Top 10 Best Android Courses on Udemy [2022 Reviews]

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Udemy is a popular marketplace for affordable courses on a huge range of subjects. This includes high-quality options for anyone looking to learn Android development.

However, with so much choice it can be difficult to know which course to go for. Well, we are here to help.

In this top 10 review round-up, we have carefully selected 10 of the best Android courses currently running on Udemy in 2022.

Whether you are an expert looking to develop your skills further, or a beginner wanting to learn the basics (and other needs in between) you will find something here to suit you.

For our top choice Android courses at a glance, just head to the table below. For an in-depth review of each of the selected courses, keep on reading.

Table of Contents

Best Android Courses on Udemy

COURSE

TITLE

DETAILS

OUR RATING

BEST BEGINNER COURSE

Comprehensive 2021 Android Development Masterclass

49.5hrs of video
35 Resources

75 Articles
Lifetime Access
Certificate

Android App Development Masterclass using Kotlin

62hrs of Video

18 Articles
2 Resources
Lifetime Access
Certificate

How to Make a Freaking Android App

6.5hrs of video

2 Articles
Lifetime Access
Certificate

The 7 Day Android App Bootcamp - Android Pie and Kotlin

6hrs of video

5 Articles

3 Resources
Lifetime Access
Certificate

BEST FOR INTERMEDIATES

Android Architecture Masterclass

7hrs of video
1 Resources
Lifetime Access
Certificate

Dependency Injection in Android with Dagger 2 and Hilt

14.5hrs of video
1 Resources

Lifetime Access
Certificate

Intermediate Android Development and Kotlin

9.5hrs of video
8 Articles
Lifetime Access
Certificate

BEST EXPERT LEVEL

Hands-on Background Services

3hrs of video
1 Resources
Lifetime Access
Certificate

Android Development Working With Databases Using Mysql & PHP

3hrs of video

1 Articles
Lifetime Access
Certificate

Beast Android Development:Integrating A Node.Js Server

12.5hrs of video
2 Resources

Lifetime Access
Certificate

The Reviews

The following reviews focus on 10 of the best Android development courses that are currently being offered on Udemy.

Best Android Courses for Beginners

1. BEST FOR BEGINNERS: Comprehensive Android Development Masterclass

1

This is a comprehensive 50-hour long Android app development course designed for beginners. It starts by teaching the student Java programming as this is the language to be used for building Android apps.

As expected, the student will build several Android apps during the course because this form of hands-on training enables the student to learn the best practices in Android development.

App development lessons also cover application programming interface (API), and the student is taught how to use the following APIs during app development: ML Kit Face Recognition, ROOM, Firestore, and Firebase.

During the process of building dynamic apps, one learns what Data Binding and Model-View-Controller (MVC) are, and how to use them in apps.

Likewise, one learns about designing a user interface for an Android app. After the app has been developed and tested in Android Studio, the student is taught how to deploy and publish it in the Google Play Store.

As expected, the android development setup used in this course in Android Studio. In this review, this is the best Android MAD course for beginners.

This 50-hour long course has 388 lectures grouped into 51 sections. The course is made up of 50 hours of on-demand lecture videos, 11 coding exercises, 75 articles, and 35 downloadable resources.

Until now, over 13,000 students have completed it, and 2,313 of them have given it a rating of 4.6 out of 5. There is a certificate of completion for each student who successfully completes this course, and another benefit that the student gets is full lifetime access to the course contents.

Key aspects of this course are explained below.
  • Target Audience: Beginners and programmers who want to enter into the field of Android MAD.
  • Course Type: Tutorials with coding exercises.
  • Rating: 4.6 following 2,313 ratings.
  • Language: English with lecture videos featuring auto-generated English subtitles.

The Tutor

Paulo Dichone is a software engineer who has developed Android, Java, and Flutter applications, as well as built iOS apps and developed websites.

He has been teaching programming courses for the past 5 years. He is also conversant with Dart and Angular programming.

Requirements

  • Internet-connected personal computer (PC).
  • Programming knowledge is an advantage but not a necessity.

