What 'Any App, Any Device' Really Means

There's an awesome post up over at PhoneScoop that gives great insight into what Verizon really means by all of this open network jargon. Well worth the read, these guys dig deep to get information out of big red.

You will not be able to take a non-Verizon handset to a Verizon retail store and have it activated there. Verizon will set up a web site and/or 1-800 number for people to use to activate third party handsets. These customers will not have access to the same support that full service customers do. Verizon will not provide support for the handsets or the applications. That will be the user's responsibility.

Verizon will only provide support for network access issues. . Verizon expects this process to take up to June 30, 2008. It then hopes to be able to roll out the activation service between July 1 and the end of 2008.

And finally, the catch-all safety sentences.

What we have announced the other day is obviously a concept. There are a lot of details that still to be worked out over the next few moths, We want to get information from developers, publish technical standards, and we want to hear input. Nothing is going to be finalized until we have all this input.

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Motorola Announces CEO Change

Current CEO Edward J. Zander will continue to serve as Chairman of the Board of Directors until the annual meeting of stockholders in May 2008. Why a change at the top? Well according to Jeff Kagan, an independent analyst, Zander's departure is based on having succeeded only partially as CEO of a major technology company in the midst of major industry changes. "Ed Zander came from Sun Microsystems to turn Motorola around and was somewhat successful, but that success did not continue," Kagan said in an e-mail.

Zander's "big mistake was thinking that the single success of the Razr phone was enough," Kagan added. "It was not. The Razr may have been hot, but Motorola needed to replace it with another hot phone. Instead they rode it up and rode it back down again."

Press Release - Motorola Full Post

Who's With Me?

Google has thrown their hat in the ring. We'll find out sometime in the first quarter of next year if they will end up winning in the auction. For the next few months, the internet will be rampant with rumors and conjectures regarding what Google would plan to do with the spectrum should they win. Here is something that I see being a distinct possibility if they do.

I end up with a second mobile device complimenting the handset I would use to send and receive calls. On this second handset, I do everything but place calls. I get weather, traffic, mapping, emails, documents, and of course, news. I also monitor my auctions, make online purchases, chat through Google Talk, and browse the internet. All this while receiving targeted ads designed around my usage. And for free. Who's with me?
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Sprint Rejects Investors and SK Telecom

Why would Sprint reject an offer from Providence Equity Partners and SK Telecom? After all, they were allegedly offered to replace their management and invest $5 billion in the company. Could Sprint have something already worked out with another company? Are they so sure of themselves and comfortable with where they are heading. Could it have anything to do with the fact that these are foreign investors?

In the letter on Nov. 10, the two companies wrote that they would address the "key operating challenges facing” Sprint and significantly cut costs by jointly purchasing handsets and examining network infrastructure.

The board declined to meet with them, according to those briefed on the matter.

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It's Official: Google to Participate in FCC Spectrum Auction

"We believe it's important to put our money where our principles are," said Eric Schmidt, Chairman and CEO, Google. "Consumers deserve more competition and innovation than they have in today's wireless world. No matter which bidder ultimately prevails, the real winners of this auction are American consumers who likely will see more choices than ever before in how they access the Internet."

AndroidGuys couldn't agree more. Regardless of which company prevails next year, you and I are going to walk away very happy with the outcome. More competition always benefits the end user.

Official Press Release
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Is Today the Game Changer?

Ok, so Google is set to announce that they intend to bid on the coveted "C" block of the 700Mhz spectrum today. Is this the day that revolutionizes the cellular industry for the US? How about the world? Will this take everything we are familiar with and throw it out? What happens now? Will it be the most dramatic thing Google has ever set their sights on or will it pan out to be minor news? Go forth and discuss! Full Post

Google to Announce Bidding Intention Today

Google Inc is set to announce on Friday that they will bid on the 700MHz airwaves to launch a U.S. wireless network, the Wall Street Journal is reporting Thursday, citing sources familiar with the matter. If their bid is successful, they could operate their own wireless network or seek out a partner (or two, hint, hint)to help it build on the network potentially reselling wireless services.Also expected to bid are AT&T and Verizon. Stay locked on AndroidGuys for more information as it comes available!

WSJ Article Full Post

Podcast Only Feeds

As a test to see what kind of interest there is, we are creating a sister blog specifically devoted to our podcasts. This means it will have its own feed strictly dedicated to our 20/20 sessions as well as our Week in Review. We've been asked to create an RSS for this, so for now, this will be the best way to subscribe only to our audio posts. If you'd like to add the feed, look under 'Resources' on the right hand side. Let us know what you think of our stuff, so we know whether or not we're wasting everyone's time or, best case scenario, we are not spending enough time on them!

AndroidGuys Podcasts Full Post

20/20 Podcast for November 28, 2007

The entire AndroidGuys staff was able to sit down as a unit on Wednesday night in order to bring you our second 20/20 Podcast. For those unfamiliar, this is a pair of podcasts where we discuss pretty much any topics on our mind related to handsets, Android, Open Handset Alliance members, Google, etc.

The AndroidGuys are Scott Webster, Jamie Hunter, Lukai, J.E. Weston, and of course, General Mills. Some of the topics covered this time around were the "Google PC", open source software, Google, ad based products and services, Google's Map for Mobiles, Verizon's recent announcement, and a few other items sprinkled in for fun. Let us know if you are listening to the podcasts. More importantly, if you are, do you enjoy them? We will try to bring these to you roughly twice a month. However, if this one of your favorite sections on AndroidGuys, let us know. We'd be happy to sit down more often if it's wanted.

Podcasts are roughly 20 minutes each with files sizes of around 10MB's.

20/20 for November 28th Part 1


20/20 for November 28th Part 2

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An Ad Based World

by Jamie Hunter

Now that Google's Android has been released everyone has been speculating about how Google will see any revenue from it. When it's all said and done, their income is based on ad revenue, and while there is no guarantee this will always be the case Android may prove more difficult to glean that ad revenue from than they think.

For the sake of this opinion piece, lets all assume that Google will find a way to get their ads on to your new, freshly brewed Android handset. Now, let's say they work out a deal with your wireless carrier that allows them to offer you your current voice or data plan for free. That's right. If you currently pay $49.99 a month for 500 anytime minutes & free nights and weekends it would be free! The catch? Before you make a phone call you have to listen to a 15 to 45 second ad. Want free text messaging too? You got it, but you'll have to view a banner or pop up ad before you send every text. Free web browsing? Okay, but you must view a constant banner ad on your web browser ala' Net Zero before they became Net Zero for $9.95 per month. Oh, and one more thing. You will also have to click on a specified number of ads per month to maintain your free service, but you're only given credit for so many clicks per day. The ads would be tailored to products that you were genuinely interested in. Sound crazy? Would anyone sign up for such a service?

Would you sacrifice convenience for cost? Sanity for free calling? I believe enough people would to make it very profitable for Google. Imagine what a company would be willing to pay to get their product viewed millions of times per day by potential customers who actually wanted information on your products? Let's take this one step further. Anyone want free TV? No problem, but you have to let me run targeted ads across your screen. Say about 10 to 15 per hour. Or you could opt for the permanent ad banner on the left, right, top, or bottom of your screen that would constantly scroll ads. Better get a bigger TV! I know this all sounds far fetched and may never happen, but we would like to get your opinion. Would you give these services a try, or is there no way you would even consider it? Leave us a comment and it may get used in one of our pod casts.

Anybody want a free MP3 player?

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GPS Cheap

Good Morning,

This is The General. If you've downloaded the most recent Podcast, you undoubtedly heard me refer to a website where I saw reasonably priced Bluetooth GPS dongles/"pucks". Well, due to the extreme amount of stress I've been incurring, protecting the freedoms that this country enjoys, the URL of the site escaped me during the recording. However, as a man of my word, I've collected that intel for you, my fellow comrades. Please visit http://www.gpscheap.com

You may want to navigate to the "Bluetooth GPS" section on the lefthand side. If you have no idea what I'm referring to, download the newest Android Guys 20/20 Podcast... And that's an order!

* * * * * General Mills * * * * *

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Half the World Owns a Cell Phone

Not really. It certainly sounds that way though when you read this headline. An article up at Yahoo News today claims that mobile telephone subscriptions has reached 3.3 billion, which is equivalent to half the world's population. The article does go on to clarify that 59 countries have mobile penetration of over 100 percent. This means, of course, that some owners have more than one phone. So let's hear it. Do you skew the numbers for your country? How many phones do you have an active account on? Tell us in the comments.

If you'd like to read the full article, click here. Full Post

Who is AndroidGuys?

It's been less than a month since we launched AndroidGuys and we've already seen our traffic and popularity has grown immensely. When we started out, we initially expected to share Android news between the five of us through a community blog. Little did we know, there was an army's worth of people out there clamoring for the same information as us.

We'd like to take this opportunity to thank each of you for visiting us and we ask that you share the word about us with your friends. We decided to write up a little piece on who were and what our goals are so that new visitors can get a feel for what we are doing here. You'll notice on the right hand side that there is an "About Us" link. Please take a minute to read it and find out a little bit more about the AndroidGuys. Full Post

Link Roundup

• Engagdet claims they have seen the future of Windows Mobile. Good luck gleaning anything useful from their tease/post though.
• 3G iPhone 'next year'. No duh.

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Are the AndroidGuys a Bunch of Lemmings?

Yesterday we posted an article about Google's mapping program and gave the impression that we were helping to spread news about a brand new technology developed by Big G. Already today, I've seen two people say that this is nothing new and that other countries have been using something like for some time. So, I'd like to take the opportunity to make this is an open topic for discussion in the comments.

We'll throw out a few questions for anyone who feels like talking. What does your country use? How reliable is it? Is this anything new to you? Do you use GPS on your phone? Does any phone manufacturer/carrier out there today already offer a similar feature?

We'd love to have a guest blogger do a write up for us debunking this whole thing. Any takers? After the dust settles, will this be more sizzle or steak? Full Post

'My Location' Announced by Google Today

Yet another nifty application bound to be integrated into Android was given a press release today. A very cool software feature on Google Map for Mobiles allows users to figure out where they are on the map without the use of GPS. This is great news for the approximate 85% of all mobile phone owners who don't have it on their phones. On top of that, you can find out where you are when in tunnels and buildings, something not too reliable with today's GPS units.

Google's "My Location" technology, which uses cell tower ID information to provide users with their approximate location, helping them determine where they are, what's around them, and how to get there. Google is committed to providing users with quick and easy access to the information they need, no matter when or where they need it.

The technology gathers information from cell towers and runs it through Google-developed algorithms to approximate your current location. Our favorite part? This will definitely keep costs down on your next handset if you were considering a GPS unit.

The My Location technology is available on most smartphones, including all color BlackBerry devices, all Symbian Series 60 3rd Edition devices, most Windows Mobile devices, newer Sony Ericsson devices, and some Motorola devices

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Blockbuster to Offer Mobile Movies?

Could we see applications written for Android that allow for movie playback on mobile devices? AndroidGuys thinks so. If this happens on the Android platform, it could work not only for mobile devices, but also for the set-top box we talked about last week. Reuters is reporting that Blockbuster's Chief Executive James Keyes started watching movies on his BlackBerry after some help from a technical expert at Blockbuster and from the co-chief executive of Research in Motion Ltd. and that was pretty much all it took to convince him that mobile was the way of the future.

We're talking with virtually all of the major manufacturers about the opportunity to provide greater mobility and convenience," Keyes said, when asked if the company is talking to phone makers such as Nokia Oyj, Samsung Electronics Co and Motorola Inc.

It should be noted that Samsung and Motorola belong to the OHA. Full Post

Open Invitation to All Readers

We set up a Google Group today and would like to invite any and every person out there to join. If you have a gmail account or have signed up for anything else Google, add your name to the list. To find the link, please read this entire post. AndroidGuys Google Group. There are some great Google Groups dedicated to educating yourself in Android, including a nice developers one. Full Post

ANDROID FAQ

New to the “Android Revolution” and not quite sure who’s who or what’s what? Hopefully our F.A.Q. can answer some of these questions for you. Maybe they’ll even make you the resident Android guru in your office or dorm! At any rate you can expect it to be updated with any relevant news as it happens. Be sure to check it out!

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Week in Review : November 24th Edition

As part of our ongoing initiative to bring you the most relevant and up-to-date information regarding Android, we feature a weekly podcast where Jamie and Scott sit down and discuss the articles that we felt were the biggest headlines over the last week. We also add any late or breaking news to our discussion as well. Join us for a look back at the pieces and headlines we think you need to know about. We know we're a couple days late this week but we just came out of our turkey comas.

