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What Is Android? Everything You Need To Know

Pictured: Alexander Maxham
By Alexander Maxham
February 02, 2024
Featured image for What Is Android? Everything You Need To Know

What is Android mobile? Basically, it is the operating system that runs on your smartphones and tablets. This article is going to go more in-depth about what Android mobile really is.

There are really only two mobile operating systems out there: Android and iOS. There are still some companies that are using proprietary software for some phones (mainly flip phones), but for the most part, there are only two options.

Android is, of course, Google’s option.

Brief history of Android

Android initially started out as an operating system for digital cameras. Think of the point-and-shoot and DSLR cameras. The company, Android Inc., was founded in Palo Alto, California, in October 2003 by Andy Rubin, Rich Miner, Nick Sears, and Chris White. Rubin had difficulty pitching Android as a camera software back in 2004 but was able to get $10,000 in cash from a close friend – Steve Perlman. In 2005, Rubin tried to negotiate deals with Samsung and HTC; shortly afterward, Google acquired the company for $50 billion.

Rubin and the team continued to work on Android under the umbrella of Google for a couple of years before introducing it to the public on September 23, 2008. It was introduced at a New York subway station, and HTC’s then-president, Peter Chou, was part of the presentation. This is because the first Android phone was the T-Mobile G1, or the HTC Dream as it was known in the rest of the world.

In 2010, Google launched the Nexus line of devices. This saw Google partnering with different device makers to produce devices that ran “stock” Android, and it was Google’s vision of what Android should be. In 2016, Google switched gears and ditched the Nexus in favor of the Pixel, which is a line of phones entirely produced by Google. Instead of relying on OEM partners to build the hardware, Google does the software.

Today, there are over three billion monthly active Android devices in the world. That’s an impressive number, seeing as that’s the number of Android devices pinging Google’s servers every month.

Major Android Releases

What devices run Android mobile?

For the most part, smartphones and tablets run Android mobile. Most smartphone makers are using Android – with the exception of Apple – for their smartphones. So, as long as you don’t have an iPad or iPhone, you most likely have Android mobile on your device.

Samsung uses Android for the majority of their smartphones and tablets. There are a few tablets that run Microsoft’s Windows, as well as a few smartphones that run Samsung’s own proprietary Tizen operating system.

What are the benefits of Android mobile?

One of the main benefits to using Android mobile is the flexibility of the operating system. Android mobile allows for almost endless customization. And that also means that smartphone makers can customize the operating system to their liking. Don’t like your home screen? You can download a launcher to change it. Don’t like Google keyboard (and its terrible name, “Gboard”)? You can download a new keyboard to use, like Swiftkey. These are just some of the customization features that Google offers.

Gboard new search feature test September 2018 4
Gboard for Android

Since Android runs on over 75 percent of smartphones in the world, it means that if your next smartphone is not from the same company as your current smartphone (i.e. you have an OPPO Find N now, and you upgrade to a Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra), it won’t be a huge difference in the experience, since it is running the same software at its core, which would be Android.

For users, there are millions of apps available to download from the Google Play Store. No matter what you’re looking for, there is most likely an app for that. In fact, there are probably several apps for that. The Google Play Store (starting with Android 10) will also push out platform updates for your device. Making it easier to update your smartphone or tablet and keep it up to date.

There are many features that Android has that just make using your smartphone much easier like Quick Settings. Instead of it being a swipe-up gesture like on iOS, it’s in the notification pull-down. Making it easier to check notifications and turn off WiFi or adjust the brightness. These are also customizable. So if you don’t need the location toggle, you can get rid of it.

Android also has a dark mode. This has been available in Android 9 Pie for a little while, but Google made it system-wide in Android 10 (released in 2019). If you toggle on dark mode or “night mode,” you’ll get a darker interface, which is not only better on the eyes but also on your smartphone’s battery. Many apps are now updating for dark mode, too.

If you’ve ever missed a moment because it took too long to open your camera, well, Android has solved that. Double-tapping your power button will automatically open the camera so that you won’t miss that moment. Really important for those with kids.

These are just some of the very many features that Android has. Google is constantly making new features and improving the features it already has to make life easier.

What are Android “skins”?

