Adobe Flash Player 10.1 for mobile to be available as OTA download for Android
June 22, 2010 - By Justin E. Gehrke
Early this morning, Adobe (Nasdaq:ADBE) published an official Press Release announcing the immediate availability of Flash Player 10.1 for mobile. Since the very name of the company is forbidden to be mentioned in the same sentence as the word iPhone, it’s safe to say the company is targeting users of Android-based smartphones, with the new offering.
What’s the catch? Well to download and use it, Android users must have version 2.2, or Froyo, as its more commonly known. The company lists devices like the Dell Streak, Google Nexus One, HTC Evo, HTC Desire, HTC Incredible, DROID by Motorola, Motorola Milestone, and Samsung Galaxy S as being among some of the most popular devices to support Flash 10.1 for mobile.
In the press release, the company states, “Flash Player 10.1 is expected to be available as a final production release for devices once users are able to upgrade to Android 2.2 ‘Froyo.’” Updates on Android will be via an over-the-air (OTA) download, which can be initiated directly from the Android Market or triggered upon attempting to view Flash Player 10.1 for mobile content. Future OS updates could also include the player. This, though, is dependent upon the device’s manufacturer.
Adobe also states that the latest version has been released to developers on platforms such as BlackBerry, webOS, Windows Mobile, and Symbian OS. Owners of devices operating on these platforms can expect to see the addition of the player, via over-the-air downloads, in the coming months. Some future smartphone and tablet devices will include Flash Player 10.1 for mobile as one of their preinstalled apps.
Of course, many will think back to the great Adobe vs. Apple debate over the pros (or in the case of Apple) the evil cons of Flash on mobile devices. To this end, Adobe insists that its “Smart Rendering” feature will only allow Flash to run when the user is actually viewing content. They also assure users that the “Smart Rendering” feature will reduce potential CPU usage, battery consumption, and the amount of RAM required to run content. Flash Player 10.1 for mobile is also designed to pause when a phone call is received or when the user switches to a non-browser related function.
The true measure for the potential success of Flash 10.1 for mobile will be whether or not mobile developers embrace it and begin designing mobile-based content and apps that use the player as one of its core components. If it does prove to be wildly succeessful, Steve Jobs may just come around and approve it for use on iOS4 for iPhone 4, the iPad, and the iPod Touch 2G. Of course, there’s probably a better chance that AT&T will reinstate all the cancelled iPhone 4 pre-orders, so you may not want to hold your breath for the iPhone Flash thing.
Below is an official Adobe demo of Flash Player 10.1 for mobile on Android. Of course, you’ll need Flash to see it.
Source: Adobe Announces Availability of Flash Player 10.1 for Mobile
If Adobe invested the same amount of money and time into actually advancing Flash that they put into criticizing Apple’s decisions maybe it would actually be a good platform. They are trying to get into onto other platforms when it doesn’t even support 64-bit yet. All major operating systems have 64-bit support and most web browsers have already and are already transitioned over. Flash is also well known for performing great on Windows and not Linux based distributions or Mac OS X. They really should invest in what they have instead of making a fret about what others are doing and trying to engage in new markets when their offerings are not too well off, but it will all come down to the consumer really. Most will not understand the bickering between the two. All they will understand is if their browser crashes or if it doesn’t as a result of Flash. How Flash plays out on the mobile phone will be an interesting sight once some benchmarks from respectable companies emerge.