Bonum Certa Men Certa

Big Milestones in the World of Android/Linux

Summary: Important new developments that show the rapid growth of the Linux-based Android operating system

ANDROID hardly needs to prove itself anymore. It has become somewhat of a de facto standard and its domination is assured for the time being. Suffice to say, Android has been a thing for the Linux Foundation to brag about. Android is a myth buster. It helps bust the myth that Linux somehow "failed". Android smartphones shipment is said to have just crossed 800 million [1].



Android is now going after Windows' turf, expanding more and more to x86 [2] and even running Windows applications natively [3] (Android is already being put on some desktops). Remember Microsoft's "Surface" (the one before the failure which was a portable device)? Well, a 46-inch touchscreen coffee table now runs Android [4], not Windows (prior Microsoft's "Surface" there were numerous that ran GNU/Linux). Linux is clearly ahead of the game and for robotics Foxconn is now turning to Android [5]. It's not just about tablets [6] and smartphones anymore [7,8] (Android clearly dominates these areas). With Chromebox out [9] from large OEMs such as Acer [10] it sure seems like the future is very Android-centric, and by extension Linux-powered.

Android is one of the greatest things that ever happened to Linux, but it's not to be confused with freedom. A lot of advocacy work remains to be done. High morale is highly justified.

Related/contextual items from the news:


  1. Android Smartphone shipment crosses 800 million
    The year 2013 has seen smartphones cross an important milestone. The global smartphone shipment hit the billion mark for the first time, with 800 million contributed by Android. It is clear that Android dominated the smartphone market with Apple’s iPhone shipments maxing out at 153.4 million. These stats are according to data published by IDC on Wednesday.


  2. Android-x86 4.4 review – first Release Candidate
    Android-x86 4.4 RC1 review is a review of the latest development release of Android-x86, a port of Android designed to run on computers powered by Intel and AMD x86 processors, including netbooks and laptops and all-in-ones.


  3. Wine On Android Is Making Progress, Running Solitaire
    Last year was the last time we had a chance to talk about Wine on Android for running Windows programs on Google's mobile operating system. While it's not quite mainline yet, Wine on Android has been making much progress and can now run Windows' Solitaire game on your Android device.

    Wine leader Alexandre Julliard provided a status update at FOSDEM last weekend for Wine on Google Android. The Wine on Android project is still focused upon supporting Windows binaries on Android for both Intel x86 and ARM devices.

    Julliard shared that they now have working support for Android's Bionic C library, cross-compilation is supported for Wine on Android with both i686 and ARM architectures, and there's a basic graphics driver using the desktop mode.


  4. 46-inch touchscreen coffee table runs Android
    Ideum is prepping an Android 4.1 version of its 46-inch, Intel Core i7-based Platform 46 Coffee Table, featuring 3M’s 60-touch, capacitive HD touchscreen.


  5. Google and Foxconn partner on robotics, report says
    The Taiwanese manufacturer is reportedly helping to carry out Google's "vision for robotics," and in return, Google will help the manufacturer deploy robotics in its factories.


  6. Google Nexus 8 rumored for April-end launch
    A recent report by DigiTimes said: “Google has been developing an 8-inch tablet to avoid price competition in the 7-inch segment for launch at the end of April with initial shipments of two million units, according to Taiwan-based supply chain makers.”


  7. Moto G on sale for $99 from US Cellular without contract


  8. Moto G goes on sale on Flipkart starting Rs. 12,499
    Motorola’s Moto G is trying to prove that budget Android Phones do not need to compromise on quality. Moto G takes design cues from it’s premium (costlier) sibling, the Moto X. It has good looks and reviews also state a very good build quality. It runs an almost clean version of Android 4.3 KitKat (Upgradeable to Android 4.4), with no bloatware, or fancy custom skin.


  9. Beep: a Chromecast like streamer for your speakers
    Beep is a new startup by Googlers, which has unveiled ‘Beep’, a device which takes audio streams from your Android device and plays them on the speakers it is attached to. Most latest high-end speakers have inbuilt streaming functionality, but many previous generation but decent music systems lack that feature and ‘Beep’ aims to solve that problem.


