WHERE IS ANDROID AT MWC?
Submitted by Noe on Mon, 02/16/2009 - 17:17.Bookmark/Search this post with:  Conspicuously absent so far from Mobile World Congress Barcelona is the expected onslaught of handsets powered by Google's Android OS. MWC was largely expected to be the coming out party for the platform, which currently runs on only one device in the world, the T-Mobile G1. What happened? The member list of manufacturers in Google's Open Handset Alliance has grown substantially since launch, but we've yet to see the fruits of that partnership. Samsung and most certainly HTC were expected to unveil a whole new swath of Android devices for European and, most were hoping, US consumption. So far though, the only substantive news has been that the full touchscreen 'G2' will be coming to Vodafone destined for Europe. Meanwhile, the stream of Windows Mobile devices continues to flow, with HTC pumping out newer spec'd models of its Touch Diamond and Touch Pro. Samsung has decided on its proprietary "Touch-Wiz" interface for the bulk of its feature phones; LG is a no go. Most of the major companies have already announced their new line ups so the chances of a big Android surprise coming are increasingly unlikely. So we have to ponder, what is the future of the platform? It's not dead, nowhere near dead that's for sure. Motorola is expected to almost solely focus on Android going forward. But all of these manufacturers seem content to have their Android handsets drop sometime later this year, or even next year, which is risky in the fast paced world of mobile phones, and especially risky of a company is already in horrible financial straits (yeah, I'm talkin' about you Moto). Palm, a company most believed on the verge of total irrelevance decided to wow the world with their new webOS on the Pre. If I had to muse, and I'm just musing here, I think it's indeed quite possible that Android never becomes a huge player in the cell phone market. Not saying that I think that would happen, but it's a distinct possibility. I do think that Android would have a really solid and interesting future as an OS for a mobile media device, if companies were interested in going that route. Something of a competitor for the Zune or iPod touch, with an App store to back it up and whole array of functionality, not to mention advanced touch features. After all, an iPod touch is really just running the OS designed for the iPhone, but with all the phone capabilities tastefully omitted. Companies like Archos are already rumbling about using Android as a basis, albeit it extremely customized, for future media devices. After today, it sounds like a good idea to me. |
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Wow - what a good and sobering article... I have jumped on the Android bandwagon, but I wish I could switch devices as I am not 100% happy with the clunkiness of the G1 and the battery life. I hope the Android platform offers some diversity soon.