incrediBILL - 10:17 pm on Apr 4, 2010 (gmt 0)

This is absolutely stunningly idiotic:

That’s because Google is keeping its app store off all Android devices that aren’t smartphones.

[gigaom.com...]

According to a Google Spokesperson:

We ask our partners to build compatible devices, and we provide handset manufacturers with a Compatibility Test Suite. ... Only devices that pass this test will be allowed access to Android Market, which ensures only compatible devices can download apps from our market.

Considering all the Android apps know what features they need, the marketplace could be easily filtered based on the capabilities of the device accessing the marketplace.

For a company that claims they want to "index the world" this should be child's play, instead they're being childish.

All Android devices should be able to access all the apps they are capable of running without making customers jump through hoops to download and install them.

Silly things like this will obviously help the iPad dominate the market.