Intel posts x86-friendly Android 4.0 image, lets you feel the need for speed
![](https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/umnYEckxhfLBMB8LEeG1dw--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY5MA--/https://s.yimg.com/uu/api/res/1.2/RjpyLVXmog2U6kVLCNlLzA--~B/aD00MzE7dz02MDA7YXBwaWQ9eXRhY2h5b24-/https://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2012/05/intel-android-image.jpg)
Android developers are all too familiar with not-so-hot emulator performance, so it's a relief that there's now an system image in a native x86 for testing. While you'll still likely want to test on ARM, the x86 image will both help ferret out bugs specific to Intel's architecture as well as provide a much faster experience debugging apps now that the ARM-to-Intel translation isn't needed on top of running a whole second operating system. It's not perfectly up to date, running on Android 4.0.3, but it's close enough that the environment will mimic much of what users see -- and a big help if you're jumping into writing specifically for Intel devices. If speed is of the essence, or you're not keen on importing a Lava Xolo X900, you just need to update the SDK Manager to start testing with an Intel-flavored green robot.