Android
| Android | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Type | Mobile operating system |
| Industry | Consumer electronics |
| Developer | Google, Open Handset Alliance |
| Written In | Java, Kotlin, C, C++, Rust |
| Operating System | Linux kernel (modified) |
| License | Apache License 2.0 (Android Open Source Project); GNU GPL v2 (kernel modifications); proprietary components in Google Mobile Services |
| Supported Devices | Smartphones, tablets, VR and AR headsets, smart glasses, wearables, televisions |
| Release Date | September 23, 2008 |
| Website | https://www.android.com |
Android is an operating system based on a modified version of the Linux kernel and other open-source software, developed by Google and the Open Handset Alliance.[1] It was designed primarily for touchscreen smartphones and tablets, and is the most widely used smartphone operating system, with over three billion monthly active devices.[1] The core platform is released as free and open-source software under the Apache License 2.0 as the Android Open Source Project (AOSP); most consumer devices also ship with Google's proprietary applications and services, collectively Google Mobile Services (GMS).[1]
Android matters to virtual reality and augmented reality because its open-source core has become the base operating system for most standalone VR and AR hardware. Devices including the Meta Quest line, the Samsung Galaxy XR, and earlier viewers such as Google Cardboard and Daydream either run an Android-derived system or use an Android phone as the compute and display module. Google's ARCore software development kit also turned ordinary Android phones into augmented reality devices.
History
Android, Inc. was founded in Palo Alto, California, in October 2003 by Andy Rubin, Rich Miner, Nick Sears, and Chris White.[1] The company's first goal was software for digital cameras, but it shifted toward a mobile operating system. Google acquired Android, Inc. in July 2005 for a reported sum of at least 50 million dollars.[1][2]
On November 5, 2007, the Open Handset Alliance, a consortium that included Google, device makers such as HTC, Motorola, and Samsung, carriers, and chipset makers such as Qualcomm and Texas Instruments, was announced with the stated aim of building an open platform for mobile devices.[1] The first commercially available Android phone, the HTC Dream (sold by T-Mobile as the G1), was announced on September 23, 2008.[1][3]
Android releases originally carried dessert-themed codenames in alphabetical order, from Cupcake (1.5) through Pie (9). Google ended the public confectionery naming with Android 10 in 2019 and moved to plain numbers for marketing, while retaining internal dessert codenames.[3] Stable versions through the program's history are summarized below.
| Version | Codename | API level | Initial release |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | (none) | 1 | September 23, 2008 |
| 1.5 | Cupcake | 3 | April 27, 2009 |
| 2.3 | Gingerbread | 9 | December 6, 2010 |
| 4.0 | Ice Cream Sandwich | 14 | October 18, 2011 |
| 4.4 | KitKat | 19 | October 31, 2013 |
| 5.0 | Lollipop | 21 | November 4, 2014 |
| 6.0 | Marshmallow | 23 | September 29, 2015 |
| 7.0 | Nougat | 24 | August 22, 2016 |
| 9 | Pie | 28 | August 6, 2018 |
| 10 | (numeric) | 29 | September 3, 2019 |
| 16 | Baklava | 36 | June 10, 2025 |
| 17 | (numeric) | 37 | June 16, 2026 |
Google released Android 16 on June 10, 2025, and Android 17 on June 16, 2026.[3][4][5]
Architecture
Android is layered on a modified Linux kernel, with hardware abstraction layers, native C and C++ libraries, an application framework, and a managed runtime for apps.[1] Early versions executed application bytecode on the Dalvik virtual machine using just-in-time compilation. Dalvik was replaced by the Android Runtime (ART), which uses ahead-of-time and later profile-guided compilation; ART became the default in Android 5.0 Lollipop in 2014.[1] Applications are written mainly in Kotlin and Java against the Android SDK, and performance-sensitive code can use C and C++ through the Native Development Kit (NDK).[1]
The split between AOSP and Google Mobile Services is relevant to headset makers. AOSP provides the kernel, runtime, and standard Android APIs as open-source software, while the Play Store, Play Services, and other Google apps are proprietary and licensed separately. A manufacturer can build a device on AOSP without GMS, which is the path most VR vendors took.[1][6]
Phone-based VR
The first wave of consumer VR on Android used the phone itself as the headset's screen and processor.
