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Google's 'Android' mobile OS: news and G1 launch

Kid_Eternity said:
There was something quite interesting Dvorak said in his piece, he said that Google aren't a charismatic company, I think he's really hit on something there...not quite sure what but you know...er...!:o
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Google used to be a place that sounded exciting... Now, after talking to Google Engineers it just sounds like any other large company with typical large-company procedures... I've seriosuly gone off wanting to work there...
 
jæd said:
Well... Most people don't get excited by a new O/s, even for a phone... Though they do get excited for actual shiny-shiny hardware... :D
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It needs substance for a lasting relationship though... ;)



I reckon average joe isn't going to be too fussed that it's a different OS but when it comes to actually being able to do things. yeaah. Look how phones as mp3 players have taken off.
 
scott_forester said:
Do you not think it was the 'coolness' of the gadget (personally I've played with one and it's too much for me, but then I'm getting old) more than people thinking it was a smashing OS?
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Take a look at the advertising: the 'coolness' of the gadget is partly about its look but mainly all about its groovy interface, the finger control, the scrolling album art, the zoom in controls etc etc.

Do you think people would be half as excited if it was Windows Mobile 6 in there?
 
drag0n said:
I reckon average joe isn't going to be too fussed that it's a different OS but when it comes to actually being able to do things. yeaah. Look how phones as mp3 players have taken off.
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Yes... This explains why Blackberrys are so popular. The UI used to be clunky as hell, but they did the job well. People like flashy gizmos, but unless they actually work they drop them.

From what I've seen the iPhone is a flashy gizmo that works nicely. (for people who don't want a spoddy phone)

Hopefully, the Google Phone o/s will be a spoddy phone that works in non-spoddy ways... :D
 
Kid_Eternity said:
Thinking about it, I'd find it quite amusing if Facebook bought Palm...
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n2802748315604947812rs6.jpg
 
editor said:
Take a look at the advertising: the 'coolness' of the gadget is partly about its look but mainly all about its groovy interface, the finger control, the scrolling album art, the zoom in controls etc etc.

Do you think people would be half as excited if it was Windows Mobile 6 in there?
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Well I think the iphone has the march because it's innovative and also has the whole ipod brand behind it. I doubt if Nokia released the same think it'd get so much attention.

If people buy phones because they look nice and have a great interface doesn't a common OS for the second tier handset providers provide it's own issues? For example if you were picking between two handsets that had identical interfaces but where by two manufacturers wouldn't that pretty much nail them to the price difference. I'm sure these vendors will all customise it do it's looks different but I'm not sure it'll have the impact on the market some suggest, only time will tell I guess. One things for sure it'll be good for people like us who buy them.
 
scott_forester said:
Well I think the iphone has the march because it's innovative and also has the whole ipod brand behind it. I doubt if Nokia released the same think it'd get so much attention.

If people buy phones because they look nice and have a great interface doesn't a common OS for the second tier handset providers provide it's own issues? For example if you were picking between two handsets that had identical interfaces but where by two manufacturers wouldn't that pretty much nail them to the price difference. I'm sure these vendors will all customise it do it's looks different but I'm not sure it'll have the impact on the market some suggest, only time will tell I guess. One things for sure it'll be good for people like us who buy them.
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it beign an os OS then it's likely that there would only be alimited am ount of customiseation you could do before people then hacked it the way they wanted as with all os type projects...
 
Well as someone who uses Nuance Talx, this could greatly increase the number of handsets I can use it on. As well as hopefully, it working with other Android apps. A more useable browser would be top of my wants rather than the partially useable one on my N70.
 
GarfieldLeChat said:
these changes are 10 years aways though. before it becomes common place and yes i have used the services unfortunatly pda/smartphone technology in order for it to be any good at present needs to be on a big screen you can't escape that fact. and you are always going to be limited by the size factor.

