Breaking: Google's Android announcement coming at noon

Google will be holding a conference call at noon eastern to unveil the details of its long-rumored Android mobile operating system. Joining CEO Eric Schmidt will be other members of the 34-member Open Handset Alliance, including the chief executives of Deutche Telekom, HTC, Qualcomm, and Motorola. According to the press release, the "Android platform will be made available under one of the most progressive, developer-friendly open-source licenses," and will be composed of a "fully integrated mobile 'software stack' that consists of an operating system, middleware, user-friendly interface and applications." More details to follow.

Read - Google press release
Read - Android mobile OS overview
Read - Google blog: "Where's my Gphone?

[Mike @ Nov 5th 2007 11:14AM]

bring it on!

[Chris @ Nov 5th 2007 11:16AM]

This will be interesting indeed!

[Homer J @ Nov 5th 2007 11:26AM]

I can't see how this is going to fly with VZW in the US? Please, please, please let me be wrong this time...

[HineyWipe @ Nov 5th 2007 1:18PM]

Google to "be" the next OS as we know it. (Hey, look at the stock price and how many programmers they have!)

[James @ Nov 5th 2007 4:43PM]

Man, this makes me wish I weren't 4 months into a 2-year contract with T-mo. I wonder if their termination fees are pro-rated?

See, the rumor mill sez that Google is looking to buy that chunk of spectrum that's still up for offer, and basically deal a staggering kick to the balls of America's mobile carriers (http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2007/10/10-reasons-to-h.html) by going into the service business for themselves. At least, that's what we all *hope* is true.

[mavsman78-engadget @ Nov 5th 2007 11:16AM]

Here is the official press release:
http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20071105005673&newsLang=en

[captain awesome @ Nov 5th 2007 11:16AM]

any way we can stream it?

[Vladimir Cezar @ Nov 5th 2007 11:29AM]

I'd like ti see this stream too.

[Jon @ Nov 5th 2007 11:18AM]

woot!

[Mike B. @ Nov 5th 2007 11:18AM]

We can deduce the handset is going to be CDMA-based, not GSM, by Qualcomm's presence.

[lassi @ Nov 5th 2007 11:22AM]

or devices..

or just an another platform the manufacturers mentioned could use.
you see, for example, moto has couple of linux based os's already.


what i'm intrested more is if there is a native apps building possibilities in the system or not, like wm or symbian, or if it's just another closed-after-factory mobile os thats just really open to manufacturers - not the people using the devices(like motorolas juix is).

[Adam L. @ Nov 5th 2007 11:24AM]

But by the same logic Motorola would imply GSM. Since both companies are involved, then it's reasonable to assume that Android will be available for both CDMA and GSM handsets.

[Russ @ Nov 5th 2007 11:29AM]

My AT&T Wireless 3G handset has a Qualcomm "3G UMTS" sticker on the back...

[Joe @ Nov 5th 2007 11:29AM]

Motorola makes phones for Verizon, Cingular and T-Mobile, at least, in the US. So their presence doesn't suggest either CDMA or GSM. However, I think Deutche Telekom does suggest GSM.

[IceMac @ Nov 5th 2007 11:47AM]

Read the entire press release... This will be released for T-mobile and using GSM due to the worldwide success according to them.

[b_a_boone @ Nov 5th 2007 3:29PM]

Check this article out it suggests that Sprint and Verizon were originally interested but T-Mobile and Sprint seem to be the front runners for supporting this in the US.

http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/googlephone/index.html

[peestandingup @ Nov 5th 2007 11:18AM]

Man, I sure hope its some kind of Google hardware too.

[Matt @ Nov 5th 2007 11:20AM]

Will this be the breath of fresh air that the US telcom industry needs, or will it just be a fancy OS limited by carriers proprietary "walled garden" requirements? If anyone can pull it off it's Google. Even Google may not have enough pull to combat the combined forces of the entrenched US telcoms though.

[ScOObyDoo @ Nov 5th 2007 11:22AM]

This is going to be massive.

[wako @ Nov 5th 2007 11:23AM]

I hope it is a touch screen UI!

[John Doe @ Nov 5th 2007 11:57AM]

Yah so we can all carry around cleaning cloths and wear finger condoms. Fuck the touch screen.

[miron @ Nov 5th 2007 6:53PM]

A touchscreen is fine, but they should do it like Palm did, you _can_ use a touchscreen, but you don't need to.

[wako @ Nov 5th 2007 11:23AM]

I hope it is a touch screen UI!

[tjay @ Nov 5th 2007 11:25AM]

it is the "Deutsche Telekom"

[Derrick O. @ Nov 5th 2007 2:46PM]

Since Deutche Telekom owns T-Mobile, then VZW won't really factor in, right?

[nicholas @ Nov 5th 2007 11:26AM]

Mmmmm! Wi-Max…

Even though that lovely iPhone is in my pocket, competition is good. And, a real development platform is even better!

[AzrealJG @ Nov 5th 2007 11:28AM]

It'd better be a concept, since that screen is showing Windows Mobile 6.

[John Doe @ Nov 5th 2007 11:59AM]

Personally I hope it is. I've NEVER had a problem since WM5 came out. Anyone who has doesn't know how to manage their phone which sure as hell isn't the OS's fault. However I doubt it will be WM6 since Microsoft isn't listed in that consortium and an open platform wouldn't go WM6 since you need to deal with heavy licensing.

[rey_rodriguez @ Nov 5th 2007 11:29AM]

Say goodbye Apple....

[macona @ Nov 5th 2007 11:40AM]

I'm sure you said the same thing when the Zune came out as well

[zacharyh @ Nov 5th 2007 11:59AM]

more like, "hello better iPhone SDK"

[John Doe @ Nov 5th 2007 11:53AM]

The problem is that the iPod isn't a peice of shit. So the Zune has a harder time to gain traction. The iPhone on the other hand is nothing but a big steaming pile of locked in, can't do anything YOU want to do, draconian security horse shit.
I want to see this level iPhone and make Jobs curl up into a ball and cry like a baby. Anyone who supports iPhone is supporting a locked down closed platform. Period. End of discussion.

[Ayle @ Nov 5th 2007 12:30PM]

well the iphone is a phone so i don't see your point...

[dave @ Nov 5th 2007 2:01PM]

@John Doe

If that video is the best they can do to get people excited about the GPhone, err... Android, then they'll be lucky to sell more phones than the Zune. Seriously, show that video to an average person on the street and then show them an iPhone commercial an I'll bet that 95% of they time they'd choose the iPhone and probably better than 60% of the time they wouldn't even know what the Android video was even about.

The majority of people don't care that the iPhone is locked down, they see it as a cool iPod with a cool phone. Only a very small and very vocal minority even cares that the iPhone doesn't yet have an SDK. The closest you can get to average people even caring that the iPhone is locked down is that they have to switch to AT&T to use it. Other than that, no one gives a shit.

All I can say to Google is that they'd better get their marketing department into gear because enlisting your hardware and software engineers to get people excited isn't going to accomplish anything but make a few geeks wet themselves.

[Fruition @ Nov 5th 2007 11:32AM]

Well, based on Google's previous ventures (gmail, google desktop, google earth, et al) I have no doubt in my mind this will roxor. I just have to wait and see how much it roxorz...

[idiot @ Nov 5th 2007 11:37AM]

actually, in the web application world, most of Google's ventures are half baked. They are engineers first, UI and human factors be damned.
Of course that means a mobile OS, which is a pure engineering product, should kick some ass.

[Ben @ Nov 5th 2007 2:18PM]

I don't know, GMail and Google Reader aren't half-baked, they're the best solutions available in those areas. Google does have a lot of half-baked ideas, but then again they have a lot of projects out there. Google Docs, though, is definitely half-baked. It is a great idea, but not well executed.

[psypherium @ Nov 5th 2007 11:36AM]

Wow, just watched the video. wow. I was hoping for something like this. fantastic.

[Jason @ Nov 5th 2007 11:36AM]

They just changed the pic, it no longer looks like it has wm. I can't wait for a gphone!

[Jason @ Nov 5th 2007 11:39AM]

They just changed the pic, it no longer looks like it has wm. I can't
wait for a gphone!

[Ted Boucher @ Nov 5th 2007 11:42AM]

Well good for google, maybe this will finally light a fire under Apple so they stop trying to lock the iPhone from hacks, and make it open... GET THE SDK OUT NOW!! NOT FEBRUARY!

[captain awesome @ Nov 5th 2007 11:43AM]

sdk comes out in a week.

[Ted Boucher @ Nov 5th 2007 11:52AM]

Apples iPhone SDK comes out in Feburary, not next week... google is doing the right thing by getting it out now and not later.

[captain awesome @ Nov 5th 2007 11:43AM]

I wanna know if current htc wm6 handsets will be upgradeable.

[Spyvie @ Nov 5th 2007 11:52AM]

So do I

[John Doe @ Nov 5th 2007 11:46AM]

Huh. Look at the companies in that consortium. This is intended to be a tactical strike at iPhone before it really gains traction, which it hasn't, and I'm betting won't.

[BrianB @ Nov 5th 2007 11:47AM]

Welcome to the world of 4G viruses.

[Andrew @ Nov 5th 2007 11:50AM]

YES!

[Stewart Dean @ Nov 5th 2007 11:52AM]

The user experience will make or break anyphone phone. Look at the Nokia N95 - a great set of features, but the user experience for the phone is terrible. The iPhone is about the user experience, it's not even about being touch screen (others did that before and got it wrong). Google exists because of the user experience of their search engine - simple, effective and rewarding. But to get into the mobile space you need the right philosophy of user experience - and it's NOT about open source developer platforms.

[captain awesome @ Nov 5th 2007 11:56AM]

true, but the beauty of open source, it is should allow us to have some measure of control. If we dont like one interface, we should be able to go download another.