Loopt Comes to Android

Loopt, a social mapping and communication service, yesterday hit the Android G1 phone. Loopt lets users share their location between carrier networks, which include users on AT&T, Sprint, Verizon Boost, MetroPCS and T-Mobile. Loopt now is supported on more than 100 handsets including the iPhone and BlackBerry and now the G1 Android device on T-Mobile (with additional Android devices to follow).

So, what does Loopt on Android bring versus say the Loopt app on the iPhone? Well, MG Siegler covers this pretty eloquently in a Venture Beat article. Bottom line is that the Android version can support updating the user’s location in the background, even when the app isn’t open. Apple and the iPhone does not allow apps to run in the background due to what it deems security and battery-life issues. So, to serve this need it is working on its Push Notification release. We shall see if that fits the bill for Loopt, an app that banks on users needing to know where their friends are at all times.

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