SmartLink remote accessess using Android software

Ernest - W4EG

Ria

The only official clients for flex signature series radios are Windows, Maestro and iOS. Therefore SmartLink will only initially be available on those. Maybe Don will come out with support for it in dpSDR but I have heard nothing from him. 

Android client? Maybe some enterprising developer can write one. But as of now it doesn't exist and the spec isn't published yet. 

Ria

Mike va3mw

I agree with RIA.  The IOS app was developed by Marcus outside of Flex.  The APIs are available, so I am sure someone with Android experience might pick it up and they can make their millions.  

73, Mike va3mw

lyndy brannen

Looks like you are stuck.  Ipad is a very nice device.

Ernest - W4EG

Thank you for the replies,
If anyone is working on this subject: I like to help in anyway that I am able. 

Ernest - W4EG

Steve K9ZW

We use the NIOSH SLM (Sound Level Meter) app for various purposes.  It is iOS only.

When asked why the app isn't also done for Android they offered a decent write-up on why certain apps (which SmartSDR is in the category) are possible for iOS but are so hard to do for Android:

.....apps for Apple devices are designed around a very well build low-level API (Core Audio). Apple gives the app developers access to this low-level API through a framework (Audio Toolbox or Audio Unit). This architecture makes it easier to deal with raw PCM data (audio signals) recordings uniformly across all the devices as Core Audio isn’t affected by the hardware. Microphones and other electronic components used in the iDevice is what can change. However, Apple is doing a good job at choosing good quality parts and variations between iDevices (for the kind of measurement we are looking for (peak values of PCM data)) can be corrected with proper calibration. Apple has much less SKUs than the entire Android market, making it easier to find the variations in the lab and correct them.

Also, Android devices are subject to more latency in the audio signal processing. The main reason for that is that the low-level API (OpenSL ES) for audio recording is not very well integrated across all the operating system versions. Also, OpenSL ES is missing some features that requires some hard work in C and C++ language to code the desired calculations. Developers are using public JAVA APIs instead (AudioRecord or MediaRecorder) that has huge audio latency and might not be suitable for real-time measurements.
As for the hardware part of the issue, there are more than ten popular Android phone brands on the market, all using various components.

All things considered, it is indeed an impossible task to test and verify the performance of the app on every Android device on the market.....

73

Steve K9ZW

Mike va3mw

I have a concern over Android security based on the fact the flashlight app that everyone downloaded had malware in it that over 10B people were affected by.  This is just 1 example.

Apples IOS security has a better chance of vetting software to prevent just such an event from happening.  While their sandboxing of apps is a PITA for some, it is welcome security for over 90% of their customer base that has no clue on what exposures may exist.  

Of course, this is my personal opinion and some of it shares the Apple model.

Mike va3mw

Ria

Android is not really the wild west like we're making it out to be. You can develop secure android apps and distribute through the play store. 

The comment about the APIs is absolutely true. Apple doesn't let you do anything low level with the phone at all. In fact if you're using an undocumented API, I heard that Victor **** will personally push the reject button. But the upside to this is a very stable environment and apps that will behave somewhat predictably.

Ria

Mike_WB8CXO

Too bad...  SmartSDR iOS is an awesome product....  You could get a Microsoft Surface Pro!!!  And many Flex owners have run their radios using low end windows tablets as well...  I have an old Atom based Dell netbook that runs the radio remotely as long as nothing else is running on it.  Fortunately there are numerous options.

Ernest - W4EG

Mike_WB8CXO

Ernest, Actually there was a guy on here a few years ago who wrote an android ap that worked on flex 6k radios.  He hadn't done any coding since college but dusted off the keyboard and wrote an ap that presented a panadapter.  He was getting support from 
Flex but all of a sudden stopped posting.  Others here might have a better memory about this or know "the rest of the story".  Mike

Dan -- KC4GO

@Ernest W4EG -- I feel the same way, BUT their stock has done me QUITE well.
So "Since then, I do not endorsed or buy their products and never will."  don't work for me. It's still part of my retirement fund so for those who love and support Apple I say go for it. I own no products just stock.

Ria

Yep. Shareholder since early 00s. Ria

Mike W8MM

Our experience with coding iOS and Android apps is that Apple is harder to satisfy, but Android is a messy maze of phone-manufacturer-tweaked different versions that are hard to reconcile.  Odd variations in OS behaviors and lots of different screen sizes and aspect ratios to discover between makers.  Android builds always seem to have surprises on how they will interact with some phone or another for which we don't have a test sample.

Android is a royal pain for small volume app developers trying to accommodate the variety and non-standardization of the installed customer base.

By comparison, iOS is a dream.  We code it ... it works.

Ken Hansen

Not certain why a $100-200 Windows tablet wouldn't suffice... you can even attach your FlexControl to it via an OTG adapter.

Ria

Mike - I have a drawer full of devices at work. Samsung, HTC, pixel, you name it. Even for large companies it's a pain.