That's what Android One and Project Treble are for.
Android Go is meant for low end, slower connectivity devices aka "upcoming markets". I wonder if Android Go does less profiling etc. Android Go was announced half a year ago on Google I/O 2017. Here's a few sources: [1] [2]. Quoting:
"Android Go will be launched with Android O, but will be an integral part of every Android version in the future. Every Android device with 1 GB of RAM or less will be able to use Android Go. Several key points of the operating system will be optimized and tweaked to take changed specs into account:
* Android Go will have a new data counter, which will allow for better monitoring of data consumption.
* Data Saver will be enabled by default.
* The Play Store will be included with all available apps, but Android Go customized apps will be highlighted.
* Gboard, Google's keyboard app, will have new translation features.
* Google apps will be optimized for weaker chipsets and slower networks."
Keep in mind 1 GB or less means according to the article on Google Blog: 512 MB - 1 GB. So anything less than 512 MB RAM won't fly.
Data Saver [3]:
"To optimize for Data Saver mode, apps should:
* Remove unnecessary images
* Use lower resolution for remaining images
* Use lower bitrate video
* Trigger existing “lite” experiences
* Compress data
* Respect metered vs. unmetered network status even when Data Saver is off
Conversely, to work well with Data Saver, apps should not:
* Autoplay videos
* Prefetch content/attachments
* Download updates / code
* Ask to be whitelisted unless background data is truly part of core functionality
* Treat whitelisting as a license to use more bandwidth"
I'm not sure whether Data Saver mode uses Google proxies.
The article on Google Blog is actually a decent read as well. It explains how on 8 GB flash storage, 50% is available with Android Go, and apps are 50% size.
Its unclear to me how Google benefits from Android Go apart from happy customers. I'm giving some hints throughout my post but nothing conclusive. The name is also confusing given their programming language, Go.
Google made a disastrous decision to make Project Treble an optional framework. The end result is that even though supporting it would allow phones to get faster updates, the vast majority of OEMs who updated their phones to Oreo don't support it.[0]
Basically, Google said, "With this awesome new thing, you the consumer can continue to easily get updates for years without having to wait for the OEMs to push updates!" and the OEMs said, "Yeah...we don't think we want to support that."
IIRC, all phones shipping with Oreo are required to support Treble.
Also, Treble doesn't allow you to get updates "without having to wait for the OEMs", it just makes it easier for OEMs to update Android, since they no longer have to rely on chip manufacturers (e.g. Qualcomm) to provide updated drivers for the new OS version.
> IIRC, all phones shipping with Oreo are required to support Treble.
"Shipping" is the keyword. So OEMs can get around that trivially by shipping the phone with Nougat and promising to update to Oreo very shortly thereafter, thereby bypassing the requirement. Look no further than the recently launched OnePlus 5T:
I would not be surprised if they intentionally did it this way just to get around the Project Treble requirements.
> Also, Treble doesn't allow you to get updates "without having to wait for the OEMs", it just makes it easier for OEMs to update Android
This is true, but it could also allow one to more easily flash ROMs onto the device without the usual unlocking the bootleader process, which would in theory let people then put a ROM onto their phone that's still getting updates, a la LineageOS. OEMS, predictably, probably see that as a drawback.
Yup, so the best thing to do now is only buying phones with Android Oreo installed at launch. If that means not buying a phone, so be it. Or, if your situation demands a phone, buy a temporary, cheap 2nd hand.
Android Go is meant for low end, slower connectivity devices aka "upcoming markets". I wonder if Android Go does less profiling etc. Android Go was announced half a year ago on Google I/O 2017. Here's a few sources: [1] [2]. Quoting:
"Android Go will be launched with Android O, but will be an integral part of every Android version in the future. Every Android device with 1 GB of RAM or less will be able to use Android Go. Several key points of the operating system will be optimized and tweaked to take changed specs into account:
* Android Go will have a new data counter, which will allow for better monitoring of data consumption.
* Data Saver will be enabled by default.
* The Play Store will be included with all available apps, but Android Go customized apps will be highlighted.
* Gboard, Google's keyboard app, will have new translation features.
* Google apps will be optimized for weaker chipsets and slower networks."
Keep in mind 1 GB or less means according to the article on Google Blog: 512 MB - 1 GB. So anything less than 512 MB RAM won't fly.
Data Saver [3]:
"To optimize for Data Saver mode, apps should:
* Remove unnecessary images
* Use lower resolution for remaining images
* Use lower bitrate video
* Trigger existing “lite” experiences
* Compress data
* Respect metered vs. unmetered network status even when Data Saver is off
Conversely, to work well with Data Saver, apps should not:
* Autoplay videos
* Prefetch content/attachments
* Download updates / code
* Ask to be whitelisted unless background data is truly part of core functionality
* Treat whitelisting as a license to use more bandwidth"
I'm not sure whether Data Saver mode uses Google proxies.
The article on Google Blog is actually a decent read as well. It explains how on 8 GB flash storage, 50% is available with Android Go, and apps are 50% size.
Its unclear to me how Google benefits from Android Go apart from happy customers. I'm giving some hints throughout my post but nothing conclusive. The name is also confusing given their programming language, Go.
[1] https://www.androidpit.com/what-is-android-go
[2] https://www.androidauthority.com/android-go-773037/
[3] https://source.android.com/devices/tech/connect/data-saver