Are android apps backwards compatible?

android google-play version backwards-compatibility
Jason Sultana picture Jason Sultana · Jul 9, 2011 · Viewed 12.8k times · Source

Should I build an app that targets Android 2.2 and release it on the Android Marketplace;

Would the app be available for download and use on devices running a version of Android OS lower than the targeted version of the app? - Let's say Android OS version 1.6.

What would happen if a user (with an Android OS version 1.6 powered device) were to attempt to run the app?

Would they be prompted to update their OS or just receive an error message?

Answer

Graham Borland picture Graham Borland · Jul 9, 2011

It depends what you have in the minSdkVersion field in your AndroidManifest.xml. If it is set to 4 or lower, then it will be visible to people using 1.6.

There's a good explanation here.

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