Contents

The key topics covered in the course include the following:
  • Installation of Android Studio.
  • Java programming.
  • Android Development.
  • Android Application Lifecycle.
  • Application building blocks – intent, IntentReceiver, services, and ContentProvider.
  • Android UI and Constraints.
  • Data Binding.
  • Model-View-Controller Architecture.
  • Shared Preferences.
  • Databases.
  • Android animation.
  • Android media.
  • Android themes
  • Icons, and material design.
  • Android Fragments.
  • APIs.
  • Android Machine Learning.
  • Testing an Android app.
  • Building of the following apps –
  • Make it Rain app.
  • Trivia app.
  • Todoister app.
  • National parks app.
  • Journal app.
  • Publishing an app.
  • Application development process.

This course can be accessed using an internet-connected PC (which is the recommended medium) or a smartphone or any other internet-enabled mobile device, or even a smart TV.

2. Android App Development Masterclass

2

This is a comprehensive 62.5 hour-long Android app development course that uses the Kotlin programming language. It is designed for beginners.

Kotlin is interoperable with Java programming language and can use Java Class Library, while its apps can run well on a JVM.

As expected, this course begins with lessons covering Kotlin programming, Moreover, the student is expected to build apps during the course, including a Button Counter app, TaskTimer app, Calculator app, YouTube app, Top 10 Downloader app, and Flickr Browser app.

The model-view-controller architecture is also covered, alongside databases especially SQLite, and how to use SQL language to generate, update, and delete tables in an SQLite database.

In this course, the android development setup used is the Android Studio and Android SDK.

This 62.5 hour-long course has 382 lectures grouped into 18 sections. The course is made up of 62 hours of on-demand lecture videos, coding exercises, 18 articles, and 2 downloadable resources.

Until now, over 29,200 students have completed it, and 4,319 of them have given it a rating of 4.4 out of 5.

There is a certificate of completion for each student who successfully completes this course, and another benefit that the student gets is full lifetime access to the course contents.

Key aspects of this course are explained below.
  • Target Audience: Beginners and programmers who want to enter into the field of Android MAD.
  • Course Type: Tutorials with coding exercises.
  • Rating: 4.4 following 4,319 ratings.
  • Language: English with lecture videos featuring auto-generated English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Indonesian, and Portuguese subtitles.

The Tutor

This course is developed by Tim Buchalka, Jean-Paul Roberts, and David Reidy. Tim Buchalka is a professional software developer with 35-year experience.

Jean-Paul Roberts is a computer programmer with 30-year experience in professional programming. David Reidy is a mobile app developer.

Requirements

  • Internet-connected personal computer (PC).

Contents

The key topics covered in the course include the following:
  • Installation of Android Studio and Android SDK.
  • Kotlin programming.
  • Android Development.
  • Android Application Lifecycle.
  • Application building blocks – intent, IntentReceiver, services, and ContentProvider.
  • Model-View-Controller Architecture.
  • Databases.
  • Testing an Android app.
  • Building of the following apps – Hello World app, Button Counter app, TaskTimer app, Calculator app, YouTube app, Top 10 Downloader app, Flickr Browser app
  • Publishing an app.
  • Application development process.

This course can be accessed using an internet-connected PC (which is the recommended medium) or a smartphone or any other internet-enabled mobile device, or even a smart TV.

3. How to Make a Freaking Android App

3

This is a relatively short 7-hour long course designed to teach a beginner how to build an Android app for Android Marshmallow using Android Studio.

The programming language used in this course is Java, which is understandable as this course was last updated in November 2018, several months before Google adopted Kotlin as its preferred programming language for Android apps.

There are 3 apps that the student will develop – the Tip Calc app, a Resume app, and a Dream Team app. This is a hands-on course suitable for anyone who wants to build an Android app for the first time. As expected, the android development setup used in this course is the Android Studio.

This 7-hour long course has 49 lectures grouped into 6 sections. The course is made up of 6.5 hours of on-demand lecture videos, coding exercises, and 2 articles.

Until now, over 3,600 students have completed it, and 806 of them have given it a rating of 4.4 out of 5.

There is a certificate of completion for each student who successfully completes this course, and another benefit that the student gets is full lifetime access to the course contents.

As mentioned, the last update to this course was made in November 2018.

Key aspects of this course are explained below.
  • Target Audience: Beginners and programmers who want to enter into the field of Android MAD.
  • Course Type: Tutorials with coding exercises.
  • Rating: 4.4 following 806 ratings.
  • Language: English with lecture videos featuring auto-generated English subtitles.

