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Could Tizen Be the Next Android?
MollsEisley writes: Right now, Tizen is still somewhat half-baked, which is why you shouldn't expect to see a high-end Tizen smartphone hit your local carrier for a while yet, but Samsung's priorities could change rapidly. If Tizen development speeds up a bit, the OS could become a stand-in for Android on entry-level and mid-range Samsung phones and eventually take over Samsung's entire smartphone (and tablet) lineup.
That's because consumers are fucking morons and think they need an app for everything when 90% of it can be accomplished with a browser, and much safer as well. Like they assume that if there isn't a Facebook app they can't use Facebook. No wonder Apple has the lead in popularity in the smartphone race.
I just hope there's a truly open source phone for geeks without a ton of restrictions and app store lock in. ASOP is close, but a bit unpolished once Google stopped caring about open source once they had a big enough lead that pissing off the geeks wouldn't matter anymore.
If they want to have a chance, they must not have just bundled with a few new phones. It should have good enough ports for other samsung devices (even done officially by samsung) and open enough devices from other major manufacturers. They need to build a critical mass of actual users and a community behind it. And need to be very open. If they want (or must do, if done by another company) may keep some key part (i.e. optional android compatibility app/libraries) as what they sell or license of it and is not fully open source, but the rest should be.
Meego/Maemo failed mostly because it was available mostly on one particular device from one particular manufacturer. They could learn the lesson this time.
Like they assume that if there isn't a Facebook app they can't use Facebook.
AFAIK, without a Facebook app one will not receive Facebook notifications every time it's algorithms say it should, and this matters for many people.
Linux is for people who don't mind RTFM.
MeeGo actually had a chance... if only the M$ trojan hadn't entered Nokia!
Circumcision is child abuse.
Let's be clear that Tizen is actually the child of Nokia's and Intel's Linux-based OS that was known as Meego, which owed much of its existence to Nokia's Maemo Linux platform and Intel's Moblin. That's a lot of history, and Samsung has added more and more. Half-baked? What a bizarre term.
"Been fiddled with for ages" doesn't really mean it's mature or ready. The fact is hasn't been on any significant number of devices in the real world would be a big flag, there's alot of refinement that comes from *actual* use in the wild that you don't get from lab development.
It seems like Google is has no long term commitment to building phone hardware. They didn't keep Motorola, for example. And this attempt to make a modular phone seems more like a technology demonstration then a product role out. Does anyone think they will try and make a business line out of it? I doubt it. So hardware vendors can continue use Android and not be worried about competing with Google directly, which is why I think they got rid of Motorola.
Why is Snark Required?
I still use Meego on my Nokia N9, best phone I've ever had, and still have (I also have a M8 One and iPhone 5S - I'm a mobile dev, I absolutely prefer Meego over iOS and Android).
Meego is amazing, there's no denying it - I haven't taken a hands-on look at Tizen lately, but I can't imagine they've stuffed it up too much, and if they've managed to improve on Meego, well I'll be there in a heart beat, decent hardware permitting.
Android has matured and leads in apps. And it's freely available for a wide range of devices already. I don't see anybody coming close to the package Google can offer, tie-in services included. Apple sells hardware - their services are a loss. MS sells business software, subscriptions to MS Office, Consoles and now tablets. AFAICT they are behind in comodity computing now.
Google makes money selling *you*. They can give away all their stuff for free, including their services. As soon as one vendor has to pay extra to adapt Tizen, there will be a strong incentive to look into Android again. Or Chrome OS as the case may be. All Google needs to do is perhaps offer a few cheap-and-easy co-branding options for their OS.
Google wants to bring the second half of humanity online, along with any hardware vendor that cares to emphasise the bottom line.
I think they have a very good chance of succeeding.
My 2 cents.
We suffer more in our imagination than in reality. - Seneca
Betteridge's Law of Headlines again.
appended to the end of comments you post, 120 chars
Yep! And if you title your comment Betteridge's Law of Headlines you can get marked +5 insightful while contributing the same amount (nothing) to the conversation. Karma whoring is a beautiful thing.
Yes it is.
Get free satoshi (Bitcoin) and Dogecoins
If you don't want G+, then don't sign up with Google at all. You don't need Google on Android at all. Nope, not required. The thing of it is, you want all the things Google does so well (which includes G+ IMHO), but don't want things you might not like. If you're that hung up on not using G+ (don't worry, Google already knows all about you) then don't use it.
Or you know, just buy an iPhone already. Or Blackberry (LOL, yeah I know it is android) or even a Windows Phone (ROFL).
Or grow some tech knowledge, root your phone, install a custom ROM and don't install the Google Apps package. I don't know if I am on /. or some whiny tinfoil hat blog.
Agent K: A *person* is smart. People are dumb, stupid, panicky animals, and you know it.
If Samsung abandons Android for Tizen, it'll simply be surrendering the Android market to everyone else - Motorola, Sony, HTC, et al.