Android vs JavaFX Mobile - And The Winner Is…
As the technical details about Android, Google’s mobile phone operating system, begin to surface, we’re starting to get the first glimpses of how it compares to other upcoming phone OS platforms. One key question is: how will Android compare to Sun’s JavaFX Mobile platform?
While both Android and JavaFX Mobile seem to be what you might call “Java/Linux” platforms, there seems to be a pretty big difference in capability. Today, details of the Android JVM have emerged - it seems that Google may have licensed Esmertec’s Jbed JVM for use in Android. This suggests Android Java will be Java ME, just like a billion other devices in the world.
So, nothing revolutionary; unlike JavaFX Mobile handsets, which will run full Java SE, including JavaFX Script applications. As of today, then, it looks like JavaFX Mobile has much greater potential to compete effectively with advanced handsets like Apple’s iPhone, than does Google’s Android.
Update: Looks like I misread the Esmertec contribution. In fact, if you look at the details, you will see that Esmertec’s Java ME technology is not part of Android.
Having said all this, it’s still early days, and there’s a lot we still haven’t heard about Android…. Obviously, you can do a lot with Java ME, if you have the right APIs (graphics, location, network etc.). So all this is subject to change. We’ll know more on 12 Nov - the place to check will be the developer section on the Android web-site. There’s a chance that Java won’t be the first-choice (or even an available) language for programming apps on Android…
Update: Or maybe, it’s going to be Java SE after all, given that there seems to be no Java ME by default! Oh well, not long till we find out! I will say this - if Android has Java SE at its core, I’ll be very, very impressed. If it’s some lame C++ / Python / JavaScript SDK, I’ll be rather less so. I’m actually optimistic it will be Java SE.
Back in September, when speculating about the GPhone, I wrote:
Having said all that, it’s probably rather more likely that Google has developed its own mobile phone OS. Google acquired a company called Android in 2005. Android was never public about the work it was doing, but it has been said that Android was working on a mobile phone OS that was very similar to, but rather better than, the SavaJe phone OS that went on to become Java FX Mobile.
If that turns out to be correct, then it will be Java SE…
April wrote:
You were right about Android.
http://www.grinn.net/blog/dev/2007/11/googles-android-vs-apples-iphone.html
How is Android opens source approach going to impact the iPhone
Posted 06 Nov 2007 at 8:57 pm ¶
Asam Bashir wrote:
Could get interesting if Google could licence the core of iPhone OS X from Apple and make Andorid a OSX/Java platform. That way Apple can keep tight control of the user experience for iPhone customers, but share core development stratergy with Google for a cheaper/wider deployment of Google branded phones.
They should drop the name Android though, don’t think it would do well with consumers…
Posted 06 Nov 2007 at 9:50 pm ¶
simon wrote:
@April: How will Android’s Open Source approach affect iPhone? Well, it’s about developers mindshare. Apple appears to be going down the route of being a small, niche platform; there are not many Objective C developers out there. Android, on the other hand, could attract a pool of millions of developers. The Java platform alone has millions of developers, and that’s before the benefits of Java going Open Source, and the new forthcoming consumers features, have really been seen.
On the other hand, in the end, from the consumer point of view, it’s all about the device. Apple as a company understands the principles behind good user interface design. That’s a rare thing; most companies don’t have that capability. In that regard, it’s worth noting that some key people on the Android team, including the boss, are ex-Apple.
As of today, iPhone hasn’t sold much (although it’s had a good start). Android hasn’t sold any phones. And neither has JavaFX Mobile, but don’t count that out just yet. So, it will probably be the end of 2008, and into 2009, before we start to get much of a feel for how this is playing out. In the meantime, companies like Nokia aren’t standing still.
We also need to see what Android and JavaFX Mobile devices are going to look like. I’m not yet convinced, for example, that HTC has anything like the same ability that Apple has to design a compelling handset. Every HTC phone I’ve looked at has felt a bit clunky and/or flimsy. Compare that to the iPhone which is a beautiful, sleek. design.
@Asam: Google isn’t going to be using Mac OS X. They’ve chosen Linux (and maybe Java, we’ll know in a week)… and the whole phone OS will be Open Source. Apple and Google are going to be competing for developer mindshare, and competing in the market for selling phones to consumers. Apple seems to have decided that developers for iPhone have to adopt their niche development tools, and accept how Apple will let apps be installed. That will be fine if iPhone sells in large numbers; but they risk creating a chicken-and-egg situation where developers won’t build apps cos the platform is too small; and the platform doesn’t break out to high volume, because there are not enough apps to serve a broad range of user requirements.
Posted 06 Nov 2007 at 10:17 pm ¶
Asam Bashir wrote:
Nice idea though, in principle, would be mutually beneficial to both Apple and Google. Apps could be developed for an Android OSX/Java version with tools provided in a Leopard Java 6 IDE. Once developed they’d be available for installation on OSX/Java, then if Apple thought any where good enough, it could authorize them for the iPhone. Could throw in Safari into the Android OSX/Java mix.
Posted 07 Nov 2007 at 1:11 am ¶
Troy wrote:
I am hearing very little about which carriers will accept these open phones on their network.
There may be a market for VOIP working on the mobile open source phones. Understandably however - that may only be practical for people who have dedicated wireless access.
Posted 13 Nov 2007 at 6:04 am ¶
Asam Bashir wrote:
http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/07/11/12/google_android_dev_kit_exposes_apple_inspired_roots.html
Posted 14 Nov 2007 at 3:19 am ¶