Developers Wanted! Contact us at androidguys@gmail.com today! We want to hear what you are up against. We'd like to showcase a few teams and give them the forum to spread the word about their progress.

AndroidTV and Open Source Television
AT&T Becomes Less Vague About Joining
Mainstream Developers Not Flocking to Android
Android Capable Phone Goes on Sale in December
Can Google Pull off Ad Supported Free Cell Service? We Think They Can!



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Free Software from Google!

Have you recently needed to format and reinstall your Windows OS? The biggest pain in the rear is downloading and installing vital software you'll need in order to get around online. Well, Google makes it very simple by offering a free package of software. Check out the list of programs that come bundled! The best part is, you can choose to install any or all of the programs. If you haven't tried Google Desktop, that alone is worth the download. Hit us up on Google Talk sometime at androidguys@gmail.com. We'd love to hear from you. Click the button at the top of this page if you're interested. It's free!

• Google Desktop
• Picasa
• Google Toolbar for Internet Explorer
• Google Photos Screensaver
• Google Earth
• Google Talk
• Google Video Player
• Mozilla Firefox with Google Toolbar
• Spyware Doctor Starter Edition
• Norton Security Scan
• Adobe Reader 8
• RealPlayer
• GalleryPlayer
• Skype
• StarOffice

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AndroidGuys Offering Full Feeds

In an effort to provide a better experience to our readers, we've decided to offer full feeds to anyone who subscribes to our site. If you have already signed up, we thank you. If you haven't, please click here and have our articles sent to you via Feedburner. Full Post

Mobile Web: A Sad State of Affairs

Using the internet on a phone sucks. Anyone with a mobile device will tell you this. Even if you are using a Smart Phone, Pocket PC, BlackBerry or iPhone, chances are, you are going to complain about it one way or another. Many people liken today’s mobile web to the early to mid 90’s and how the internet experience was on a PC. If you are too young to remember this, let me give you a primer. It was almost all text, slow as molasses, expensive, and ugly. Just like it is on your phone today. I want to dig a little deeper and examine each of those four characteristics and see how similar they are to today’s mobile internet browsing. I’ll also try to use the advancements in PC web browsing to forecast what it might be like for us in the coming year or two.

Before high speed/broadband internet was used in a majority of homes, people were relegated to using dial-up modems that crawled along at a snail’s pace. PC’s were not nearly as powerful as they are today. In fact, my phone has more memory, storage, processor speed than my first computer. Desktops in the mid 90’s were best suited for word processing and basic business applications. My first memories of the internet were in 1993 when a friend of mine and I would post on message boards about who the best Star Wars characters were and why. In case you’re wondering, it’s Chewie. Moving on. We would dial this loud obnoxious modem up at 2400kbps and go to these newsgroups and look for topics we felt like posting on. Once we decided to leave messages, we would come back the next day to see if it got posted. It was fascinating to us to see our screen name/handle in there with all these other names from around the country. These message boards would load slowly over the next few years until we hit the big 56k modems.

When websites started incorporating a logo or graphic into the site, it would take what felt like forever to load. In these days, jpegs and bitmaps could choke your computer out and knock you offline even. In essence, if you wanted to get online and move around efficiently, you needed to go to text based sites without tables, frames, or pictures. Sound familiar? Even on a Pocket PC with a 640X480 resolution screen, you want to avoid any sites that aren’t really designed around mobile phones or devices. The GPRS/EDGE/EVDO speeds just don’t give you the same experience that you would get on a desktop.

Many of the popular websites we visit are not designed with mobile clients in mind. A lot of sites are going back and redesigning or retooling their sites to accommodate these users. I know that personally, I don’t really bother with specific sites unless I am on a Wi-Fi connection. It’s not worth my time to wait for a page to load graphics when all I want is news. Many of the people I’ve talked to about this feel the same way. We’d prefer to get our information with less glamour and glitz just for the simple fact that it takes too much time to load banners and photos. Go back a few years when carriers were charging on a per kilobyte basis. You were not even going to bother with visiting certain sites because it raised your data plan costs so high. We’re now at a point where we can get unlimited data for about $20 a month, but it’s not enough. Not all phones load flash, java, or frames the same way. Sure, the experience is much better than it was even a year ago, but there is still no standout web application yet. We’re hearing that Mozilla is working on a Firefox for mobiles, but it even that might be months away. It’ll probably roll out right in time for the first Android phones to hit the market. Whether it’s Firefox, Opera, Thunderhawk, or a yet to be realized program, I’m excited to see what we’ll be using this time next year. We mobile devices users are a demanding lot, but it seems like somebody is always working on something better. Full Post

Verizon Promises Open Device and Software Access

Verizon has announced a strategy allowing their current and prosective customers more choices by allowing them use of their own hardware and software. Nicknamed "Any Apps, Any Device," they'll essentially let any cellphone, computer, or mobile device run on the carrier's network and use its services providing that it meets a minimum technical threshold. This is not the same thing as Verizon joining the OHA. Look at it more like their recognizing the importance of offering more choices to consumers.

The move is largely considered an attempt to win favor with the government and public for the upcoming FCC auction of the 700MHz spectrum, which is expected to serve as the basis for future cellular or wide-area Internet services.

Read the article at Electronista. Full Post

Google Plans Service to Store Users' Data

Wall Street Journal has an interesting article about Google and their desire to host your files online. Moving people towards one central storage place accessible from any web based PC would go hand in hand with their gmail client and Google Documents.

Google Inc. wants to offer consumers a way to store their files on its hard drives, in a strategy that could accelerate a shift to Web-based computing and intensify the Internet company's competition with Microsoft Corp.

Google is preparing a service that would let users store on its computers essentially all of the files they might keep on their personal-computer hard drives -- such as word-processing documents, digital music, video clips and images, say people familiar with the matter. The service could let users access the files via the Internet from different computers and mobile devices and share them online with friends. It could be released as early as a few months from now, one of the people said.

Read the full article here.

Hmmm, 700Mhz + Gdrive + Android = ???
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First Android Security Package Announced

SMobile Systems announced the first security solution for Android based phones. Called “Security Shield”, the software includes antivirus, anti-spam and firewall applications. Essential software for handsets designed around mobile web.

According to SMobile, the current state of Android could allow a virus to “pose as an application and do things like dial phone numbers [and] send text messages.”

A little bit scary, but nothing too worrisome to be sure. We are months away from anyone even owning a handset yet, so there is plenty of time to work out bugs. Read the rest of the article at TG Daily.

For more information, please check out MobilitySite
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Link Roundup

$10m Android prize-fund ironically stifling development - Google-Phone.com
Why Google's 'Android' Is More About Advertising And Less About Business - PR Web

Feel free to discuss in the comments Full Post

Ralph de la Vega Talks Android and More

Ralph sits down with the guys over at Engadget to discuss all kinds of cell phone related topics including Android. It's a pretty lengthy read, but very informative. For those of you unfamiliar with him, he is the current CEO of AT&T Mobility. If you have some time, check it out. We're sure you'll learn something new!

Well, we're still open to looking at that. We have not said no to that, but we are still looking at how that is going to work. We want to make sure that it truly is open and gives customers choice.

It feels like he and AT&T are very intrigued by the idea of Android and would definitely consider having a line of Google phones right next to their other products. It makes sense to us. They already offer every other type of OS available as it is. Engadget's full interview can be found here.
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Artificial Life, Inc. Supporting Android

Hong Kong-based Artificial Life, Inc. announced their plans to develop new games and applications for Google's open source mobile platform, Android. Artificial Life, Inc. is a leading provider of award-winning mobile 3G technology and applications. The company anticipates that Android will attract handset manufacturers because of lower costs for the operating system. They expect Android to be especially successful in China due to its Linux base. They are projecting early 2008 for their first round of software.

The emergence of mobile devices with a more open architecture and robust feature set makes our lives easier by giving us the freedom to create games with fewer limitations imposed by the specific devices while, at the same time, reducing production overhead. We will, therefore, support the Google open source initiative by providing new and innovative products.

Read the full article at TradingMarkets.com

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I Dream Of Bluetooth...

While driving home today, I received a call. Sounds simple enough, but the call was from my superior officer wondering why I hadn't returned his urgent text messages. I explained to him that while driving, I prefer not to get my device out and navigate to the message inbox and read, let alone REPLY. However it did strike up some optimistic thinking on my part. With all of the technology readily available in the wireless industry, I believe we are on the cusp of truly futuristic innovations. I'm talking robot stuff here. The things you imagined in the '80s when you thought about the 2000's. Let me give an example.

I drive a 1985 military issue HumVee with an after market installed Pioneer Avic Z-2 receiver (as seen below).

Now, the unit in my vehicle is equipped with a 30GB hard-drive for the navigation maps (no DVD's to load!), with 10 of those 30GB being allotted to music storage. The unit also has Bluetooth with a phone book/address book (which can sync to the GPS for one touch trip-routing) and auto-pairing upon entering the vehicle with a Bluetooth handset. The whole thing is also voice activated through the microphone mounted near the driver's side of the windshield. Essentially, I can answer a call from said Superior Officer, which is then routed through the car's audio system, all while my hands are still on the wheel. After hanging up, I can tell my car to route me to the stored address for the contact I just hung up with. Again, hands free. You may say, "Dammit General, whutintha tarnations are yew trying to say!?".

Well, here's what I'm thinking:

With the advancements in voice recognition software, and the obviously readily available Bluetooth support for vehicles, how long before we have a handset that pairs with our automobile's multimedia system for Speech-To-Text SMS/E-Mailing. I can already tell my car "Phone -> Call 1-800-General" and it dials flawlessly. I can also tell my car "Library -> Bruce Springsteen -> Born In The U.S.A." and it cues up the track. Is it really that far off to tell your car, "Phone -> SMS -> (555)555-9911 -> I'll be there in 20 minutes. I'm picking up ammunition for the AR-15." through Voice Command? I think not. I'm not saying that Google Android will even acknowledge some of these interests, let alone come equipped with the features "out-of-the-box", but how long ago was it that we wouldn't have been able to dream of carrying around 500 albums at one time, in the palm of our hands. Now most cars come stock with the iPod adapter. Samsung manufactured a handset(p207) with Speech-to-Text capabilities years ago.

I can vision a world where your primary handset links up to your vehicle's audio system for Bluetooth calling, E-mailing, SMS, and more. Can you?










* * * * * General Mills * * * * *
(Recently promoted to Five Stars!) Full Post

More Info Regarding Google's Wireless Ambitions

I came across a pretty good article on TMC.Net regarding Google's plans in the wireless forum. The article says that Google's bid will be in the area of $4.6 billion. While Google is wealthy, I don't think they have that kind of cash lying around, and even if they did they wouldn't want to tie up such a large amount in one area. You can read the complete article here.

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Mainstream Developers Not Flocking To Android?

by Jamie Hunter

I found an article today that seemed to imply that several "big" developers were taking a wait and see attitude regarding development for Android, which makes great business sense to me. After all, these companies more than likely already have commitments to current platforms such as B.G. Java (Before Google Java) and can't afford to drop what they're doing. It makes more sense for them to wait until more handsets are being sold so they can assure a return on their development time invested in crafting new software for Android.

This isn't a reason for anyone in the Google camp to panic. Did you really think that $10 million prize money would woo big time developers like EA or even a smaller development house like Pop Cap Games? Developers of this size easily make this much in sales every year based on current mobile platforms, so they're going to continue to do what they know is profitable. The $10 million prize was for the smaller developers, the future EA's of the world that may have needed a little more incentive to jump into the Android game. This contest also succeeded in drumming up publicity for Android.

To be fair there were no "big time" software houses listed or quoted in this article so we don't know what companies the size of EA are doing. I'm sure it wouldn't be too much speculation to say they have a "small team" getting to know Android and it's ins and outs. However, I did come across another nugget that you might find interesting. If you've been keeping up with our podcasts or our daydreaming section you may remember us wishing for a program on Android that would have the ability to let you know what restaurants and services were available based on the GPS location of your mobile handset. Well it seems that a small company based in Seattle, Wa. is working on that exact program for a current mobile platform. The company Whrrrl is a start up that launched last month, and while it didn't say which platform it was developing for based on their comments it isn't Android. "The way we perceive Android is that it is another platform and, therefore, it increases fragmentation,". Ouch! Don't worry we will eventually see this same software or a different version of it on Android, and it wouldn't surprise me at all if it was from this same developer. You can read the full article by clicking on the link below.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2004022128_android19.html Full Post

Hot Rumor of the Day

If you can't beat 'em, buy 'em. We're here with a very hot rumor regarding two major names in the wireless industry. It seems a certain handset manufacturer has this mindset towards a rival handset manufacturer. Wonder who's saying this? Find out after the jump!. A reliable resource working for Nokia tells us today that if they can't beat RIM, they plan on buying them out! Keep checking back with AndroidGuys to see what develops.
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Link Roundup

Android Will Change the Game, Even if It Fails - TechNewsWorld
Open-source software gamble for Google -Canada.com Full Post

RIM Working on iPhone Killer Too?

