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Google To Take 'Apple-Like' Control Over Nexus Phones (droid-life.com)
Soulskill writes: According to a (paywalled) report in The Information, Google CEO Sundar Pichai wants the company to take greater control over development of their Nexus smartphones. When producing Nexus phones, Google has always partnered with manufacturers, like Samsung, LG, and HTC, who actually built the devices. Rather than creating a true revenue stream, Google's main goal has been to provide a reference for what Android can be like without interference from carriers and manufacturers. (For example, many users are frustrated by Samsung's TouchWiz skin, as well as the bloatware resulting from deals with carriers.
But now, Google appears to want more control. The report indicates Google wants to do a better job of competing throughout the market. They want to compete with Apple on the high end, but also seem concerned that manufacturers haven't put enough effort into quality budget phones. The article at Droid-Life argues, "We all know that Nexus phones will never be household items until Google puts some marketing dollars behind them. Will a top-to-bottom approach finally push them to do that?"
But now, Google appears to want more control. The report indicates Google wants to do a better job of competing throughout the market. They want to compete with Apple on the high end, but also seem concerned that manufacturers haven't put enough effort into quality budget phones. The article at Droid-Life argues, "We all know that Nexus phones will never be household items until Google puts some marketing dollars behind them. Will a top-to-bottom approach finally push them to do that?"
I would not buy a phone without a microSD slot, and the Nexus line fails by not including such an essential feature.
But, more important than that: Google definitely should put more pressure on manufacturers and carriers to keep the phones' OS updated for longer.
Circumcision is child abuse.
There should be a more optimized key arrangement.
Circumcision is child abuse.
I own a Nexus 9 and I think it is a good solid tablet. But mine looks raggedy as hell because the matt finish on the back is only a thin film overlay that has worn off all over the place and in others is lifting like old dead skin. So face up it looks good, face down it looks like a 20 year old tablet that has had a hard life.
The other comment someone else made is around the microSD slot. Particularly for a tablet, which is a pure media consumption device, it should have an SD slot.
As much as I hate it, that ship has sailed.
Touch screens suuuuuuuuuuuuuuck for input.
No more SD slot: check
No user-replaceable battery: check
I'll be sticking with the LG G4 until a better alternative comes along that doesn't do one of the above.
Nothing like being forced into consuming their cloud storage so that they can better mine my personal data to jam even more "targeted ads" down my throat.
No thanks. Wake me up when it's over.
Can I replace the battery without breaking out a heat gun and/or buying proprietary screwdrivers?
Does it hold a charge for at least an 8 hour work day+ reasonable commute time?
Can I *REALLY* turn its telemetry data reporting off when it suits me?
Does it fit into my reasonably sized pocket?
Does it cost less than a used car?
If the answer to any of these questions is not a triumphant YES!, then I don't see how more control of manufacturing is going to make you more competitive.
Just keep pushing that "pure" experience... less is more.
You are being ripped off every second of every day, so that advertisers can help rip you off even more tomorrow.
Well, yes Google wants to hurt competitors market share but lets not forget about Microsoft. Lumia is doing terrible a few years on. Microsoft has made headway in the Tablet market and the new Surface Pro is being raved about. I'd say Google would be more worried about Microsoft building a device that is on par with Surface Pro but as a mobile phone.
That's kind of an apple's and oranges comparison. The Surface Pro (I own an SP4 by the way) is more of an ultraportable laptop than a tablet. Or rather, it doesn't really run the kind of apps you'd want from a tablet. But again, it's wonderful from a portability perspective.
That said, if they tried to push it to a phone, they'd experience the same amount of fail that they've been experiencing this whole time, especially given that their UWP app API is limited and it sucks. Try creating an OpenVPN client for example -- you can't because it's literally impossible to create on a Microsoft phone. That, plus a lot of other apps and features just can't be done on it because Microsoft doesn't implement even half of the API features found in Android/iOS and refuses to allow the use of an NDK to fill those gaps.
And no, Continuum won't resolve the later, even if the phone could run plain old x86 Win32 apps. Nobody wants to carry around a dock with associated adapters, keyboard, and mouse in their pocket just to run desktop apps on a phone grade CPU/GPU on the off chance that they might find a comfortable chair and monitor (or tv) to connect it to wherever they happen to be. It's better when it's all just self contained, like the Surface tablets are.
The Apple business model for mobile is that to use their software, you must use their hardware, you can only buy media from them and use their media player (iTunes), etc. Google's is, and continues to be, that you can use their OS with any hardware, buy media from any source, and play it with any app. So pretty much the opposite of Apple.
Google plans to have higher quality on their reference design / flagship, the Nexus line. That's cool. Not really related to Apple at all. I suppose Apple doesn't make cheapie crap for the lowest-budget market, such as an $89 tablet, but that's nothing unique to Apple. Heck, even the companies that DO make low-end stuff often don't brand it as theirs, they use a different marque.
Bit late to the party, aren't you? Timothy has been the author of every front page article since last Friday.
