Using Android Outside the Mobile Phone Space – Android Builder Summit 2012

Abstract:

A few years back all embedded devices were designed like PCs. For example, users understood the use of a mouse and keyboard and could minimize and maximize a window using mouse clicks and launch new applications from Start. The increasing demand and usage of smartphones globally has not just changed the definition of user experience for embedded equipments but has made emerging technologies like touch and display panels, connectivity solutions and infrastructure, affordable to non- phone products segments. The embedded equipment designers and users have grown accustomed in no time to the smartphone features and technologies like multi-touch, high-resolution display panels, connectivity over 3G and Bluetooth, high capacity storage and medium and low power. For example, today, a machine operator needs a pinch-zoom feature on his HMI to resize a graph plot, a child using rear seat entertainment wants to play a touch-screen video game and users want the device to be smart and connected. According to Gartner, the smartphone sales increased 42 percent last year. Android’s share of the worldwide smartphone market was 52.3 percent for Q3 2011, double from what it was a year ago. This proves that Android is growing to become the number one OS distribution for smartphones. Android by its rich user experience, open source development model, neatly integrated software stack, commercial and community friendly software licensing, vast app and embedded eco-system and above all based on Linux Kernel, fits many embedded products that don’t belong to mobile or tablet segments. This talk highlights the benefits & advantages of Android for embedded segments and gives an overview of limitations and challenges in taking Android outside of mobile phone space.