The Tutor

Nick Walter is a mobile app developer who has developed both Android and iOS apps. He is also a software programmer and web developer.

Requirements

  • Internet-connected personal computer (PC).

Contents

The key topics covered in the course include the following:
  • Installation of Android Studio and Android SDK.
  • Java programming.
  • Android Development.
  • Android app lifecycle.
  • Testing an Android app.
  • Building of the following apps – Tip Calc app, Resume app, Dream Team app.
  • Application development process.

This course can be accessed using an internet-connected PC (which is the recommended medium) or a smartphone or any other internet-enabled mobile device, or even a smart TV.

4. 7 Day Android App Bootcamp

4

This is a relatively short 6-hour long hands-on Android app development course that uses Kotlin programming language. It is designed for beginners.

This course is developed and taught by Nick Walter who developed the course afore-reviewed course, but unlike the How to Make a Freaking Android App course, this course uses both Kotlin and Java, and the apps are developed for Android 9 Pie.

There are 3 apps that the student will develop – the Tip Calculator app, an Emoji Dictionary app, and a ToDo List app. The developed apps can then be deployed.

One is also taught how to submit an app to Google Play Store As expected, the android development setup used in this course is the Android Studio.

This 6.5-hour long course has 47 lectures grouped into 8 sections. The course is made up of 6 hours of on-demand lecture videos, coding exercises, 5 articles, and 3 downloadable resources.

Until now, over 3,600 students have completed it, and 686 of them have given it a rating of 4.6 out of 5.

There is a certificate of completion for each student who successfully completes this course, and another benefit that the student gets is full lifetime access to the course contents.

The last update to this course was made in November 2019, which explains its use of Kotlin programming.

Key aspects of this course are explained below.
  • Target Audience: Beginners and programmers who want to enter into the field of Android MAD.
  • Course Type: Tutorials with coding exercises.
  • Rating: 4.6 following 686 ratings.
  • Language: English with lecture videos featuring auto-generated English subtitles.

The Tutor

Nick Walter is a mobile app developer who has developed both Android and iOS apps. He is also a software programmer and web developer.

Requirements

Internet-connected personal computer (PC)

Contents

The key topics covered in the course include the following:
  • Installation of Android Studio.
  • Kotlin programming.
  • Java programming.
  • Android Development.
  • Android app lifecycle.
  • Testing an Android app.
  • Building of the following apps, Tip Calculator app, Emoji Dictionary app, ToDo List app.
  • Application development process.
  • Publishing an app.

This course can be accessed using an internet-connected PC (which is the recommended medium) or a smartphone or any other internet-enabled mobile device, or even a smart TV.

Best Intermediate-Level Android MAD Courses

5. BEST FOR INTERMEDIATES: Android Architecture Masterclass

5

This is an intermediate-level Android development course that teaches Android architecture, Android Fragments, clean package structures, multi-activity versus single-activity trade-offs, and the principle of separation of concerns and how it is executed through dependency injection.

It also prioritizes how to build a focused business domain in an app, as well as how to decouple the UI logic from the overall app codebase using the model-view-controller (MVC) architecture.

Moreover, the student is taught how to avoid God Classes and Spaghetti Code during app development and update. As expected, this course is designed to train one on how to build a functional app with a clean UI and coherent architecture.

In this review, this is the best intermediate-level course for Android MAD.

This 7.5-hour long course has 77 lectures grouped into 14 sections. The course is made up of 7 hours of on-demand lecture videos and a downloadable resource.

Until now, over 5,900 students have completed it, and 848 of them have given it a rating of 4.7 out of 5. There is a certificate of completion for each student who successfully completes this course, and another benefit that the student gets is full lifetime access to the course contents.

The last update to this course was made in August 2020.

Key aspects of this course are explained below.
  • Target Audience: Entry-level Android developers who want to achieve technical excellence.
  • Course Type: Tutorials.
  • Rating: 4.7 following 848 ratings.
  • Language: English.

The Tutor

Vasiliy Zukanov is a professional Android developer who has worked in the microelectronics industry.

Requirements

  • Internet-connected personal computer (PC).
  • Basic understanding of Android MAD.
  • Knowledgeable in Java Programming.

