When it was first rumored that Android 2.2 would be getting a physical tethering and Wi-Fi hotspot features, it was unknown if mobile providers would be able to disable the feature and/or charge for it. After Google officially announced Froyo yesterday, it was discovered that indeed the providers will be able to control and charge for the feature. Android engineer Hiroshi Lockheimer told TechCrunch that it will be easy for providers to disable or charge for the tethering feature. And we’re going to guess that carriers will be doing just that.

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If you read through Google’s Android 2.2 introduction, and are wondering if your phone will be on the upgrade roster, HTC has some good (or maybe not so good) news: phones shipped in 2010 are all likely candidates.  Of course, you probably could have drawn that conclusion and said it with as much certainty as HTC did. Here’s the quote that AndroidCentral got when it asked the company for confirmation as to which phones would enjoy a full Froyo dessert:

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Day 2 of Google I/O was clearly the day to pay attention. Two of Google’s most anticipated products of the past couple months: Google TV and Android 2.2 Froyo have hit the scene.

Android 2.2 lives up to its billing, bringing updates like Flash 10.1, Wi-Fi hotspot and tethering features, and a speed boost of 2 to 5 times Android 2.1. That’s pretty much all the major points the rumors had indicated. In a playful demonstration of its new functionality, Google even used the Wi-Fi hotspot feature to connect with a Wi-Fi-only iPad. Like the HTC EVO, Android 2.2′s hotspot feature allows certain devices like the Nexus One to provide Wi-Fi for up to eight other devices.

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While we’ve known Android 2.2/Froyo is coming, information has been pretty scarce and limited to Flash support and loads of extra speed. Today, TechCrunch got a hold of some juicy information: Android 2.2 will turn your phone into a full fledged Internet-bearing device. It will support USB tethering, enabling owners to connect up to a laptop and use their cell phone data connection. Even better, the new version of Android will turn phones into mobile Wi-Fi hot spots, providing one more way of connecting.

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A report today over on AndroidPolice indicates that future Android 2.2 users have a lot to be excited about. According to the blog’s testing, 2.2, codenamed Froyo, is 450 percent faster than Android 2.1. Yeah, we’re pretty impressed too.

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Sliding itself right into the great Apple/Flash debate, Google’s Andy Rubin told the NY Times that Android 2.2 is on the way and it will fully support Adobe Flash. Websites based on Flash will now run on Android without requiring developers to rewrite them to accommodate Google’s OS. The new OS is named ‘Froyo’.

Outside of Flash support, little was offered on the Android update or when exactly it will make it to phones, though it will happen this year. It’s not clear which phones will get the update to 2.2.

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