Android fragmentation drove ex-Google head to choose iOS
updated 01:23 pm EDT, Mon July 16, 2012
Reece mapping app iOS based despite founder's Google roots
Google's Android fragmentation issue has driven at least one former Googler to choose Apple's iOS platform as the basis for a new app. Electricpig spoke with the creator of mapping app Recce (free in the App Store, finding that the rampant compatibility issues on the platform have proven unattractive even to former employees of the search giant.
Recce is a 3D mapping program currently focused on London, but plans exist to expand it to include other major metropolitan areas. It reproduces London in a style reminiscent of the popular Sim City series, with cars moving along roads, boats floating on rivers, and trains riding rails. It was developed under the guidance of Rian Liebenberg, former Engineering Director at Google, and a former Sony executive. Recce is available on iOS, but not Android because the creators were not convinced that they could guarantee a solid Android user experience across all devices running the operating system.
An Android version of the app does exist, but Recce's makers are uncertain whether it is worth it to release it. The app maker's complaint was found last year to be common among Android developers, with 86 percent reporting that OS version fragmentation was a problem. The majority of Android phones are said to be on Android 2.3.3, and 11 percent are running on the Android 4.0. Google's Nexus 7 tablet, now on its way to customers, will be the first device to run the newest version, Android 4.1.
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