Version of theAndroid operating system | |
![]() | |
![]() Android Cupcake home screen | |
Developer | |
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Initial release | April 27, 2009; 15 years ago (2009-04-27) |
Update method | Software update |
Package manager | Android Market |
Kernel type | Monolithic (Linux) |
Preceded by | Android 1.1 |
Succeeded by | Android 1.6 "Donut" |
Official website | developer |
Support status | |
Unsupported, Android Market support dropped since June 30, 2017 |
Android Cupcake is the third version of theAndroid operating system, developed byGoogle, being the successor toAndroid 1.1. It was released on April 27, 2009 and succeeded byAndroid Donut on September 15, 2009.
Android Cupcake introduces a newvirtual keyboard, marking a departure from the physical keyboard present on theHTC Dream and support for stereoBluetooth. Cupcake improved features to its in-built apps; videos can be directly uploaded toYouTube, as can photos toPicasa, theGmail app supports batch actions, and the web browser was updated to include a new JavaScript engine and copy and pasting. Android Cupcake was the first major release of Android to use a confectionary-themed naming scheme, a scheme that continued until the release ofAndroid 10 in 2019.[1]
By July 2010, Android Cupcake constituted less than a quarter of active devices running Android.[2] User adoption of Android Cupcake began to decrease in the following months, with 4.7% of devices using Android Cupcake by January 2011.[3] On June 30, 2017, Google ceased support forAndroid Market on Cupcake.[4]
In December 2008, the Android source was updated, making the "cupcake"branch public. The branch included support for stereoBluetooth and fixed various issues with Android's email client. Around this time, reports emerged that theHTC Dream would receive an update for Android Cupcake.[5] The cupcake branch was continuously updated in the months following its release, with an on-screen keyboard and notepad app being added in January 2009.[6] TheHTC Magic was unveiled in February as the first device to launch with Cupcake, notably lacking a physical keyboard.[7]
Android Cupcake was officially released on April 27, 2009.[8] In the days following Cupcake's release, select HTC Dreams began receiving anover-the-air update for Android Cupcake.[9]
StereoBluetooth was added, and Bluetooth support for in-car kits was fixed.[10] Auto-pairing was added in Android Cupcake.[11] The Advanced Audio Distribution and Audio/Video Remote ControlBluetooth profiles were also added.[12][13]
Avirtual keyboard was added, similar to theiPhone. The virtual keyboard feature is necessary for devices lacking a physical keyboard, such as theHTC Magic.[14] The virtual keyboard supportsautocorrect,predictive text, custom dictionaries, and third-party keyboard layouts.[15]
Slight adjustments to Android Cupcake's user interface were made, including the inclusion of transparency.[16]
Widgets can now be added to the home screen. Built-in widgets include a calendar and music player, although developers can create their own widgets.[14]
Other features added in Android Cupcake include the saving ofMMS attachments,[10] support for pausing and resuming of downloads,[10] support forMPEG-4 and3GP videos,[15] andSD card filesystem checking.[13] The underlyingkernel of the Android operating system, theLinux kernel, was updated to 2.6.27.[11]
Browsing categories and filters were added toAndroid Market, Android Cupcake's app store.[17]
Users can upload videos from the camera directly toYouTube.[18] Photos can also be directly uploaded toPicasa.[11] Startup times for the camera app were improved.[13]
User pictures can now be added to contacts.[19]Google Talk integration was added to the contacts app.[16] Similarly, the call log shows specific date and time stamps for events.[20]
TheGmail app was updated to allow batch operations, such as deleting or archiving multiple emails at once.[11]
Android Cupcake's web browser uses theSquirrelfish JavaScript engine, and supports searching within a page andcopy and pasting.[15] Other features added include tabbed bookmarks and history features.[20]
Android Cupcake providesAPIs for developers to use. Between Android 1.1 and Cupcake, there were over 1,000 changes to the Android API between Android 1.1 and Cupcake.[21] Developers can:
Android Cupcake also added support for theOpenGL graphics API.[11]