Google issues first Android Dev Phone 1 update, clarifies paid app situation

Android Dev Phone 1 owners are pretty much expected to handle their own business when it comes to firmware updates, but those of you who like to kick it official take note: El Goog's just released Android 1.1 for its totally unlocked version of the G1. Most of the fixes are to do with POP3 accounts, although paid apps are now supported with a catch: you won't be able to access any paid apps that use Android's hilariously weak-ass copy protection features, because the ADP1 comes rooted out of the box and thus able to read / write the folder protected apps are stored in. So yeah, ADP1 owners now have access to paid apps that don't have copy protection -- we're guessing that's not a large number. Honestly, we don't see the point of this: nothing's ever going to stop piracy, and pissing off the people willing to buy $400 unlocked phones that don't come with support doesn't seem like the best way to build brand loyalty. Maybe you want to reconsider, guys?

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Google blocking paid Market apps from Dev Phone users

The Dev Phone 1 is good for many things that the stock G1 is not -- hardcore geek street cred, developing Android apps, exercising your 1337est hacking skills -- but one thing it's not good for is buying and enjoying paid apps out of the Android Market. It seems Google has disabled access to paid apps from Dev Phone 1s, likely in response to the almost-immediate discovery by users that rooted devices had access to the hidden folders where the apps were stored, effectively making pirating them trivially easy. In all likelihood, the move doesn't actually have anything to do with whether your phone is radio unlocked -- it's the rooting that's the concern, and frankly, we're a bit shocked at Google's naivete at thinking these things were going to stay protected without at least a glancing effort at real DRM. You'd think that developers willing to shell out $400 for the device aren't going to take too kindly to being locked out of the goods -- which, ironically, could be their own -- so let's hope Google's planning on cleaning up the shop and opening back up sooner rather than later.

Update: Get a load of this -- we have an unlocked, rooted G1 on hand, and it still has access to paid apps. Same problem, essentially the same phone, but Google's glossing it right over. If we had an ADP1, we'd be fuming right about now.

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