Uniquely Identify an Android Handset

Question

Is there a unique ID that is given to Android handests that is available through the SDK?

I want to provide a web-service with actions that can only be performed once per resource per user. Maybe there is a different way to go about this. Any ideas?

Answer 1

Use the phone Imei as described here: http://www.androidsoftwaredeveloper.com/2009/04/02/how-to-get-the-phone-imei/

String imei = TelephonyManager.getDefault().getDeviceId();
if (TextUtils.isEmpty(imei)) {
   return "";
}

You need the read phone state permission to access this data. So you have to add

<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.READ_PHONE_STATE"/>

to your manifest file.

Answer 2

Use the IMEI for identifying handsets. This is one of the most reliable source.

TelephonyManager.getDefault().getDeviceId();