Contents

The key topics covered in the course include the following:
  • Installation of Android Studio.
  • Android Architecture.
  • Android Development.
  • Android Application Lifecycle.
  • Application building blocks – intent, IntentReceiver, services, and ContentProvider.
  • Android UI.
  • Data Binding.Model-View-Controller Architecture.
  • Dependency Injection.
  • Nested MVC.
  • Android Fragments.
  • Runtime permissions.
  • Application development process.

This course can be accessed using an internet-connected PC (which is the recommended medium) or a smartphone or any other internet-enabled mobile device, or even a smart TV.

6. Dependency Injection in Android

6

This intermediate-level Android MAD course focuses on dependency injection, and it covers its fundamental theory, its best practices, and its frameworks.

The 2 dependency injection frameworks used in this course are Hilt and Dagger, and there are also lessons that compare these 2 frameworks to the Dagger 2 framework.

As expected, the student is taught how to perform optimal dependency injection using these 2 frameworks. This course requires the student to be familiar with Kotlin programming.

Like the afore-reviewed course, this course is developed by Vasily Zukanov.

This 15-hour long course has 123 lectures grouped into 17 sections. The course is made up of 14.5 hours of on-demand lecture videos and a downloadable resource.

Until now, over 5,100 students have completed it, and 1,225 of them have given it a rating of 4.7 out of 5.

There is a certificate of completion for each student who successfully completes this course, and another benefit that the student gets is full lifetime access to the course contents.

The last update to this course was made in October 2020.

Key aspects of this course are explained below.
  • Target Audience: Entry-level Android developers who want to achieve technical excellence.
  • Course Type: Tutorials.
  • Rating: 4.7 following 1,225 ratings.
  • Language: English with lecture videos featuring auto-generated English subtitles.

The Tutor

Vasiliy Zukanov is a professional Android developer who has worked in the micro-electronics industry.

Requirements

  • Internet-connected personal computer (PC).
  • Basic understanding of Android MAD.
  • Knowledgeable in Kotlin Programming.

Contents

The key topics covered in the course include the following:
  • The fundamental theory of dependency injection.
  • Dependency injection techniques.
  • Pure dependency injection.
  • Dagger 2.
  • Model-View-Controller Architecture.
  • Dagger and the ViewModel.
  • Hilt.

This course can be accessed using an internet-connected PC (which is the recommended medium) or a smartphone or any other internet-enabled mobile device, or even a smart TV.

7. Intermediate Android Development and Kotlin

7

This is an intermediate-level Android MAD course designed to teach the student how to build modular and scalable Android apps.

It focuses on how to write complex Android code that is readable and modular. It also teaches key industry standards of Android MAD including event-driven programming, dependency injection, JetPack, AndroidX, Google Architecture Components, and Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM) architecture.

There are also lessons that cover advanced Kotlin programming. Moreover, the student will learn about Android view inflation, how it works, and how to build custom views.

This 10-hour long course has 67 lectures grouped into 12 sections. The course is made up of 9.5 hours of on-demand lecture videos and 8 articles.

Until now, over 800 students have completed it, and 170 of them have given it a rating of 4.3 out of 5.

There is a certificate of completion for each student who successfully completes this course, and another benefit that the student gets is full lifetime access to the course contents.

The last update to this course was made in August 2020.

Key aspects of this course are explained below.
  • Target Audience: Entry-level Android developers who want to achieve technical excellence.
  • Course Type: Tutorials.
  • Rating: 4.3 following 170 ratings.
  • Language: English with lecture videos featuring auto-generated English subtitles.

The Tutor

Mickey Dang is a professional Software developer who has worked at Shopify.

Requirements

  • Internet-connected personal computer (PC).
  • Basic understanding of Android MAD.
  • Knowledgeable in Kotlin Programming.

Contents

The key topics covered in the course include the following:
  • Installation of Android JetPack.
  • Advanced Kotlin programming.
  • MVVM architecture.
  • Custom views.
  • Android Fragments.
  • Dependency injection.
  • ROOM.
  • SQLite.
  • Persistent storage
  • Coroutines.
  • Asynchronous programming.
  • Sealed classes.
  • Application development process.

