android

Google's Android does a lot more these days than just smart phones and nifty mobile gadgets. An Internet pioneer is using the platform to launch a interplanetary Internet protocol on Earth that could harden wireless networks against delays in data transmission.

Google's Android operating system for cell phones could allow soldiers to track fellow squad members and even unmanned drones in real time on a map -- as long as the humans and robots are on their buddy list.

Well, everything we thought we knew about the Barnes & Noble e-reader is true, but there's more, too: Dubbed The Nook, B&N just announced full details about its long-awaited Kindle contender.

You might be wowed by the fact that Spring Design's Alex e-reader runs Android, or includes both a 6-inch e-ink display and a 3.5-inch LCD screen. But the best part is that those screens have the ability to work and interact with one another -- kind of like a Nintendo DS.

Imagine reading a news story on the e-ink display that happens to have a video clip associated with it. You could hit a button to play that video on the LCD screen below. Perhaps you want to add a few notes, images or links of your own to a book you're reading. You can tag certain passages with "web grabs." Or maybe you're browsing the web on the LCD screen and you see a story you'd like to read. You can send it up to the e-ink display for a bigger view that also conserves battery life.

Well, now that T-Mobile's G1 has had plenty of time to rest on its Android laurels, it's apparently coming out season for the rest of the pack. The just-unveiled Archos 5 Internet Tablet mixes one part Archos with one part Android and seasons with some great GPS features to create a multi-function power-player.

The selling point of Google Android is its customizability, the ability to create a unique-looking interface that's compatible with a steady stream of apps. The trouble is, most of the Android-based handsets we've seen -- starting with T-Mobile's G1 -- have all pretty much felt the same. The just-announced Motorola CLIQ, though, is the best example (so far) of what Android is capable of.

Why should mobile phones get to have all the fun running advanced operating systems? The new Glass desk phone mixes one part corded, landline phone and one part Android-based internet tablet. Google's mobile Android platform and a plain old desk phone will play nice together, if and when Cloud Telecomputers' concept makes its way to market in 2010.

The T-Mobile G1 smartphone, which comes out October 22 for $179, is a serious upstart challenger; a device that provides an easy-to-use touchscreen display, lets you download music directly to the device from the Internet, and has a full QWERTY slide-out keyboard. Using the G1 is intuitive and enjoyable. It reveals to the world once again that every other smartphone you've ever used besides the iPhone (Motorola, Samsung—are you listening?) now seems clunky and old-fashioned.