With Google TV, Google’s main interest is to capture the time, people spend in their living room, not just on PC and laptops. The more people buy Google TV, the more likely they will use Google search, view web videos(Youtube) and other integrated services that Google provides. Just like mobile landscape, Google charges nothing for licensing Google TV software to hardware manufacturers, so its a win-win situation for hardware vendors as well as Google.

But this whole concept of ‘Web meets TV’ is bugging TV network broadcasters, who are already facing a decline in advertising revenues as more brands are shifting their large chunk of spending on Internet rather than television. The general notion among TV network broadcasters is that Google singlehandedly controls the Internet and the advertising revenues goes straight into Google’s pocket. If, by any chance, Google takes over the TV viewers courtesy Google TV, just like it took over the Internet viewers, then TV Network broadcasters will be doomed, with zero hopes of fat money that they currently flows into their bank accounts.

On the other side, HBO and MTV Networks have collaborated with Google in making their site experience, specifically customized for Google TV. So overall, the opinion is not unanimous among all the network broadcasters but one thing is pretty clear. Network broadcasters don’t want to get screwed up by Google.

With this move by NBC, ABC and CBS, their ultimate aim is not to have a permanent block but make Google agree to broadcaster’s several demands. This move appears to be strategic enough, to be able to arm-twist Google and make it agree to what broadcasters really want.

Google is already in talks with all the three notorious broadcasters over the block and may probably reach some consensus with them over the lifting of the block.

Stay tuned for more on this…

Here are some of the technical specifications of Nexus One known so far and some more pics taken by Googlers while playing with it in Googleplex. Now that most of us know the surprising fact that Nexus One (Google Phone) will be sold online by Google directly, bypassing any conventional retail sale structure, an even shocking surprise is that Nexus One will be sold unlocked.

Nowadays, most of the well hyped smartphones come locked with a mobile carrier, mainly to subsidize the phone pricing and in the middle of all this, Google deciding to launch Nexus One unlocked, would make it a costly affair for end users.

But staying unlocked will have its own advantage for Google Phone as well. Here are some of them…

• There will never be an embaressing situation for Google, similar to what Apple is facing right now, because of network incapabilities of a particular mobile carrier (AT&T for iPhone)
• All existing users using unlocked mobile subscription services will just have to buy Nexus One and put their in-use SIM cards into Nexus One and that’s it ! Users will also be able to opt for cheap internet plans due to non-exclusivity.
• We aren’t sure about it but if Nexus One will stay unlocked and will be sold Online by Google, it might be a case that Google will start selling it globally starting January. It means that Google will start getting millions of orders across the globe, not just from U.S. but elsewhere as well.

Nexus One might not be damn cheap but in the longer run, it will save more money to the buyers.

Stay hooked for more on Nexus One…

Branded as Google Goggles, this latest Android app from Google empowers you to take a snap of various things such as landmarks, books, artwork, places, wine, company logos etc and use that snap as a search input to explore associated stuff about it on the web.

For instance, if you come across a novel in a library, you can instantly take a snap of coverpage of that novel through your Android phone and search about that novel through Google Goggles Android app. Similarly, you can snap and search about dvds, landmarks, places etc.

As Google admits by itself, Visual search through Goggles android app is in nascent stage and shouldn’t be assumed perfect at all. You can’t just start snapping pictures here and there from your android phone and expect magical stuff from Google. It’s only a start of an unexplored search landscape and further development is pretty much in progress from Google’s end. You can notice that Google Goggles is still a part of Google labs.

For now, android phone owners (present and future) have a huge thing to boast about. They’ve got the power to search visually. Love you Google !

Well, just for information sake, it has got nothing to do with Gmail Goggles !

A monstrous touch screen(over 4 inches), 5MP camera with autofocus and LED Flash and lighterning fast processor, makes HTC HD2 stand apart. It may take years most other OEMs to beat such a swashbuckling hardware configuration.

But we feel sad to say that HTC, although going Android for almost all its High end smartphones, has exclusively gone for Windows Mobile 6.5 as its OS. To us, it seems thatHD2 is a

“Old Generation Software over a Next Generation Hardware“

The only reason HTC puts forward when questioned about No Android policy for HD2 is that they have to take care of Windows Mobile as well. Well, that’s just Microsoft !

Well, many folks are also interested when HTC HD2 is going to enter Indian markets. And at what cost will it priced. HTC has announced that HTC HD2 will enter European and Asian markets first and then U.S. markets will follow up.

It will soon be available in HTC retailers in India and the price is suspected to be between Rs.35-40k

In case you buy HTC Tattoo with Vodafone, you will get a 20MB of data usage for three months, free of charges. To be honest, 20MB is like a drop in the sea for an average internet user but still, something is better than nothing.

Still, the pricing of this phone has been kept quite affordable, around Rs.17,000($370) which makes it much lucrative option for niche but growing smartphone fanatics in India. Anyways, here are some of those features that are most probable to grab attention in nascent Indian smartphone industry. Take a look !