PC World is claiming today that RIM's 9000 series BlackBerry will be touch-screen.

The 9000 is supposed to be a touchscreen device, very similar in form factor to the iPhone," says analyst Carmi Levy of ARCommunications.

Set be on the market by 1st quarter of 2008, this rumored device will be aimed at the consumer market . Read the PC World article here. Full Post

Scott Visits AskTheAdmin

Resident editor/admin Scott Webster stopped by AskTheAdmin for a follow-up to his article from last week. He talks more in depth about Android and it being the perfect platform for changing the way you watch television.

Is the day that far off where you will be able to sync your favorite shows, emails, and notes between your TV and your mobile device? I don’t think it is. There are already plenty of ways hardware devices can sync up; Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, and of course using the trusty data cable.

To read his entire article, click here.

Tell us what you think about his ideas in the comments section.
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Link Roundup

• Google to Purchase Skype? - EETimes
  
• For Smartphones, Good Days are Here - IT Business Edge
  
• Google’s big TV plan: Android on set-top boxes? - ZDNet
  

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Google V. Sun

If you haven’t already heard, Sun Microsystems is not at all happy with Google. This “conflict” has been rumbling since the public launch of Google’s Android a few weeks ago. For those of you not up on the story I will attempt to fill you in.

When Google came up with the concept of Android Sun assumed it would be using the standard Java platform to develop it’s applications. From Sun’s point of view it was already an accepted standard among developers and it was open source, which is what this Android thing is all about, right? Well, apparently Google pulled a fast one and decided to use a slightly different version by developing their own virtual machine they code named “Dalvik”. When Android runs into Java it converts it to Dalvik format, which Google claims runs more efficient and faster on the Android platform than the standard Java VMS.

Was this really just a matter of tweaking Java to run more efficiently or did Google have ulterior motives? I’m not saying Dalvik doesn’t run more efficiently because I haven’t seen any comparisons, but this may have something to do with licensing fees as well. You see, carriers would have to pay Sun Microsystems a licensing fee if they ever wanted to make changes to Android. Google is basically saying that Dalvik is so different from the Java Virtual Machine that it’s now its own entity. This is where it gets dicey. If Sun can prove that Google used it’s intellectual property (Java language) to develop Dalvik then we could have a long drawn out case of copyright infringement. Personally I think Google would lose this one, because based on what I’ve read they did use Java as a starting point to develop Dalvik. We will leave that for the courts to decide.

What does this mean for Android? I can’t see Google taking any chances with this one. The last thing they want to do is duke it out with Sun. After all, they are both representing open source platforms, and it would look rather silly for either side to let this drag out. Let’s hope it’s resolved before the first handsets are rolled out later next year. Full Post

AT&T Becomes Less Vague About Joining

For those keeping score at home, so far we've heard Verizon claim it was "weighing" its options when it comes to joining the Open Handset Alliance. AT&T did one better by saying that they were "analyzing the situation." Early on, Nokia admitted that "it's not ruled out at all" and adding "If we would see this as beneficial we would think about taking part in it." Could we get any more non-committal? Well, it looks like AT&T wanted to shed a little light on their stance and disclose some of the questions they feel need addressed before they would consider joining the OHA. Long story short, there is nothing new to report.

• What will customers get on an Android-powered phone that they can't get on their current devices? New content? New applications?
• Will the system be secure enough to prevent viruses, hacking and other potential problems?
• What safeguards will be in place to protect customer's privacy?
• If Gmail is the default e-mail, how easy will it be for customers to access other email platforms?

It's interesting to see actual questions from them, yet at the same time, these are questions that most of the tech community already had. Full Post

Record Growth for Smart Phones

The mobile phone market is not only growing, it is growing smarter,” said Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis for NPD. “The nearly threefold increase in smartphones shows that this once negligible niche is becoming a more influential force in the consumer market -- attracting entrants such as Apple and the Open Handset Alliance.

NPD released the numbers for 3rd quarter sales in 2007. Of particular note, the top three handset manufacturers are all in the Open Handset Alliance. Motorola, Samsung, and LG accounted for 64% of all phones sold in the 3rd quarter.

NPD estimates total third quarter 2007 consumer sales of $3.2 billion, which is a 47 percent increase since the same period one year ago. The percentage of smartphones sold during the third quarter increased from 4 percent of all phone sales in the third quarter of 2006 to 11 percent during the same time frame in 2007 – an increase of 163 percent year over year.

Are you one of the people using a smart phone for the first time? If not, are you holding out until an Android phone comes along?

Press Release
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AndroidTV

I think everyone can agree that Google’s long term goal is to change the way advertising is done. From how it’s created and marketed to how it’s received. We can all now assume that their AdSense and AdWords program is going to be integrated into their Android OS in the end. So while everyone is looking left and talking about ‘Android capable phones’ and ‘OHA devices’, AndroidGuys is already looking right and seeing the bigger picture. Folks, it is now safe to start thinking about terms like ‘AndroidTV’, ‘Android capable televisions’, ‘GoogleTV’ and ‘Android DVR’. Why? Because it only makes sense.

Google will try to reach out to us and place targeted ads in front of us wherever they expect us to be looking. People are spending more time watching TiVo and DVR programs and not as much watching live television. If a business can advertise on a website using AdWords and AdSense, why couldn’t they do the same on specific channels of television? Let’s imagine a scenario here. You’re in a fantasy football league and are following your players as closely as possible. Why shouldn’t you be able to watch a pre-recorded program on your TiVo and still have a widget display your players’ performances at the bottom of the screen? Why can’t you have stock tickers scroll across your television letting you know how well your blue chip is performing while watching last night’s Law & Order?

Today, the boxes you are getting from your cable or satellite TV provider are essentially computers. They are preloaded with a few limited API’s like a menu setup, a program guide, the DVR, and a few customer service feature, like account information. Not a whole to go on is it? Or is it? If we can cram an open source operating system onto a mobile device, what kind of potential exists for a set-top box? We can already hook up to our networks wirelessly, so why can’t someone write a program that allows for some of the things mentioned above? There are already scores of "roll your own" DVR interfaces.

Imagine the possibilities. Watching baseball live with weather and Twitter updates scrolling across the screen. How about an announcement when someone leaves you a message on Facebook or MySpace? Wouldn’t it be nice to see it instantly? How about a notification popping up when your eBay auction ends? Or a widget tracking certain items you are interested in? What about neat little messages that tell you when a buddy has signed on? We can already see when someone calls us by ways of Caller ID showing up on TV. It’s only logical to make these next steps. Once we’re there, Google can then begin to help advertisers market specific products or services based on the channels being watched or programs being downloaded.

As our broadband speeds increase, we can have instant access to things we never thought possible. How long do you think it will be before we the ads showing up while watching TV feel like they are really targeted to you and your family? It’s not that far off to think that you will be able to click on that ad for an Old Navy sweater that displays discreetly below your reruns of Gilmore Girls. Google believes that it can attract more ad dollars from smaller businesses that are not currently advertising on TV. So, if Pizza Hut runs a commercial or places an ad, why can’t it give you the local phone number and promo code? If Pizza Hut was smart, they would track responses and tailor ad campaigns based on results.

Two months ago, everyone Google was developing its own mobile phone. Wrong. They are already looking past that. Google’s $10 million prize was not to build the best mobile application. It’s for building the best applications, period. Google’s Android technology is just the open source platform needed to bring the developers together to design the way people stay in touch. Google is not trying to come out with the iPhone killer. They have their sites on much bigger things. Oh yeah, that guy behind Android? Andy Rubin? Well he was involved in this company a few years back called WebTV. For those out there who greeted the Android announcement with a yawn, or expected this to fail based on Rubin's previous ventures, it's okay. It's not too late to change your opinion.

The AndroidGuys will forgive you. Full Post

Daydreaming: Open Discussion

We posted an article by Scott last week where he talked about things he would like to see available on Android capable phones. We decided to open the article up to our readers. Do you have an idea for a feature or service that needs to be implemented in the next-gen handsets? Tell us in the comments below. The next time we cover the Daydreaming category, we'll do a roundup of the best suggestions. On top of that, if we like your feedback, we'll cover it in a future podcast. This is a great opportunity to be heard by not only software developers, but also the hardware manufacturers as well!

So tell us, what kind of phone are you daydreaming about?
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Are Developers Being Bought?

Symbian' Vice President of Strategy John Forsyth says Google lacks experience in the creation of an operating system, stating "A mobile OS is a very specialised form of rocket science. It’s not search rocket science.” He likens OS startups to the “common cold” and questions whether Google is up to the task of “the deeply unsexy job of supporting customers day by day in launching phones”. On top of that, Forsyth feels that developers would be looking for a more robust and tested platform with plenty of sales figures before they even “got out of bed”.

Now we have the $10 million Android Developer Challenge, earmarking rewards for innovative application design. Is this challenge as a result of comments made by power players in the mobile industry? Is it completely unrelated? A common term being thrown around is the word "bribe". Some are saying that Google is trying to kickstart the interest in Android by offering cash rewards and incentives and that without the money, there would be little movement.

What do you think? Is Android just a common cold, or will it be more like a super-virus?

Leave us a comment below. If we like it, we'll use it in a future podcast.

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Official AndroidGuys Glossary

We're well aware that many of our visitors will not be up to speed on all of the jargon being thrown around in articles, opinions, and comments. We've take the time to put together a glossary of terms we feel are essential to know when it comes to Android and the Open Handset Alliance. While nowhere near complete, this is a perfect jumping off point. If you feel there is a vital omission, please fee free to contact us!


2G - 2nd generation wireless technology standards that are digital instead of analog. Offers both data and voice.

3G - 3rd generation wireless technology which includes high data speeds, an always-on data access stream, and voice capacity superior to the first two generations (1G & 2G).

4G – 4th generation technology which ultimately will be able to provide voice, data and streamed multimedia to users on an "Anytime, Anywhere" basis, and at higher data rates than current generations are allowing. Objectives for 4G include wired and wireless technologies capable of providing 100 Mbit/s and 1 Gbit/s speeds both indoors and outdoors.Android - Open source mobile phone platform based on the Linux operating system, developed by the Open Handset Alliance Announced November 5th, 2007

API – Acronym for Application Programming Interface. A source code interface that an operating system provides to support requests for services to be made of it by computer programs.

EV-DO - CDMA standard for 3G. EV-DO is an acronym for "EVolution, Data-Only", but can also be referred to as "EVolution, Data-Optimized". Provides data rates over 10 times faster than previous technology for CDMA networks.

EDGE - GSM/GPRS service that triples data rates over standard GPRS. EDGE phones will automatically switch between EDGE and the slower GPRS depending on whether or not the faster service is available.

GMail - Google Mail is a free Web-based email service provided by GoogleReleased on April 1, 2004 as a private beta release by invitation only and was opened to all as a public beta on February 7, 2007. Although the initial storage capacity was only 1 GB, it drastically increased the standard for free storage as it currently offers over 6GB as of January 1, 2008.

Google Maps - Free web mapping service application and technology provided by Google. Offers street maps, a route planner, and an urban business locator for numerous countries around the world. Can generate driving directions between any pair of locations. It shows turn-by-turn instructions, an estimate of the trip time, and the distance between the two locations.

GPRS - General Packet Radio Service. Service available to users of GSM mobile phones. Data transfer is typically charged on a ‘per kilobyte’ basis. GPRS can be used for services such as Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) access, text messaging (SMS), picture messaging (MMS), and email and internet access.

GPS - Global Positioning System utilizes a constellation of at least 24 medium Earth orbit satellites that transmit precise microwave signals. A GPS receiver can determine its location, speed, direction, and time. Managed by the US Air Force, GPS has become an aid for navigation and a tool for map-making, land surveying, and other scientific uses.

GSM - Most popular standard used by mobile phones in the world. It is estimated that 82% of the global mobile market uses GSM. The primary advantage of GSM systems over other mobile technologies is that it has better voice quality and low-cost alternatives to making calls. Network providers are able to offer worldwide roaming as it is practically a standard in Europe.

LTE - Long-Term Evolution is the current effort to develop advanced wireless mobile radio technology that will succeed current 3G WCDMA/HSDPA/HSUPA technology. Considered by many to be "4G" technology.

Linux - One of the most prominent examples of free software and open source development. The source code can be freely modified, used, and redistributed by virtually anyone.

Open Handset Alliance (OHA) – Comprised of 34 members and led by Google. Includes mobile handset makers, application developers, mobile carriers as well as chip makers.

Open Source - Set of principles and practices promoting access to the source code of software that is available to the general public. Typically having relaxed or non-existent intellectual restrictions on property. Allows users to create software through individual effort or through collaboration.

SDK – Acronym for Software Developer Kit. Typically a set of development tools that allows a software engineer to create applications (API’s) for a software framework, hardware platform, computer system, or operating system. In this case, the framework is Android.

Smartphone - Mobile phone offering advanced capabilities beyond a typical mobile phone. Typically will have PC-like functionality. Although there is not an industry standard definition of a smartphone, for some, it is a phone that runs complete operating system software providing a standardized interface and/or a platform for software developers. For other people, a smartphone could simply be a phone with advanced features.

UI – Acronym for User Interface. The means by which people interact with a particular machine, device, or computer. The user interface provides means of input and output.

UMA - Unlicensed Mobile Access Provides access to voice and data services over unlicensed spectrum technologies like Wi-Fi or BlueTooth. UMA phones automatically switch between cellular networks and local networks when in range. VOIP - Voice over Internet Protocol is a protocol optimized for the transmission of voice through the Internet or other packet switched networks. Also known as IP Telephony, Internet telephony, Broadband telephony, Broadband Phone and Voice over Broadband.

WiMax- WiMax is the trade name for a family of new technologies related to the IEEE 802.16 wireless standards. Has the potential for very long range (up to 30 miles) and high speeds. The first versions were based on 802.16a wireless technology and designed for fixed applications only. Newer versions designed around mobility could make this a potential competitor for some 3G or 4G technologies.

Carriers

China Mobile (CMCC) is the largest mobile phone operator in China. Based on subscribers, it is the world's largest mobile phone operator with nearly 350 million customers.

KDDI Corporation - Japanese telecommunication operator. They prove mobile cellular services, ISP network and solution services, long-distance and international voice and data communications services, optical fiber, and ADSL broadband services.

NTT DoCoMo, Inc. - The largest mobile phone operator in Japan. They provide 2G cellular services in 800 MHz and 1.5 GHz bands as well as 3G W-CDMA services in the 2 GHz band. They also offer paging, satellite services, video phone, internet), mail, and SMS services.

Sprint Nextel - The third largest telecommunications company in the US with 55 million subscribers. They also operate the second largest wireless broadband network and the third largest long distance provider in the United States. The Sprint PCS network operates a combination 2G & 3G wireless network.

T-Mobile USA - The US subsidiary of T-Mobile International AG. Previously known as VoiceStream Wireless and Powertel, it was acquired by Deutsche Telekom for US$24 billion. Currently the fourth-largest wireless carrier in the U.S. with approximately 27 million subscribers. Their network predominately uses the GSM/GPRS 1900 MHz frequency-band, making it the largest 1900 MHz network in the US. Service is available in 46 of the top 50 US markets, reaching 244 million potential customers. Forecasts call for reaching 98 of 100 largest markets and 259 million potential customers in 2008.

Telecom Italia - A privately owned telecommunication company with the largest user base in Italy. They operate landline telephone services, GSM phone services (as TIM, present in Italy and Brazil) and ADSL services.

Telefónica - One of the largest fixed-line and mobile telecommunications companies in the world. They are 2nd in terms of number of clients and in the top five in terms of market value.

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Android in Action

The Radioactive Yak talks about what he's done on the Android SDK so far. I gotta say, if this is what one guy does in such a short time, I am very excited to see what full on teams can do over the course of months. Where Are My Friends? looks like something that could prove very useful. I would also love to point out how much he seems to disagree with Robert Scoble's remarks last week, echoing my sentiments.

Erstwhile video blogger Scoble is disappointment with Android. It seems this is largely because the launch "videos were boring". Robert? Dude? Who gives a s**t about the videos? Developers don't want videos, they want CODE. Code, samples, and a well documented API. I still haven't watched the videos, I was too busy using the SDK to spend time looking at the pretty moving pictures. Apparently the shiny lights distracted Scoble...

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Social Implications for a Mobile Future

With the right software, any handset can be made into a wonderful tool for social networking. Over the next few years, many people will get their first tastes of the internet by way of a mobile device. By this we mean that the first experiences people will have online will be made possible by use of a handset. The mobile industry is rife with potential. Indystar has a terrific article up today that digs into the social aspects and benefits of a more mobile community.

There are some great statistics and quotes that make you wonder just how long some of these companies involved in the OHA had been working together to help create the juggernaut known as Android.

T-Mobile noticed that 85 percent of the Web page views on its youth-oriented Sidekick devices went to MySpace.

It cannot be pure coincidence that T-Mobile, MySpace, and Google are all working together between Android and OpenSocial.

Frederick Ghahramani, co-founder of AirG, which manages social-networking communities on Sprint Nextel, AT&T, Virgin Mobile, Boost Mobile and other carriers, says 59 percent of its 20 million unique users around the world don't own or share a PC.

Expect that percentage to grow in time. Less PC and even laptop owners and more mobile device owners. Our prediction is that it won't be long before they're not even called 'phones' any longer. Full Post

Android Capable Phone Goes on Sale in December

Well, let's clear this up right away. According to Bug Labs, they have a phone that should have no trouble running Android. Set to go on sale over the coming weeks, they've posted a few photos of its "open-source" mobile gadget and some of the hardware modules it will sell. Bug's product is basically a Lego kit for mobile engineers. Starting this quarter, you will be able to buy a base unit and add-on modules -- like LCD displays, GPS, a digital camera, motion-sensor, etc. -- and write whatever software you want the handset to run.

According to Silicon Alley Insider

...the Bug is really just a tiny, battery-operated computer, it can pretty much run any software you want -- for instance, Semmelhack says it should have no problem running Google's Android operating system.

Bug has planned about 100 hardware modules that it will release eventually. You can also design and manufacture your own pieces too. Founder Peter Semmelhack states that a starter kit should sell somewhere in the hundreds of dollars.

We fully expect to see many unofficial gPhones leaked and announced over the next few months. While fun to read about on a slow news day, these phones will not stack up against the handsets designed by the OHA partners.
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Analyze your DNA

Doctors and health advocates are always giving blanket statements and warning about cholesterol, diabetes, and blood pressure to the masses. How much applies to you though? Do you worry about everything or just hot topics? What happens if you are more likely to become affected by one over the other? Wouldn't it be great if you could find out a little bit more information about your predisposition to diseases or conditions? Then you'd be able to spend more time focusing on what seems more likely. You'd be able to tailor your lifestyle and make changes to your daily routines, diet, etc. Well, good news! You can find out if you're likely to get Alzheimers or breast cancer among other afflictions strictly based on your own DNA.

For $1,000, US customers will be able to send off a sample of their saliva to a Californian company and receive a 'genetic profile' based on an analysis of more than half a million points on their genome.

The report - which is accessed online - will identify similarities between the customer's genes and those associated with about a dozen diseases and conditions, including type 2 diabetes and Crohn's disease. In turn, the company hopes, customers will be able to take 'preventive action' in relation to their health.

Why are we reporting this on AndroidGuys? Well, 'you know who' is behind it. We've dedicated this site to all things Android but we're always proud to help spread news about Google's involvement in any endeavors that we feel sound promising.

It remains to be seen how much real life demand there will be for this. If you had an extra grand, would you check just out of curiosity?

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Can Google Pull Off Ad Supported Free Cell Service? We think they can!

Karl L. Gechlik here from AskTheAdmin.com guest blogging to help promote AndroidGuys...

Last week one of the AskTheAdmin.com entourage posted an article talking about a PR leak that showed how hurried the Google crew is pushing along their new services to offer free cell phone service with Ads.

If anyone can accomplish this it is the big GOOG.

We wrote about GOOG laying fiber across the ocean floor, trying to acquire the 700mhz frequency, creating a mobile os just to name a few. Think about it, these guys are pushing directory service out of business with their goog 411. How long before it has ads on it? Of course after they have captured a nice chunk of the market share. Now this sounds like a test run before they launch their mobile phone. Would you use a free cell phone if you had to listen to ads or get them via text or mms? If it had the same quality of service as a reputable carrier the answer would be hell yeah! Its a no brainier if I can get rid of a few hundred dollars a month in cell bills. Will they offer data as well??

I guess we will just have to wait and see! What do you Android fans think? Hit us up in the commments.

Play Nicely Out There Boys And Girls...

Karl L. Gechlik

Thanks for stopping by Karl! We appreciate the your topic and insight. - Scott

You heard him! Let us know if you would be for or against a service like this.

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With A Name Like Firethorn It's Gotta Be Cool!!

Could be, could not be. I'll let you decide. A couple days ago Qualcomm announce the purchase of Firethorn. Firethorn has made mobile banking the future. In their recent acquisition Qualcomm has said that now consumers will be able to do all their banking mobile. That's not the good part though, with this technology ready how long before we'll see other mobile applications for the consumer. With Android in tow will we maybe see a Paypal app to help Ebayers keep on top of their auctions or how about other small business owners keep on up with their business while their on vacation or abroad on business trips. The sky is the limit and I'm excited.
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AT&T Jumping On Board with Android?

We know it's Sunday and you probably weren't expecting much news regarding the Open Handset Alliance, but we have some pretty big stuff to report. According to an article from the San Jose Mercury News, the phone company is "analyzing the situation" and may use Google's software for phones, Ralph de la Vega, chief executive officer of the wireless unit, said in an interview Friday. The full Bloomberg News article is posted after the jump.

AT&T has talked with Google about joining its mobile-phone software alliance. The phone company is "analyzing the situation" and may use Google's software for phones, Ralph de la Vega, chief executive officer of the wireless unit, said in an interview Friday. He refused to give details of discussions and said he hasn't personally met with Mountain View-based Google. The search-engine giant announced Nov. 5 that it would work with 33 companies to develop software for mobile phones. Wireless carriers Sprint Nextel and T-Mobile USA joined the alliance, looking for features such as local shopping searches that could help them lure new customers.

Tell us, do you think it's possible that AT&T is looking to come on or could this just be a quote to keep them from officially saying 'NO' to the whole thing, instead leaving the door open? Full Post

Week in Review: November 17th Edition

As part of our ongoing initiative to bring you the most relevant and up-to-date information regarding Android, we feature a weekly podcast where Jamie and Scott sit down and discuss the articles that we felt were the biggest headlines over the last week. We also add any late or breaking news to our discussion as well. Join us for a look back at the pieces and headlines we think you need to know about.

Developers Wanted! Contact us at androidguys@gmail.com today! We want to hear what you are up against. We'd like to showcase a few teams and give them the forum to spread the word about their progress.

Rumored Android Screenshots and Video
Google Bidding on 700Mhz Alone
Scoble Gets it (Almost) Completely Wrong
It's Open, But That Might Not Be Enough

Special thanks to AskTheAdmin and DownloadSquad for their generosity this week!


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And In Other News We Already Knew

Yes, Google Is Trying To Take Over the World - Slate

But neither Microsoft nor Symbian is the true obstacles to Google's larger plans. They are rivals, yes, but neither Symbian nor Microsoft can stop Android or the development of Gphones.Google's truest and most formidable foes are much older and more powerful. Today we call them Verizon and AT&T, but their real name is the Bell system.

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Abort! You've Been Compromised!

FastCompany.com details how easily an iPhone can be hacked. It's not just open source phones and Windows Mobile users that need to worry. This just drives me nuts to think about though. Who clicks on unsolicited URLs and links? You would think someone spending that kind of money would know better. If you have an iPhone with the 1.12 software, you're okay. For now.

The result is this video, in which Farrow was able to take complete control of an iPhone and demonstrate the ability to eavesdrop on conversations, intercept voice mail and e-mail, and upload nefarious software programs. “Physical access to an iPhone is not required.”

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Carmack Tears Apple a New One

Lead iD Software programmer John Carmack doesn't believe Apple gets it yet.

In a recent interview with GameDaily, he criticized Apple for their approach to gaming and even admitted to having had a “heated argument” with Steve Jobs at the WWDC. He does go on to touch briefly on the idea of creating for Android.

We've certainly been looking at it but Steve Jobs and I have not been seeing really eye to eye on a lot of important issues. We were in a fairly heated argument at the last WWDC and we've had a few follow-ups. The honest truth right now is that Apple's not exactly hugely supportive of this.

When they finally allowed games to be put on the iPod... in many ways it's one of the worst environments to develop games for. I expressed my fears directly to Steve Jobs that some of these mistakes might be carried over to the iPhone, so they're at least aware of all of them, but they're not giving any spectacular signs that it's going to be a big deal for them in the next year.