This course can be accessed using an internet-connected PC (which is the recommended medium) or a smartphone or any other internet-enabled mobile device, or even a smart TV.

Best Expert-Level Android Courses

8. BEST FOR EXPERTS: Hands-on Background Services

8

This is an expert-level Android MAD course that focuses on how to implement background services in Android apps and Android MOS, as well as understanding the lifecycle of a service.

It starts with an introduction to background services and their capabilities, and how these services perform long-running tasks.

Moreover, there are lessons that describe how data is passed to background services and the results relayed back. It also covers background processes, background threads, and Main UI threads, and how they relate to background services.

There are also lessons on how to restrict background services, as well as lessons on the application building blocks, including advanced lessons on IntentService and JobIntentService.

The Android MOS used in this course is primarily Android Oreo.

There are also lessons on how to troubleshoot problems and handle issues that can arise with misconfigured or broken background services.

In this review, this is the best expert-level Android MAD course.

This 3.5-hour long course has 29 lectures grouped into 7 sections. The course is made up of 3 hours of on-demand lecture videos and a downloadable resource.

Until now, over 430 students have completed it, and 138 of them have given it a rating of 4.7 out of 5.

There is a certificate of completion for each student who successfully completes this course, and another benefit that the student gets is full lifetime access to the course contents.

The last update to this course was made in June 2018.

Key aspects of this course are explained below.
  • Target Audience: Android developers who want to achieve technical excellence.
  • Course Type: Tutorials.
  • Rating: 4.7 following 138 ratings.
  • Language: English with auto-generated English subtitles.

The Tutor

This course is developed by Packt Publishing, an education publishing company that focuses on publishing programming and technology courses.

Requirements

  • Internet-connected personal computer (PC).
  • Knowledge of Android MAD.

Contents

The key topics covered in the course include the following:
  • Android Components.
  • Android Service.
  • Types of Services.
  • Threads and Processes.
  • Android Application Lifecycle.
  • Application building blocks – intent, IntentReceiver, services, and ContentProvider.
  • Background service.
  • IntentService and Worker Thread.
  • Service Lifecycle.
  • Limitations of background services.
  • Troubleshooting background services.

This course can be accessed using an internet-connected PC (which is the recommended medium) or a smartphone or any other internet-enabled mobile device, or even a smart TV.

9. Android Development Working with Databases

9

This is an expert-level Android MAD course that focuses on how Android apps interact with SQL-based relational databases, as well a how to use the PHP scripting language to manage communications between the client app and its server backend.

As expected, the student is taught how the Android app stores its data in online databases, and how this data is retrieved, updated, or deleted as necessary.

Likewise, SQL language is taught, alongside lessons on how JSON is to be used to retrieve data from the database.

Likewise, the student learns how to develop Android apps that can use MySQL databases, as well as how to set up online databases for these apps.

This 4-hour long course has 20 lectures grouped into 6 sections. The course is made up of 3.5 hours of on-demand lecture videos and an article.

Until now, over 67,450 students have completed it, and 654 of them have given it a rating of 4.2 out of 5. There is a certificate of completion for each student who successfully completes this course, and another benefit that the student gets is full lifetime access to the course contents.

The last update to this course was made in May 2016.

Key aspects of this course are explained below.
  • Target Audience: Android developers who want to achieve technical excellence.
  • Course Type: Tutorials.
  • Rating: 4.2 following 654 ratings.
  • Language: English with auto-generated English subtitles.

The Tutor

This course is developed by Joe Parys and Ashutosh Pawar. Joe Parys is a licensed tutor and entrepreneur, and Ashutosh Pawar is a programmer and Android app developer.

Requirements

  • Internet-connected personal computer (PC).
  • Knowledge of Android MAD.
  • Basic understanding of PHP, SQL, and Databases.

Contents

The key topics covered in the course include the following:
  • MySQL Database.
  • Data Insertion.
  • Online Database.
  • PHP and Database Operation.
  • Data Extraction.
  • JSON.
  • Data Parsing.

This course can be accessed using an internet-connected PC (which is the recommended medium) or a smartphone or any other internet-enabled mobile device, or even a smart TV.

10. Beast Android Development

10

This is an expert-level Android MAD course that focuses on how to build secure, efficient, and powerful Android apps that integrate Node.JS with Firebase.

