So, I am looking for getting an Android phone on AT&T. It needs to be upgradeable when a new version of Android is released. I don't want to be stuck on an old version of the OS, even if it currently has the latest, within a year, it will be too old.

I do Mobile phone development, so I like that I can use this phone as my tester. The only other feature I need the phone for is the tethering.

Basically, I started thinking about getting a 4G Mifi, the Novatel one at Verizon. But figured for either $5 more or less a month I can add the Android phone to my Family plan and now have a device I can test Android apps I write on a real device, instead of the simulator, like I have been using.

I do not need this as a phone. I already have three iPhones 3G, 3Gs, and 4 iPhones with two of them having Phone service through AT&T.

So adding a new line would be only $9.99 a month, and $45 a month for their 4GB data plan. Whereas the Verizon Mifi would be 50-60 a month and all I get is a hotspot.

Thanks

Mark

The only Android device that gets "timely" upgrades and works on AT&T is the now-discontinued Nexus One. In fact, I can't see that AT&T sells a single phone with the Android 2.3 software that came out in February.

With Android, upgrades are the exception rather than the rule.

Just get the Nexus S... but make sure you get the correct 3G version for AT&T. The T-Mobile (AWS) version will still work on AT&T, but you will only get EDGE speeds for data.

Wrong. Google and the manufacturers now commit to 18 month upgrades for all Android phones.

Upgrades for Android are now the rule rather than the exception. I can't think of ANY recent 2010 or 2011 Android phones that have not received at least 1, if not 2 or 3 upgrades.

Please stop spreading FUD.

Help the OP out with a list of ones on AT&T that have Gingerbread 2.3. AT&T's site doesn't list any that do.

I thought I saw somewhere that the Motorola Axis/Avis (I forget the correct name. found it Atrix) is getting Gingerbread or there is a download for it already.

I was also thinking that if you root the phone, maybe that would be a way to update Android whenever you want. But I am sure that the phone manufacturers might tightly integrate the Android OS on it so that you have to go through them to upgrade.

Unfortunately, this is very similar to what happened with J2ME and manufacturers. In which they would implement the specification correctly, but since Sun wanted all those j2ME phones out there, they still certified the phones on apis, even if they weren't 100% compliant.

Thanks for all your replies, I really appreciate the help.

Mark

http://www.gizmocrunch.com/mobile/74...ad-att-inspire

http://www.techwafer.com/2011/06/25/...atrix-4g-july/

Gingerbread is being rolled out to most phones. Just because it's not listed currently does not mean anything.

The HTC Evo just got Gingerbread this month (early June) - and it was one of the first Android phones to get Froyo. So far I have not heard of any current phones (2010 / 2011) that WILL NOT receive Gingerbread.

Please, stop spreading FUD.

I bought the Thrive on a prepaid basis from AT&T to use as a GSM phone. It cost $7.99 to get the unlock code from an online service and rooting it was unbelievably easy -- I followed instructions on an Android Central thread. I haven't ever rooted one of my other Android devices, and I only rooted this one to get Amazon appstore access, but seriously, it was super easy. I don't know about flashing updates as it isn't a priority for me, but the root process itself is certainly do-able.

You can "root" most Android phones to put latest versions of Android OS on it, if you wish. Motorola phones are a bit tricky because they encrypt the signature on a special software called "boot loader" that looks for Motorola approved software only, making it far more difficult to load after-market software.

HTC / Samsung / LG / Sony all are developer friendly, so you can load latest Android software on it, much easier than Motorola.

Great to hear. I have rooted almost a dozen Android devices, all of them were extremely easy, and relatively risk free.

Android is so much easier to control and administer, than a limited iPhone device that Apple locks down so much.

Apple's fragmentation also is a huge pain - I can't upgrade my iPhone 2G, 3G to iOS 4 or the new upcoming iOS 5. My iPod Touch 32GB first gen is also left behind, no way to get after-market support to update to a new OS.

OK, sorry but I have to call you on this as partial FUD.

I am an Apple developer and a Java developer. As far as fragmentation J2ME beats all of them, second is Android, the fragmentation and changes to api make it very difficult to write once run anywhere when it comes to Android development. I have to actually write a few versions of my app so that I can support all types of devices of Android. With iOS I just write one version.

I have also been able to upgrade all my iPhones from 3G to 3GS to 4 to any IOS version, including the latest IOS 5 beta 2 on my iPhone 4. There will always be a point from any software vendor where you do have to break old versions and not support it anymore. Every software vendor does this. Try running MS Office 1.0 on your Windows 7.

iPhones are also very easy to jailbreak and give you full control over the file system. I can ssh into it and do whatever I need to do with it.

But back to the original post. I think only the HTC Inspire 4G is the only 4G Android phone at AT&T that is upgradable.

"Android 2.2 operating system (Froyo) with over-the-air upgrade capability for future OS releases" - Amazon

Thanks

Mark

So you're an Apple developer and you're spreading mis-information about Android??

iPhones ARE NOT easy to jailbreak. I had a 16GB 3GS for several months in the hopes of jailbreaking and then unlocking, and ultimately gave up because the jailbreaking solution never became available during that time as the previous owner had upgraded it to a version that the devs were unable to find a solution for.

Even if you jailbreak, you are still very fearful of updating the iOS. You are forced to stay several versions behind until the devs can figure out how to jailbreak later versions. I have jailbroken iPhones that I have yet to update iOS on, simply because one error in updating will cause the iPhone to be locked and not jailbroken.

I have an iPad 2 that has yet to be jailbroken. All my Android tablets and phones are easily rooted and I can put after-market ROMs on. No such luck with my iOS devices.

I can run MS Office 1.0 on my Windows 7, if you provide the software I will find a way to do it.

Back to the topic at hand - I just posted a link showing the Motorola Atrix will also be upgradeable in July. Why are you still spreading wrong information? The HTC Inspire 4G and pretty much every other 4G Android phone should be receiving Gingerbread, at the very least.

The Nexus line is the logical choice since they are unbranded, so there is no need to wait for AT&T to update their crapware after a new Android release - there is no crapware to begin with. The Nexus S was the first to get Gingerbread, followed quickly by the Nexus One. Google intended them to be developers phones.

There is no Nexus 4G out yet, but specs are out there and it might be due around Thanksgiving. http://www.bgr.com/2011/06/15/exclus...e-android-4-0/ (There is a Nexus S 4G available for Sprint)

I've seen new Nexus Ones going for $250 if you need something quickly and can live with 3G for now.

I have a refurb'd Inspire 4g that I just bought (a week ago) already unlocked(sim) Came stock with 2.2 Froyo and of course AT&Ts bloatware.
12 hours later(internet sucks in Afghanistan) I am root'd and running GingerBread 2.3.x
Of those 12 hours 11.5 were downloading the 3 needed pieces of software
.net 4, HTC Sync, and bubbly 1 click root tool
I don't have the luxury of waiting on AT&T to push the update as I'm not in the US and besides I don't need their crapware.

Get the Inspire 4G and root it. It's cheap and a really nice device.