Android “skins” or more commonly known as “overlays”, are an overlay that a manufacturer can put on top of Android on their device. Think of Android mobile as the cake, and the overlay is the frosting.

For instance, Samsung has One UI. It has undergone a few name changes over the years, and now it’s simply One UI. With this overlay, Samsung decided to push a lot of the buttons and controls towards the bottom of the phone. This was to meet the demand of displays getting larger and larger. Which, in turn, makes it more challenging and tougher to actually use them one-handed. Samsung also has a number of features backed into One UI, which you won’t find in Android. That includes things like Air Gestures for the S Pen and a recycle bin in the gallery, to name a few.

one ui 6 concept img

However, many prefer OnePlus’ Oxygen OS. This is a mostly stock Android overlay that has a few features added. OnePlus has decided to just add it to Android instead of trying to make it look hugely different. With Oxygen OS, you do get even more customization features, like theming, that are available system-wide. There’s also an “App Locker” that will lock away apps with sensitive data in them, so when you hand your phone to people, they don’t see that data. It’s also a very fast overlay compared to Google’s Android. This is because OnePlus removed a lot of the animations that Google has included.

There are other skins out there, too. Huawei’s Emotion UI or EMUI is also a pretty heavy skin like Samsung’s One UI. Motorola, ASUS, and ZTE have all adopted a more stock-like skin for their smartphones, similar to Oxygen OS but even lighter.

How do I know if I have the latest version of Android mobile?

To check and see what version of Android mobile you’re running, head into the Settings of your smartphone. Scroll down to “About Phone” and then scroll down to the section that shows the software status. Depending on the phone you’re using, you may have to tap on “Software Info” or something similar to get this information.

As of right now, the latest version of Android is Android 14. It was released on October 4, 2023. You might be running the latest version, but this depends on your device. Google, Samsung, and OnePlus are pretty quick with updates, but this also depends on how old your phone is.

Google has not yet announced Android 15, but we do typically get the first developer preview around February. So that could be happening any day now. The final release won’t launch until around September or October, however.

What are the most popular Android devices?

Here are a few of the most popular Android devices in 2024.

Google Pixel 8 Pro

Google Pixel 8 Pro Review AM AH 29

This is Google’s own smartphone, showcasing their vision of what they think Android should look like. It has Android 14 and will get 7 years of updates, which is pretty incredible. Google did include its own chipset in this phone to help with all of the AI features that the Pixel 8 Pro sports. You can read more about it in our Pixel 8 Pro Review.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra review AM AH 10

This is Samsung’s latest flagship smartphone. It has the best of basically everything that is available right now. Including the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy, 12GB of RAM and up to 1TB of storage. It also has a slew of very helpful AI features in the Galaxy AI suite of features. You can read more about the Galaxy S24 Ultra in our review.

AOSP (Android Open Source Project) vs Google’s Android mobile

There are actually two versions of Android mobile. There’s Android Open Source Project or AOSP, and then there’s Google’s Android.

Google’s Android includes GMS or Google Mobile Services. That’s what brings all of Google’s services into Android, like the Play Store, Gmail, Chrome, etc. Manufacturers can use either version of Android, but Google’s version is the better bet.

The big reason Google’s Android is better is because manufacturers get earlier access to the code, as well as help from Google in getting Android working on their smartphones and tablets. It also gets all of Google’s services, which are ubiquitous around the world. And if you’re looking to sell a smartphone, you’re going to need Google’s services, or it’s dead in the water, with the exception of selling it in China.

AOSP exists still because Google wanted to make an open-source mobile platform that anyone can use. And that is still true in 2019. Even though Google’s Android is the better version to use, as it has all the bells and whistles, anyone can use AOSP and not even need to use Google Mobile Services on their devices. Amazon is one of those that does use AOSP without Google’s apps and services.

Is Android the best fit for me?

To be honest, you likely already have a smartphone running Android. About 75-percent of smartphones around the world are running Android right now, meaning that you are very likely to be using one to read this article.

Is is the best fit for you? Well that really depends on what you’re looking for. If you’re looking for the best software Google has to offer, then Android is going to be the best for you. Even though all of Google’s apps are also available on iOS, they don’t integrated into the phone as well as they do on Android.

iOS is really the only other choice when it comes to smartphone operating systems right now, even though there are others trying to take a slice of the market share.