The student is expected to develop a chatting app that integrates the aforementioned tools. Also, there are lessons on how to use Rx-Java to build a non-blocking structure, as well as how to integrate user profiles in an app.

Likewise, the student is taught how to optimize upload speed by scaling and compressing images.

There are also lessons on how to implement user-to-user push notifications, alongside how to implement app permissions in Android Nougat and Android Marshmallow.

This 12.5 hour-long course has 60 lectures grouped into 8 sections. The course is made up of 12.5 hours of on-demand lecture videos and 2 downloadable resources.

Until now, over 600 students have completed it, and 88 of them have given it a rating of 4.4 out of 5. There is a certificate of completion for each student who successfully completes this course, and another benefit that the student gets is full lifetime access to the course contents.

The last update to this course was made in December 2016.

Key aspects of this course are explained below.
  • Target Audience: Android developers who want to achieve technical excellence.
  • Course Type: Tutorials.
  • Rating: 4.4 following 88 ratings.
  • Language: English with auto-generated English subtitles.

The Tutor

Carlos Valentin is an Android app developer.

Requirements

  • Internet-connected personal computer (PC).
  • Knowledge of Android MAD.
  • Basic understanding of Rx-Java and Google Firebase.

Contents

The key topics covered in the course include the following:
  • Installing Firebase and Node.JS.
  • User Authentication.
  • App Development.
  • Friend requests.
  • Push notifications.
  • User friends.
  • Modify user profiles.

This course can be accessed using an internet-connected PC (which is the recommended medium) or a smartphone or any other internet-enabled mobile device, or even a smart TV.

An Introduction to Android Developing

The Android Operating System

Android is a full-stack, Linux-based mobile operating system (MOS) programmed in C, C++, and Java, and based on the Linux kernel.

It is developed by the Open Source Project (OSP), Google, and the Open Handset Alliance (OHA). Android as an Operating System (OS) was developed by Andy Rubin, Chris White, Rich Miner, and Nick Sears.

This OS was owned by Android, Incorporated., which was established in October 2003. In July 2005, Android Inc. was acquired by Google Inc.

In November 2007, Google partnered with Intel, HTC, T-Mobile, Qualcomm, and Motorola to form the Open Handset Alliance (OHA).

A week after OHA was formed, it released a preview of its Android MOS. In October 2008, T-Mobile G1 entered the market as the first device running the OHA edition of Android MOS. Currently, OHA is an alliance of handset manufacturers, semiconductor companies, mobile operators, software companies, and commercialization companies.

The Android MOS was preceded by other Mobile Operating Systems, including Windows Mobile for the pocket personal computer (PC) and smartphone.

Other phone operating systems included Bada OS for Samsung smartphones, Blackberry OS for Blackberry smartphones, and Symbian MOS by Accenture for Nokia smartphones.

Finally, of course, there is the Apple iOS. This introduced a sleek graphical user shell for Apple smartphones.

So, why was Android OS created to replace, or compete with, these pre-existing mobile operating systems?

Why Android was Developed?

Android was developed to overcome the demerits of the pre-existing mobile operating systems

The key reasons for the development of Android MOS are as follows:

Creation of a MOS platform

The creation of a MOS platform allowed for the easy development of mobile applications. As expected, Android allows for the fast development of compatible mobile apps. This development process is even faster as compared to similar app development for the iOS platform.

Need for Open Source Licensing of the MOS

The was a need for Open Source Licensing of the MOS for the different companies that manufacture Smartphones.

Currently, Android MOS is distributed under Apache License 2.0 and GNU GPL v2 licenses. The Apache License 2.0 is used for licensing the software and applications developed on top of the Linux kernel of the MOS. The GNU GPL v2 license allows for modification of the Linux kernel.

A stable Linux-based kernel

The Linux-based kernel is stable and can be modified under the GNU GPL v2 License.

This allows for kernel modification to match the hardware of smartphones, and this is a key advantage of Android as any smartphone manufacturer can request OHA for a license to use Android MOS, and then modify this MOS to be compatible with their unique set of mobile phone hardware.

This explains why Android MOS used in different smartphones is well-optimized for these smartphones. The modified Android MOS that is installed in the smartphone is called the stock firmware, which is also popularly described as the stock read-only memory (ROM).

The downside of this open-source licensing is that one cannot take the stock Android MOS used in a specific phone brand and then install it in another phone brand.

Ability to create custom ROM

Android provides the ability to create custom ROM that can be installed on smartphones.

This custom ROM can be created by the manufacturer as the stock ROM, or an individual programmer who understands the hardware in his/her phone. This allows the stock ROM to be modified by an individual programmer.

Highly customizable

Android MOS is highly customizable; and different widgets, launchers, icon packs, and themes can be developed to be installed in the user-space of the MOS.

Computing Platforms

android

User applications to be used in Android MOS are written in Java. There are several computing platforms for developing and deploying Java programs for running embedded hardware.

The 3 main platforms are:

  • The Java Platform Micro Edition (JPME) for Java code that runs micro-controllers and chips in smartphones
  • Java Platform Standard Edition (JPSE) for use in PC and Notebooks
  • and the Java Platform Enterprise Edition (JPEE) for use with Servers and Workstation computers.

For the smartphone platform, the JPME needs to be configured so as to create a customized profile for a particular category of smartphones and versions of Android MOS.

Full-Stack MOS

As mentioned earlier, Android OS is a full-stack MOS. This means that the OS comes with a software layer populated with applications that allow the MOS to be used outside the box.

This has been made possible by the release of the Android source code by Google, Inc. The source code was released to Android Open Source Project (AOSP), which maintains this codebase to date.

As a full-stack OS, Android MOS has the following layers: Linux kernel, libraries, Android runtime, application framework, and the application (software) layer where the apps are installed and run from.

The set of libraries that allow a user application to communicate and work with the kernel is collectively designated as the middleware of the MOS. In Android, this middleware is formed by the libraries and Android runtime.

The key components of the Android MOS

The key components of the Android MOS are explained below:

Linux Kernel

Android MOS is based on the long-term support (LTS) Linux kernel, with the latest kernel version used in Android 11 being Linux Kernel 5.4 LTS. In this kernel are held the kernel-space drivers, and it handles process management, networking, and memory management.

The main drivers here are the keypad driver, display driver, camera driver, audio driver, Wi-Fi driver, binder driver, power management driver, and flash memory driver.

Programming Languages

Because Android uses Linux Kernel which is written in C programming language, then it is evident that the core Kernel of Android MOS is written in C Language.

Also, some of the codes in the kernel and middleware are written in C++ language. However, the entire graphical shell, or user interface (UI), is written in Java programming language.

Java can access the C code through the Java Native Interface (JNI).

Libraries

Atop the kernel is the library of the MOS. It is made up of the WebKit, SQLite, OpenGL-ES, SGL, SSL, Libc, FreeType, Surface Manager, and the Media Framework.

Android Runtime (ART): It is principally made up of the core libraries based on Java 5 Standard Edition, and the Dalvik Virtual Machine. It shares the same layer space with the libraries.

Application Framework

This allows for components to be reused and even replaced. It is made up of the package manager (which is the Android Application Package [APK]), telephony manager, activity manager, location manager, resource manager, view system, window manager, content providers, and notification manager.

Dalvik Virtual Machine (DVM): It provides the virtual OS layer that user applications can run on, thus allowing different handset models with different hardware to run the same user application. All .dex files run on this DVM.

SQLite

This is used for structured data storage.

Integrated Browser

As mentioned, Android is developed by OHA, of which Google is a member, and thus it is understandable that Android MOS comes with an integrated Google browser which was initially based on the WebKit engine developed by Apple, Inc., but released under an open-source license.

Since 2013, Google forked a component of WebKit called WebCore and then developed it as the browser engine called Blink, which is currently used by 2 web browsers – Google Chrome and Opera.

This means that Android apps that require browser functionality can work well with the Opera web browser.

Graphics

Android MOS comes with optimized graphics powered by hardware acceleration and powerful graphics libraries, including OpenGL, OpenGL ES, and Vulkan for rendering 3D Graphics. SGL is used for rendering 2D graphics.

Media Support

Android MOS supports popular media codecs such as MPEG4, MP3, AMR, AAC, and H.264. It also supports still image formats including JPEG, PNG, SVG, and GIF.

