∞ Flash slows down Web browsing on Android 2.2

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I think I can safely say this is probably not what Adobe and Google wanted to see, but here it is. PocketNow posted a video of Android 2.2 “Froyo” browsing Flash-based Web sites and playing games. The results are less than stellar.

Flash elements lead to stuttering while scrolling and zooming on webpages with Flash content, and even resulted in a low memory warning requiring the tester to actively manage the currently open applications on the test device. Commenters on the PocketNow article report that users have the ability to load Flash elements only on demand, but that even so the browser experiences some increased lag compared to Flash-free browsing.

Web Browsing Performance on Android 2.2 Hampered by Flash Compatibility [MacRumors via Daring Fireball]


  • Grapho

    So there we have it. Now I would like to see reports on battery performance. I bet it's also a hog.

  • Perry Clease

    Not being a programmer I have to ask, can the slow Flash be speed up, optimized?

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/Adobephile Adobephile

    Apple caught Adobe sleeping with the sudden success of the iPhone OS and its devices. Suddenly there was created a huge demand for content on mobile devices, and Flash was complacently gobbling resources on PCs. So where's the meat, Adobe? Where is a more efficient version of Flash for mobile? Is it even technically feasible? Perhaps not. Perhaps Flash is indeed old technology like Steve said. Not an attack, really. Just a candid statement of fact.

    But now that even a Flash converter to iPhone native code is not welcome for other reasons, it seems that Flash has been dealt a KO 1-2 punch. Media clients are starting not to want it on their sites. So developers have to make careful decisions as to whether to support one or the other or both. No sympathy there, as the bottom line of client specification will dictate their operations.

    I think we have yet to witness the full impact of iPhone OS devices. I think their general demand will escalate even further to the end that Flash will simply be dropped of necessity.

  • Adobephile

    Apple caught Adobe sleeping with the sudden success of the iPhone OS and its devices. Suddenly there was created a huge demand for content on mobile devices, and Flash was complacently gobbling resources on PCs. So where's the meat, Adobe? Where is a more efficient version of Flash for mobile? Is it even technically feasible? Perhaps not. Perhaps Flash is indeed old technology like Steve said. Not an attack, really. Just a candid statement of fact.

    But now that even a Flash converter to iPhone native code is not welcome for other reasons, it seems that Flash has been dealt a KO 1-2 punch. Media clients are starting not to want it on their sites. So developers have to make careful decisions as to whether to support one or the other or both. No sympathy there, as the bottom line of client specification will dictate their operations.

    I think we have yet to witness the full impact of iPhone OS devices. I think their general demand will escalate even further to the end that Flash will simply be dropped of necessity.

    Hopefully, for Adobe's sake and ours, it moves on gracefully and develops new creative tools to support HTML5.

  • Lucas

    yet more proof of why Jobs was wrong and needs to put Flash on all his devices like yesterday.

    or not.

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/WandererJoe WandererJoe

    I'll say it for Steve: "I told you so!"