Google Cardboard was shown at Google I/O in June 2014 as a low-cost viewer into which an Android phone is slotted, splitting the display into two eye views.[7] Google reported over 10 million Cardboard viewers shipped by March 2017 and over 15 million by November 2019.[7] Google open-sourced the Cardboard SDK in November 2019 and stopped selling viewers through its store on March 3, 2021.[7]
Samsung Gear VR was developed by Samsung with Oculus and used a compatible Samsung Galaxy phone, running Android, as the display and compute unit. Samsung ended Gear VR support with newer phones around 2019, and the Samsung XR video service was disabled on September 30, 2020, after Oculus shifted to standalone hardware such as the Oculus Go.[8]
Daydream was announced at Google I/O on May 18, 2016, as a higher-quality phone VR platform that required "Daydream-ready" phones running Android 7.0 Nougat or later, along with the Daydream View headset and a motion controller.[3][9] Google discontinued Daydream in 2019: the Pixel 4 dropped support, and Google stopped certifying new devices and selling the Daydream View headset that October.[7]
Standalone headsets
As VR moved from phone-in-a-viewer designs to self-contained headsets, vendors built those headsets on Android rather than writing a new operating system. Meta Horizon OS, the system on Meta Quest headsets, is based on recent versions of the Android Open Source Project and a modified Linux kernel.[6] Meta gave the platform its current name on April 22, 2024, when it announced it would license the system to third-party hardware makers, initially naming Asus, Lenovo, and an Xbox-branded effort with Microsoft; Meta said in December 2025 that this licensing program had been paused.[6] Because it is built on AOSP without Google Mobile Services, Horizon OS distributes software through the Meta Horizon Store rather than Google Play, and apps target standard Android APIs without access to Google Play Services.[6]
Android XR
Android XR is an Android-based operating system for headsets and glasses that Google announced on December 12, 2024, developed with Samsung and Qualcomm.[10][11] It integrates the Gemini generative AI assistant at the system level for voice, vision, and gesture input.[11]
The first device built on Android XR is the Samsung Galaxy XR (developed under the codename Project Moohan), which Samsung released in October 2025 at a price of 1,799 dollars.[12][10] Unlike Horizon OS, Android XR ships with Google apps and can run mobile and tablet Android applications; Google said the headset can access Google apps adapted for XR, new XR-native experiences, and "millions of mobile and tablet apps," including YouTube, Google Maps, Google Photos, and Chrome.[12] Google has also described display-bearing and audio-only AI glasses on the platform, with partners including Samsung, Xreal, Warby Parker, and Gentle Monster.[10]
AR on Android phones
ARCore is Google's augmented reality SDK for Android, announced on August 29, 2017, with version 1.0 released on February 23, 2018.[13] It succeeded Project Tango, which had relied on specialized depth sensors, and instead brought AR to ordinary certified Android phones using the standard camera and motion sensors.[13] ARCore provides motion tracking through simultaneous localization and mapping, environmental understanding such as plane detection, and light estimation, and it supports depth and geospatial features that use GPS and Google's visual positioning system.[13] It requires Android 7.0 or later on certified devices and is used through engines including Unity and Unreal.[13]
App compatibility
A practical effect of building VR and AR hardware on Android is that the headset can run software written for the much larger Android app catalog. On Horizon OS, developers can ship 2D Android apps that appear as flat panels inside the headset, alongside native 3D applications, because the system exposes standard Android APIs.[6] Android XR goes further by including Google Play and presenting phone and tablet apps in the headset's spatial environment.[12] This shared lineage means developer tools such as the Android SDK, the NDK, and Gradle-based builds carry over to XR development, and runtimes such as OpenXR and engines such as Unity sit on top of the Android base on these devices.[11][10]
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 "Android (operating system)". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_(operating_system).
- ↑ "The history of Android OS: its name, origin and more". https://www.androidauthority.com/history-android-os-name-789433/.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "Android version history". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_version_history.
- ↑ "Android 16". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_16.
- ↑ "Android 17". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_17.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 "Meta Horizon OS". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meta_Horizon_OS.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "Google Cardboard". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Cardboard.
- ↑ "Samsung Gear VR". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samsung_Gear_VR.
- ↑ "Daydream by Google is now available". 2016-11-10. https://blog.google/products/google-vr/daydream-now-available/.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 "Android XR". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_XR.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 "Android XR: A new platform built for headsets and glasses". 2024-12-12. https://blog.google/products/android/android-xr/.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 "Introducing Galaxy XR, the first Android XR headset". 2025-10-21. https://blog.google/products/android/samsung-galaxy-xr/.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 "ARCore". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARCore.