The Google Apps Marketplace which launched Tuesday night represents Google’s latest move to expand beyond search and bolster its online software business.
The new Apps Marketplace allows other companies to offer applications that compliment and enhance Google’s existing suite of web-base applications which includes everything from Google Doc’s to G-Mail. More than 50 companies are now selling applications across a range of businesses, including:
Being a frequent traveler the last place I want to be bothered by cell usage is during a flight. It’s bad enough I have to listen to the self-important talking at the top of their lungs about their next big deal prior to departing the gate and just after landing. Is anything really that important that it can’t wait until after you land and deplane?
SafeCell App, combined with a new Bluetooth Access Point, will offer airline passengers affordable SMS, MMS, voice messaging, text email, and allows for extremely small file sizes, along with the possibility to transmit up to 3 Mbps on the popular device of their mobile phone. Better still SafeCell eliminates GSM roaming charges, because it utilizes satellite connections instead.
The folks over at Tether, formerly TetherBerry, have successfully ported their tethering application to Android and they’re looking for beta testers. To sign up follow this link.
According to a post over on XDA Developers forum the update to Android 2.1 for the Sprint HTC Hero is going to be rolling out March 26th.
According to fr33k0z0id who claims to work in ATS for Sprint: “…according to information I have received, the official release date for the 2.1 update is set for 3/26. So there you go, take it or leave it.”
In another post from fr33k0z0id: “I’m assuming its gonna be ota because they want to put a double warning on it since it wipes the Rom clean. Other than that, the email didn’t have much more info.”
They also claim that the Samsung Moment will see an update to 2.1 March 31st.
The folks over at Berry Scoop are reporting that they’ve been told by a trusted source that the HTC Incredible will be landing on Verizon sometime around April first.
What’s hard to believe about this information is that the source is also claiming that Verizon will be taking the Droid Eris end of life on the same date. Why would HTC and Verizon put all the time and money into developing and testing the Eris just to take it end of life after five months of service. Not to mention why is Verizon currently testing the Android 2.1 update for the Eris that’s scheduled to be released at the end of the first quarter if they’re going to take it off the shelf on the first day of the second quarter?
Another thing their source told them is that Verizon is viewing the Incredible as their version of the Nexus One. Why would Verizon view the Incredible as their version of the Nexus One when they are in fact getting the Nexus One, rumored to be made available as soon as March 23rd. Not to mention the Incredible only sports 256MBof RAM and 512MB of ROM, while the Nexus One boasts 512MB of RAM and ROM.
Things just don’t add up or make a whole lot of business sense for the two companies involved (HTC and Verizon). Guess we’ll have to wait and see on this one.
A lot of people are talking about fragmentation and how it’s going to be the downfall of Google’s Android Operating System. I was beginning to buy into this mindset until it hit me on a recent trip home to Laguna Beach why that’s not true.
While I was back in the OC a friend asked me to help them set up their iPod (yeah, they’re tech challenged), so I jumped on their extremely outdated Dell running Windows 2000 Professional. First I had to search for a compatible version of iTunes, after an exhaustive search I installed iTunes 7.something and hooked up their iPod. Doh! Their iPod needs iTunes 8 or higher in order to do its thing. Guess what? iTunes 8 isn’t compatible with their outdated version of Windows. After 3 days of installing updates that dated back to when Jesus was a child I gave up, there’s nothing more frustrating than trying to update a rickety old slow as molasses Windows system. I told them they had two choices either buy an updated version of Windows or invest in a new machine, preferably a Mac!
This experience got me thinking what is it about Google’s Android that’s fragmented?
Rumor has it that sometime this month Google will open an Android Market geared toward business, if done correctly this could be a good thing for consumers and developers.
My biggest complaint about the Android Market is that applications are accepted without any kind of review process. At first the zero application review sounds like a great idea, but you soon realize that quality or legitimacy of apps is greatly diminished without review. Remember the January bru-ha-ha surrounding thefraudulent banking apps?
Hopefully the new market will encourage application developers to deliver higher quality products, we’ve all installed and returned that app that just didn’t quite work as intended. With any luck the new market will weed out those who develop and submit faulty applications simply because they want to see their name in “lights.”
Will Google do it right, or simply rebrand the existing Android Market?
AT&T’s jump into the Android market doesn’t appear to be very friendly to Google. Last week, AT&T was announced that they were replacing the market-leading, Google search on the Google Android-powered Motorola Backflip with Yahoo’s search. Today we’re finding out they’ve locked down the Backflip.
AT&T, of course, spins this as being customer friendly:
“We like the Android as an operating system on its own, but we want to make sure that we have, and customers have the option, to put applications on that device that are not just Google applications. And we want to give customers the choice of other applications on that device, not just the same Google applications.” –Ralph de la Vega, CEO AT&T Wireless
Early adopters, reviewers and hackers have notice the option to install non-market applications isn’t just turned off it’s missing all together. Doesn’t this action contradict what Mr. de la Vega stated above? What happened to giving customers their “choice of other applications?” Want to tether? Forget about it. Want to join a beta program? Forget about it.
We told you it was coming March 7th and here it is the Motorola Backflip released today on AT&T for $99 after $100 mail-in rebate, an AT&T Promotion Card. The AT&T Promotion Card is valid wherever VISA is accepted, and for 120 days after issue date.
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