It’s Really All About the Google Apps

The really big deal here is all the Google features. Why would Google go to all that trouble to offer a free open operating system (OS) like Android unless there was a benefit in the long run, like more ad revenue? The G1 has a one-click Google search feature that really ought to be addictive. With its context-related search capability, the G1 could be popular for that feature alone.

I wish I had it on my phone. I can do Google searches on my iPhone but by way of the usual browser approach on a Wi-Fi connection. An instant one-click search will be a hit. Search is big on PCs and laptops, and it will be a killer app on smart phones.

Other Google features on the G1 include Gmail, YouTube, Google Maps, Talk, and Calendar. The Google Maps feature includes Street Views, which syncs up with the built-in compass. This must be the first phone with a compass in it. It will provide 360° views in many U.S. locations. Finally, G1 subscribers also get Android Market, a place where they can go to get their open third-party services, software, and accessories.

You can have all this for just $179 with a typical two-year contact that includes a data plan. I’m really thinking about it for myself or for my wife, who needs a new phone.

Is the G1 competitive? You bet. It rivals the iPhone and really should be a big hit for T-Mobile. Congrats to T-Mobile for bringing this out and kudos to HTC and Google. A new open era is beginning.

The OS Wars

While smart phones like the G1 are only about 20% of today’s handset market, that segment is growing fast. RIM has about 50% of it with its killer BlackBerry line. Apple has carved out a healthy niche with the iPhone. All the major players are getting a piece of that market. And what makes all that happen? The OS. These phones have major OSs.

Symbian, now owned by king Nokia, has the biggest percentage of the cell-phone OS market, about 57% overall. Over the past few years, Microsoft has also become a major player with its latest Mobile 6 OS. Palm has its own OS on its Centro and other models. Then there is the other open OS put out by the LiMo Foundation, which is offering up its own version of Linux for Mobile apps.

We are beginning to see the Battle of the OS All Stars. For the time being, Symbian/Nokia will probably continue to hold a major share as Nokia plans to put the Symbian OS into a foundation and offer it up royalty-free. RIM’s BlackBerry OS will also continue to do well.

Which OS will win in the long run is anyone’s guess. Microsoft continues to gain share. Apple now has its own sizeable chunk. As for LiMo, Verizon is looking into that and others could jump in. Sprint Nextel and Motorola are said to be looking at Android. So, Android will get a piece of the open OS action. AT&T hasn’t committed one way or another.

The whole competition will be fun to watch, especially the open movement itself. Verizon is moving in that direction with plans that don’t require a contract if the subscriber pays full price for the phone. It is an open month-to-month plan. AT&T has a similar deal but not for its iPhone. Will many users take advantage of these plans? I bet not.

I wonder what AT&T and Verizon’s market research and customer surveys say. Are these big carriers only paying lip service to the open movement and pandering to the pressures from its proponents? You can answer that question yourself by simply realizing that the open movement will succeed only if it makes bucks for its vendors and doesn’t put undue strain on service costs. If open generates big profits, it will win—and as long as subscribers want it. I can’t wait for the Google mobile ad campaigns to begin.

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