Droid phones

[Tinker]

I slightly (a huge understatement) ignorant about all of these new electronic devices.  Every time i hear, or see, reference to "droid" (i assume that is short for "android") I am either alone or with someone who might even be less informed than I.  So, since somebody smarter than i must be reading this, I will ask the question I cannot get answer to from anyone who has been 39 for as long as I >>> What is an android (or as above, "droid") phone?
Tinker    (I grew up when long distance communication was smoke signals  [big grin])

BTW:  How many of you guys have ever used a hand crank phone?  AH HA, i probably gotcha there.  Sheffield, Mass along with some place up in Maine were the last phone companies to have used them.  Party lines lasted a little longer, but party line on a hand cranker was both a PITA and a lot of fun.

 

[AlexThePalex]

Never used a hand crank phone, but the next best thing in phone history is the dial disc, and I've used some old ones when I was still a kid. They seem ancient history now too. 

I don't get this distinction between (an)droid phones and smartphones either. I guess somebody is trying to be smart.

 

[TOOLTOWN]

Put simply...

A smartphone is just a phone with an operating system that can run programs in addition to making calls and sending texts

Android is an operating system for smartphones, tablets, etc. (Android phones are smartphones that run Android OS)

Droid is a brand name for Android based smartphones (Mostly Motorola, some HTC and others).

Ken

 

[elfick]

BTW:  How many of you guys have ever used a hand crank phone?  AH HA, i probably gotcha there.  Sheffield, Mass along with some place up in Maine were the last phone companies to have used them.  Party lines lasted a little longer, but party line on a hand cranker was both a PITA and a lot of fun.

I used a hand crank phone as a Tanker in the Army. We'd pull a line a few hundred feet from the tank when setting up an observation point. Does that count?

 

[SittingElf]

BTW:  How many of you guys have ever used a hand crank phone?  AH HA, i probably gotcha there.  Sheffield, Mass along with some place up in Maine were the last phone companies to have used them.  Party lines lasted a little longer, but party line on a hand cranker was both a PITA and a lot of fun.

I used a hand crank phone as a Tanker in the Army. We'd pull a line a few hundred feet from the tank when setting up an observation point. Does that count?

Yup! PRK77's used in the Army.  Some are STILL used in Field Ops. "I Shackle"!

Cheers,

CWO Frank

 

[Tinker]

All explanations about drod and android leave me more confused than ever.

The hand crank phones I have used was the crank was used to dial.  I think the military phones used in the field were to crank up the power.  Am I right? wrong?

Tinker

EDIT> For split thread.

 

[jaguar36]

All explanations about drod and android leave me more confused than ever.

You can just think of them as the same thing, lot of people use them interchangeably anyway.

To simplify it greatly, smartphones are just small computers than also make phone calls.  There are two main kinds, Apple's iPhone, and Android phones, where Google does the software, and a bunch of people (Samsung, LG, Motorola) make the hardware.

 

[SittingElf]

All explanations about drod and android leave me more confused than ever.

The hand crank phones I have used was the crank was used to dial.  I think the military phones used in the field were to crank up the power.  Am I right?wrong?

Perhaps this phone talk should go on a different board.  sorry to have hi-jaked.
Tinker

Nope.  Used to ring the next phone in line. Same as ringing the switchboard on the old crank phones.

Frank

 

[neeleman]

Please guys this topic is about the NEW KAPEX.

Start a new topic about your other hobbies!

 

[Tinker]

Thanks for the move Seth

 

[Sparktrician]

Tinker, look at smartphones as a generic category, like truck.  Under truck, you have subcategories like Ford, Dodge, Chevy, Sprinter, etc.  They're all trucks even though they come from different sources.  Under smartphones, there are four significant operating systems (categories), like Android (from Google), iOS (from Apple), Windows (from Microsoft) and BlackBerry (from BlackBerry).  Generally speaking, the operating systems are not compatible with each other just as parts from a Dodge won't necessarily fit a Ford.  Smartphones combine the capabilities of a cell phone and an electronic notebook (think of the now-defunct Palm Pilot as an example), then add in an Internet browser and a bunch of other applications to perform various functions including navigation (Google Maps).  As another example, BuildCalc is a great app that has been designed to duplicate the functions of the Construction Master calculator.  The app's designer chose to make it compatible with Android and iOS smartphones, but not BlackBerry.  Does this help?