5 reality checks every team needs before working on Android webkit – plus 1 more

this is the minefield you're supporting

the image used in this post is from http://www.jessekunze.com

I came across this post by Red3 Software which discusses some of the frustrations behind developing an HTML5 based application on the Android webkit browser.

As I’ve stated in another (popular) post, the Android browser lies like a spider poised malevolently in its web, waiting for its next snack. DON’T LET YOURSELF BECOME THE NEXT MEAL.

Red3 brings up some fantastic discussion points which are worth any team debating before the decision is made to target Android browser for application development. Since they are summarized so succinctly, I’m just going to drop them in here..

• Reality check #1: The current Android browser is not Mobile Chrome. Remember – Google bought Android, they didn’t make it. It may pass the HTML5 compliance tests, but that does not mean to say it does it well. My experience with the Android browser is that it’s glitchy, inconsistent across devices and rough around the edges. For example, it’s rendering of CSS3 rounded corners is noticeably jaggy, and positioning of elements is often off by a pixel creating gaps where there should be none. (My suspicion is that Google are frantically re-implementing the Android browser to become the Mobile Chrome many think it is.)
• Reality check #2: All Androids (and their browsers) are NOT created equal. Manufacturers tweak the browser code too for their own purposes.
• Reality check #3: There are also certain commercial, political and legal reasons why things are different on different Android devices. Don’t believe me? Load up Google maps in the Android browser and try doing pinch to zoom on a 2.x HTC phone. Now try the same on a Samsung phone. The difference? HTC does not want to impinge on multi-touch patents, hence no pinch to zoom in the browser. (Samsung supports pinch-to-zoom. But they had to withdraw some devices in some countries because of patent infringement. Could there be a link?)
• Reality check #4: Just because it’s got it, doesn’t mean to say it flaunts it. Android devices have some of the most impressive hardware specs around. Multi-core processors, GPUs & gobs of memory. However, try panning Bing Map in the Android browser. Then try it on an iPhone. The difference: Android does not implement hardware acceleration in the browser rendering of elements, and it shows.
• Reality check #5: Even though it’s in the best interests of Google to improve Android fast (to live up to the expectations of its customers and become a truly viable competitor), this does nothing to rectify the myriad of broken/deficient devices that are already out there. And even when they do fix the Android reference build, how will they enforce standards on an ‘open’ community who will continue to tweak the core to meet their own agendas?

Well summarized. I would add that as more teams embark on HTML5 development on Android, they will quickly be forced to eat the time spent and back pedal to either a native solution or to just target iOS for HTML5.

If Google doesn’t step in and begin to enforce standards to the manufacturer, it’s own brand will suffer the consequences as more and more Android units of various quality floods towards the unsuspecting consumer.

What are your thoughts?