Roger Fingas
Google is reportedly working on a new self-branded phone over which it will exert more design, software, and manufacturing control, putting the company in more direct competition with Apple's iPhone.
The Google device will ship by the end of the year, one of several sources explained to UK newspaper The Telegraph. While Google been shipping self-branded Nexus devices for years, most of the work has been handled by outside parties like LG, Huawei and HTC. This has nevertheless allowed Google to define the Android platform via products that run "pure" versions of the OS.
Google may be concerned, however, that there's still too much fragmentation in the industry. Because phone makers are mostly free to customize Android, that means that they can install custom apps that steer people away from Google services, where the company generates most of its revenue.
Some vendors are also slow to push out new versions of Android to their customers, particularly people on older hardware. While a Nexus 6P is likely running Android 6.0 or later, non-Nexus devices may sometimes be running 5.x or even 4.x, left there because supporting new devices is more lucrative.
Much of Apple's success with the iPhone has been linked to the company having direct control over both software and hardware, the latter of which is its main profit driver. Google has been growing the number of physical products it offers though, and earlier this year launched a new hardware division under former Motorola president Rick Osterloh.
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39 Comments
More direct competition with Apple, eh? How about more direct competition with its Android partners or do the partners no longer matter? How will Google's new smartphone decrease the growth of fragmentation? I see Google's new smartphone accelerating Android fragmentation due to partners deciding to more fully differentiate themselves from Google. Also, what will Google possibly do differently from the Nexus line that will convince Android customers to jump from Samsung, LG and others outside of China since Google will not be able to sell its new smartphone in China? The Apple angle gets clicks, but the true story is with the Android partnerships..
The corpse of Motorola does not represent a challenge to Apple. It is only a PR ploy to float their stock price a bit longer to keep the fools on board.
The only reason Google is considering this option is because the major Android licensees (Samsung, HTC, etc..) have been grumbling about Google's stranglehold with Android and their admission that they are actively working on their own (and botched) mobile OS to ween themselves off of Android. It's only a matter of time before they jump ship so Google has no other option but to directly get into the market.
I'm sure Google is concerned. Eventually, it will be like the 90's and early 2000's when all the phone makers have their own OS and nothing works with one another. Apple paved the way early and successfully. To Apple, it's just another day. To Google, it's the sign that they will be a footnote in history about what not to do.
Everyone wants to be like Apple.
Watch until this becomes the best Android phone ever, due to the fact that's it's 100% locked down and controlled by Google (hardware and software). Just like the iPhone. Welcome to the walled garden by Google.
I don't think anyone can really predict what this will be like so I'll just say I'll be very interested to see where this goes