Motorola's Android 2.2 rollout: What a mess
Droid users miss features in the update; HTC, Dell, and Samsung lag in their Froyo updates, with many smartphones excluded
Follow @infoworldDelays, missing features, cease-and-desist letters, oh my! Verizon Wireless's rollout of Android 2.2 (aka Froyo) to Motorola Droid phones is becoming an exercise in frustration.
Motorola's Froyo problems started with the original Droid, whose Android 2.2 rollout began the first week of August. Unfortunately, this wasn't the full Froyo experience Droid users were hoping for, because this particular phone does not tether or become a mobile hot spot with the latest OS version.
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That Droid Froyo update also didn't come with Adobe Flash Player 10.1. A second update, which began rolling out for Verizon Wireless customers just yesterday, will let Droid owners download Flash Player 10.1 from the Android Market. (Despite ongoing claims for weeks from Google and Adobe that Flash Player is "shipping," the final, not-a-beta version only became available in the Android Market on Aug. 16, and only then for the few Froyo devices available.)
The news is worse for owners of the Motorola Milestone, the Droid's overseas twin. According to Motorola's official upgrade timeline, the Milestone will get Froyo at year-end 2010, but only in Europe and South Korea. The Android 2.2 upgrade for Milestone is "under evaluation" for Canada, Latin America, and Mexico.
