Symbian Dismisses Google Android

[Jerry Raia]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7082414.stm' target='_blank'>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7082414.stm</a><br /><br /></div><p><em>&quot;Google's dominance of the web will not translate to the mobile phone market, a senior executive at Symbian has said. John Forsyth, vice president of strategy at Symbian, the platform that powers many of the world's phones, said Google lacked experience. Google has formed an alliance with 33 firms to develop an open platform for mobile phones, called Android.&quot;</em></p><p>This whole Google phone thing reminds me of the earlier open source effort. Remember that? Linux and Open Office on your desktop. It really took off didn't it. I heard there are about 50 users now. I happen to agree Symbian on this one. I think Google is out of its league here. Please don't tell me how big they are either. WalMart is big too.</p>

[Rocco Augusto]

I heard there are about 50 users now.

actually, 51 users! I have been using Linux Mint (http://www.linuxmint.com/index.php) on my personal laptop for a few months now. :D

I happen to agree Symbian on this one. I think Google is out of its league here.

Normally I would agree, but after playing around with the Android SDK for the past week or so, I think they might actually have a chance at creating something truly awesome. So far the OS is easy to develop for, the browser is light years ahead of anything Microsoft offers on their mobile platform(s) and it is really snappy (at least in the SDK emulator).... and let's not forget, HTC is developing hardware for the platform as well and even though a majority of their devices in the last year have been rather yawn-inducing, the hardware quality has always been top notch :)

[Jerry Raia]

I bet you an MPx220 you are wrong! :D

[Tim Williamson]

Sorry Jerry, but I'm gonna have to disagree with you here, and here's why...

In the PC world you have TWO dominating OS's (Windows and MacOS) that do a great job at what they were made to do. It's not easy to break through when you have products that dominate as much as Win and Mac.

In the phone world you have MANY OS's (Windows Mobile, OSX, PalmOS, Symbian, Verizon, etc.) with none taking the same majority that Windows and MacOS own in the PC world. Since there are so many players on the field, an additional player could easily become the dominant one.

I'm very eager to see how Android turns out.

[Kirkaiya]

And... I'm also going to weigh in on the side of Rocco and Will.

I'm not saying that Google's effort is a sure thing, or a 'slam dunk', but after playing with the SDK a bit (versions for both Linux and Windows - my laptop is dual-boot), I think it's a bit dangerous for any company to actually be dismissive of them.

I remember thinking stupid Palm was, back when they claimed that nobody would want the features of Windows CE. Microsoft may have been "big", but they had very little experience (read: none) in the mobile space, and Palm had most of the market. We all know how that turned out - Palm is practically dying, and there are open letters from engadget pleading with them to adopt Android.

Of course Symbian is going to deride any potential competitive OS. Just as Steve Balmer was completely dismissive of Google's search efforts six or seven years ago (and Palm dissed Microsoft, everybody dissed Symbian, etc).

Google's size does matter in the internet, web and mobile space, just as Wal-mart's size matters in the retail and logistics space.

I just bought my wife an iPhone for her birthday this week - and I have to say, after playing with it, I truly believe Microsoft, Symbian and Palm have been truly complacent. Apple's mobile OSX is impressive and beautiful. So there is room for competition here, and Google is nothing is not competitive.

[Danborg]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7082414.stm' target='_blank'>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7082414.stm</a><br /><br /></div><p><em>&quot;Google's dominance of the web will not translate to the mobile phone market, a senior executive at Symbian has said. John Forsyth, vice president of strategy at Symbian, the platform that powers many of the world's phones, said Google lacked experience. Google has formed an alliance with 33 firms to develop an open platform for mobile phones, called Android.&quot;</em></p><p>This whole Google phone thing reminds me of the earlier open source effort. Remember that? Linux and Open Office on your desktop. It really took off didn't it. I heard there are about 50 users now. I happen to agree Symbian on this one. I think Google is out of its league here. Please don't tell me how big they are either. WalMart is big too.</p>

Make that 52, I switched to Ubuntu almost 6 months ago. I have to agree with Rocco, I've been playing around with the emulator and I think it has a lot of potential.

[Jerry Raia]

...and the iPhone still doesnt do anything but look pretty. It is a fad machine as I predict the Android will be.

[sub_tex]

wow, I never knew I among so many fellow Ubuntu users here.

I think to dismiss Google's size is sort of short sighted. People said the same thing about MS when they entered the console market. MS was big enough to take losses as long as it needed to to gain market share.

Google is in the same boat with the mobile space now.

[Jerry Raia]

Size doesn't matter :D

[Menneisyys]

Well, if the hardware running the OS will be far superior to what's available for WM / Symbian, I think it will sell VERY well. If HTC indeed comes out with the Omni for it (with the same or even better specs as are already known) , I will be one of the first guys to purchase it (assuming no comparable HTC Universal-alike will be released with Windows Mobile), no matter it runs Android.

Just take a look at the Nokia N95 - it sells like hot cakes because it has damn good hardware, much better - for an average, non-enterprise, mostly-entertainment user - than any HTC device out now. Even I have switched to it (despite the different OS), as far as entertainment usage and light Web browsing is concerned.

All in all: the OS is just one question; the quality of the hardware is another, and I think a lot of people prefer the latter to the former when selecting a handset.

[Jerry Raia]

I'll give you that, the N95 is an awesome phone. I have had the opportunity to use one and am quite impressed. It syncs up nicely with Exchange as well. I doubt it will ever take off though.

[Mike Temporale]

Size doesn't matter :D

Sony seems to want to prove that time and again. ;)

[Rocco Augusto]

I bet you an MPx220 you are wrong! :D

I'll see your MPx220 and raise you an MPx230 (it had EDGE) ;)

[Jerry Raia]

You're on! :)