Learning Android™ Application Programming: A Hands-On Guide to Building Android Applications
by James Talbot, Justin McLean, Jorge Hernandez
Understanding the Android Difference
Android is a do-it-yourself operating system for hardware manufacturers that—unlike Research in Motion (RIM) (BlackBerry) and Apple (iOS)—don’t want to (or can’t) build their own mobile operating systems. Many hardware manufacturers have created their own interfaces to sit on top of Android—for example, Samsung’s TouchWiz or Motorola’s MOTOBLUR. Android does the heavy lifting of connecting to the back-end hardware.
Another notable example is the user interface of the Kindle Fire tablet, which is built entirely around Amazon content but sits on top of the Android operating system. Android can also be used to power gaming devices (OUYA), cameras (Samsung’s Galaxy Camera), smart glasses (Google Glass), wristwatches, ...
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