Google Mobile Phone in the Works?

[MacRumors]

This past week, three has been some buzz about the possibility of a Google mobile phone.

Google is developing its own mobile phone, according to industry insiders and analysts, while a Google official in Spain last week acknowledged the company is “investigating” such a project.

Google isn't commenting on the device but it has been described as a "low-cost, Internet-connected phone with a color, wide-screen design."

The rumored phone is said to be "aimed at bringing Google to users who don't have a PC." A Google entry into the mobile phone market could cause some conflicts with Apple. Google and Apple have recently partnered to bring Google technology to users through the upcoming Apple iPhone.

TimesOnline.co.uk points out that such a product launch would require massive production capacities, which Google lacks, and that previous rumors of Google entering the low-cost PC market have not come true.

[quigleybc]

Sounds fun

affordable, and with a powerful search function for mobile browsing

sign me up,

only after my contract has expired for an iPhone of course...and assuming Apple didn't come out with anything better in the mean time..

:'

[miketcool]

Google music and YouTube. Should be interesting to see how it stacks up.

[howard]

sounds almost like a media tablet ala nokia 770 but with phone features.

[clevin]

Originally Posted by quigleybc

Sounds fun

affordable, and with a powerful search function for mobile browsing

sign me up,

only after my contract has expired for an iPhone of course...and assuming Apple didn't come out with anything better in the mean time..

:'

I will consider if the price is <$200

[thejadedmonkey]

what if they Google Phone and the iPhone are one and the same?

[Aniej]

Originally Posted by thejadedmonkey

what if they Google Phone and the iPhone are one and the same?

Damn it jaded monkey, you beat me to it by 50 seconds. That is the exact view that I have and corresponds with the previous reports of google CEO Eric Schmidt commenting that "we [google and apple] have many more things in line together." Apple and Google, you heard it hear first, or well second

[johnee]

Originally Posted by thejadedmonkey

what if they Google Phone and the iPhone are one and the same?

I highly doubt that, unless google paid apple SERIOUS cash, which is possible since they do have it.

[SeaFox]

Originally Posted by thejadedmonkey

what if they Google Phone and the iPhone are one and the same?

Then it will be called the GooiPhone and people will use it to search for video clips of pron just like people use Google on the web, only in .3GP format.

[steve_hill4]

I think before anything, data rates need to come down first. Even on contract here in the UK, you could be paying £1-2 per MB on GPRS/3G. Coming out with a phone designed purely around phone and internet capabilities would tend to target the low end of the market, on Pay As You Go.

I know it's pure speculation at the moment anyway, but the way all phones are going, costs will have to start tumbling soon.

[p0intblank]

I can't really see this happening, especially with Google's partnership with Apple. I could be wrong, but then again we never did see the "low cost PC."

Not to nitpick, but the first sentence of the article has a typo in it. Just thought you'd like like to know...

[Stella]

I wonder if this will be a rebranding of an existing phone - if it is indeed cellular? If google want to bring 'Google' to the masses, it won't be the iPhone because thats too expensive for the majority. Perhaps maybe the iPhone sans the cellular component.

Like above, it sounds like a Nokia tablet thing. However, there isn't enough wifi base stations around to yet justify such as device - if your wandering around a city and want to make a phone call etc.

It seems difficult to image Google making hardware.

[IJ Reilly]

If this rumor proves to be true, Google will be at serious risk of losing their focus. They've already got a lot of projects running, many of which are far from perfected. Next they jump into a complex and highly competitive hardware market, having never made a single hardware product? Apple has been criticized by some for entering this market with the iPhone -- and they've got over 30 years of experience building hardware!

[je_wallace]

Originally Posted by Stella

I wonder if this will be a rebranding of an existing phone - if it is indeed cellular? If google want to bring 'Google' to the masses, it won't be the iPhone because thats too expensive for the majority. Perhaps maybe the iPhone sans the cellular component.

Like above, it sounds like a Nokia tablet thing. However, there isn't enough wifi base stations around to yet justify such as device - if your wandering around a city and want to make a phone call etc.

It seems difficult to image Google making hardware.

This is what I was thinking. Apple going the US cell phone route with the biggest network in cell phones ATT/Cingular & Apple utilizing Google to go the WiFi/WiMax route.

Since it seems Apple has provided ATT/Cingular some kind of an exclusive for 2 years, maybe the Google thingy is branded as such as to prevent breaking that Cingular/Apple deal.