  10. Asus’ sleek new Chromebox adds industry and functionality for only $179




Recent Techrights' Posts

Legal Letters Are Not Postcards
It seems like intimidation, nothing more
European Patent Office (EPO) Strikes Persist, EPO Management Tries to Give False Impression of "Happy Staff"
EPO is trying to broadcast to the world a totally phony image of itself
The End of FOSSPost (fosspost.org), It Has become an LLM Slopfarm Like FOSSLinux
These sites will never get lucky with slop. These experiments always end badly.
 
Links 23/05/2026: Social Media Bans and Demise of Userbase of LLM Chatbots
Links for the day
SLAPP Censorship - Part 85 Out of 200: The United Kingdom's Rating for Press Freedom Has Improved, But We Can Do Even Better
we see the US at #64
Sites Realise That Becoming More Active by Using Bots (LLM Slop) is Self-Destructive
We'll soon (maybe next year) also show that some of the 85+ KG of legal papers sent our way are computer-generated garbage, which might run afoul of some rules
Gemini Links 23/05/2026: Patience, LLM Chatbts Being Bad, and Unexpected Computer Surgery
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, May 22, 2026
IRC logs for Friday, May 22, 2026
Links 22/05/2026: Ebola Crisis and Samsung Averts a Walkout With Big Bonuses
Links for the day
Links 22/05/2026: Inflation Fears and Thailand Tightens Visa Rules for Tourists From Dozens of Nations
Links for the day
EPO Staff Representation Speaks of This Week's Discussion With the EPO's Budget and Finance Committee (BFC) Amid Mass Strikes
The Central Staff Committee's outline (prepared in a rush) or the "flash report"
SLAPP Censorship - Part 84 Out of 200: New Legislation Against SLAPPs on the Way (After We Reached Out to Ministers)
They dealt with the matter individually too, but we won't share this in public, at least not at this time
The Corrupt Lecture the Non-Corrupt - Part XXX - Where Was "The Ethics and Compliance Team" When the Family of EPO President Campinos Was Caught Doing Cocaine?
It remains to be seen if national delegates will tolerate this in future meetings
Gemini Links 22/05/2026: Esperanto Music History, Suspicious Adoption of Signal, and Unauthorised LLM Slop in Code
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, May 21, 2026
IRC logs for Thursday, May 21, 2026
Links 21/05/2026: "Declining America" and Why Slop 'Code' is Made to Fail
Links for the day
Techrights and Tux Machines Subjected to Cyberattacks for Several Weeks
In the past I spoke to the cybercrime unit of British Police. Maybe it's time to do so again.
The Register MS Has Become a 'Content' Farm Promoting Slop for Hostile Corporations
Now they call it "PARTNER CONTENT" - not "SPONSORED" - as if semantics make the difference
Latest Example of Widespread Fake Assertions (False News) About "Hey Hi"
The false narrative of "Hey Hi layoffs"
Links 21/05/2026: Facebook Rewarded With Tax Breaks to Destroy the Environment and Cause Global Warming, Shortages, Pollution; SpaceX (SPCX) Continues Losing Billions of Dollars
Links for the day
Codecs and Software Patents - Part VIII - GNU Audio/Video Team Has Chosen the AV1 Video Codec and It Explains Why (They've Researched Their Options)
AV1 video codec will be used to encode and share GNU videos online
Dr. Stallman Helps Establish Free Software Advocacy Outside the Free Software Foundation (FSF) as Well
The ideals or principles of Free Software needn't be centralised or monopolised; they can be federated
22 Years of Tux Machines and a Community Stronger Than Ever Before
We've already received some feedback from the community and improved it accordingly
Microsoft Under Investigation for Breaches of Law in the UK
Just like the Microsofters
More Microsoft Layoffs on the Way (June and July 2026)
with or without PIPs
LWN Sponsored by the Linux Foundation (Monopolies)
We must be able to casually point this out
The Corrupt Lecture the Non-Corrupt - Part XXIX - European Patent Office (EPO) Tells Staff "Speaking up" is Good, But Not When the "Brother-in-law" of EPO's President Does Cocaine
Do we still have a functioning democracy and potent press?
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, May 20, 2026
IRC logs for Wednesday, May 20, 2026
Gemini Links 21/05/2026: Immigration, Slop, and Slop 'Code' Suggestions Infesting Code Repositories
Links for the dayGemini Links 21/05/2026: Immigration, Slop, and Slop 'Code' Suggestions Infesting Code Repositories