31 episodes

Android Bytes (powered by Esper) is the podcast that dives deep into the engineering and business decisions behind the world’s most popular OS. https://www.esper.io

Android powers over 3 billion devices worldwide and is the platform of choice for over a thousand companies. You’ll find Android on smartphones, tablets, watches, TV, cars, kiosks, and so much more. How does Google architect Android to run on so many form factors, and how do companies fork AOSP to make it run on even more devices? These are the kinds of questions the Android Bytes podcast considers each week.

Join cohosts Mishaal Rahman and David Ruddock, two journalists with extensive knowledge covering the Android OS platform and ecosystem, as they speak to system architects, kernel engineers, app developers, and other distinguished experts in the Android space.

Get in touch with us at Esper.io if you’re looking to use Android for your product — we have the experience you need.

Android Bytes (powered by Esper‪)‬ Esper.io

    • Technology
    • 5.0 • 1 Rating

Android Bytes (powered by Esper) is the podcast that dives deep into the engineering and business decisions behind the world’s most popular OS. https://www.esper.io

Android powers over 3 billion devices worldwide and is the platform of choice for over a thousand companies. You’ll find Android on smartphones, tablets, watches, TV, cars, kiosks, and so much more. How does Google architect Android to run on so many form factors, and how do companies fork AOSP to make it run on even more devices? These are the kinds of questions the Android Bytes podcast considers each week.

Join cohosts Mishaal Rahman and David Ruddock, two journalists with extensive knowledge covering the Android OS platform and ecosystem, as they speak to system architects, kernel engineers, app developers, and other distinguished experts in the Android space.

Get in touch with us at Esper.io if you’re looking to use Android for your product — we have the experience you need.

    What is a passkey and why should you care?

    What is a passkey and why should you care?

    The FIDO Alliance isn't a fan club for dogs, but a consortium of big tech companies that's trying to make authentication more secure. The Alliance has a lofty goal: To kill the password and replace it with something better. Enter the passkey.
    You've probably read a blog post or two about it, but you may be wondering what the fuss is all about. We invited two of the foremost experts on the topic to join us on Android Bytes and explain how passkeys work and why we're better off without passwords.
    Christiaan Brand is a Product Manager on Identity and Security at Google and Tim Cappalli is an Identity Standards Architect at Microsoft.
    03:09 - What's wrong with passwords?05:17 - How did we get to passkeys?07:47 - How do passkeys reinvent authentication?11:50 - What is the FIDO Alliance? 14:38 - Are passkeys convenient to use?15:47 - What is WebAuthn, CTAP, and FIDO2?18:01 - What is a FIDO credential? What is the meaning of "passkey"?21:57 - At a high level, how do passkeys actually work?24:47 - What makes passkeys more resilient to phishing and data breaches?25:52 - How are passkeys backed up?27:15 - What happens if you forget that you made a passkey for a certain site?28:01 - Can you reuse passkeys?28:51 - Can passkeys be exported or transferred between password managers (passkey managers?)?31:44 - How do you use a passkey stored on your phone to login to a website on your PC (or vice versa)?35:50 - Is there a fallback method to support legacy devices? How long will passwords stick around?40:41 - Can you create a passkey for an existing account?41:28 - What will happen to physical security keys?
    Learn more about passkeys at passkeys.dev and developers.google.com/identity/passkeys.
    Android Bytes is hosted by Mishaal Rahman, Senior Technical Editor, and David Ruddock, Editor in Chief, of Esper.
    Mishaal's TwitterDavid's Twitter
    Esper enables next-gen device management for company-owned and managed tablets, kiosks, smart phones, IoT edge devices, and more.
    For more about Esper:
    Esper BlogMobile Device Management (MDM) GuideAndroid MDM GuideiOS MDM GuideMDM Solutions
    Our music is "19" by HOME and is licensed under CC BY 3.0.

