Flash on Android

Hey guys,

I really want to talk more about Apple Vs. Google however I will do that another time. Today however I shall discuss Flash on android.

I have been reading alot lately from Apple Fanboys on why flash on the smartphone isnt a good idea. The main idea they come up with is due to the fact you need a mouse to play games etc. I have had flash on my Nexus one for the last couple months now, and I think I can post a good review on it.

Basically my interpretation on it is that while it is not 100% nessessary, it is a good function to have on a phone. Especially one capable of it (Iphone 4). There are a few websites that I go to that have flash content in which the Flash on my phone enabled to view it. I have tried a few games and while they do work, some can be laggy (not powerful enough CPU? :p)

However when it comes to playing movies form flash or just normal flash in websites, it works perfectly. Just browsing apples website, and they had a page dedicated on flash (http://www.apple.com/hotnews/thoughts-on-flash/). While they bring up some good points, I still stand by the thought of why not add it. Some people will use it, wont hurt the phone so just add it!

The bottom line is, I have an Android phone and I have flash :D I sometimes use it, but it is not bad thing to have.

To conclude, I will sum up the 5 reasons we cant live without flash on android.

1. Watch TV shows free

Any website that plays movies via a flash protocal, you can watch on your android phone. It plays fullscreen, good volume (headphones?) and best of all its free! With iphones, there are only a few supporting  sites that have applications to do this.

2. Play games for free

There are alot of free games on flash avaliable, and while some of the larger ones are hard to play, lots of simple flash games work effectivly.

3. Watch live events

Almost all live events these days are streamed via flash. This enables you to get the live score to anything instantly (and not hope that there is an app for that :p)

4. Consistent app experience

Flash is not just in the android browswer, but in the code for aqndroid. This means people can make android applications based on the flash protocal. So esentially code an android app using flash. This will focus mainly on visual expresiveness.

5. Best web experience

As I mentioned before, nothing is worse than going to a site and being unable to view the flash content. All we want is a website to work, and this can happen with an android phone.

These days I find myself watching alot of episodes online (through my phone) when im on the run (bus, plane). To this day Flash has not let me down, and I find it harder and harder to live without it.

So tell me, do you wish you had flash on your iphone :p

Google VS. Apple

Well lately I have been into the whole Iphone vs. Android Smartphone war. I am a strong believer in value for money. Whilst Iphone does do what it was designed for well, I personally think that they are over-priced. The lack of freedom in the apps / phone functionality also doesn’t agree with me. This is what I am pro android.

My first android phone was the HTC Hero. That was my first experience with the phone, and it took me 5 months before I got sick of HTC support, and rooted/upgraded the phone to Android 2.1. What a difference that made. However, soon after I was pissed off by the fact that HTC still hasn’t released the official 2.1, so I got rid of that, and purchased myself the nexus 2.2.

That phone was bloody amazing!! I still have it till this day. Its rooted and running CM6 (nightly build). Much cheaper than the Iphone, and does exactly what the Iphone does, except more!!

To fast forward, android has gone leaps and bounds in the past year. I have seen it grow since I first got my HTC hero back in Christmas 09. I am happy to see today that more and more people are converting towards the android operating system with awesome phones such as HTC Evo, Droid X.

What phone do you prefer and why? Next blog I will include some numbers on the popularity of each phone, as well as my opinion on things and more clarification of what I have mentioned today.

I think this blog will concentrate on the phone market for the foreseeable future, as it is very interesting to see the fight for Smartphone supremacy!