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Friday Freebies

Here at AndroidGuys, we love Google so much that we use it for pretty much everything this site is made up of. We have Gmail accounts, Blogger hosting, a URL we bought from GoDaddy, AdSense for advertising, GrandCentral for our phone number, Google Docs for creating and storing files online, plus a whole slew of other little things that Google is tied in with. Every Friday, we are going to post links for our visitors to sign up to these programs. The best part about these is that they're 100% FREE!




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First Major Mobile Messaging Project for Android

Techies love to hear the word 'push' when it comes to email and phone apps. It's what drives a lot of users to RIM for the Blackberry email client. Last week, AndroidGuys was among the first to report on WhatsOpen and it being the possible first API for Android OS. Today, we're here to inform you that a company called Funambol is working on the first push messaging program for Android. They currently provide open source-based "push" e-mail, contacts, and calendars to over 1.5 billion phones.

Funambol's client for Android phones will work in conjunction with Funambol's free Web portal to wirelessly sync Personal Information Manager data, such as contacts appointments, and tasks, and e-mail systems such as Gmail,Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO) Mail, AOL, Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) Outlook, and others. It also will allow users to wirelessly migrate PIM data from other phones and the Web to their Android phones.

We can't tell you how excited we are about this. It's not even a full week old and Android is starting to show us that there will be definite advantages and advancements over the current offerings from Microsoft and Apple, you have to jump through hoops and do pretty rigorous tweaking to your phone if you want it today.

Thanks to Information Week for the article.
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Google Bidding on 700Mhz Alone

Scott here to let you know about a very interesting article on the WSJ today. It talks about Google's plan for the cell industry and their intentions to buy their own spectrum. Alone!

...gearing up to make a serious run at buying wireless spectrum, a chunk of the airwaves that can be used to provide mobile phone and Internet services, in a Federal Communications Commission auction in January. Google is prepared to bid on its own without any partners, say people familiar with the matter.

Google, meanwhile, already is running a test version of an advanced wireless network at its Mountain View, Calif., headquarters, gaining operating experience that could come in handy if it wins the spectrum...

My first reaction to this is to say "OK, fine, let them." Too much red tape, FCC regulation, and carrier restriction is keeping the US far behind Europe when it comes to customer satisfaction. As more companies are bought up, you and I are stuck with fewer options. If Google can around and shake things up a tad, let them. This is what I say about Android too. Even if the OHA doesn't set the world on fire, at least they'll light a fire under a few butts. In the end, the more competition out there, the more the end users win. Theoretically, if one company has my web, email, and software services, then wouldn't be logical to have them tie it to their network? Imagine the GPS possibilities with advertising. You're driving on the highway and you turn on 'Restaurant Alert Mode'. Phone begins to flash coupons and promos, restaurant listings, driving directions, phone numbers, addresses, and business hours. You can already filter online what type of business you want, so it would make sense that you can check for 'Mexican' establishments in your vicinity without having to type in the actual zip code. It already knows.
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Open Source Does Not Mean Free End Product

This is a very exciting time for mobile phones and technology in general. It's not often a company' stock hovers between $500-$700 for months on end. But this is the case for Google. They also debuted last year as the top company to work for in America according to Forbes magazine. I know the hope inside us says something like, "Great open source everything. Everything will be free! Cheap phones, cheap computers!" I wish it was so simple. Unfortunately, someone will find ways to make money from the masses.

I do believe will will see a lot more options from Google within the next few years, including full downloadable office programs and even a Google branded OS for PC's. They are on the rise and doing things right. Revenue will not be a problem, for they are in negotiations now to purchase double-click, an ad company. Google has gone from the best search engine on the internet to one of the best ad agencies in the world.

Let's step over to the computer operating system world for a moment. Linux is completely free, Linux Red-Hat is hundreds to thousands of dollars. We also have UNIX and UNIX BSD, both free. Now think about Sun Microsystem's OS and that highly favored Apple Aqua GUI. What are they sitting on top of? UNIX. My point is, if a developer can design a product that is truly unique and powerful enough to interface multiple phone brands, they are going to want paid for it. Then you may see a new brand of OS based off of Android open source software.

I want to continue to promote Android as much as I can because I believe in open-source and I believe in Google. At the same time those of us who are Google enthusiasts have to remember cash is still king. If said product is good enough, it will be made available to the masses, but somewhere along the lines, somebody will figure out how to charge for it.

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Site Layout Overhaul

Ok! We hear you guys! We know that our site might not have been the best looking. We're just getting started. We've been so focused on content that we were overlooking the layout. Some changes were made today that might affect the functionality. If you see something acting funny, we need to know. Full Post

Rumored Android Screenshots/Video

I don't know if I'm late on the draw here, or just overlooked someone else's post, but the good folks over at CyberNetNews have what appears to be a couple of limited-view screenshots of the Android OS. These look like an in-hands version of the pics included in the SDK. I think whatever apps/shell they are running have been designed to mimic or improve upon the iPhone OS. It seems like a touch screen (HTC maybe?) Blackberry/iPhone hybrid. Looks aiight to me, but then again I'm near blind from flash-bangs and smoke grenades. Just a day in the life of a General. Anywho, I say it's too early to call it, even if these are legit. I'll let you be the judge. And here is the rest of it.

And, the video. Again, Shouts to CyberNetNews for the link.

**** General Mills ****

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Link Roundup

• Google engineer explains Android choices - ComputerWorld
• Android: Who Hates Google Over the Phone?- AJAX World
• Analyst: Google Android phone OS seen complementing, not competing with Apple iPhone - MacDailyNews

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HD YouTube Videos Within 3 Months

Two potential problems exist here. Buffer times and the fact that you can't fix videos filmed at low resolution like a lot of people are doing (320x240) today.

Chen told me that he expects that high-quality YouTube vids will be available to everyone within three months. SOURCE

How will this translate to handsets and how will money be made off of this?

Discuss in the comments. Full Post

F.A.Q.

New to the “Android Revolution” and not quite sure who’s who or what’s what? Hopefully our FAQ can answer some of these questions for you. Maybe they’ll even make you the resident Android guru in your office or dorm! At any rate you can expect it to be updated with any relevant news as it happens.

Q: Is Google finally going to release an Iphone killer?
A: As of this writing Google has stated it has no intentions of releasing hardware of any kind to compete against the Iphone. Instead it is focusing it’s efforts on Android, a new open source platform for mobile phones.

Q: What? No GPhone? All this wait and no hardware? Why would Google bother with Android instead of releasing a phone of their own?
A: Let’s not forget that Google has never been into manufacturing hardware. They are an ad revenue based company, and they have been looking for ways to bring their advertising model to the mobile phone industry. What better way to do this than to break from the pack and develop your own mobile platform?

Q: I’ve heard about this open source stuff. Doesn’t that mean I will be able to get free software for my phone?
A: Not so fast my friend! Open source is great, but it doesn’t necessarily mean everything will be free. Don’t forget that software developers will still want to get paid for all of their hard work, so don’t expect games and productivity software to be free. The good news is that the Android SDK is free for developers, which means there are no licensing fees to pay. This should result in not only lower priced software, but lower priced handsets as well, and this is something we can all get excited about!

Q: When and where can I buy an Android based phone?
A: Don’t expect to see working consumer based handsets for another 6 months or so. If you are really adventurous and just can’t wait that long take a look at the “Bug”. It is supposed to be the first working handset that will be able to run Android. The only problem is that it’s modular in design meaning some assembly will be required. And you may want to brush up on your programming skills because this device is expected to ship with a clean slate. For the rest of us T-Mobile has stated they expect to have their first handset read by June or July of 2008. No word from Sprint on when their first Android based phone will be available.

Q: Since Google is behind Android does this mean that I will have banner ads on my phone?
A: This is the million dollar question, and one that only Google and the other OHA members know. We do know that Google would not have rolled this out if they did not already have a pretty good idea of how they would earn revenue from Android. How much advertising we will have to endure is up in the air, but considering that there are and always will be other alternatives to Android I think it will be “reasonable”. If I have to listen to a :15 to :20 ad before I make every phone call, I may have to consider an alternative handset and plan. Unless of course the phone was free and the plan was too good to pass up.

Q: What is the OHA?
A: The OHA is the Open Handset Alliance. Below is an introduction from their home page. You can visit their site by clicking here.

Welcome to the Open Handset Alliance™, a group of more than 30 technology and mobile companies who have come together to accelerate innovation in mobile and offer consumers a richer, less expensive, and better mobile experience. Together we have developed Android™, the first complete, open, and free mobile platform.

Some of the more high profile members are T-Mobile, Sprint, Samsung, LG, Ebay, Nvidia and Intel. Missing from the list are Verizon and AT&T. They haven’t said they will not sign on to the OHA, but they want to wait to see just how successful it is before making any commitments

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Scoble Gets it (Almost) Completely Wrong

On Tuesday I had took a few minutes to read through Robert Scoble’s article over at his Scobleizer blog. Where his articles don't normally sway me too much, this one felt more and more inflammatory to me as I got deeper into it. When I was done, I went back and read it again just to make sure I was not seeing the wrong things or getting the wrong impression. If you are not familiar with the article, let me summarize it for you; He doesn’t seem to care much for Android yet. He’s unimpressed so far. That’s okay though, because you are not required by any laws to be on board with any one thing or idea. I would like to take this opportunity, however, to refute some of his points. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t disagree with his entire piece, just most of it.

Right away he claims that ‘this developer API is uninspired because they are bribing developers with $10 million in prize money’. So Google is offering a prize. Big deal. It’s not like people weren’t going to write for this OS anyhow. What Google is trying to show here is that the little guy can get rewarded handsomely if they can come out with that killer app. It’s not just about ‘Big Software’. Aside from that, wasn’t it just a few months ago that Google made huge headlines by offering their ‘X’ Prize for the first private team to put a robot on the moon? Is Google trying to grease the palms of our space teams? It’s just incentive. Nothing more.

Ok, moving on. I want to tackle some of his reasoning as to why Android gets a yawn from him.

‘It was released without a personal approach’.
Why is it necessary to make a big deal and put out really flashy promotional stuff and throw big elaborate press conferences and shows? Didn’t Google get the industry buzzing just the same with their approach? The world was waiting and watching last Monday. We wanted the steak while Scoble wanted the sizzle.

‘This stuff is still vaporware’
Aren’t all ideas vapor until the product actually exists? Just because you personally weren’t handed an Android device to play with doesn’t mean that someone else hasn’t. Scoble goes on to say that ‘If you want my support for your platform I need to be able to use it and show it to my friends’. This is basically the same argument that anyone can make about something. In fact, just because I have yet to hold an iPhone and play with it doesn’t mean I see the value in it. I think we can all agree that we're not talking about Duke Nukem Forever here.

‘The UI looks confused’
He argues that the iPhone will be the handset his wife will go back to because the touch based operation is much easier to user. Now, I’m nowhere as close to Silicon Valley as he is, but even I know about HTC’s TouchFlo technology. I also know that they have plans to enhance and upgrade that technology for the next generation of handsets. Do you think an iPhone knows the difference between a finger and a stylus? Try again.

‘Google needs atomic videos’
I do agree with him here. Google could have broken the large video down into small segmented clips detailing specific features or functions. However, this is not going to be enough to keep the developers away. I’m actually of the opinion that these developers don’t need the glitter. They’re looking for the details. “Just the facts, ma’am.”

I think Scoble sounds a bit resentful towards Google and how he was treated at the Open Social press conference. Sounds like sour grapes to me when he tells us that he wasn’t allowed to use his professional camera so he was forced to use his cell phone. He takes time to remind us that he was able to do that and more when he spent time with John Edwards. He also talks about how all the big names like Business Week, WSJ, and LA Times were in the room, but TechCrunch wasn’t. Ok, so maybe TechCrunch should have been in the room and not only conferenced in. Isn’t logical to assume that the companies and organizations that were in the room are going to be the sources from where the world ends up getting their information? Yeah, so there are thousands of daily visitors to tech and gadget sites, but AP articles spread just as fast. I’ve not seen my local newspaper quote these sites (yet).

He really lays blame on Google for coming out after Apple’s foray. He says it looks too much like ‘a poor copy of the iPhone.’ I wonder how many people were going around saying that the first Chevy looked like a poor copy of the Ford. Can we say that the first LG flip phone looked too much like Samung? Scoble then says he wants to see kyte.tv on his phone, which the iPhone doesn’t do yet. He says he wants to see a killer podcasting-creation features. Again, something that Apple doesn’t do. Well, when you have open source, you have the capability for both of those functions. Try this argument again a year from now. I’d be very surprised if neither of those come about with Android.