• 2.8 inches touchscreen with 240×320 QVGA resolution
• In-built GPS
• Bluetooth, Wi-Fi support
• 3.5 mm audio jack
• 3.2 MP camera
• Video format support : MPEG-4, H.263, H.264 and Windows Media® Video 9
• G-sensor
• Digital Compass

Android as a Mobile platform is starting to grow big but India has not seen most of Android phone launches yet. Its a positive sign that HTC is bringing yet another phone in India and this time, the pricing is quite cheaper. HTC was the one brand that took the things off for Android in US and it seems that India will also see first few android phones from HTC only.

Galaxy Spica boasts a slim 0.51-inch design, has a standard 3.5mm headphone jack and can go up to 32GB of data via the built-in microSD card slot. Galaxy Spica is certainly the first Android phone to support DivX format movies, which makes it a lovable phone for movie fanatics.

What Galaxy Spica misses out is the Android 2.0 OS version and Google navigation software. Both these features are the main alluring factors in the latest rage, Motorola Droid and this makes it an unhealthy offering by Samsung to Android fans.

The phone has got released in Europe only. There hasn’t been any announement about its release in U.S and its pricing as well but its most probable that this phone will not clinche high sales figures in U.S. as it’s a poor option compared to the already available Droid in U.S.

It seems that Android phones will soon forget competing with iPhone and symbian phones and the competition within the Android community will rather go fierce. Anyways, Android as an Open source Mobile OS community will keep evolving and advancing further.

Very soon, most of the U.S. television shows will start airing latest Droid commercial, which is pure Killer stuff. If you were already waiting for Droid, this commercial will fire up your hunger to own this “iPhone Killer”. Anyways, the commercial is definitely a visual treat to cherish.

Play it right now ! (If you’re at office and can’t play with sound, go home and watch it in full sound one more time)

With amazing hardware capabilities and next generation Mobile operating system (Android 2.0), this  smartphone was already making the news almost everyday during last couple of weeks. It was yesterday when the official site Droiddoes.com revealed the curtains and announced the feature specifications, pricing details and date of official launch of Motorola Droid. It will cost a sum of $199 with a 2 yr contract with Verizon Wireless in US.

The odds are against Apple at the moment. The recent fuss over Google Voice iPhone app rejection and FCC’s involvement into the matter painted a patchy image of Apple in front of the world. AT&T 3G network has already failed to handle the network overload caused by millions of iPhones, leaving iPhone buyers in a miserable state and now utility Google apps (Google Voice and the latest one is Google Maps Navigation) is no more for iPhone as well. Every prospective smartphone buyer was looking for a superior alternative to iPhone. Coming January, the 2 year AT&T contract bundled with iPhone will start clearing up and the market perception is already going strong towards choosing an Android phone (Droid seems ideal) over iPhone.

Look at the coolest stuff that Droid brings along, if you’re still unaware about it.

The battalion of android phones is already making iPhone look pale and now Droid has not left even a single reason for iPhone fanbois to cheer for.

By the way, it is unclear if Motorola Droid will be launched in India or not We will track that too.

We will have you regularly updated with happenings with Droid…Keep checking !

]]> http://www.whatandroid.com/motorola-droid-in-india/feed 0 http://www.whatandroid.com/samsung-i5700 http://www.whatandroid.com/samsung-i5700#comments Tue, 08 Sep 2009 17:41:16 +0000 Prashant Sharma http://www.whatandroid.com/?p=187 Samsung’s second Android powered smartphone, the I5700 Galaxy Lite(the first being Samsung I7500) seems to be coming out of the shell. A Hands-on review has recently been done by ai.rs  folks and the phone certainly looks impressive.

For those who like sleek, light-weight smartphones, this smartphone can be a good deal. Compared to Samsung’s first Android offering, the I7500,  the two major differences are Camera resolution (I5700: 3.2 megapixel, I7500: 5.0 megapixel) and Phone memory(I5700:1GB, I7500:8GB). The newer one is sleeker and therefore delicate as well.

Check out the hands-on review of I5700 Galaxy Lite embedded below :

This is definitely a buzzing stunt as nothing much has come out officially yet. Pricing is still to be announced but be assured that the cost will not exceed $200(max. $250). With remarkable reduction in physical capabilities of this Android phone, high handset cost wouldn’t even let it kick off well in this crowded smartphone business.

Keep checking in for more updates on Samsung I5700 (Subscribe to our blog updates)

This year, HTC built 30% phones using Android as its Mobile OS and they are confident enough to rise their Android adoption to around 50% in the next year. HTC is also planning to come up with Qualcomm. BMP(Brew Mobile Platform) based smartphones in the year 2010. BMP has poor penetration in America and Europe so far and this move might even help BMP get deeper into the mainstream telecom. business.

The deployment of BMP-based models togetherwith producting even more Android-powered handsets will help HTC establishing itself as the De-facto Android smartphone line-up.