Android and Twitter Unite to Take Over the Phone (Cellular) World

 5 May 2010 - By Omar Mariño+
 omar@myddnetwork.com


Developers at Twitter have been busy snapping up third party apps and making them “official” (See the whole Tweetie controversy here) but they’ve also been sneaking around behind our backs and helping Google build a customized app for Android phones and other mobile devices.  From the looks of it, this may just be the coolest Twitter app ever.

If you’ve ever used a third party Twitter app, you know they’re pretty much the same though they do exhibit varying degrees of complexity and usability (Tweetdeck is still my favorite . . . for now.)  The cool thing about this new app is that it has been designed to take advantage of the interconnectivity of software designed to run on the Android platform.

For example, you can—according to Twitter’s official blog—read tweets “in a bunch of places” including by using the home screen app widget.  But there’s no need to drop what you’re doing and go running off to your twitter timeline.  The app will also port your friends’ latest Tweets to their location in your phonebook, Google Talk, or any other applications that use Androids’ QuickContact menu bar.

One of the creepier “side-effects” is that you’ll be able to cross reference Twitter and digital maps and GPS data to pinpoint where your Tweeple are Tweeting from (and presumably they’ll be able to do the same thing to you.)  I see some tweet-stalkers in the near future and they won’t even have to rely on Four Square.

Android's Twitter App Functions

Some of Android's Twitter App Functions

In the typical good-hearted and open-minded spirit that Google has adopted (and Twitter has always embraced) the app will soon be open source so developers can get their dirty little paws on it and help it grow into something even more powerful and unique than it already is.

Unfortunately, the app will only be compatible with Android 2.x so if you’re running older software you may have to find ways around that or stick with the mobile website.






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