Comments on: Google Phone: Switch http://www.nickstarr.com/2007/03/06/google-phone-switch/ Wed, 24 Feb 2010 20:51:49 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Paul http://www.nickstarr.com/2007/03/06/google-phone-switch/comment-page-1/#comment-98224 Paul Wed, 07 Mar 2007 08:54:57 +0000 http://www.nickstarr.com/2007/03/06/google-phone-switch/#comment-98224 Given Eric Schmidt's comments yesterday about Apple and Google "working on a lot of things" together, and given that the code-name of the phone is "Switch", isn't it at least as likely that the Google phone is the Apple iPhone with a lot of Google stuff pre-installed? We already saw Google Maps, but why stop there? Here's my scenario. Google had a super-secret project on a phone type device. But after they started getting together with Apple, it made more sense to merge the project with Apple's own iPhone development team. That way, Google can focus on the software and leave the hardware to Apple. Sure, Samsung has hardware experience, but you're not going to get the kind of expertise of software+hardware that Apple brings to the table. So which makes more sense? 1) Try to roll your own hardware (where Google has no experience) by partnering with a company (Samsung) that happens to hawk products which would compete directly with yours (Blackjack, any of Samsung's Windows Mobile devices). or 2) Partner with Apple and develop a ton of Google apps for the iPhone really quickly and with minimal effort, and let Apple worry about all the hardware and retail sales issues. Not to mention the marketing machine Apple + Google would create.... Given Eric Schmidt’s comments yesterday about Apple and Google “working on a lot of things” together, and given that the code-name of the phone is “Switch”, isn’t it at least as likely that the Google phone is the Apple iPhone with a lot of Google stuff pre-installed? We already saw Google Maps, but why stop there?

Here’s my scenario. Google had a super-secret project on a phone type device. But after they started getting together with Apple, it made more sense to merge the project with Apple’s own iPhone development team. That way, Google can focus on the software and leave the hardware to Apple. Sure, Samsung has hardware experience, but you’re not going to get the kind of expertise of software+hardware that Apple brings to the table.

So which makes more sense?

1) Try to roll your own hardware (where Google has no experience) by partnering with a company (Samsung) that happens to hawk products which would compete directly with yours (Blackjack, any of Samsung’s Windows Mobile devices).

or

2) Partner with Apple and develop a ton of Google apps for the iPhone really quickly and with minimal effort, and let Apple worry about all the hardware and retail sales issues. Not to mention the marketing machine Apple + Google would create….

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