Android Launchers for Honeycomb & Ice Cream Sandwich on the PlayBook

 

RIM ported the Android runtime environment to the BlackBerry PlayBook but that runtime is built on the phone specific v2.3.3 of Android. While this does not really limit the platform in features it does have a main drawback. Google has released v3.0 (Honeycomb) and v4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) of Android which have a more tablet friendly interface which is called a “Launcher” on Android.

A few tinkerers in the CrackBerry forums managed to get the Android launchers for Honeycomb and Ice Cream Sandwich to run on the PlayBook. This gives you a much nicer home screen interface from the Android player. This is not a huge deal but it is quite fun especially once you check out the video Shahzoor @BBin posted of it:

Desktop Video Link | Mobile Video Link

You can read more about the hack at this link in the CrackBerry forums and if you are feeling adventurous pick up the APK files here

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RIM Shows Off Android PlayBook APK Repackaging (Aka Porting)

 

We know that any Android developer can now start porting or better yet repackaging their Android APK files into apps that are easy to submit to App World. RIM showed off a simple app like Pulse but the took things a few steps further. They showed off an OpenGL game like Pool Break Pro that worked like a charm on the PlayBook. They also showed off IMDB working just by repackaging the APK file without any recompiling.

They showed off how it plugs in right with the Android tools with a RIM Eclipse plugin that just adds the ability to repackage into a Bar file and signing. Definitely something all Android devs should take a look at. Especially since it ties into all of the existing tools that Android devs already use.

Check out the microsite for the PlayBook Android Runtime if you are interested in more!

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