Even if you could make a phone which is merely the size of the screen itself it would still be cumbersome.

some people might find them convinent but then those people are proably IT literate. go into any number of offices today and you will come across a stunning level of IT illiterate people. Usually the one who can change the printer toner use ctrl v and ctrl atl del is an IT god. and there's a darn sight more of them out there than people using these functions yet.
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Maybe some sort of Blue Tooth glasses wtih a heads up display. I note you can get those I Glasses on which you can watch films. Blue Tooth probably not got the bandwidth or speed but you get the idea.
 
xenon said:
Well as someone who uses Nuance Talx, this could greatly increase the number of handsets I can use it on. As well as hopefully, it working with other Android apps. A more useable browser would be top of my wants rather than the partially useable one on my N70.
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I've seen Nuance used to convert messenger clients into voice to a mobile phone, you text they hear voice, they speak you get text.
 
xenon said:
Well as someone who uses Nuance Talx, this could greatly increase the number of handsets I can use it on. As well as hopefully, it working with other Android apps. A more useable browser would be top of my wants rather than the partially useable one on my N70.
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Try Opera mini, it loads better. First piece of software I've ever paid for, worked out about £12 (but you can download a 30 day trial). Reformats pages lots better, loads pages faster and keyboard shortcuts make browsing easier. Only thing it cant do that the nokia one can do is switch from wireless to 3g halfway through a session, but its minor niggle compared to its increase usability.
 
Opera mini. Does that run on Symbion? Will have a look later. Bit rettasent about installing stuff on the phone at the moment but will read up.

Will be watching to see what happens with stuff for Android though.
 
GarfieldLeChat said:
google aren't charismatic at all no, they are actually quite sinister. and yet i cannot see what it is that makes me feel utter distaste about them...
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Quite right, too, as one of their main men used to work for the US "intelligence services"...

Mind, unlike Yahoo they didn't [apparently] co-operate with the Chinese Gov and give them their records, which btw were used to convict people and jail them.... [see Amnesty International website under China, for instance...] "Not even with the US one?" would be my Q...

Oh, what would be a good alternative then? [Now, that sucks!]
 
Google For iPhone: Android’s Beta-Test?

Interesting piece here about whether Google are using the iPhone and its users as beta testers for its coming Android based devices:

In addition Google have developed a specific application to allow YouTube videos to be streamed to the iPhone – to get around the absence of Flash on the iPhone.

It is understandable how the iPhone platform has grabbed the imagination of Google’s employees – it’s the internet in your pocket, with a clean, intuitive interface, and with Eric Schmidt* at the helm it can’t be hard to convince your manager to let you spend your 20% on iPhone related applications. In fact, iPhone-mania at Google has even got Europe’s favorite long-tail cartographer, Ed Parsons dumping his almost new Nokia N95 for an iPhone – even though the latter doesn’t have built-in GPS!

So maybe there’s another another reason. Google are gaining considerable experience developing its mobile services for its new platform – Android. But look a little closer. The iPhone and Android share the common foundations in the open source browser WebKit
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jæd said:
This being the SDK, rather than the actual o/s...
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Looks like Google doesn't have the Midas touch after all. According to reports, a sizable number of developers who've been working with the SDK for Google's Linux-based Android platform say it is full of bugs and often doesn't work at all.

It is not atypical for there to be bugs in new software. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that a large number of Android developers are encountering serious coding errors in the SDK. It cites the experiences of one developer, Adam MacBeth, who has been unable to get an application working in Android after working on it for weeks.

Said MacBeth: "Functionality is not there, is poorly documented or just doesn't work. It's clearly not ready for prime time."
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http://informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2007/12/developers_andr.html
 
editor said:
http://informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2007/12/developers_andr.html
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And...? :confused: As I said this the SDK, not the released o/s. And tbh its not the first time Google have released resources like this that were buggy. Hopefully there will be another release soon...

This is annoying at best and wouldn't be the first time a company has released an SDK that has bits missing... (NDA's unfortunatly protecting the guility... Gggrrrr...! )
 
editor said:
First reports are that Android is well flaky and miles away from becoming a stable release.
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I doubt anybody making something for the first time expects perfection tbf...
 
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