Is Android OS still a power hungry beast for embedded systems?

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Pondering the current state of the bicycle GPS computer & mapping gadgets (Wahoo, Garmin, Magellan, Lezyne  etc.) there still seems to be huge gulf between what a mobile phone app can do and what a  typical gadget app can do. It's like two different worlds. In some cases the gadget app requires the presence of a bluetooth link to a companion android/IOS app for advanced UI and navigation features.