Android icon
Android icon

Android

 930 likes

Open-source mobile OS developed by Google, based on the Linux kernel. It supports app development in Java and Kotlin. Compatible with various devices, offering seamless integration with Google services, customizable interface, and extensive app ecosystem for smartphones and tablets.

Android screenshot 1

License model

  • FreeOpen Source

Application types

Country of Origin

  • US flagUnited States

Platforms

  • Android
  • Android Tablet
  • Android Auto
  • Android SDK
  • Android Wear
  • Android TV
3.2 / 5 Avg rating (21)
930likes
17comments

Features

Suggest and vote on features

Properties

  1.  Customizable

Features

  1.  Linux-based
  2.  ARM support
  3.  Mobile OS
  4.  Android Wear compatibility
  5.  Google integration
  6. Google Calendar icon  Sync with Google Calendar
  7.  Sync with Google Drive
  8.  Sideload apps
  9.  Upload directly to Google Drive
  10. Google Drive icon  Google Drive integration
  11.  Dark Mode
  12.  No registration required
  13.  Ad-free
  14.  Batch Rename Files
  15. Google Calendar icon  Google Calendar integration
  16.  Package Manager
  17.  Optimized for Fastboot mode

 Tags

Android News & Activities

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Recent News

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Recent activities

  • u7741339, thesuncitywitch, daghemo and Fadikkop liked Android
    3 days ago
  • miinty and alternativeto-dingo898 liked Android
    29 days ago
  • App icon
    c17s5qhu added Android as alternative to openFyde
    about 1 month ago
  • Agibi, boomflex and tamoi liked Android
    about 1 month ago
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Comments and Reviews

   
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Comment summary: Android receives praise for its extensive app support, customizability, and regular updates. However, there are significant concerns regarding its proprietary nature, data privacy issues, and presence of unremovable apps often referred to as bloatware. While highly powerful and versatile, Android's reliance on Google services raises privacy alarms among some users, prompting suggestions to use custom ROMs for enhanced security.
Top Positive Comment
notDefender14
May 18, 2024
0

I absoulutely LOVE Android. Its the Mobile OS i use everyday. I recommend it if you want to inject some "powerfulness" into your phone. 5 stars.

Top Negative Comment
lukalabudovic123
Jul 17, 2020
11

Google used Unix and renamed it Android. Now it profits off of contributions of open source programmers that made Unix and Gnu/Linux. Don't be fooled people, Google just took Linux kernel and added touch support and most importantly "Play store" where developers could make little money and be forced to make their apps free because Google planned it that way. Fast forward a couple years and the whole world is using android, people like those free apps, but they don't realize Google is profiting big time by adding their uninstallable bloatware like Chrome browser. The only way to uninstall Chrome browser is with root access which voids warranty. This is textbook Microsoft people! They did the same thing with Internet Explorer in the 90s. They force consumers to use their product, but the average consumer is unfortunately too dumb.

Anipe
May 9, 2022

theyre profiting not off unix but their additions and thats what they sell to phone producers, if its such an issue root it yourself or use a different phone man :/

gleycon
Feb 21, 2024

I agree with you. The average user is very dumb. That is why mediocrity must be avoided in all areas of life.

Asumeh
Jan 13, 2025
1

Android being owned by Google makes this mobile operating system a privacy nightmare. There are many custom ROMs that you can install on your phone, such as GrapheneOS icon GrapheneOS (for Pixel phones), LineageOS, and Ubuntu Touch, to help you back away from it. Otherwise, you'll have to do a lot of hardening, and even then unfortunately, I doubt you'll be free from Google's inevitable tracking sins. Worse yet, Google has begun taking out much of its customizability, which was what made Android... well, itself (especially now that Google's considering that you need to download apps from the official Play Store, not from third-party stores). I can at least say it's better privacy-wise than iOS and Apple's secluded ecosystem (as I didn't get used to it for very long).

2 stars only because it works like it should.

Involved in the DOJ's plan to force a breakup with Google, as the tech giant may have to sell Android in order to drop the monopoly it has going on (at least from what I remember hearing).

RemovedUser
Jun 16, 2024
0

Android's okay. I know people are torn on whether or not it's that much more private than iOS, given the intergretion of non-uninstallable google apps. But at least I can still use FDroid & pirate youtube. Besides I've just accepted any mainstream OS with lots of compatible programs is probably spyware.

Myrano
May 6, 2024
4

Pros : ✅ Free and very partially open-source ✅ Android is available for purchase on many smartphones: Fairphone, Google, Honor, Huawei, OnePlus, Oppo, Samsung, Xiaomi... ✅ Unlike iOS, there are a huge number of apps and app stores available. Even so, you still need to sort through them to select only the good ones... ✅ Highly customizable ✅ Customizable interface with settings and themes

Cons: ❌ Google collects a lot of data about you. In 2021, Trinity College researcher Douglas Leith discovered that data was being sent to Google Play servers every 4 to 5 minutes. Even if you harden Android, your privacy isn't protected because Google Play is always running. If you're concerned about your privacy, I recommend installing custom ROMS, such as /e/ or GrapheneOS, which try to block redirects to Google. ❌ When you buy your phone, unwanted applications are installed, some of which you can't uninstall. They're bloatware. ❌ Less secure than iOS

🙏 Thanks to the YouTube video of The Linux Experiment for this information : ↳ The Linux Experiment : https://youtu.be/Lt2xg5NXgmU

ℹ️ Other sources: Wikipedia

bavoussystems
Mar 11, 2023
3

Android is not open source.

While it is true that Android uses a Linux kernel and therefore mooches off of open source software, calling Android itself open source is vastly misleading. Google builds a closed-source and deeply unethical OS on that basis, and that's before both Google and the device manufacturer bundle the device with unremovable proprietary spyware.

If Android can be called open source, then the term has lost all meaning and is no longer useful. Users who browse Alternativeto put their trust in the website and in the "open source" label; giving Android this label is a breach of the user's trust.

undeniably_lizard
Apr 28, 2023

You may not like what Google is doing by adding Play Services to Android (I don’t too), but that doesn't change that Android is open source in its core in the form of AOSP. You can always use this as a base to build your own open Android like LineageOS, GrapheneOS, and many others did.

RemovedUser
Feb 18, 2024

Thanks for the information. I didn't know about this.

1 2
Jan 3, 2023
1

Google controls this operating system saying its open source while it is not? They stole from Unix and renamed it to Android. if you people really like this shit then you are brain washed, trust me this os collects more info on you that you think!

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7 of 17 comments

What is Android?

Android is an operating system for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablet computers. It consists of a kernel based on the Linux kernel, with middleware, libraries and APIs written in C and application software running on an application framework which includes Java-compatible libraries based on Apache Harmony.

Android has a large community of developers writing applications ("apps") that extend the functionality of the devices. Developers write primarily in a customized version of Java, or in Kotlin.

Apps can be downloaded from third-party sites or through online stores such as Google Play Store icon Google Play Store, the app store run by Google.

Official Links

Android information

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Our users have written 17 comments and reviews about Android, and it has gotten 930 likes

Android was added to AlternativeTo by RemovedUser on Nov 14, 2011 and this page was last updated Feb 15, 2025.