How to run Android on an iPhone: 3D printed case shows off hybrid smartphone solution

A mobile app developer has achieved smartphone nirvana by successfully running Android software on an iOS device. However, there is a bit of a catch.

Enabled by a rather chunky 3D-printed case housing makeshift components, the outcome is certainly impressive from a craftsmanship perspective, but the outcome is hardly a practical solution for regular iPhone owners hoping to play around in Google's OS.

You can watch the results of the experiment in the video below, which shows the iPhone being placed into the case and connected to the board within via a Lightning cable. After selecting a custom iOS app from Brooklyn-based design studio Tendigi, the iPhone then boots up in all its Android glory.

The project comes from the hands of Nick Lee – Tendigi's CTO and the same man who ran Windows 95 on an Apple Watch – and while there are clearly a lot of lag issues shown in the footage, the behind-the-scenes work to bring the experiment to fruition is quite brilliant.

As noted in a blog post, Lee based the feat around a tweaked version of the Android Open Source Project OS. With software ported from an LG Nexus 5, Lee then pieced together an 8-core, 64-bit ARM Cortex-A53 processor, a 650 mAh lithium-polymer battery pack (with a boost converter), a resistor and a stock Lightning Cable to create the electrical components necessary for the project.

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Needing somewhere to hide the components, Lee sourced a meaty 3D-printed case and after a bit of trial and error, eventually finalised a design that looks rather uncomfortable to hold, but does include HDMI and USB ports and even an SD card slot.

The video shows the 'iDroid' accessing WiFi settings, the Google Play Store, the widget menu and also stock apps like the Calculator.

The thoroughly impractical set-up is detailed in full in one of Lee's Medium posts. The only question left is: what on earth will the 'mash-up' expert delve into next?