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Gadgets  Hacker Brings Android to the iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS Up Next

Apple surely isn't happy about this

Much like the open platform Windows invaded the traditionally closed hardware platform of Apple's Macs -- first unofficially, and then later officially condoned -- Android is now establishing a beach head on Apple's coveted iPhone.

Hacker David Wang, better known as "planetbeing" on the internet, made waves a few weeks ago when he showed off a first generation (2G) iPhone that he got running a modified Android OS kernel.  Wang is well know in the hacking community for being one of the key contributors to the iPhone 3GS jailbreak.  This week he showed off Android running on the iPhone 3G, or the version with the "nasty plastic, easily scratched back", as Wang puts it.


Wang's solution is dual booting.  You can only run one OS at a time.  Wang is using the OpeniBoot tool to manage the multiboot.  Rebooting takes a while because the NAND and FTL (flash translation layer) drivers aren't optimized yet, though Wang feels this will soon change.

Wang had to port UltraSn0w (from the iPhone Dev Team) into OpeniBoot to get the radio working.  It starts running during the boot process -- this is one of the slowest steps.

Currently almost everything -- including Wi-Fi, internet, SMS, and MMS -- is working in the Android port.  The only thing not working is sound, which is a disappointment as you can't make or receive phone calls.  Don't worry, though -- Wang is promising that he's make major progress in getting the sound fully working and ready for primetime.

There are now several new developers working on this exciting project.  Wang states, "With their help I'm sure we'll be able to bring the system to production quality before too long."


Currently the code has not been published, but Wang plans to release a polished version within the next couple days for public consumption.  Keep checking Wang's website here.

Apple surely won't be happy when they discover what Wang has been up to.  It wouldn't be surprising even, if they try to sue to stop the spread of Android on the iPhone.  Apple has already stated that it believes jailbreaking and unlocking the iPhone to be illegal.  Ultimately, though, it's just one more sign that Android is threatening to do to the iPhone's version of OS X what Windows did to MacOS/OS X on the personal computer.

 


Nexus One: the first smartphone with Google
By Matthew Roesler Hamann
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Learn all about the launch of the Nexus One, the first smartphone designed by Google.

The year 2010 has just begun and after several months of speculation and news about the cold-awaited Google smartphone arrives at last on January 5, the day that Google officially announces the launch of the Nexus One, or Google Phone, as has been called by the public.

Until then the news had been published were no more accurate and clear information about this device that promises to shake the world market, not just smartphones, but electronics in general. It had not been released official images and users were limited to those blurry, leaked by the network in recent weeks.

First official information

The first official information about the Nexus One are limited to the specifications of the device, as it is no surprise to anyone, will be sold with Google Android 2.1 as the native operating system and touch screen of 3.7 inches, and a resolution of 480x800 pixels.

3D interface

The smartphone which is manufactured by HTC (the same company responsible for the Hero and the Magic) also has a 1GHz processor, 512 MB ROM and 512 MB of RAM, and has a microSD memory card, 4 GB, which can be expanded to up to 32 GB. The integrated digital camera to Nexus One is 5 megapixels and flash native has composed of LEDs.

Google Android

The Android operating system was the first smartphone to be open source, ie, to have the source code released to anyone who wanted to change it. Android is financed by Google and, therefore, is fully compatible with the main services of Google Mobile, and Google Maps, Google Talk, Google Search, Google Calendars as well as other less well known by users like Scoreboard, My Tracks and Sky Maps.


The War of the Smartphones

The launch of the Nexus One brand to ignite a war technology that promises to bring good results to users: Apple vs. Google. The companies have been facing battles are indirect for some time, and recently passed the Google Chrome Apple Safari in the list of browsers used.
With the launch of Google Phone, both will compete directly in the market for more affordable, Google intends to dominate space belonging to the iPhone.

The problem that Google could face in this regard will be imposed by itself. Apparently, the device will initially be sold in the United States in just two packages.

One of them will cost $ 180, but will require a contract in two years with T-Mobile, the other will not require anything, that is, the device will be unlocked, but it will cost $ 530, a fairly salty and higher than the iPhone.Enfim revealed

Google's event began at 10 am on Pacific Time, 16 hours GMT. Shortly after the start, Google executives began to announce the growth that the Open Handset Alliance (OHA), a group that takes care of Android, obtained in 2009. After 16 minutes elapsed, there is one of the most anticipated announcements.

"The next step in the evolution Android"

Finally comes the official logo of the Nexus One, the Google executives call "superphone. It's finally revealed that he is the fruit of a partnership with HTC, which has launched six mobile phones with Android and now launching what promises to be the culmination of a partnership between Google and HTC.

Peter Chou, HTC's CEO, says the device that has screen 3.7-inch AMOLED, and has said that the Nexus One has Snapdragon processor 1 GHz, the most "powerful" category. It has light sensors and approach, to facilitate the visualization of information. The Nexus One also has compass, GPS, LED indicator for new messages and accelerometer.

The multimedia playback features ensure compatibility with various types of files. For images: JPEG, BMP, GIF and PNG. For audio: AAC, AMR, MIDI, SMF, OGG, WAV and MP3. For video: H.263, MPEG-4 and H.264.

The camera is really 5 megapixels, LED flash, 2X digital zoom and also records video in MP4 with a resolution of 720x480 pixels. The audio system allows connection to Bluetooth devices and has a system of noise suppression. Images released by Google shows that the device has only 11.5 mm thick, which means little more than 1 cm, and weighs only 130 g.