Android Inc. became based in Palo Alto, California in October 2003 by using Andy Rubin, rich Miner, Nick Sears, and Chris White. Rubin defined the Android mission as "high-quality capacity in developing smarter cellular gadgets which might be greater privy to its proprietor's region and options". The early intentions of the organisation had been to increase an advanced running gadget for virtual cameras, and this became the premise of its pitch to buyers in April 2004.The business enterprise then determined that the marketplace for cameras turned into no longer massive enough for its desires, and through five months later it had diverted its efforts and was pitching Android as a handset operating machine that might rival Symbian and Microsoft home windows cellular.
Rubin had difficulty attracting traders early on, and Android was facing eviction from its workplace area. Steve Perlman, a close pal of Rubin, added him $10,000 in coins in an envelope, and shortly thereafter wired an undisclosed amount as seed funding. Perlman refused a stake within the corporation, and has said "I did it due to the fact i assumed in the aspect, and that i desired to assist Andy."
In July 2005,Google obtained Android Inc. for at least $50 million.Its key personnel, which include Rubin, Miner and White, joined Google as a part of the acquisition.now not a lot became recognised approximately the secretive Android at the time, with the company having provided few details other than that it was making software program for cell telephones.At Google, the group led by way of Rubin evolved a cellular tool platform powered by the Linux kernel. Google marketed the platform to handset makers and companies at the promise of supplying a bendy, upgradeable machine.Google had "lined up a chain of hardware components and software companions and signaled to carriers that it became open to diverse degrees of cooperation".
speculation approximately Google's goal to enter the mobile communications marketplace continued to construct via December 2006.An early prototype had a near resemblance to a BlackBerry phone, and not using a touchscreen and a physical QWERTY keyboard, however the arrival of 2007's Apple iPhone supposed that Android "needed to go back to the drawing board".Google later changed its Android specification documents to country that "Touchscreens can be supported", despite the fact that "the Product became designed with the presence of discrete bodily buttons as an assumption, therefore a touchscreen can not completely replace physical buttons".In September 2007, InformationWeek covered an Evalueserve take a look at reporting that Google had filed numerous patent programs inside the region of mobile telephony.
On November 5, 2007, the Open Handset Alliance, a consortium of era businesses including Google, tool producers together with HTC, Motorola and Samsung, wireless vendors together with dash and T-cellular, and chipset makers together with Qualcomm and Texas units, unveiled itself, with a goal to broaden "the primary truely open and comprehensive platform for mobile devices".the first commercially to be had smartphone walking Android become the HTC Dream, additionally referred to as T-cellular G1, announced on September 23, 2008.
due to the fact that 2008, Android has visible numerous updates which have incrementally progressed the working gadget, including new functions and solving insects in previous releases. every essential launch is called in alphabetical order after a dessert or sugary treat, with the primary few Android versions being referred to as "Cupcake", "Donut", "Eclair", and "Froyo", respectively. in the course of its announcement of Android KitKat in 2013, Google defined that "considering that these devices make our lives so candy, every Android version is known as after a dessert", despite the fact that a Google spokesperson advised CNN in an interview that "It’s type of like an inner team issue, and we choose to be a bit bit — how should I say — a piece inscrutable in the remember, I’ll say".
In 2010, Google launched its Nexus series of devices, a lineup in which Google partnered with special tool producers to supply new devices and introduce new Android variations. The series became described as having "played a pivotal function in Android's history with the aid of introducing new software iterations and hardware standards across the board", and became recognised for its "bloat-unfastened" software program with "well timed [...] updates". At its developer conference in may additionally 2013, Google announced a special model of the Samsung Galaxy S4, in which, rather than using Samsung's personal Android customization, the cellphone ran "inventory Android" and changed into promised to acquire new device updates speedy.[34] The tool could emerge as the start of the Google Play version application, and became observed by using different devices, which include the HTC One Google Play edition,[ and Moto G Google Play edition.[36] In 2015, Ars Technica wrote that "in advance this week, the final of the Google Play version Android telephones in Google's on-line storefront have been indexed as "now not to be had on the market"" and that "Now they're all long gone, and it appears an entire lot like the software has wrapped up".
From 2008 to 2013, Hugo Barra served as product spokesperson, representing Android at press meetings and Google I/O, Google’s annual developer-centered conference. He left Google in August 2013 to sign up for chinese language cellphone maker Xiaomi.[39][40] less than six months in advance, Google's then-CEO Larry page announced in a weblog post that Andy Rubin had moved from the Android division to take on new tasks at Google, and that Sundar Pichai would grow to be the new Android lead. Pichai himself would subsequently transfer positions, becoming the new CEO of Google in August 2015 following the organization's restructure into the Alphabet conglomerate, making Hiroshi Lockheimer the brand new head of Android.
In June 2014, Google introduced Android One, a set of "hardware reference models" that would "permit [device makers] to easily create super phones at low costs", designed for clients in developing countries.In September, Google announced the primary set of Android One phones for launch in India.however, Recode mentioned in June 2015 that the task turned into "a sadness", bringing up "reluctant customers and production companions" and "misfires from the search employer that has by no means pretty cracked hardware".[52] Plans to relaunch Android One surfaced in August 2015,with Africa introduced as the following location for this system per week later. A document from The statistics in January 2017 said that Google became "expanding its “Android One” program for low-cost smartphones to the U.S. in coming months"
Google added the Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones in October 2016, marketed as being the primary telephones made by using Google, and solely featured positive software capabilities, which include the Google Assistant, before wider rollout. The Pixel telephones replaced the Nexus series,and Rick Osterloh, Google's senior vp of hardware, showed in March 2017 that a successor to the Pixel is coming later in 2017.