The last point I really take issue with is his assessment that Google is only good at being a search engine. ‘Are you sensing that Google is just not very good at technology evangelism? After all, look at how successful Google has been outside of search. It hasn’t really had a good home run that we can point to outside of that.’

Has anyone introduced him to AdSense, Gmail, Google Docs, Blogger, Orkut, or Google Maps yet?

But what do I know, I’m just a blogger, right?

Agree or disagree with anything said here? Leave a comment! Full Post

It’s Open, But That May Not Be Enough

Google released the new Android mobile phone OS! Now, can we all take a deep breath and exhale…. There, now doesn’t that feel better? It’s been a whirlwind of a ride so far and we’ve barely seen a working handset running an Android application, yet the world is abuzz with everything Google and Android. To be sure performing a search for either garners you a bevy of news articles from both supporters and “naysayers” a like. While I myself am very optimistic of Google’s endeavor to revolutionize the mobile handset industry it’s going to take more than just being open source to ensure it’s survival as a viable alternative to the current crop of mobile phone operating systems. Google will also need the following if it expects Android to be around for the long haul.

Innovation for the end user.

It will not be enough to simply be “new” because “new” happens every day. “New” will get my attention, but to keep it you have to be innovative. What will Android bring to the table from an end user’s point of view that isn’t already available through Symbian, Windows Mobile, RIM or Palm? While the ability to customize my operating system sounds interesting from a technical point of view how will it enrich my life, or make it more productive? Give me software that will track my fantasy football league results and standings without me having to log into a website, and have it available on my home screen all the time! Give me a program that sends me a text message with the show times of any movie or show I programmed it to look for at all movie theatres within my zip code. Open source sounds sexy but will it have a positive impact on my life?

Major support from developers big and small.

If you’ve followed the video gaming industry you know all too well that the most powerful piece of hardware is only as good as the software programmed to run on it. The Sega Saturn may have been technically superior to the Sony Playstation but software developers took more risks on Sony’s machine, while Sega stuck to its roots and released port after port of its arcade titles. R.I.P. Sega Saturn. We hardly knew ya’. If software developers don’t take risks, but instead release remakes of software that’s already available on current platforms the Android will meet a similar fate. Google has to encourage developers of all sizes to flock to yet another platform, and while their $10 million developers challenge is a step in the right direction, I question whether it will be enough to stimulate long term support from the developer’s community.

Patience.

It’s true that Rome wasn’t built in a day, but it may take even longer for Android to gain a foothold in the mobile phone industry. Even the most optimistic of scenarios doesn’t see this new OS gaining 5 to 10 percent market share in the next 5 years. It’s going to take a while, and it’s going to take more than just two mobile phone operators to make it happen. While T-Mobile and Sprint are great partners to have in the OHA their customer bases aren’t large enough to impact a dramatic change in the industry. For this to work you need to convince Verizon and AT&T to come to the table with their installed base of 63.7 million and 65.7 million respectively. Without them I fear that Android will only appeal to a niche market, much like the iPhone has up to this point, and revolutions aren’t made by catering to niche markets. It will take time and positive results before Verizon and AT&T embrace this new platform. The question is will Google have the patience to wait for them?

I have no doubt that we are in the midst of something big. Android has the right company backing it because Google isn’t afraid to take chances, and they appear to be in it for the long haul. Let’s hope the developer’s can truly produce some innovative software to make Android a viable option for a very long time to come.

Don’t agree with my assessment of Android’s future? Please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear other points of view!

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AndroidGuys.com Serves as Guest Blogger!

One of the administrators here at AndroidGuys was asked to write a piece for AskTheAdmin today. Please take a few minutes to check out the rest of their site. It's packed full of great IT help as well as stuff for the 'little guy' too. It's not strictly PC help either. There are also pieces on open source and smartphones over there. If you like Scott's article, please let them know. They are considering bringing him on in a weekly role!

Open Source Phones? What does Android mean for the mobile market? Full Post

Must Read: EETimes Details Android's Potential

It sounds almost like someone has already been playing with a gPhone for a while now. Head over here to read up on what feels like the most in-depth details to come out yet about Android.

What exactly will the GPhone -- that vaporous handset that's the subject of furious speculation -- actually look like? In the wake of Google's release of its Android mobile-phone software development platform, there's been lots of chatter, but little hard information. This article is intended to change that.

Google has publicly listed all the partners in its Android project, under the umbrella of the Open Handset Alliance. By intelligently examining what those companies are working on, we can come up with a fact-based projection of the GPhone's probable feature set.

They go on to list 8 technologies we can expect from Android, including speech recognition and gliding touch screens. A lot of food for thought. Looks like we have plenty of podcast material to cover! Full Post

Android and Google Parting Ways With Java?

by Jamie Hunter

Well not exactly. While Java will still play a big role in Android development, apparently it will not be the same version your daddy is currently using to program for his mobile phones. Google decided that the current Java platform wasn't "open enough" so they developed their own JVM (Java Virtual Machine) technology called "Dalvik". Google claims this makes programs run fast even on "hardware challenged" mobile phones. You can read CNET NEWS.COM's full article by clicking here.
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T-Mobile & HTC in the Lead?

What's good?

As the ambassador of rumor and speculation here at team A.G., I feel that it's my duty to relay the information that a little-birdie may have sang into my ears. These informants will remain nameless, and as anonymous as possible to protect their respective identities and careers.

The first bit of speculation is that T-Mobile, our beloved pink and grey cellular friends, are going to be the first wireless company to really champion the Android cause. As you may know, they have been at the forefront of market-changing devices like the Sidekick. They also tend to take more risks when it comes to new technology (as seen by their implementation of the UMA "@Home" service). Rumor has it that T-Mobile is gearing up to be the front-runner in the Android race, as early as Q2 '08.

That brings me to my next point. Partners with T-Mobile in the Open Handset Alliance, HTC are rumored to be conjuring up one of the most powerful and feature rich devices to hit the market. What operating system will be driving this lush device, you might ask? None other than Google Android. As Mr. Hunter brought up in the first podcast, HTC is the premier company in Smart Phones. Couple that with what I feel to be a necessary power move on the part of T-Mobile (let's not forget that they're surely looking for retaliation to Apple/AT&T's iPhone), and I think 2008 will shape up to be an amazing year for the launch of handsets and services.

As always, these are just my thoughts. I may be a General, but I'm no soothsayer. I've been wrong in the past. Holla!

**** General Mills **** Full Post

Swapping Android Interface Phone to Phone

If you guys listened to the podcast then you know that we were talking about scenarios of changing phones with the android system. How great will it be if you can change phones on a whim and still have all your vital info and programs intact? Now we have some insight on how that might actually work.

Earlier this week the guys over at www.EETimes.com" posted an article. Seems Intel and Infineon are planning on teaming up later in 2008 to produce a SIM card with more memory storage capabilities. Maybe you can see where I’m going with this. We’ll be able to put all of our Android programs on our SIM and transfer them phone to phone without losing anything. You can have your power device for daytime business then switch to your sleek smartphone for evening fun and still have all your data and applications. This is going to go hand in hand with Android! There are only two bad things with this:

1. We will probably be limited because of device hardware. I’m sure we’ll see a rise in gaming applications with companies like Nvidia joining in but when we have apps using higher graphics and faster processing we will lose them in switching devices.

2. We will have to wait to get our hands on those SIM's until 2009!!!!

This is an exciting time in mobile, can’t wait to see how it pans out. Feel free to comment or email an idea to me.

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A Legitimate Concern or Too Much Worry?

New article on c|net speaks on Sun's worries with Android and how it may affect JAVA.
"Anything that creates a more diverse or fractured platform is not in (developers') best interests," said Rich Green, executive vice president of Sun's software work, speaking to reporters at the Oracle OpenWorld conference in San Francisco. "The feedback from developers is, 'Help us fix this.'"

He said Sun wants to work with Google to nip any problems in the bud. "We're really interested in working with Google to make sure developers don't end up with a fractured environment. We're reaching out to Google and assuming they'll be reaching out to us to ensure these platforms and APIs will be compatible so deployment on a wide variety of platforms will be possible," Green said.

Is this something to worry about? Tell us what you think in the comments. If we like your feedback, we'll use it in a future podcast.

Sun's worried that Google Android could fracture Java Full Post

And in Related News

Even after the announcement and speculation of Android, the other OS/phone companies are not just talking up (or down) Google's entry. Their still taking shots at each other and what they view as weaknesses or shortcomings. Below are some excerpts from the CEO of Blackberry talking about Apple and Microsoft.

"As nice as the Apple iPhone is, it poses a real challenge to its users. That's according to Research in Motion's Mike Lazaridis, who has said that real phones need real keyboards. The RIM CEO told reporters: "Try typing a web key on a touchscreen on an Apple iPhone, that's a real challenge. You cannot see what you type". He added that he's not too impressed with the Apple iPhone, and that it won't kill off the Blackberry, The Register reported. Blackberry has some 20 million users globally and is currently the eighth biggest phone maker in the world."

Apple killing of Blackerry with the iPhone is like Ford killing off Chevy with The Explorer. Sure, it’s a great product with tons of features. There's also a ton of them out there. In my opinion, right now it only appeals to what I term as 'niche market plus'. There is a certain type of person you'd expect to see carrying one. Ask yourself this, what kind of phone would you expect an HR director to have? Now, what kind of phone would you find in the pockets of a DJ? Two different people, two different phones. Of course there will always be crossover people. These are the 'plus' I refer to. I know plenty of people who bought a Blackberry because they like the features and design, just like I am sure there is a CEO of a major corporation in my town using the iPhone right now.

Co-CEO Jim Balsillie, goes on to say "Windows Mobile isn't that big a competitor, ...They are a modest force to RIM. Microsoft should be working at services, not at distributed PCs, which is what Windows Mobile actually still is."

Hat tip to Smartphone Thoughts Full Post

Will Hijackers Hijack Android?

by Jamie Hunter

It's pretty much a guarantee that hackers and writers of virus programs will take their shots at Android. How much damage they do will depend on just how open Google makes this platform. They could allow only "signed content" to be installed on the handsets, but what does that do for the word "open" in open source. I for one am willing to trade some of the flexibility open source brings in exchange for a secure OS. You can check out the small article here on CNET.

http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9811618-7.html

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Link Roundup

• Is Android Google's Key To The Mobile Ad Market? - The Information Week Blog
• Scoble not too hot on Android – CrunchGear
• How well would Android UI suit iPod Touch? – Apple Touch

Leave your feedback and comments below. If we like them, we'll use them in our podcasts. Full Post

Interview with Andy Rubin

Head over to c|net today to see a very nice, detailed interview with the director of mobile platforms at Google. It asks and answers a lot of questions that have been on the minds of the AndroidGuys staff as well as the rest of the tech community. For example;

Will there be different versions of Android devices where there will be a commonality, or a basic level of compatibility, that they all must maintain for applications to run on them?
Rubin: It's really important that we don't create a fragmented environment, and one of the complaints I think developers have with open source is that there is really no way to guarantee compatibility.

In the SDK, there is a scripting engine that allows remote test scripts to be run on the emulator on a phone. Also, there is a secondary compatibility (test for) support for services.

It's important for third-party developers to make sure that the applications run across different phones. There's not going to be a hard certification requirement. That doesn't make sense in an open environment. But we'll provide the tools necessary to make sure that these applications can be made compatible, if that's what the industry wants.

The platform itself has the ability to be targeted toward all sorts of different screen sizes and input mechanisms--touch devices, trackballs, five-way keypads, portrait displays, landscapes, big displays, small displays, QWERTY keyboards, non-QWERTY keyboards. When the developer writes an app, and that app is on portrait display, the platform also will run that same app on a landscape display.

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First Official AndroidGuys Podcast

The first podcast from AndroidGuys is up and we want your feedback. We had a great time putting together our first 20/20 podcast this evening. The 20/20 will be an ongoing feature here at AndroidGuys.com consisting of two podcasts broken into 20 minute segments. We'll discuss one or two topics per podcast as time and interest allows. We hope that you'll find them easy to listen to, follow, and relate to. Comments are welcome at any time. In future podcasts, we will address your feedback on the air.



#1 Android/OHA announcement and our initial reactions.
Click to stream or right-click/save. 9MB

The panel consisted of Scott Webster, Jamie Hunter, Lukai, and G. Mills.

#2 Discussion about the companies involved in the OHA as well as possible situations that might arise between carriers, handset manufacturers, and end users.



Click to stream or right-click/save. 9MB

Again, the panel consisted of Scott Webster, Jamie Hunter, Lukai, and G Mills.

Leave us a comment below regarding our podcast. What excites you most about Android/OHA? What kind of phone user are you now?

