Many iDevices users are tempted to test Android on their own terminal, even if the operating system from Google is different in many respects. In this idea, some developers started porting the Android operating system to the iPhone and managed to make it run on the iPhone 2G/3G and iPod Touch 1G/2G. Unfortunately for iPhone 3GS/4, iPad and iPod Touch 3G/4G there is still no method to install Android OS, but there is the iDroid project that will bring us this possibility soon.
Those from iDroid have been working on this iPhone 3GS/4 porting since last year and for now they have only reached 60% of what they need to do and this is due to the fact that there are no skilled developers interested in the project. Their work is progressing hard and it is not known when we will be able to install Android OS on the iPhone 3GS/4, but hope dies last.
Below we have an interview made by those from ModMyi with Nick Pack, iDroid project leader.
JOSH: How many members are on the current team working on the 3GS and A4 Android port?
Nick: There are currently 4 people working on the A4 & 3GS ports.JOSH: What coding experience and expertise is required to work on the Android port?
Nick: A strong knowledge of: C, ARM Assembler and general hardware knowledge for OpeniBoot and the kernel, Java & C knowledge for Android.JOSH: In terms of percentage, how far along are you in the port development? Are there any current hurdles that are making the process more complicated? If so, can you elaborate?
Nick: Both the A4 and 3GS OpeniBoot ports are somewhere in the region of 60% complete. Currently the team is working on the FTL which is one of the most complex parts of OpeniBoot, then we'll move on to the kernel. And finally after that, we'll start on libraries for Android (the radio interface layer, sensors library, etc.).JOSH: Have you been able to emulate the Android platform at all on the 3Gs or A4 yet?
Nick: At the present time, both the OpeniBoot ports for 3GS and A4 devices aren't far enough along for there to be any userland yet. Once the bootloader is ported then kernel drivers need to be written and various userland libraries written to accompany them. The team is working on one of the most complex parts of the bootloader at the present time; the FTL and filesystem drivers. This is a painstakingly slow and complex task, but once completed, we'll be able to boot a linux kernel from the NAND flash.JOSH: How long has the team been working on the Android port for the respective devices? Do you have any attempted ETA at this point or are you just “done when you're done?”
Nick: Work on the A4 port started late last year, but progress was slow due to there being a lack of skilled developers on the team to work on it. In the recent few weeks, the port has accelerated drastically. The 3GS port was started a couple of months back but lessons learned from the A4 port helped to bring it inline quickly. Due to the nature of the project, it is completely impossible to estimate just how long these things take. This is mainly due to the sheer volume of reverse engineering that has to be done, but we are working with largely undocumented and uncommon hardware so it comes with the territory.
