From release in 2008 until date the Android operating system has undergone 5 major updates with multiple updates in between releases. The first commercially available release was Android 1.5 Cupcake and debuted on T-Mobile’s G1, also known as the HTC Dream. After which the software was purchased and developed further by Google and the Open Handset Alliance. In it’s infancy Android wasn’t nearly as feature rich and hardware capable as it is today. There were no butter smooth animations, virtual keyboards or even multi touch functions. The G1 supported a single touch, 3.2″ (320×480) display and came equipped with ancient technology such as a slide out keyboard and a trackball for navigation purposes.
Fast forward 7 years and Android has reached version number 5.1 Lollipop. Hardware supported now features 64 bit processors up to ten cores, QHD displays and as RAM as a desktop computer. With Android Lollipop came a complete overhaul of Android’s user interface to include more integration between Google Apps, attractive system animations and more features than you could sink your teeth into. Well not quite, but we’re getting there. It also included a number of under the hood performance and security upgrades. Google dubbed this new design language Material Design, and it finally brought Android into the 21st century.
The next version of Android will more than likely be introduced alongside Google’s new Nexus devices towards the end of the year. So far it’s just known as Android 6.0 or Android M, but according to one visionary, Vladislav Vitula, Google’s next Android will be Android Muffin. Muffins, mmmmm. Vladislav has designed a concept video showcasing Muffin and has introduced new animations and a couple new features including multi window and quick reply. These features can be found baked into some customs ROMs and stock on certain devices, but they’re incredibly useful, and it would be nice to see them become standard in Android.
For the sake of clarification a multi window function allows for running two apps simultaneously on one display. It provides better and more efficient multi tasking functions. Quick reply is just that. Users would be able to quickly reply to texts without having to leave their current app. It would probably introduce itself as a headsup notification with a paper plane icon that you press to enable text input. Pretty nifty. The video is Material clad and incredibly attractive. I don’t think I’m alone when I say I would be happy to see Android Muffin look like this.