We are open to your suggestions and feedback. Have a great idea that you think would make a good podcast? Suggest it below. Full Post

A Pair of Links

Two links from Engadget Mobile showing up today are definitely worth a few minutes of your time.

• Google's Android OS early look SDK now available
• A visual tour of Android's UI

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Google Announces $10 Million Android Developer Challenge

Are you ready to make the move from Akron to Silicon Valley? Time to get to work on your killer app for the Android/OHA software platform. This is a perfect opportunity to show the world that you can design programs just as well as the software giants out west.

"We've built some interesting applications for Android but the best applications are not here yet and that's because they're going to be written by developers," said Sergey Brin, Co-founder and President, Technology, Google. "We'd like to reward these developers and recognize them as much as possible."

"We believe that the Android platform offers developers a unique opportunity to create truly innovative mobile software," said Andy Rubin, Google's director of mobile platforms. "We're challenging developers to stretch their imaginations and skills to leverage the full capabilities of this new platform and to create something amazing."

Read the entire press release.

Want us to host your files? Contact us at chewie77@gmail.com and we'll be happy to!

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Software Developer Kit

Link to Google's Android/OHA Software Developer Kit.

Are you a developer? Want to share your progress? Contact us and we'll be happy to give you a platform to show off your work. Full Post

HTC Announcments

High Tech Computer (HTC) expects its revenues to grow more than 20% on year in 2008, and the company also plans to launch 2-3 Android-based mobile phones in the coming year, according to the Chinese-language Commercial Times which quoted remarks made by HTC CEO Peter Chou last week at a meeting with analysts from foreign investment firms in Taiwan.

During the meeting, Chou also said that HTC plans to launch a non-Qualcomm 3G solution in the near future, introduce a new user interface which will be better than its current TouchFlo technology in 2008, and launch WiMAX/TD-WCDMA mobile devices by the end of 2008 or in early 2009, the paper reported.

Hat tip to DigiTimes

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Google in Talks with Simon Fuller

Internet giant Google is in secret talks with Simon Fuller, the British entrepreneur behind the Spice Girls, about a joint venture that could change the way TV is watched over the internet.

News of the collaboration will prompt speculation that Google's plans for the TV market include generating original content and competing with major broadcasters.

And as we all know, it's not just a PC market anymore.

Read the rest here.

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Must Read: TechNewsWorld

Rob Enderle over at TechNewsWorld.com has an interesting piece up today where compares and contrasts Google's Android project with Microsoft starting up the PC business in the 80's. He also goes on to talk how the game will change in 2008.

Apple has what is currently the most popular smartphone that has ever existed in the consumer space and RIM the most popular single vendor platform in the business space.

At this point, no single vendor owns the smartphone space across all segments, and smartphones as a class are a small fraction of overall cell phone sales. This is about to change. At the recent Phoenix Technology Strategy 2008 conference, which is attended by PC companies, the consensus of the forward-looking analyst panel was that smartphone-like devices are likely to replace PCs in many segments, and may be the platform that dominates from the get-go in emerging markets.

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Dayreaming

What if someone came up a program that enabled users of the Android OS to change the way text and instant messages were sent and delivered based on proximity? For example, you're in a club or bar and it is really just too loud to have a decent conversation or even share a few quick words. Both people have phones running Android so they automatically switch message modes from the standard network towers for sending and receiving. Now, messages are being sent back and forth between phones via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. Maybe a program that you can turn on to search for available networks and switch you over instantly. The benefit is you can send and receive all you want, without using your text or data plan. T-Mobile already offers UMA or HotSpot@Home service. This is just a logical extension of that idea.

Here's another one. We've seen news recently about advertising that can or will be broadcast via Bluetooth. How long until someone writes an application that pops up advertised specials on phones when you are out to eat? Maybe a special promo code that flashes up on your phone with a certain deal. Behind that, someone has a program that can take these promo codes and track the redemption rates and interest. Over time this will be beneficial twofold. First, companies can see how well their campaigns work. It's like tracking web traffic in that it can help determine who is coming to a site and what is drawing them in. Secondly, with unique identifiers, the business can observe individual interest and buying habits. Does this customer always seem to order the appetizers we showcase? Does he ever respond to our drink specials? Businesses can learn about who to market and how to market based on modeling their own clientele. If you've ever run a website and paid attention to your visitors' patterns, you'll understand the value in this. Simply putting a poll on your site helps get a feel for what they want to see more of. Looking at what unique pages are getting the most hits tells you what to do more of and more importantly, what to spend less time on.

Share your daydreams in the comments or over at OHAdev.net's topic in their forum. Full Post

Right Place, Right Time for Google's Android?

by Jamie Hunter

Could this be a case of being in the right place, at the right time for Google's Android? Possibly. Check out this quote from an article I found at www.wired.com:

"This was a very smart play in a very complicated market," Hazelton says, adding that partnerships are key in the mobile industry. Currently, there's no dominant mobile OS in the United States. While Symbian has a huge market share internationally, it hasn't taken root stateside, Hazelton says. And in that sense, the mere announcement of Android gives Google a huge advantage in terms of mindshare.

What stands out the most to me is Chris Hazelton, (Sr. analyst for IDC's mobile devices group) pointing out that there are currently no dominant OS's in the US market.

The article also goes on to state the obvious in that success will not occur overnight suggesting that it could be years before Google sees any Android based revenue. It's like planting a seed for an oak tree. You can check out the complete article here. While it does come across as "pro Google/Android" it also does a good job of pointing out some of the obstacles it faces as well. Full Post

What's Being Said

As we near the end of the first week since Google's announcement, let's take a look at what some major names in the tech field are saying. Feel free to comment below if one of these moves you either way.

"Their efforts are just some words on paper right now, it's hard to do a very clear comparison [with Windows Mobile]" — Steve Balmer, CEO of Microsoft, to PC World

"In recent years there have been many grand alliances in the mobile-phone industry. These have often been formed in order to neutralize a market leader, but as often as not have failed to achieve anything… The heavyweights— Nokia, Vodafone, AT&T, Verizon Wireless, not to mention Apple and Microsoft— are conspicuous by their absence."— Editors, The Economist

"Whenever you see companies start talking about being "open," it means they're getting their ass kicked. You think Google will be forming an OpenSearch alliance any time soon, to help also-rans in search get a share of the spoils? Me neither." — Fake Steve Jobs (of Forbes),FSJ Blog

"We're extremely excited for what Google intends to do for the mobile industry. From where we sit, assuming it can deliver (and really, when doesn't Google deliver?), everyone seems to benefit from openness and standards: handset manufacturers, carriers, component makers, developers, and most of all, consumers." — Ryan Block, Engadget

"I think Android could be what I initially thought Apple's iPhone might be— a product that slaps some sense into the cell-phone market by catering to the wishes of phone users, not wireless carriers." — Rob Pegoraro, The Washington Post

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Eve of SDK Release

Tomorrow the SDK gets released. Anyone out there already have a specific program in mind that they will be working on? Here at Android Guys, we'd like to extend an opportunity for developers to share their progress and ideas. We are proud to announce partnerships with two developer forums so far. It is our shared opinion that Android and OHA will be instrumental in the way people stay in touch and get their information. Even better than that, there will be new innovative kinds of information available at your fingertips.

The first two partners we have are ohadev.net and ohadev.org. Both sites are forums available to developers to discuss anything and everything OHA and Android related. Whereas we do not have, nor plan to have, a forum of our own, we will be more than happy to plug sites. After all, this web 2.0 and open source stuff really is about community, right?

If you are working on a project or application and want to give people a taste of your progress and ideas, then we are here to help. We'd love to provide a platform for the little guy to get his stuff out just as much as the software giants. Full Post

About Us

The idea behind AndroidGuys came about on November 5th, 2007. This was the day when Google made their long anticipated announcements regarding the Open Handset Alliance and Android. Immediately after these press releases, we began to scour the web for anything and everything associated to these two subjects. While there are many excellent sites offering tech reviews and previews, there was not one standout site where one could visit and get dedicated Android news. Finding one or two articles on each of our favorite gadget sites, we realized early on that we were going to have to create the site ourselves. Starting out as a community blog, we quickly evolved into your first and last stop for Android news.

We are five guys who have a love for smart phones, gadgets, and technology in general. Although we respect and admire practically all things Google, we are not unapologetic supporters. In fact, we encourage our readers to share their opinions and give us insight into the very products and services we talk about. We share the latest news, rumors, and opinions between ourselves and invite the tech community to take part. AndroidGuys does not aim to ‘break’ news, but rather compile what we find on other sites, always giving credit to where we happen upon it. Our long term goal is to review the hardware and software ourselves when it becomes available. If you have a tip or something you'd like to share, by all means, tell us about it.

Thanks for your interest in AndroidGuys! Full Post

Morning Link Roundup

• Interview with HTC VP Jason Mackenzie - Boy Genius Report
• Will Android be a Malware Target? - PC Magazine
• Intel Says Google's Android is Good Because Open is Good - CMP Channel

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Open Source, Closed Doors

If you keep up at all with IT security to find out whose holes are being exposed and exploited between Microsoft, Apple, and Linux platforms, you are already aware that the most prominent name is Microsoft. There have been 7 updates to Apple's QuickTime software this year. Where this is an unusually large number of updates from Apple on one product, they are to be applauded for their concern. Seven bandages in one year to fix seven vulnerabilities. Why no alarms signaling the end of the world? The truth is nobody was exploiting their flaws. Why? Because nobody hates Apple and their long line of security flaws like they do for Microsoft. On the other hand, how often do we hear about a new patch needed for your Windows device?

Are the options and risks there for exploiting vulnerabilities in these multiple handset platforms? In a word, yes. Firefox has had its share of security holes, but it's still the top rated browser. Think now about mobile OS companies. Which phone platform do you think is being attacked the most? Symbian, Apple, Microsoft, Palm, or open source? I’ll answer that with another question. Who stands to lose out when internet and web browsing becomes more secure? Security giant Symantec offers more protection for Microsoft than any other company. The IT industry will tell you that although not the best, they write the most stories about security and are the most prolific. The Android open source project will enable multiple developers to make the best of the best from ground up.

It may not produce the most popular of phones, but it will produce the most secure and reliable phones. In a world where more people are gravitating to web based handsets, that is concern number one. Google's Android will open sources of opportunity and growth in the mobile community and close the reliance of sub-par, force-fed, higher priced software giants. Full Post

Leaks: Good or Bad?

With the internet growing at an almost exponential rate, access to new information has never been easier. You can find out pretty much anything you want when it comes to who is doing what in music, movies, television, electronics, etc. Leaks have been playing an ever-growing part in the handset industry over the last few years. Whether views as positive or negative, the idea of leaking something is not going to go away. Today, we'll examine both sides of the coin and find out a little more as to how leak could be good or bad for the handset industry.

A successful leak will build a lot of pre-release hype around the project. Plain and simple. Why not start the buzz about your new handset a few months early. Getting a few pictures online is pretty much all it takes to gauge fan reaction. It can be equated to a movie teaser that comes out a year before the movie hits theaters. It gives the public something to chew on for a bit. See what people are saying, good bad, or indifferent. If you do it soon enough, you might even have time to go back and retool your product. Reshoots are done all the time in Hollywood. Why couldn't a company go back to the drawing board and change button layouts or color schemes? Software is affected the same way. A few screenshots of how a program will work is sufficient to get forums and chat rooms talking. In an age of instant accessibility, one picture or bit of information could spread the entire globe faster than your wildest fires. Many companies will willingly let information trickle out to fans just to see which way the wind is blowing. It's not just someone with a hidden camera anymore. Many of today's tidbits are high resolution pictures and videos coming directly from a studio or firm.

Conversely, an unsuccessful leak does not a failure make. It's the old adage of "No such thing as negative press." You are advertising a product (for free) whenever you bring it up in the break room or at the barber shop. Just because you don't care for the color of a phone, doesn't mean the guy sitting across from you won't.

Let's move on to the negative aspect now. A leak can be devastating enough to a company to bring it to its knees. There is always the risk of putting too much pressure on your product and failing to deliver. Does anyone remember the 1998 Godzilla movie? Granted, it was not a great movie. The problem was, there was too much hype around it and it was doomed to fail. A few advance screenings and the fanboys were posting talkbacks on forums about how terrible it was. The movie was D.O.A. upon landing at the cineplex. Fast forward five years. The Incredible Hulk comes out and roundly dissapoints. This time, instead of going to the chat rooms, people are taking out a cell phone and calling friends in the parking lot causing a more immediate impact. And here we are today. Instead of calling after a movie lets out, people can take out a cell phone and text their friends about how awful a movie is without making a sound. Hardware and software is not impervious to the same effect. All it takes is one person with a loud enough voice to get a negative vibe around something. Tech sites and blogs have cult-like followings. In today's age, comments and feedback from one popular post can have devastating effects within minutes.

