Which Android platform SDK do I need?

Question

I would like to test and distribute my phonegap app. It already runs for iPhone.

At first I installed the newest SDK (4.0.3) but this one does not run on my phone. So... i guess I have to install more.

What do I need to install in the Android SDK Manager?

All SDKs? Do I need the Sample/Arm/GoogleAPI/Sources too?

Answer 1

Generally I install all the SDK versions as it is good to be able to test on the various emulators to make sure you app works in all versions of Android. You should always build your application with the latest SDK but in your AndroidManifest.xml file you should have a android:minSdkVersion set to the lowest Android level you want your app to run on. For now I recommend 7 (Android 2.1) as 97% of the phones are running 2.1 or above.

Answer 2

As you can see in the platform versions chart here it is recommended to use Android 2.1 or 2.2 SDK to cover almost all the Android devices on the market.

I think you don't need Sample/ARM/Sources, though if you need to use Google proprietary API (for example Google Maps API) you need to use Google API versions of 2.1 or 2.2.

Answer 3

You only need the SDK that matches the API level you intend to build for.

This page: http://developer.android.com/resources/dashboard/platform-versions.html

has a breakdown of what devices are most active in currrent use (accessed market within 2 weeks)

Judging by that, if you target 2.1 you'd be able to install your app on 98.3% of all such devices.

It is generally best to pick the oldest platform that supports all of the features you need. Just stay at or above 1.6, that is when support for multiple screen sizes was introduced.