Turning into quite a week for gadget lovers.
Last night Google announced its long anticipated move into the tablet market with the Asus-built Nexus 7. It’s a 7inch tablet running Jelly Bean (the latest ‘J’ iteration of its operating system following the ‘I’ of Ice Cream sandwich). It costs $199 and will be available next month in the UK for c£159. Looks like it is more a ‘consumption’ device (web browsing, gaming etc) and would compete more against the Am
azon Kindle Fire than the iPad. The ‘problem’ is that it doesn’t have the ecosystem even of the Kindle – let alone the iPad. It certainly doesn’t have the USP of Office that Microsoft’s Surface (see Microsoft's iPad) has. So far, the 7inch tablet market is littered with failures so we await the reception of the Nexus 7 with 'interest'..
Google also announced Glasses. This is a tiny device that fits on the side of your spectacles and allows you to broadcast your life to the world. It also has a tiny screen, microphone, speakers etc. Many have dismissed it as just a tiny camera. Sergey Brin calls them ‘wearable computer systems’. I see these devices becoming commonplace in a few years time – indeed they well be the new smartphones of the 2020s. I see many applications. More in my ICT Leaders speech on 27th Sept 12.
Finally, Google announced its new wireless home media player – Nexus Q. The little box is basically like AppleTV connecting to your TV and allowing you internet access. The interesting thing about this is that it has “Designed and Manufactured in the USA” on the case. Last month Apple vowed to bring some of its product manufacturing back to the US. I see this as a gathering and unstoppable trend.
Whatever one might think of Google, Boring it ain’t!