Google’s Android Things is probably is the first-ever IoT operating system. This is an effort from Google to make developers feel comfortable while building IoT (Internet of Things) devices. Actually, if you remember Brillo software from Google, Android Things is a makeover of that. This, therefore, is a new IoT operating system. The launch was in December 2016. It is now available as a developer preview. As a matter of fact, it mixes together Brillo with Android developer tools, Google cloud computing services, and support for Google’s IoT communication platform, Weave. So logically, it is a right mix and match of existing tools that were working in isolation.
The collaboration of these tools makes Android Things quite powerful and effective. The sole purpose behind this launch is to make it easier for hardware and software developing agencies to create IoT products with the same Android APIs. These include Android Studio and the Android Software Development Kit. In addition, Google services will play a major role in this since the developer community is quite familiar with it.
The following information is from Google official website.
Android Things makes developing connected embedded devices easy by providing the same Android development tools, best-in-class Android framework, and Google APIs that make developers successful on mobile.
Apps for embedded devices bring developers closer to hardware peripherals and drivers than phones and tablets. In addition, embedded devices typically present a single app experience to users. This document goes over the major additions, omissions, and differences between core Android development and Android Things.
Android Things Overview
Android Things extends the core Android framework with additional APIs provided by the Things Support Library. These APIs allow apps to integrate with new types of hardware not found on mobile devices.
The Android Things platform is also streamlined for single application use. System apps are not present, and your app is launched automatically on startup to immerse your users in the app experience.
