Weird and wonderful .. Google buys Moto: http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-0816-motorola-google-20110816,0,2384558.story
Most pundits are looking at the patent protection and the ability to have a flagship (read sorta iPhone) device. I think the real reason is to attempt to align at least a google phone and tablet so as to be at least a bit of competition with Apple. But I think this will fail. Apple has iTV, iPhone, iPod, iPad, Air, Laptops and desktops. And Lion aligns THEM so now Google will have to try to figure out how to get the entire Google ecology to be as coherent as Apple. Well, you say, they can at least now commit to an Android phone with a coherent evolution into the future like the iPhone 2,3,4. But that's just a fraction of Apple's ecology. TV? Well the Google TV (Sony) hasn't exactly won the hearts of millions. Laptops? Desktops? Air? .. did the Google Laptop do much (Chrome based critter). I think its dead Jim. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see Android to well and be an open alternative to The Apple Hegemony. But Google has time and again failed to bring coherence to a market. Lots of great tech. But only geeks can "get" Google Docs and Analytics. Google App Engine is quietly sinking. There are just too many parts and they can't align them. It IS cool tho. -- Owen
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