Application Layer

This holds the applications that the user can use. These applications include the browser, phone, launcher, contacts, messages, icon pack, themes, media players, and file manager.

These applications come hard-coded in the Android MOS, thus allowing one to use the phone after booting it up for the first time.

Android 11 and Android 12 Developer Preview

The latest stable release of Android MOS is Android 11, which was released on 8th September 2020. On February 18, 2021, the beta developer preview of Android 12 was released.

Application Lifecycle

In Android MOS, an app must be started and run so that one can use it, and this leads to using of MOS and hardware resources.

When the user finishes using the app, (s)he can stop it so as to free the resources. This process of starting an app, using it, and then terminating it is called the lifecycle of the application.

The life-cycle of any Android application in the smartphone has 3 key phases:

  • Active – This state occurs when an app is opened and loaded by the user for use.
  • Paused – The app is running but inactive as the user is not using it, but has not yet closed or shut down the app.
  • Destroy – The app has been closed, and its operations cease. Also, its cache memory is cleared.

Mobile Application Development (MAD)

AOSP allows programmers to build or develop applications and codebases that can be included in any of the layers of Android MOS.

Most of these programs are built as user applications that are installed in the application layer.
In 2019, Google declared Kotlin as the preferred programming language.

Previously, Java was the preferred programming language, and it is still used to date.

When developing an app, the programmer must ensure that it has the basic building blocks. There are 4 application building blocks:

  • Activity that the system matches to an intent.
  • Services are the components that run in the background.
  • IntentReceiver that responds to an intent.
  • ContentProvider allows data to be shared across apps.

Android Development Setup

This is the collection of tools needed to create, test, debug, and deploy an Android it. This setup can be made by one or more of the following:

Android Studio

This is the official integrated development environment (IDE) for building Android apps. It comes with an intelligent code editor, coherent visual layout, build system, real-time analyzer, APK analyzer, and a fast simulator.

It is a complete standalone Android development setup. It supports only 2 programming languages for Android MAD: Kotlin and Java.

Android SDK (Software Development Kit)

This comes with the full set of tools needed for app development and debugging.

It is packaged as a modular SDK, and one needs to download each module using its official download manager, which is called Android SDK Manager. Android Studio comes with Android SDK.

Java Development Kit (JDK)

It is the implementation of JPME, JPSE, and JPEE that comes with a set of tools needed for Java app development and debugging. It also comes with the Java Virtual Machine (JVM).

Eclipse IDE

Eclipse IDE is the IDE for coding Java mobile apps.

Android Debug Bridge

This is used for debugging Android apps.

Emulator

This is the virtual phone where the developed mobile app is installed and then be tested. It is normally based on QEMU, which is an open-source emulator used for hardware virtualization.

It is not needed if Android Studio has been installed, as the Studio comes with its own emulator called the Android Studio Simulator.

The main processes in the development of a mobile app are:
  • Design.
  • Code.
  • Compile.
  • Preverify.
  • Package.
  • Test.
  • Deploy.

The information provided above is introductory to the process of Android application development. So, where can one learn about Android application development? Well, Udemy of course.

References

  • “Web and Android Programming Course Information System”, E S Soegoto and M R Jayaswara (2018), IOP Conf; [PDF Link]
  • “Understanding Student Engagement in Large-Scale Open Online Courses: A Machine Learning Facilitated Analysis of Student’s Reflections in 18 Highly Rated MOOCs”, Khe Foon Hew, Chen Qiao & Ying Tang (2018); DOI: https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v19i3.3596
  • “Trends towards a sustainable MOOC Platform”, Adam Lapworth  (2018); [PDF Link]
  • “An Intelligent Tutoring System for Learning Android Applications UI Development”, Hazem Awni Al Rekhawi, Samy S. Abu Naser, (2018); International Journal of Engineering and Information Systems (IJEAIS),2(1),1-14., SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3104365

 

About V50

The editorial team here at Vault50.com is made up of a number of writers based all over the world. Our interests and experience cover the full range of what we talk about here. Clare Turner is one of our key contributers writing about the home. David Lachance is our resident e-commerce and business guru, if it's anything to do with that, he's your man. Kevin Simpson takes care of the website layout and publishing and also heads up our education section, with in-depth reviews and articles on courses and training. Find out more about all of us here.

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