    • 52 min
    The hidden challenges in porting AOSP

    The hidden challenges in porting AOSP

    It's dangerous to go alone! Take us with you!
    In this episode, we're joined by our very own Jon West and Nikhil Punathil at Esper to discuss a key part of what we do here — getting AOSP up and running on ARM and x86 hardware. If you want to port AOSP, it's not as easy as just compiling an image from Google's git repos and slapping it onto a device.
    05:59 - What is a device bring-up? What are some of the challenges in doing a bring-up?10:58 - How do AOSP developers deal with a lack of kernel source code?18:16 - How did Project Treble affect building AOSP?26:54 - How does Android on x86 differ from Android on ARM?29:48 - What problem does the Generic Kernel Image try to solve?35:22 - How long does Google support a particular AOSP release? What can AOSP developers do once support has ended?
    Android Bytes is hosted by Mishaal Rahman, Senior Technical Editor, and David Ruddock, Editor in Chief, of Esper.
    Mishaal's TwitterDavid's Twitter
    Esper enables next-gen device management for company-owned and managed tablets, kiosks, smart phones, IoT edge devices, and more.
    For more about Esper:
    Esper BlogMobile Device Management (MDM) GuideAndroid MDM GuideiOS MDM GuideMDM Solutions
    Our music is "19" by HOME and is licensed under CC BY 3.0.

    • 45 min
    The hidden costs of building an Android phone

    The hidden costs of building an Android phone

    As a manufacturer, building an Android phone to the spec you want has its challenges and costs. You need to deal with dozens of regulatory agencies and standards bodies as well as (shudder) work with carriers if you want a chance at making a splash with a new product.
    From assembly to testing to retail, OSOM Privacy is chugging along as it prepares to launch its first smartphone, and we're glad to have co-founder/CEO Jason Keats and chief product officer Gary Anderson join us again for a special, extended, freewheeling episode of Android Bytes.
    03:33 - 05:40 - Trademark secrecy, gatekeeping IMEI numbers05:43 - 07:32 - Certifying with the FCC (and other telecom agencies)07:34 - 13:40 - Bluetooth, WiFi, 4G, 5G, USB, and other certifications13:41 - 16:08 - IP ratings16:10 - 18:00 - Making a phone "unbreakable", or at least ruggedized (MIL-STD-810)18:07 - 23:35 - Drop tests, glass durability, and foldables23:38 - 26:17 - How to navigate the confusing mess of certifications27:00 - 32:07 - Pre-production hardware, EVTs, DVTs, etc.32:08 - 42:12 - Factory software provisioning, tooling, and signing44:26 - 50:06 - Cellular band support, VoLTE, and carrier certification50:10 - 52:30 - Why shipping phones in Japan, India, Russia, and Brazil is costly52:33 - 55:55 - Carrier software requirements55:57 - 59:30 - Widevine DRM, Netflix certification, and RSAs for preloads1:05:52 - 1:08:03 - Buttons, ports, and a future without them
    Android Bytes is hosted by Mishaal Rahman, Senior Technical Editor, and David Ruddock, Editor in Chief, of Esper.
    Mishaal's TwitterDavid's Twitter
    Esper enables next-gen device management for company-owned and managed tablets, kiosks, smart phones, IoT edge devices, and more.
    For more about Esper:
    Esper BlogMobile Device Management (MDM) GuideAndroid MDM GuideiOS MDM GuideMDM Solutions
    Our music is "19" by HOME and is licensed under CC BY 3.0.

    • 1 hr 8 min
    The mystery of Google Play Services: Android's black box

    The mystery of Google Play Services: Android's black box

    On this episode of Android Bytes, we take the wraps off Google Play Services, the wonder app that powers many features and APIs you probably thought were native to Android.
    What does Google Play Services do and how does it do it? Why is it so important and what happens when it's missing from your device? We spoke with German developer Marvin Wißfeld to find out. Marvin is the creator of microG, a "free-as-in-freedom re-implementation of Google's proprietary Android user space apps and libraries" for devices running AOSP.
    02:59 - What is Google Play Services (GMSCore) and how is it delivered to Android devices?04:14 - What are some of the features powered by Google Play Services?07:27 - What are the most commonly used APIs provided by Google Play Services?08:23 - How do Play Services' location APIs (Network Location Provider [NLP] and Fused Location Provider [FLP]) work? Why do many apps use Google's location APIs?11:20 - What advantages do apps have in using Google's Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM) over alternative push notification APIs?13:28 - How are push notifications handled in the Chinese market where Google services are banned?18:07 - How do apps tend to behave on devices without Google Play Services?23:02 - What is microG and how does it help work around some of the issues with running apps on AOSP?26:40 - How do users install microG and why is signature spoofing needed?31:00 - How does the modular nature of Google Play Services optimize its app size?34:57 - Have any Google APIs eventually made their way to AOSP?36:43 - Are there any Google APIs that work on AOSP?
    Android Bytes is hosted by Mishaal Rahman, Senior Technical Editor, and David Ruddock, Editor in Chief, of Esper.
    Mishaal's TwitterDavid's Twitter
    Esper enables next-gen device management for company-owned and managed tablets, kiosks, smart phones, IoT edge devices, and more.
    For more about Esper:
    Esper BlogMobile Device Management (MDM) GuideAndroid MDM GuideiOS MDM GuideMDM Solutions
    Our music is "19" by HOME and is licensed under CC BY 3.0.

