drop support for api10

[forrestguice]

From https://developer.android.com/topic/libraries/support-library/index.html

Caution: Starting with Support Library release 26.0.0 (July 2017), the minimum supported API level across most support libraries has increased to Android 4.0 (API level 14) for most library packages. For more information, see Version Support and Package Names in this document.

I'd like to continue supporting older devices but dropping support is an eventuality. The targetSdkVersion is currently set to 25 and is going to remain that way into the forseable future. I'll continue to support api10 until forced to bump the version.

I'm not sure when that will happen, but using new api features will of course mean upgrading. The last time I felt compelled to upgrade the build was the introduction of Lollipop (api21) to support changes to permissions.

Personally, my last Gingerbread based device died a few months ago, and https://developer.android.com/about/dashboards/index.html only reports 0.5% - to say most people have upgraded is an understatement. However, I'm not really sure that statistic includes devices that are no longer used as phones (and are without network access to report to gplay). My impression is that older, cheaper, obsolete devices are frequently used as GPS trackers (which was my motivation for supporting them).

Informal poll... What do you think? What version is your device running? Do you still own an Android device running api10? (or even know of anybody). How about api14, or api15?

[nutpantz]

I have a Samsung i9000 s1 that is still not on 4+
I only use it as a GPS logger once in a while and nothing else. And I have a HTC desire that is not updated to 4+ yet , but it's not used as all.
I'm the only person i know who has a phone running such an old Rom.
But then i have almost every phone i ever bought
(Just trashed my old Windows mobile devices and palm phones last month).
If your worried about it just keep the last viable apk for distribution for anyone who needs it.
Host it here github.
I know lots of people who are still on 4.4 kit Kat.
But nothing older that i can think of.

[HerHde]

I'm using a Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini (serranoltexx) with Android 4.4 (or still cyanogenmod 11 without Google apps, to be more precisely) and I don't know anybody who uses a version < 4.0.

[radioxoma]

Old devices can be used as GPS trackers, but they don't support SBAS, GLONASS, BeiDou, so accuracy of such tracks is worse.

I use Suntimes widgets for two places to plan my car trips/repairs during bright part of the day. My main device is Redmi 3 with Android 7.1 (Lineage OS). Previously I used an python script with same functionality at Nokia E71. Other use cases: navigation with Osmand, track recording for openstreetmap, Car PC with hobdrive. There is Heavens Above app for nightly events, which shows same information about dusk/dawn.

My older devices:

• ONYX BOOX i63ML Newton on Android 2.3.1 (API Level 9, kernel 2.6.32.27) It has e-ink display and hardly useful for reading. No sensors, no GPS. It would be nice to turn it into static screen with currency, yr.no weather, and sun/moon state, but it will take too much time to setup.
• Huawei QISU8110 (CyanogenMod-7-2013-01-09-UNOFFICIAL-u8120) - home microserver trough LinuxDeploy. Screen is small and broken, battery is weak for usage in field.

P.S. Statistics is wrong. Google Play just don't work on old devices, so I use f-droid or install apps manually.

[sjvudp]

Some people say using any Android older than 5.0 is a security risk. Unfortunately Android has quite a lot of security exploits and vendors stop providing security fixes rather soon (less than two years after sale). I'm at android 8.0 (upgraded from original 7.0), and the older device I had was at 4.01, but when GPS stopped working (GPS roll-over?), I sold it...