Thread: Can someone tell me why N900 and not Android?
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Rushmore is offline Rushmore
2009-10-30 , 00:56
Posts: 1,255 | Thanked: 393 times | Joined on Oct 2009 @ US
#75
Originally Posted by v13 View Post
From what I've read about Android and from what I've seen in a friend's HTC Hero, Android practically does not multi-task:

Since Android's apps are in java, you only can run java apps. Now, according to an article I'd read about Android programming (I don't remember where, but have a look at the activity lifecycle here) and from what I've seen, Android freezes java applications when they are left in the background. The friend of mine also claimed that it swaps-out the application to free memory (but I can't understand how it can do that).

Also, how are you supposed to install a new media player in Android? Can a Java program practically play a hi-def video? From a test I performed the HTC Hero could not play a 720p video (as avi and mp4) I created, most probably because of missing codec. This video runs from mplayer under N800 (but very-very-very slow). Can you do that with Android? I don't believe that there will ever be any video-playing program written in Java to extend the video-playing functionality of Android.

As for the hardware specs: that's not an OS issue. However, since you mentioned them: I'm more-and-more pleased by the fact that N900 will have a resistive screen. Being able to use a stylus is a great advantage. It is *very* slow and uncomfortable to do some tasks with your finger. Just try to type a long URL using an iphone.
Hero uses the 7200 Qualcomm, which at the time of the Hero's development, was still illegal to use the integrated DSP or accelerated video functions in the device. The only 7200 series that will have active drivers is the Xperia 2 ($800??).

Only MP4 standard def video drivers are in the framework (1.6 anyway) and there is no audio EQ function. Both would beat the cpu to death trying to emulate it all through the byte code translator. No direct access to the hardware unless Android writes it in the OS and creates the drivers.

Android is constrained and works on many devices because of the byte code translation process. Apps are contained within the java app layer for operation, so no critical hardware conflicts.

This is why Apple games are better, because more hardware access is allowed, since only a few hardware iterations to program for. As a result, they can allow a little lower level access (but not much).

Summary:

Android = Leg blocks (In a very finite 150 meg or less space)
Maemo = Fractals (OK, perhaps that is a geometrical and mathematical exaggeration)