Google I/O 2011
Wow… what a keynote.
There is usually no disputing that Steve Jobs’ keynotes are the best in terms of delivery and content, but I have to say that Google IO’s keynote this year is the first time where I think that Google actually topped that. Jobs still reigns supreme in charisma and stage presence, but when it comes down to content, Google’s keynote this morning was, simply put, overwhelming.
I’m still digesting it all so I’ll just focus on the highlights right now.
The big announcement was, of course, Google Music. This is actually not the most impressive technological achievement of the morning, since the service seems to be extremely similar to Amazon’s and persistent rumors these past few days took away some of the surprise. However, I believe that Apple is now lagging behind in music cloud area for two reasons:
- They still haven’t announced anything.
- They still require a cable and iTunes to synchronize. This last point is important. Not so much the requirement for iTunes, which doesn’t get a lot of love, even from Apple enthusiasts, but the fact that a cable is still required to transfer any kind of content to your iPhone makes Apple look like they are still living in the 90’s. It’s all the more surprising since Apple is claiming to usher us into the “post-PC” era, but they are now the only company still requiring a PC to manage your phone.
Apple is going to have to embrace over-the-air updates if they want to compete.
Back to the Google Music announcement, I’m looking forward to trying it but the only reason why I might be tempted to switch to it instead of using Amazon’s (like I’m currently doing) is if they allow me complete download access to my library once I have uploaded it on Google’s servers (Amazon doesn’t, as far as I know). Another advantage of Amazon over Google here is that Amazon lets you purchase music, and these purchases are automatically added to your cloud drive.
Also, it looks like Google wasn’t able to reach a licensing deal with the music majors but decided to launch their service anyway, following in Amazon’s footsteps. There are persistent rumors claiming that the reason why Apple still hasn’t launched their cloud service is because they are still trying to negotiate such deals. Time will tell whether this matters or not.
The other interesting point of the keynote was to see Andoid grow way, way beyond phones. I’ve always heard rumors of seeing Android on mundane devices such as photo frames or cars, but what I saw this morning makes me think that in a few years from now, I’ll be surrounded with Android devices in places that I would never have suspected. Work out stations, home appliances and the Arduino toolkit (very excited about this one) are just the beginning of the Android tsunami. I am definitely going to keep a very close eye on Project Tungsten, and if I were Sonos (which is an awesome product), I would be very nervous right now because Android is looking like the first very credible threat they have ever faced.
Comments (16)
If I were Sonos, I'd be putting off Google's acquisition requests as long as possible to increase my eventual price. They're a 100% natural match for Google.
About requiring a cable for sync, what do you prefer : - put your smartphone somewhere, wait X hours for it to sync your 32Gb lib, during which it will deplete its battery, thus requiring it to be plugged in for recharge. - plug your smartphone, wait a few minutes for it to sync your 32Gb lib (a few seconds once Thunderbolt is there), during which it will be recharged. It seem to me cable sync still makes sense. Oh, before you say "you only need to sync your 32Gb once, after that it's incremental". I have a 90Gb music library, and use the "auto-fill with music" feature, so I regularly have pretty large syncs as iTunes "refreshes" the music on my iPhone.
" but the fact that a cable is still required to transfer any kind of content to your iPhone makes Apple look like they are still living in the 90?s." This is partially true. To install an OS upgrade, you need to use iTunes. But other than that - not so much. You can buy music and apps w/o a computer. For synching music on your computer- yes you do need to use a cable. I have my iPhone set to sync contacts and calendar over air. The one thing I'm missing is bookmark sync, which you need mobile me for (VERY LAME). From what I see people using Android typically don't sync their music. What's the process? Guess that changes with today's announcement....
Damn, another online music service that is only available in the US...
Android everywhere, and even the fact to talk about not yet finished but soon very cool products ... Reminds me a story which didn't finish well.
Tethered syncing does suck. It's the thing I hate most about my iPhone. As to the argument that it would take forever to sync over the air, I just don't buy it. It takes forever to sync via the proprietary iPhone cable as is. You could transfer data just as fast or faster over the air as you could via what's probably, at best, USB2 speeds that you get currently with their cable.
@Sam : rather than "I don't buy it", how about some actual data ? USB2 raw speed : 480Mbps. 801.11n : 54Mbps. and the iPhone 5 will most likely have Thunderbolt.
iOS over the air updates are coming :) iOS 5
Music thing no big deal. Using your iPhone you can buy Music, Apps, Videos, iBooks over the air for years :)
@Guillaume: Is that the Apple Reality Distortion Field in effect? ;) USB2 theoretical maximum: 480Mbps 802.11n theoretical maximum: 300Mbps
Android on the Arduino toolkit? I wonder how a tiny 8-Bit Atmel processor could ever run Java? I may have misunderstood - please explain.
Hi Cedric, Thanks for the summary. My youngest daughter has been using her iPad for almost a year and yesterday I asked her, when was the last time she attached it to a computer. Her answer, I don't remember! She does everything without a wire.
Its surprising that multiple comments indicate that requiring a computer to update your phone is no big deal. Do we realize that there is a world outside US that buys smart phones and not Computers? Do we still need to force the next generations to use computer for basic web browsing and checking email or Facebook status?
@Samuli : you're right, my data was obsolete. That said, the max speed is reached only in best conditions, and the battery issue still stands. I'd rather get a Thunderbolt cable than WiFi sync - though I agree it would be more convenient for short syncs.
(oops, forgot one) @Kumar : requiring a computer for sync and general maintenance doesn't imply forcing its use for web browsing or email. Also, it make sense to defer the more complex features to a real computer and leave the tablet to be as simple as possible.
I wonder why they limited the beta to the US only?