because of so many features there were so many bugs as well which were sorted out in the 5.1 release.
Marshmallow came in 2015 but it wasn’t that major update. It was more like a 0.1 level update and not a new number update. Marshmallow’s new feature was called Now on tap. But google never perfected the system and ender up quietly retiring it.
Android Nougat was the 2016 release. It had a split screen mode, a new bundles system for organizing notifications, and a data saver feature. Nougat added some smaller but significant features too, like an alt tab shortcut for snapping between apps.
Version 8.0 was the Oreo. The picture-in-picture mode that makes our lives so convenient was introduced in the Oreo only. Oreo was the first Android version to feature Project Treble – an ambitious effort to create a modular base for android’s code with the hope of making it easier for device-makers to provide timely software updates.
The version 9 was the last version of android to get a name. Pie was the name given, the most transformative change was its hybrid gesture/button navigation system, which traded Android’s traditional back, home, and overview keys for a large multifunctional home button and a small back button that appeared alongside it as needed.
Google released android 10, and this was the first version to be simply known by its number. In this version the button system was completely moved to the swipe. In this OS there was a special permission system that gives the user more control over exactly how and when apps are able to access location data as well as an expanded system for protecting unique device identifiers.
Android version 11 is the latest version which was launched at the start of September 2020. As the data is getting more and more valuable this version is dedicated towards the privacy protection. Every access is asked before letting the app completely start.
So this was the whole full journey of android.
