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Is there a drawback creating android applications using old sdk version? Other than the obvious one; you can't use the newer functions. Will this application slower if I set build target an old sdk compared to the latest api version when executed on a device?
Yes, not being able to use the new features is obvious. But it depends on what you are targeting and your user base is. In general, it depends on what you are trying to do. A game will usually want to use OPEN GL ES 2.0 so you need the android version that supports that. If you don't care about a specific feature it is best to follow this:
http://developer.android.com/about/dashboards/index.html
for an idea on a potential market share of an application. Older phones will increase the potential market. Besides versions you also need to know if you want to target an tablet or phone. That includes different UI changes/looks.
You won't be able to use new features, of course, if you don't need any new features there is no problem. You will also be able to deploy an application that users with older phones will be able to usecas well.
Cheers
There is no drawback other than not being able to use new features.
No, your application will not be slower.
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I want to make an app in which we can change API level of mobile temporarily and test our apps.So,
Is it possible to change API level of mobile and test our app by using android app?
If it is possible then how we can do this in android applications by using Java.
No deployed version of OS of any sort contains its previous releases (don't confuse this with OS backward compatibility). The simplest way to test on various versions of given platform is to use emulator(s).
For Android see either stock one or 3rd party ones like Genymotion or Blue Stacks.
You can do that via emulator.
I don't think that it's possible to do with mobile.
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Why google created Android wear OS instead of using Android OS in Smartwatches?
Google has created a wear OS because the screen is small and it's not practically possible to operate apps which are on smartphones on a screen of size of a wrist watch as it would be too inconvenient. There is also a difference in working speed of processor which can cause considerable delays. So wear app instead contain only basic features and it's mostly used send notifications to the user.
Android Wear devices have a lot in common with a regular Android device. The tools are the same, and many of the APIs are the same. Pretty much anything you can do on a phone, you can also do on a wearable. The main differences are that Android Wear does not include WebView, and you are not able to access the internet directly - you communicate via the Data Layer API instead. That is the nice part about Android Wear, is that you can leverage all your existing experience with Android on a wearable device, without learning many new APIs.
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Now that Android 4.4 is almost released, I have a question. Does it make sense to build my app against the new version of API and release the updated version to the market? Or does it make sense only if I want to use any of the new features? What is the best practice or the recommended approach?
You should not worry about it. But if your app is a SMS app, then you might have to. Check out this article: http://android-developers.blogspot.nl/2013/10/getting-your-sms-apps-ready-for-kitkat.html
Like for any new Android version, you need to stay tuned to Google announcements, like the one that Alécio mentioned, as certain APIs could be deprecated/changed (in the case of KitKat, if your application depends on intercepting/reading/storing SMS messages, then you should read this). You also need to figure out whether you want to take advantage of any new API to make your application better in one way or another. It's also possible that a whole new feature could be introduced, one that could be interesting to your application. Just use your common sense.
Finally, to be able to use the latest version, you just need to download the latest SDK and ADT, and increment the targetSDKVersion number against the latest API level (this is a general good practice). The list of API levels, for each Android version, are available here.
Yeah..Earlier,you released your application with maximum sdk level is 17 above means, you don't have any problem with latest version..else,You released by 2.3 to 4.1 version means..You,should update your application also.Because APIs are different for above 4.1 and below 4.1. If required you need to update the latest APIs for Latest android version
No you do not need to make any change to your app in order to make it work on the newest version of android unless you use in your code deprecated classes or methods.
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New devices support at least Android 4.0 and many people started to change their phones. Do you still think that we should target Android version 2.x?
I ask this because it won't be that easy for me to support 2.x because of my native libraries. I also have to buy Android 2.2 froyo device for my tests. So, I am trying to find out if all of the effort is feasible or not.
Gingerbread 2.3.3 is on 1/3 of active android devices so I think it is something to care about.
I've has same issue too. Resolved restricting some functionality like above:
int sdkversion = 6; //or whatever
if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT<sdkversion){
...DO NOTHING ABOUT THAT FUNCTIONALITY...
} else {
...DO IT...
}
This should help you out :) I always check it out before embarking on a new idea.
http://www.appbrain.com/stats/top-android-sdk-versions
As for your native libraries, there are plenty of apps out there that only support 4.x versions and still do very well. There are some really decent devices that run gingerbread (2.3 I believe) and are perfectly suitable to all recent apps, but due to manufacturers wont be receiving an update.
Of course, various folk root their phones and use custom roms, so maybe it's not that bad afterall. These stats, can't take that into account, obviously.
HTH.
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What are some things you wish you had known about Android when you first started out or before you published your first app on the market? I am nearing completion on my first and am starting to make sure I have crossed my proverbial Ts and dotted the Is
Save you keystore file.
If you lose it, you will not be able to update your app.
Use <uses-sdk android:minSdkVersion="3" android:targetSdkVersion="4"/> to be compatible with 1.5 and newer devices.
Make your icons based on the Icon Design Guidelines.
Test your app on all Android versions before release to Market, or, if you're too lazy, just on:
1.5 (older one, lacks support of some classes that 2.x does)
2.1 (most modern devices)
2.2 (most current, not much devices for now, has some internal rendering changes)
Earlier than 1.5 are hard to find, so can be safely ignored.
android-remote-stacktrace is also very useful thing
Here's some things you can try:
Stress-testing
adb shell monkey -v -p your.package.name 500
It will help you to do some stress testing before publishing to Market.
Test your app for memory leaks. It's very easy to leak context. This post will help http://android-developers.blogspot.com/2009/01/avoiding-memory-leaks.html.
Test your app on some device with Sense UI like EVO4G. Many things are different there.
Take a look at this https://stackoverflow.com/questions/2094588/android-development-tips-tricks-gotchas for some more pointers about Android development
Have a look at this blog. I have jotted down the problems i faced and some stuff i would like to pass on to new developers
http://seventhsoulmountain.blogspot.com/2014/01/gotchas-and-lessons-learnt-android.html