With Android 2.2 with Flash slowly becoming available, there are some users who are now “trying to find Flash websites”. Almost every website uses Flash today, but the root of this problem is Flash is not always visible as “Flash”. Flash is often associated with intros, banners ads, or animations on the web – but there are a lot more functional use cases, which are less obvious to the users.
Here are my top examples of what Flash on Android enables:
1. Watch your favorite TV shows for free
TV.com, Fox.com, TBS.com, TheWB.com, your_international_broadcaster.com. It’s all Flash Video, and it all works on the Nexus One. Certain sites detect that you are on a mobile browser and redirect you to a WAP site, but this is a business decision, not a technical limitation (and there are workarounds…). With Flash Player 10.1 you can instantly access millions of hours of free video content without degrading battery life.
2. Play games for free
There are hundred of thousands Flash games on the web, and flash games sites like Kongregate are already offering Flash mobile optimized catalogs. No more boring commutes, or purchasing games from an app store just to evaluate it.
3. Watch live games and events
Imagine you could start watching a live event at your desk, and then take it with you to the lunch break, or into the park. Almost all live events are Flash powered now, and you can watch the next Inauguration on CNN Live, watch hockey games on NHL Gamecenter or listen to the next U2 concert on Youtube while sitting in Central Park.
4. Enjoy a consistent app experience
Flash is not just in the Android browser, but also in AIR for Android – meaning an application running your Android device, which can be distributed through the app store. You can enjoy all benefits of Flash in the form on an app, including live video and a strong focus on visual expressiveness.
5. Best possible web experience
Unless you are a technologist, you don’t care about the Flash vs. HTML5 discussion. All you want is to be able to surf to a website, and it should simply work – not forcing you to use your laptop.
Personally I’m spending more and more time on the web with my Nexus One, for instance watching Fringe, catching up with South Park episodes, watching a live stream of Joshua Davis assembling his half-pipe in his backyard, or playing games while commuting – and this is just the beginning. It’s truly changing the way you are experiencing the web on a mobile device.