While I can't really see Apple allowing clones or another company to license their OS/mini-OS, with Eric Schmidt on the Apple Board and Steve/Eric's public comments about working Apple/Google working on more things together - who knows.

[corywoolf]

Originally Posted by Stella

I wonder if this will be a rebranding of an existing phone - if it is indeed cellular? If google want to bring 'Google' to the masses, it won't be the iPhone because thats too expensive for the majority. Perhaps maybe the iPhone sans the cellular component.

Like above, it sounds like a Nokia tablet thing. However, there isn't enough wifi base stations around to yet justify such as device - if your wandering around a city and want to make a phone call etc.

It seems difficult to image Google making hardware.

You mean like this hardware? How about a cheaper version of the iPhone with the multi-touch technology but a 1 GB memory chip instead of the 4 GB & 8 GB?

[GregA]

Originally Posted by thejadedmonkey

what if they Google Phone and the iPhone are one and the same?

Or a related product. Apple may be exclusive with cingular for cellular phones, but that doesn't mean it can't offer other non-cellular phones.

Originally Posted by Stella

If google want to bring 'Google' to the masses, it won't be the iPhone because thats too expensive for the majority. Perhaps maybe the iPhone sans the cellular component.

Exactly. However, the cellular component of the iPhone is the REALLY CHEAP part.

Originally Posted by Stella

Like above, it sounds like a Nokia tablet thing. However, there isn't enough wifi base stations around to yet justify such as device - if your wandering around a city and want to make a phone call etc.

Google has been launching citywide wifi access in several cities. Marketing their phone to ONLY those cities would be quite doable, especially if the phone switches to your own home & work wifi when you are there.

That said.. who knows what Google plans. I do think they will want a phone that has integrated google maps & web browsing.

[SpaceJello]

Could this possibly be the ever elusive Apple Tablet ...only with a very close relationship with Google and some possible new online applications? And the "phone" is voip?

Why would google with eric sitting on apple's board make a direct iphone competition? Isn't that conflict of somesort?

[SpaceJello]

Could this possibly be the ever elusive Apple Tablet ...only with a very close relationship with Google and some possible new online applications? And the "phone" is voip?

Why would google with eric sitting on apple's board make a direct iphone competition? Isn't that conflict of some sort?

[logandzwon]

I think google is working on an linksys iPhone like product. Google does not have the resources to make an apple iPhone compeditor currently. Also, remeber google is building a comunications system that includes IM, e-mail, and VOIP.

[EagerDragon]

Originally Posted by logandzwon

I think google is working on an linksys iPhone like product. Google does not have the resources to make an apple iPhone compeditor currently. Also, remeber google is building a comunications system that includes IM, e-mail, and VOIP.

A VOIP phone would make sense but it would need a browser and a search, otherwise it would not be coming from Google as that is how they make money. A VOIP phone would provide a cheap way to comunicate in countries where people can't afort a computer, but ....... I do not think those countries have free HotSpots all over the place. If they do, maybe some of us should move there, cause it is not happening in the USA.

However a VOIP phone is likely to compete with the iPhone, most people want that capability in the iPhone.

[mrkramer]

I don't think that google should make hardware right now, but it could be a low end version of thee iPhone, that they are working on together and just rebranding so that it won't be exclusive to cingular.

[EagerDragon]

If this were to compete with the iPhone, there will be an opening in the board of directors of Apple (Google CEO current spot).

[Pedro Estarque]

From the Times on Line:

Google 'admits to phone project'
Google is working on a basic mobile phone to bring online advertising expertise into the handheld market

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/to...cle1536776.ece

[IJ Reilly]

Originally Posted by EagerDragon

If this were to compete with the iPhone, there will be an opening in the board of directors of Apple (Google CEO current spot).

If only. Bill Campbell was the CEO of Intuit and on Apple's board when the decision was made by Intuit to discontinue development of Quicken for the Mac. They finally relented, after a lot of pressure was brought to bear, but it's not like sharing executives on corporate boards automatically signals cooperation between the companies.

[EagerDragon]

Originally Posted by IJ Reilly

If only. Bill Campbell was the CEO of Intuit and on Apple's board when the decision was made by Intuit to discontinue development of Quicken for the Mac. They finally relented, after a lot of pressure was brought to bear, but it's not like sharing executives on corporate boards automatically signals cooperation between the companies.

You do not want a competitor being briefed on your future products and marketing strategies. If a board member is a competitor, either the board won't be brief-ed (making them useless) or that member will become an ex-member.