Android

Android is a based on a modified version of the Linux kernel and other open source software, designed primarily for  mobile devices such as s and s. Android is developed by a consortium of developers known as the  and sponsored by Google. It was announced in November 2007, and first commercially released in September 2008 with the. It has become a major competitor to iOS and iPadOS from Apple Inc. Other major competitors such as and  have since exited the market.

Background
Android is software; its source code is known as Android Open Source Project (AOSP), which is primarily licensed under the. However most Android devices ship with additional pre-installed, most notably  (GMS) which includes core apps such as, the  platform  and associated  development platform. About 70 percent of Android smartphones run Google's ecosystem; competing Android ecosystems and include  (developed by Amazon) or. However the "Android" name and logo are s of Google which impose standards to restrict "uncertified" devices outside their ecosystem to use Android branding.

The source code has been used to develop variants of Android on a range of other electronics, such as s, s, s, PCs and others, each with a specialized user interface. Some well known derivatives include for televisions and  for wearables, both developed by Google. Software packages on Android, which use the format, are generally distributed through proprietary s like, , , , and , or open source platforms like  or.

History
The Android operating system was created at Android Inc., founded in October 2003 at Palo Alto, California. Co-founder Andy Rubin is a former engineer of Apple Computer who was nicknamed "Android" by his former co-workers there due to his interest in robotics. In 2005, Android was acquired by Google for 50 million. Rubin remained as an executive overseeing Android until he left Google in 2014 following an internal investigation into an alleged sex scandal.

Android has been the best-selling operating system worldwide on smartphones since 2011 and on tablets since 2013. As of May 2017, it had over two billion, the largest of any operating system, and as of January 2021, the Google Play Store featured over 3 million apps. Android users can install apps from unofficial sources on the open Internet through a process known as sideloading — doing the same on an iOS device would require jailbreaking. Apple CEO Tim Cook states that such security measures are in place to reduce malware attacks and protect user privacy. Cook has openly recommended Android for users who want to sideload apps.

Release history

 * (2008)
 * "Petit Four" (Early 2009)
 * "Cupcake" (Spring 2009)
 * "Donut" (Fall 2009)
 * -2.1 "Eclair" (Late 2009)
 * "Froyo" (2010)
 * "Gingerbread" (Late 2010)
 * -3.2 "Honeycomb" (2011)
 * "Ice Cream Sandwich" (2011)
 * -4.3 "Jelly Bean" (2012-2013)
 * "KitKat" (Late 2013)
 * -5.1 "Lollipop" (Fall 2014)
 * "Marshmallow" (2015)
 * -7.1 "Nougat" (2016)
 * -8.1 "Oreo" (2017)
 * "Pie" (August 2018)
 * "Queen Cake" (September 2019)
 * "Red Velvet Cake" (September 2020)
 * "Snow Cone" (October 4, 2021)

Android on Apple hardware

 * BlueStacks is a popular method of running Android apps on Intel-based Macs and PCs from 2014 and later. It has not yet been updated to support Apple Silicon or macOS Monterey.
 * The OpeniBoot team managed to get Android 1.x and 2.x to natively run on iOS hardware without emulation in a project called iDroid. They ported Android to the original and 3G iPhones, and 1st-generation iPod touch. The iPhone 3GS and 4, 1st-generation iPad, and 2nd and 4th-generation iPod touch are partially supported. However, the project has since been abandoned.
 * The Project Sandcastle team managed to partially port Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) to 10 (Queen Cake) to some jailbroken Apple A10 devices, such as the iPhone 7 and 7th-generation iPod touch. It is bootable, but is in beta, does not yet support the GPU, and is set to read-only as APFS support is unfinished. It is not yet usable on other devices.
 * Android on Apple TV (1st generation) YouTuber managed to install Android 2.2 (Froyo) on a -based 1st-generation Apple TV. Android 4.0.4 (Ice Cream Sandwich) could also be installed, but with visual display issues of the color graphics.
 * A unmodified version of Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) can be installed on a white 2009 MacBook, but it is only partly stable after booting and apps will tend to crash. Another Youtuber managed to boot 13, a distro of Android 6.1.3, on a 2008 MacBook model. However, the user interface will boot up sideways by default and will require some work to turn it back to normal orientation.
 * Google is developing Android Emulator to allow Android apps to run natively on Apple Silicon. 32-bit apps are not supported, so apps need to be -compatible.

Android on counterfeit iOS devices
Nearly all iPhone clones and knockoffs run some form of Android that has been modified to simulate iOS with varying degrees of accuracy. Some older ones may be running other firmware.

Despite having greater market share due to lower average cost, Android users are known to have "iPhone envy", leading to the rise of a genre of launcher apps that mimic the superficial appearance of the iOS user interface fairly closely. Some even manage to simulate some iOS-specific features such as the Weather app and Control Center