At Google I/O, Google announced the availability of Android 2.2 or Froyo. While it’s a dot release, the functionality added by this release enables a lot of exciting features. Many of these features are more significant from when Apple upgraded their iPhone hardware from 3G to 3Gs. For Android owners, it also increases speed and stability across the board.
Highlights:
- Wireless tethering: This feature allows you to broadcast your cellular connection and use it as router. In other words, once this feature is enabled, you can connect devices such as the iPad, iPod touch and most laptops to the web, without having to purchase MiFi routers.
- Speed: Speed increases are fairly noticeable across the entire platform, making it much snappier and less prone to freezing.
- Flash: Finally, after years of anticipation, Flash Player is finally available on a modern mobile device. And, it works.
How To Enable Wireless Tethering on Android 2.2:
- Go to the Settings menu on your device.
- Click on ‘Wireless & networks.’
- Scroll down to ‘Tethering & portable hotspot.’
- Click on the checkbox next to ‘Portable Wi-Fi hotspot.’
- Click on ‘Portable Wi-Fi hotspot settings,’ if you want to add security. If not, you should be able to connect
Android 2.2 and Flash
There have been significant debates over the past few months regarding the viability of the Flash Player on mobile devices. Steve Jobs even wrote a lengthly letter detailing why Apple won’t be supporting the Flash Player on their iPhone OS devices.
However, Flash Player 10.1 on Android is fairly good. There is minimal slow-down and in an event that the Flash application crashes, only the Flash plugin crashes. The phone does not. Adobe and Google have done a good job of bringing Flash to this update.
For those who’re trying to view Hulu content on their Android 2.2 phones should know that Hulu does not have mobile licensing rights, making it challenging to view Hulu content on Android phones.