Where do you stand? Leave us a message below. Full Post

Does The Industry Really Need Android?

by Jamie Hunter

The announcement of Google's mobile phone platform Android was made just over a week ago. Alliances have been formed, and we've even seen the first glimpses of hardware and applications. But do we really need another mobile phone platform? Yes, we do! Read on to find out why.

Whether or not Google's Android succeeds or fails, it has already succeeded in showing the industries shortcomings particularly when it comes to mobile web access. There are currently 2 major mobile platforms in use today. Symbian and Microsoft's Windows Mobile. Both are very solid operating systems but I would have to give the nod to Symbian. In my experience it has been more stable in every day use, with far fewer lock ups and crashes than Windows Mobile.

Obviously we don't know how stable Android will be, and to be fair a lot of that has to do with the hardware running it, but what will separate Google's offering from the rest is that it will cost developers and mobile phone operators very little if anything to develop for and use Android. Because Android will be open source there are no licensing fees to pay for the right to develop for it, which should theoretically result in lower software and hardware costs for the end user, which is the first reason we need another option. Mobile phone operators always complain about having to subsidize the cost of phones, so they pass that price on to consumers. Well Android should change that.

The second reason we need Android is the mobile web. With Google backing this effort we have to assume that the devices running Android will be able to offer better mobile web browsing experiences than what is currently available. Tried surfing the web on Razr lately? Or how about a Blackberry? Nothing like your desktop experience, right? Google will need a way to get their ad revenue from these devices and the mobile web still seems like the obvious choice. If these devices are able to make surfing the web more like a desktop experience Android is sure to succeed.

If the current operating systems available were perfect there would be no reason for another option such as Android. When companies compete the consumer always wins, which is why I am pulling for Google on this one. Too bad we have to wait over 9 months for the first working handsets! Full Post

Google Android FAQ From The BBC

by Jamie Hunter

I found a cool FAQ put together by the guys over at The BBC. It answers a lot of the questions that I had when this news first broke of Google's Android. Check it out here:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7080758.stm Full Post

First Android Application Info Already Leaked?

Let’s think about a scenario for a moment. You are in a big city on a business trip. Your conference just ended and you are starving. You have no idea where you want to go to get something to eat. You don’t even know what there is to eat near your hotel. How do you find what restaurants or bars are open? You could go up and down the street looking for something that jumps out at you. You could also ask the concierge at the hotel. But what happens when he is told by the manager to recommend the Italian place around the corner because his manager has a deal worked out with them?

Up until around 2-3 years ago, that was your only option. Fast forward to today. Now, you get out your laptop, pull up Google Maps and do a search for something to eat in Louisville, Kentucky. Once you have that list of restaurants, addresses, and phone numbers, you are set. Right? Well, what happens if you drove a few miles only to find out that they were already closed?

Here’s the new alternative. How about you get out your Android based phone and run WhatsOpen next time? A series of screenshots making their way around the internet today has many speculating that this is the first application designed to be written/ported for the Android platform. Judging by the pictures, one may never have to say “I wonder what’s still open in this town.” Simple. Almost laughable, isn’t it?

Screenshots of first Googlephone app [Valley Wag]

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Unabashed Android Enthusiast?

I’d like to state this for the record. I am not against any other platform for handsets. In fact, I have been using Windows Mobile 5.0 for the better part of two years now. There are programs and web based applications that I use daily with a device smaller than a Bible. Programs that I don’t even bother to mess with on a PC anymore. I cannot recall the last time I needed to go to a PC for driving directions or weather forecasts. Windows Live Search has been an invaluable tool for me time and again. I can’t help it, but I expect Android to put forward a better alternative to Microsoft’s current offerings. I'm not against anything that Microsoft, Apple, Symbian, Palm, or RIM are working on. Rather, I hope each company forces the next to offer more new and exciting things.

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Hurdles? Already?

Pretty much anyone with an internet capable phone will tell you that accessing the web on a mobile device is nothing like using a PC. Many websites do not view properly or do not display certain items. If the site has frames, you can pretty much count on scrolling through the site for far longer than you care to. Who is to blame? Most of the onus gets put on the network itself and underlying technology. Different carriers using different handsets with different operating systems. Sounds like a problem. If you head over to a c|net article ‘Google Must Woo Mobile App Developers’, you’ll find that some are expecting the problem to worsen.

"Right now, Android just adds to the headache of developing different versions of our applications for different operating systems," said Kay Johansson, CTO of MobiTV. "It will be just another platform we have to support. I think for the Google platform to really be a game-changer it's going to have to offer more than just an open-source operating system for a mobile phone. It will have to create mobile Internet devices that happen to make phone calls."

Is this a knee-jerk reaction? Only time will tell. It’s certainly not a new problem to face though. For years now, application developers have been writing multiple versions of one application to port onto hundreds of handsets. This cost time and money that gets passed on to the carrier, and ultimately, the end user. How will Android and the OHA address this? Will they end up being forced to create their own line of handsets? I believe once the SDK’s are released next week, the industry will get a feel for how easy (or hard) it will be to make the next leap in mobile applications.

There are those who think that Google is the right company with the right expertise to institute the much needed changes. While details of the Android platform haven't been made public yet, some believe Google will incorporate its advertising technology into handsets. Much like Adsense and AdWords are doing for businesses now, this model could help to subsidize the cost of devices and services, providing incentives for carriers to offer Android phones. Do not be surprised to see other carrier jump on the bandwagon when T-Mobile is rolling out GSM phones at a much lower price than AT&T.

"If a carrier can sell a $5-a-month service for an Android phone, how could another carrier offering its own service for $30 a month compete?" said Iain Gillott, founder of iGillott Research. "They can't. They'll be forced to offer Android phones too. The economics are what will ultimately drive adoption," he said.

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Symbian Delivers Shot Across Google's Bow

by Jamie Hunter

You've got to love competition. Not only does it insure that we as consumers have more products and services to choose from, but it also makes for some entertaining dialogue between the competing parties.

John Forsythe, the president of strategy at Symbian had the following to say about Googles Android platform. "Google's dominance of the web will not translate to the mobile phone market." His basic reasoning is that because this has been tried before with little success, this attempt by Google is also doomed to fail. Simple logic indeed, but me doth think the gentleman protest too much. He won't come out and say it directly but I'm sure he is just a little bit weary of the juggernaut that is Google, and their track record when it comes to introducing new products to the market. How successful will Android be? We will have to wait and see, but with Google backing it I'd say it has a better than average shot of becoming a player in the mobile phone platform. You can read the full article here on BBC NEWS:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7082414.stm
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HTC Wasting Little Time, Android Handset Already In The Works

by Jamie Hunter

Hot on the heels of the Google/Android news it seems that HTC is wasting little time in getting an Android based handset to market. As part of the OHA (Open Handset Alliance) HTC is currently the only member that specializes in data devices such as the MDA and Kaiser. These devices arguably offer the best mobile web browsing experience due to their large screens and full size QWERTY keyboards, so this appears to be a perfect match for the Android platform. HTC expects the handset to be released in the middle of 2008. The form factor or shape hasn't been announced, but be sure to check back here for more news on HTC and the Android platform.

You can read the full article here at mobile tech today.

http://www.mobile-tech-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=56539 Full Post

Proactive not Reactive

Anytime a company in the technology or personal electronics field comes out with a new device or system for doing things, the products or services available at launch are not quite as cool as the ones coming down the road. When a video game system comes out, there are typically only a handful of games available to the public ready for immediate consumption. Promises are made and expectations are set. Take the Wii for example. It's only now that Super Mario Galaxy and Mario and Sonic at the Olympics are coming out. The system has been around for a year. The best X-Box and PS3 games are yet to come out still.

The same thing applies in the phone industry. Sure, the iPhone has some really cool features built in. What about the other applications that people are clamoring for? You only have one way to get from program to program, albeit a fancy one. Only now are we told that Apple will be releasing an SDK for it. I wonder if Apple is realizing how much potential business they've missed out on since June. Don't get me wrong. I am not against Apple in any shape or form. I am merely using them as a basis for my next argument.

Most of the handset environment has been reactive. Very few companies have been showing foresight that will benefit the end user. Of course, there are monumental devices that have been coming out over the last few years. Take the T-Mobile Sidekick, RIM's Blackberry, and even Motorola's RAZR. All revolutionary devices in as far as hardware goes. The problem is, you are confined to each companies proprietary operating system. The Sidekick has added some hardware features and become more stylish, but the desktop is essentially the same as it was 3 years ago. Motorola's RAZR had almost exact version of the buggy software used on it's V300 series when it launched. There's only been a few slight tweaks and modifications along the way. I'm going to go on record and say that hardware is not what gets me excited. You can get a 1.3 MP camera, memory card slot, Bluetooth, speakerphone, and email client on almost any mid tier phone on the market. What I want to see is new ways to use my phone. Google understands this. They will be giving SDK's to people months before the phones are launched. Rather than focus on hardware, they are putting the spotlight on software and what you can do with your phone. I have no doubts that web and email will be the hot topics. Any phone can get you online. How would you have yours look? What would you add or change? Rest assured, there are people listening to you and fast at work on developing the best phones and applications you've never seen. Full Post

What's The Fuss?

If you’re at all paying attention to the news this week, you’ve heard that Google has decided to jump into the phone market. You couldn’t open a newspaper on Tuesday without a headline telling you all about it. Months ago, when the news started to break that a ‘gPhone’ was in the works, the blogs and tech sites began to wonder as to what this phone would look like and how it would work. Mock-ups and ‘leaks’ were hitting the internet on a regular basis. As time went, the industry conversations gravitated towards not just one handset called a gPhone, but rather a few models using a Google based operating system. Was Google creating a brand new operating system for phones? Well, yes and no.

Google was in fact working with a couple dozen other companies on an operating system. An open source one to be certain. This list of companies behind this project reads like a “Who’s Who” in the technology industry. In the handset corner, you have Samsung, HTC, LG and Motorola. In the carrier corner, you’ll notice Sprint and T-Mobile. Looking further down the list, you’ll see other major names like eBay, Intel, nVidia, and Texas Instruments.

So what happens when all these guys come to the same party? Magic. What else would you expect from today’s movers and shakers? These companies have their hands in at least one thing you touch or use every day, if not most things. I have total confidence that Android will not just become a major player in the phone industry. I believe that they will revolutionize the market and force some of today’s names to either adapt their own model or risk extinction. I’m looking at you Palm. Does anyone actually think it is coincidence that Apple is releasing Developer’s Kits so people can write programs for the iPhone? The number one complaint coming from people at its release was ‘Why can’t I install my own programs?’ How about RIM and the Blackberry? If you’ll recall, just two years ago, you couldn’t install anything 3^rd party on one of their handsets. Google and their friends have been doing their homework and listening to people for a lot longer than you think.

Will the list of people jumping on board continue to grow? Without a doubt. We’re not even two days removed from the announcement and we’ve heard Nokia say that they’re not ruling anything out yet. As more and more companies sign up, the potential gets that much better. I don’t know about you, but I can’t even imagine the kind of phone I will be holding a year from now. The scope is limitless.

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Morning Link Roundup

• What Does Google's Android Mean for IT? - Information Week
• Intel Going Mobile with Android? - c|net
• Nokia Says Door Open to Google Alliance - Yahoo! News

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Welcome to Android Guys!

Hot on the heels of Google's announcement this Monday, we're launching our companion site AndroidGuys! What will you find here? For starters, let's talk about what you will not find here. You will not find us 'breaking' any news. Rather, our goal is to be the most comprehensive site compiling news related to Android and the Open Handset Alliance. Rumors, facts, conjectures, opinions, reviews and previews. We'll be telling you who is doing what for the market, be it hardware or software developers. We'll be featuring press releases for the major companies as well as rumblings from the blogosphere.

What else will you not find here? You will not find cracks, keygens, or serials. Instead, we're hoping to eventually host software and programs utilizing the new platform. Although the sites is starting out in a blog format, look for it to change to a magazine style before too long. Stick around, the Android Guys are ready to be your premier site for everything related to Google Android! Full Post

Contact AndroidGuys

For any general questions, inquiries, or tips please feel free to email us at androidguys@gmail.com.

Scott Webster
chewie77@gmail.com

Jamie Hunter
jamietmob@gmail.com

Lukai
lukai@androidguys.com

J.E. Weston
jeweston@gmail.com

General Mills
generalmills@androidguys.com Full Post