It's going to take some serious marketing to separate the public's perception of pure android vs. carrier versions... I don't think it's practical to try and have both, unless it's a first step towards attempting to eliminate leverage of the carriers totally, and I don't even think that's possible considering android is basically open source. It would be like Apple having a pure Apple iphone, along with Samsung's iFone, Huwaei's eyeFone+, HTC's iPhon+ - all with their separate flavors of Apple's iOS and specialized functionality, making Apple just a leading player in it's own market. If Google really wants to do this they need deep hardware design and integration to go along with Android, which is where I thought they were heading with Motorola before they got sent down the river.
HTC Touch Pro 2 with custom Android ROM... (replacing WinMo, for the observant amongst you...)
Sliding hardware keyboard + Android + SELinux = Respectable workstation.
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Well, maybe not using official third-party SDKs, but it's certainly not impossible. OpenVPN relies on the TUN/TAP driver, which I'm not sure anybody has bothered to port to WP8.1/W10M yet, but on a jailbroken phone (yes, they exist) you can do it.
There is also an official API for TLS-based VPNs, which may be usable for OpenVPN, though you'd need to re-write the client to use those APIs instead of using TUN/TAP like it usually does. They only officially allow a few limited partners to use those APIs (they aren't in the public SDK), but in practice you can certainly write an app that uses them.
Whether you could get it published in the store is another question, of course. At least W10M (finally) has dead-easy sideloading right out of the box.
There's no place I could be, since I've found Serenity...
The only device manufacturer that makes money off Android is Samsung. Good luck "pressuring" those guys to do anything, and without Samsung Android is basically fucked on the high end where all the money is. So I fail to see how this could possibly work.
Didn't they own Motorola and have complete control? Then got rid of that because it made all of the other phone makers feel bad?
What makes a Nexus phone different from an iphone? Neither has an SD card or replaceable battery, yet the Nexus always seems to be about half the price.
I've never had to replace a battery in a phone before it was old and slow and not what I wanted anymore.
I'm rarely out of wifi range AND need direct and immediate access to tons of data, nor have I ever filled up a 32GB phone with what I want to take with me.
editing documents on a 3.6" screen sounds more painful than 'Respectable'.
But each to their own. :)
I am alarmed at what is becoming an IOS/Android marketplace while other systems are being phased out. A binary culture of coke or pepsi does not seem progressive. I was hoping for other platforms to emerge and a more technologically diverse ecosystem. Instead we are seeing this IOS/Android duality. It is a pity that the Mozilla OS is getting phased out, as is Blackberry, Windows phone, Ubuntu phone looks like it has little or no traction, Jolla is barely a blip...what does that leave us with? Not much. I am skeptical of monopoly systems. I know, monopolies are supposed to be great for us, it leads to standardization and a consistent experience. But to me, this feels like technological stagnation.
Built for hackers? No. Maybe built for Android developers, at least in the past where the price tags were relatively low for an unlocked phone.
There is really only one thing that distinguishes Nexus devices from everything else Android. As a Google device its pretty good about getting software updates. OK, a little less factory bundled software is nice too. These software updates are what makes Nexus an excellent phone/tablet for end users too.
This is going to make for a weird situation with other phone makers.
Google essentially controls the source code, and keeps it closed for a couple of months until a release. Phone makers used to have early access. But now these same phone makers will be their direct competitors.
Also, Google isn't exactly the bastion of consistence. Previously, they announced that they'd produce and sell a cheap budget Android mobile phone for India. But they have retracted that also, after backlash from local sellers.
8 of 13 people found this answer helpful. Did you?
Are you trying to say every other manufacturer is losing money? Why do you think there are a million different android devices on the market, they're all just playing the long game hoping it will pay off one day?
If you think someone isn't free to have a different definition of "freedom" you may be a tyrant.
The (Android) BlackBerry Priv gives us a glimmer of hope.
It's not a proper landscape slider, but at least it's a hardware slider. Let\s hope it will be wildly successful.
I really like my Nexus 5X. Using Project Fi so it uses Sprint or T-Mobile (or WiFi) - whichever has a stronger signal. Security updates from Google every month. And the power management is superb - usually end a day with 30 - 40% battery left.
Removable battery not that important (I carry an external, which I haven't needed), but a micro-sd card would have been nice.
[Insert pithy quote here]
Makes me wonder about the fate of Project Ara (http://www.projectara.com/). If Google could pull this off, then they'd get what the article states they want: a platform that is customizable, suitable for both low-end and mid-range users, constantly upgradeable, and (firmware willing) easily upgradeable to the latest Android version. But considering the restarts the project has, I'm not sure if it will ever see the light of day. I'm still nursing my Nexus5 along, hoping something will appear that will compel me to upgrade, but there's nothing that jumps out.
---- Meh.
Apart from a pure android experience, the only reason to buy a Nexus device is timely updates with long-term support.
Handset vendors and mobile network operators have very little reason to provide such software support - and it hurts the quality of the experience.
An in-house Nexus line is only one step to fixing the larger problem of fragmentation in the marketplace.
I have the Nexus 6 and coming from a Note 3 that had the removable battery and SD card slot, I was bummed out slightly that I wasn't able to use my SD card, but those feelings of remorse quickly subsided.
