GOOGLE’S STRATEGY FOR 2013

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
GOOGLE’S STRATEGY FOR 2013

Dear Synapse Circuit Readers!

Once again, I give you compliments and Greetings of this potentially stressful season! It has been madness outside my office! I can’t wait for Christmas to be over for that very reason. People have just gone nuts! And it’s all because of a couple of days of feasting like there’s going to be no tomorrow. Oh, but there won’t even be a Christmas – if you believe in this latest prophecy of doom! Hey, that’s a brilliant name for a Gothic Techno / Industrial band, Prophecy of Doom. Hahahahaha! Anyway, on with this blog...

THE STRATEGY THAT GOOGLE MAY ADOPT IN 2013

DON’T PREDICT IT. MAKE IT. MAKE THE FUTURE!
That seems to be Google’s mantra and now that they have employed renowned futurist, Ray Kurzweil as their new director of engineering. Wow! To me this is a great move from Google! Having Kurzweil onboard with Google is fantastic no matter what the position because that man is a thinker! But don’t ask me what he thinks about! I can’t remember in great detail... Seriously, I have seen many documentaries that have featured Kurzweil’s ideas! They are out there! I believe that he thinks that singularity will happen very near in the future. Humans will physically merge with technology. Well, we are already there. I am aware that I hardly switch off! I have Android handsets that I use regularly! Yes, I don’t bother to sell my handsets on... ...look at it this way: I am stuck, more or less, in a 24 month contract and when that contract is due an upgrade that phone is 2 years old! Nobody wants it! Or if they do it is not worth what they are offering! Besides, I love rooting these old handsets – as you’d know if you have been reading Synapse Circuit magazine.

But having Kurzweil onboard is, to me, as sign that Google is going to go warp speed with what they are doing! In other words they will continue to do what they have always been doing: innovate. Take Android as an example... Just look out how far it has come in comparison to iPhone iOS. Jelly Bean is phenomenal! This leads me to...

KEY LIME PIE, ANDROID 5
I think Android is a great operating system with a few flaws. What I would like to see fixed in Android 5 is the following:

1. I want to see drop-down menus work on tablets and handsets just like it does on the desktop and iPhone.

2. I want to be able to transfer all the apps that I have bought to any other Gmail account that I create for my other devices. I want to keep certain data on specific handsets. Yes, I can alter the sync profiles but that’s not fun to do if you keep a lot of Gmail accounts. Once you enter your credit card details into any Google+ / Gmail account those details ought to be picked up upon and every app that you’ve bought is automatically listed and there on the handset of your desire.

Fix those two details and I will be one happy guy!

On the other hand the apps are quite inexpensive that I don’t mind too much paying twice – especially if it helps developers!

I would also like to see a decent email client. The email client that comes with Android isn’t much cop! I don’t know why Google haven’t bought or supported some brilliant email app development such as Aqua Mail already! Why, Google? Why? Oh, Gmail sometimes notifies me when I have mail and sometimes does not! This is very annoying! Google, sort it out!

I think Google needs to look at keeping Android clean of junk. Through the art of rooting I have discovered that clearing the user data off the handset – synching data with Gmail first – will work wonders for Android. Wouldn’t it be great if Google could create a system cleaner that keeps Android optimised for a great performance each and every time? It sure would!

I think Android 5 is going to be yet another game changing moment for Google - more importantly for the mobile phone industry!  Speaking of which...


THE NEXUS
What a revelation the Nexus concept has turned out to be! HTC had a go... And it got people talking. Then it was Samsung and people started buying in larger numbers. Now LG has had a go and the phones are flying off the virtual shelf! Each time I look at the Google Playstore I see that the Nexus phones have sold out! Ok, have they sold out or are they having problems with supply? Apparently, Google are blaming LG! Hahaha! When Google gets it right, they get it right! And when they get it wrong they’ve got it right! The Nexus is the most sought after handset in the world today simply because of the price! £239 for a high-end smartphone! It could have easily cost twice as much!

I think Google skimped on adding a microSD card and LTE to keep the costs down to a minimum. I don’t and didn’t buy that garbage that people are “confused” about the external storage. Now that the Nexus 4 has proven to be a best seller I think we’ll see external storage in Nexus 5! Now, which company will create the Nexus 5? With any luck LG should be on their way to being in the top 10 Android handset manufacturers. So, my guess it’ll be a Chinese manufacturer. Google are like talent spotters and they look for the best potential in a manufacturer and then go into partnership! Could Oppo be next? Hey, but what about Acer? I think it could be Acer’s turn to show what they can do! I like Acer’s CloudMobile S500 isn’t bad! Expect a review soon! Google are looking for a handset that will be inexpensive to produce yet have that look about it that says it’s a decent high-end smartphone for your money! Perhaps it’s what people want over the expensive elegance of the iPhone... Hmmmm...

GOOGLE NETWORK
I am thinking that Google’s strategy is to launch their 3G / LTE network; I predict that they would like to deliver a cost effective network that will give competitors a good run for their money! Google Network will cause a massive drop in prices of line rental charges. That’s how they are going to make money from Android! It makes sense... Take a contract with Google Network and get a decent handset to go with it! They have 100s to choose from! I think that’s the icing on Google’s cake! I am sure that they’d have aspects of Android / Google+ that will work through their own network. We’ll see!

I also think Google will also launch a series of stores – not too dissimilar to Apple stores – around the world! I think this will be a good way to introduce their series of Chromebook laptops to the masses. The Chrome operating system has a lot to offer; I don’t think that many people are aware of what Chromebook is capable of! Sure, there are some flaws i.e. it doesn’t do video editing but this could change sometime in the future – especially with Google’s own network! I’ve got a hunch that Google will release its Glass technology once it has its network in place. I think this could happen towards the end of 2013.

Google certainly has a long term plan for the future and this will become very clear in 2013!

GOOGLE MOTOROLA
When the news broke that Google had been successful in their bid for Motorola’s mobile wing Android fans thought they’d be seeing some far out handsets. Who could have known how long it would take for Google to design and get their Motorola Nexus out? Hopefully, 2013 will be the year in which we’ll see some Google lead Motorola designs. The Razr i with the Intel chip is just the tip of the iceberg!

I think Google are planning world domination! I can see a Bond movie in there somewhere...

Thank you for reading this blog!

And thank you for reading Synapse Circuit! The Christmas edition is now online – if you haven’t seen it already! That’s http://www.synapsecircuit.com