    • 42 min
    How Play Protect secures GMS Android from harmful apps

    How Play Protect secures GMS Android from harmful apps

    This episode of Android Bytes, we're talking about mobile app security. Android has a lot of robust, built-in mechanisms that protect against exploits and security vulnerabilities, but there's only so much it can do to protect against misuse of sensitive permissions and APIs. Google augments Android's protection mechanisms with Play Protect, a service that looks out for potentially harmful applications.
    Brian Reed, Chief Mobility Officer from NowSecure, joins us on the show to explain how Android and Google Play Protect work together to secure your device.
    2:05 - How does Android's app security model work at a platform level?3:27 - What does NowSecure do?4:16 - How does Android sandbox apps?5:30 - How does Android's security model compare to other platforms?7:24 - How does sideloading affect Android security?13:28 - How is Google Play Protect distributed to GMS Android devices?14:17 - What is the App Defense Alliance (ADA)? What is static and dynamic analysis? 17:12 - What are the reverse engineering/disassembly tools security firms use to analyze Android apps?18:55 - Why is dynamic analysis important?24:05 - What is a potentially harmful application (PHA)?25:32 - What is a mobile bundled application (MHA)? Are there any security risks?27:42 - What can developers do to protect their Android apps from hackers?
    Additional links mentioned in the show:
    nowsecure.com/masa (Get your Mobile Application Security Assessment)academy.nowsecure.com (Learn about mobile app security)owasp.org (Open Web Application Security Project)
    Android Bytes is hosted by Mishaal Rahman, Senior Technical Editor, and David Ruddock, Editor in Chief, of Esper.
    Mishaal's TwitterDavid's Twitter
    Esper enables next-gen device management for company-owned and managed tablets, kiosks, smart phones, IoT edge devices, and more.
    For more about Esper:
    Esper BlogMobile Device Management (MDM) GuideAndroid MDM GuideiOS MDM GuideMDM Solutions
    Our music is "19" by HOME and is licensed under CC BY 3.0.

    • 33 min
    The rise of the Android gaming phone

    The rise of the Android gaming phone

    On this episode of Android Bytes: mobile gaming. People play into it. There's money to be made in it. And a lot of it gets done on Android. So, how do you build an Android device catering to that market? We talk with Chih-hao Kung, Global Technical PR Director for ASUS, a company known for its PCs that's had a hand in advancing Android gaming devices with its ROG Phone series.
    01:37 - Why does ASUS invest in mobile gaming hardware? 05:30 - What does the mobile gaming market look like?15:41 - Why did early gaming phones fail? What kicked off the recent boom in gaming phones?21:44 - How big is the mobile gaming market?26:29 - What are some gaming phones innovations that have trickled down to regular devices?30:49 - How does smartphone cooling work? What are some of the recent improvements in cooling a smartphone?39:32 - What challenges did ASUS face in getting developers to support the ROG Phone accessories?47:50 - Why are refresh rate options in games so inconsistent between devices?54:35 - What's the deal with game controller support on Android?56:25 - How is Google addressing fragmentation when it comes to Android game development? How will these measures affect OEMs?
    Android Bytes is hosted by Mishaal Rahman, Senior Technical Editor, and David Ruddock, Editor in Chief, of Esper.
    Mishaal's TwitterDavid's Twitter
    Esper enables next-gen device management for company-owned and managed tablets, kiosks, smart phones, IoT edge devices, and more.
    For more about Esper:
    Esper BlogMobile Device Management (MDM) GuideAndroid MDM GuideiOS MDM GuideMDM Solutions
    Our music is "19" by HOME and is licensed under CC BY 3.0.

    • 1 hr 6 min

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