These phones are awesome, build quality, touch response, phone speed, signal quality, etc etc.
I have no regrets.
Have you ever fallen asleep at the keybhanusdiog?
They do when they buy iPhones...moron....
Yeah because there's no one else making Android devices and Google couldn't make their own....
is to convince people that their phone has the same cachet as the iPhone. Apple has managed to do that and that's what allows them to charge premium prices. From a performance/features standpoint the Nexus is on par with the iPhone. Same things from an Apps standpoint.
What Google needs to do is convince customers that they are getting a luxury item. One that is not only worth the money but is desirable and enviable. Apple customers are not only willing to spend the money, they are happy to do so.
Luxury customers don't care about custom ROMs and SD cards. They care about phones that look, feel, and operate in a premium way. They want chic not geek. Google should focus on build quality and longer battery life. Put in really good speakers and better headphones. Give people a way to customize the phone - like the ability to add an etched monogram or high end leather cover on the back.
Instead of some crappy SD card option just give everyone 64GB as a minimum right off the bat with the option to upgrade to more - at a reasonable price. For people that are really into audio strike a deal with a maker of some good high end headphones (Bose maybe?) and offer it as a package deal for those that want it. Offer a super high end camera option for folks that are really into photography and video. In other words, make it customizable to fit the needs of a diverse customer base.
> The reason one uses iPhone is that you use the Apple stack of services. The reason one uses Android is that one uses the Google stack of services.
The first part of that may be true in many cases. You buy an Apple device to watch Apple's approved videos on Apple's video player. Steve Jobs said âoewe do believe we have a moral responsibility to keep porn off the iPhone. Folks who want porn can buy and [sic] Android phone.â Steve Jobs isn't wrong about his own company's position - if you don't want Apple dictating your moral choices (and all other choices), you should buy Android.
Android, like Linux, is more flexible - you (and an OEM) can set it up how you want it. With Apple's mobile products, it's simpler - they only do it "the right way". Of course Apple's decides which way is "right".
Apple's approach is SIMPLER. Android's is more FLEXIBLE. It's not about choosing between Apple's way, it's often about choosing between Apple's way and your own way.
I missed a couple of words in my concluding sentence. It should be:
It's not about choosing between Apple's way vs Google's way, it's often about choosing between Apple's way vs your own way.
This post written on a Macbook Pro.
I can't read past the first paragraph... Too much LISP maybe?
Write boring code, not shiny code!
Google's hands off approach is why I wrote off the Android platform. The last Android device I had was a Galaxy S3, and I had to root it, and replace the OS with cyanogenmod just so that I would have a working phone.
This sort of crap is inexcusable.
Now if only Google will also do what Apple does and support their products for a minimum of 3 years, then maybe I'll start taking Android seriously.
(For example, many users are frustrated by Samsung's TouchWiz skin, as well as the bloatware resulting from deals with carriers.
https://xkcd.com/859/
(An unmatched left parenthesis creates an unresolved tension that will stay with you all day.
This Space Intentionally Left Blank
They only officially allow a few limited partners to use those APIs (they aren't in the public SDK), but in practice you can certainly write an app that uses them.
And for what reason do they do this? They say they want developers to come to the platform, yet they make it an even worse version of Apple's walled garden.
Anyways OpenVPN isn't the only case. I don't recall the specific app, but I remember a while back a bunch of Windows Phone fans were raising a shitstorm on some developer's forum because the developer wouldn't add a big feature to the WP version of the app that was present on Android/iOS, and the developer responded that they can't add that feature because the OS doesn't support it.
This didn't satisfy the WP fans though, they kept railing against them anyways saying it was just some kind of excuse to "hold back" the platform (much as they always accuse others of doing, i.e. carriers, Google, etc, both of which are silly considering that Google gets plenty of Nexus device sales without carrier involvement and Google can't "hold back" the platform, especially given that Microsoft provides alternatives for all of Google's services.)
I don't know why you were marked troll, but pretty much Samsung's new touchwiz is very lightweight on resources now and convenient.
I've owned several Nexus devices and I've never missed not having an SD card slot. You have to root the device and/or install a custom ROM (e.g Cyanogenmod) but that's pretty simple with the Nexus devices. After that you just plug in a USB thumb drive and it is mounted, ready to copy files on/off.
It's how you write it, not what you write. This place, like many will often give a +5 to a long post, almost regardless of the content. I've posted here over a decade with a heap of +5's.
Add some passion and swearing and your opinion is magically invalidated. Regardless I stand by the post entirely.
Yes, you are correct, painful but nonetheless functional. An FTP client completes the suite; if you're good, you will write good code on any terminal, provided the tools and debugging capability are there.
Obviously it's not my terminal of choice, but I still think that my green-screen Amstrad taught me more as a child than consumer devices teach children today. Sometimes minimalism is more appropriate for learning than "wizards" and whizz-bang. The programmers who took GUI for granted in Visual Studio et al, are churning out self-service buggy insecure code now. Thanks, Microsoft.
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