The Fragmanted Android Platform - not what you think

The Fragmanted Android Platform – not what you think

Posted on by Toma Velev

The Android Platform is Fragmented in various ways across different devices and manufacturers. Here are some of the key aspects that may affect your application development.

Fragmanted Device Screen Sizes:

  • Small screens (2-3 inches): Most basic feature phones. There are becoming very very few percent, but still – they exist.
  • Medium screens (4-5 inches): Many smartphones, including budget and mid-range devices.
  • Large screens (6-7 inches): Most tablets, phablets, and some high-end smartphones.
  • Extra Large screens (8 inches or more): Some large tablets, phablets, and high-end smartphones.
  • flip and foldable phones: this is a category of devices that allow users to change the active display size – in the runtime. The good apps out there adapt their views – according the the available space or device orientation.

Device Form Factors:

  • Bar form factor (e.g., Samsung Galaxy S series)
  • Square form factor (e.g., Google Pixel series)
  • Rectangular form factor (e.g., Motorola Moto G series)
  • Foldable form factor (e.g., Samsung Galaxy Z Flip)

The great majority of devices are between 5 and 7 inches. The screen sizes is just the starting point of fragmantation.

Manufacturers:

  • Samsung (Galaxy series)
  • Huawei (Mate, P, and Honor series)
  • Xiaomi (Redmi, Mi, and Poco series)
  • Google (Pixel series)
  • OnePlus
  • LG (G series)
  • Motorola (Moto series)
  • Sony (Xperia series)
  • HTC (One series)
  • ZTE (Axon and Blade series)
  • Amazon Devices

The great variety of manufacturers bring their own modifications of the Android OS, the hardware features and the software services they integrate.

Hardware Features:

  • Processor: Various chipsets from Qualcomm (Snapdragon), Samsung (Exynos), and Huawei (Kirin)
  • RAM: Varies from 2GB to 12GB or more
  • Storage: Varies from 16GB to 512GB or more
  • Display resolution: From QVGA (320×240) to 4K (3840×2160)
  • Rear camera resolution: From 2MP to 108MP or more
  • Front camera resolution: From 0.3MP to 16MP or more

Google introduced Android Go Edition for the low end devices, so – if you need to have full range of users, you need to have your app

  • target older versions of Android
  • work good enough – on devices with lower resources and computing power

Supported Third-Party Services for the Android Platform:

  • Google Play Store (for apps)
  • Amazon Appstore
  • Samsung Galaxy Apps
  • Huawei AppGallery
  • Xiaomi Mi Store
  • OnePlus App Store

Targeting the different market is what bring one of the greatest differences. As a Developer one most likely targets Google Play – where there is Google Play Services. But, they are not present on all devices. Even for the American market – Amazon Devices do not have Google Services. There is no garanty what is available on the Chinease market.

The list of services that may depend on the Service Provider are:

  • Sign in and Authentication
  • Analytics
  • Push Notifications
  • Geo Locations
  • Payment
  • Ads
  • Fit – integration of Internet Of Things related to health
  • Cast – integration with TVs, etc
  • Drive – easy cloud storage
  • etc – a lot of others smaller services only present on specific Service provider

Operating System Versions:

  • Android 11 (latest stable version)
  • Android 10
  • 9 (Pie)
  • Android 8 (Oreo)
  • Android 7 (Nougat)
  • 6 (Marshmallow)

Biometric Authentication:

  • Fingerprint sensors (e.g., Samsung, Huawei, and Xiaomi)
  • Face recognition (e.g., Apple Face ID, Google Face Unlock)
  • Iris scanning (e.g., Samsung and Huawei)

 Battery Life:

  • Small batteries (e.g., 2000mAh)
  • Medium batteries (e.g., 3000mAh to 4000mAh)
  • Large batteries (e.g., 5000mAh or more)

 Connectivity Options:

  • Wi-Fi (2.4GHz and 5GHz)
  • Bluetooth (version 4.x or later)
  • GPS
  • NFC
  • USB-C
  • Micro-USB

 Audio and Video Capabilities:

  • Stereo speakers (e.g., Samsung, Huawei, and Xiaomi)
  • Hi-Fi audio (e.g., Sony and Google Pixel series)
  • 4K video recording
  • HDR support

 Sensors:

  • Accelerometer
  • Gyroscope
  • Magnetometer
  • Proximity sensor
  • Ambient light sensor

 Water and Dust Resistance:

  • IP68 rating (e.g., Samsung Galaxy S series)
  • IP67 rating (e.g., Huawei P30 Pro)
  • IP53 rating (e.g., Xiaomi Mi 9)

 Biometric Sensors:

  • Fingerprint sensors
  • Face recognition
  • Iris scanning
  • Heart rate monitoring (e.g., Samsung and Huawei)

 Mobile Payment Support:

 Wireless Charging:

  • Qi-compatible devices (e.g., Samsung, Huawei, and Xiaomi)
  • PMA-compatible devices (e.g., Google Pixel series)

This is not an exhaustive list, but it covers many of the key aspects that contribute to Android fragmentation. So, if you are a Flutter Developer, having to support also iOS, Web, All the Desktops is probably the same as – having to support all the Android variations