Thursday, June 28, 2012

What to expect from Google I/O 2012 - CNET

(Credit: Google)

Apple and Microsoft have done their equivalent of show and tell in the past few weeks--Apple's WWDC was followed by Microsoft's unveiling of its Surface tablets and Windows Phone 8 update. Now it's Google's turn to woo developers for its various software platforms and initiatives at its annual developer conference.

Most of the attention will be focused on the two keynote sessions taking place at Google I/O. For gadget watchers, Google is expected to unveil its first Nexus tablet, a 7-inch slate manufactured by Asus. Besides featuring an IPS screen and an Nvidia Tegra 3 chip, the tablet is also expected to come with the newest version of Android, Jelly Bean.

More importantly, the Nexus tablet is reportedly priced at US$199 for the 8GB model, which could make this seemingly full-fledged slate a more enticing proposition than the Amazon Kindle Fire. The attractive pricing, coupled with the fact that Google will likely be able to push OS updates over-the-air more promptly than third-party tablet vendors, could be the boost that Android needs to succeed on tablets.

The mobile OS, while a big hit on handsets, has underperformed on tablets despite a flood of devices last year. Apple's iPad still dominates the tablet market with almost 12 million units sold in Q1, with Samsung a very distant second with just over a million. 

For the developers at the conference, it's an opportunity to learn more about Jelly Bean or Android 4.1. So far, we have no inkling what new features to expect from Jelly Bean, though it's believed to be an incremental update. We should probably see Google showing off its new Maps, which got a 3D update shortly before Apple revealed its own version at WWDC. According to a Wall Street Journal article, we'll also see a voice-enabled assistant similar to Apple's Siri. 

What we do know is that Google has put up a Jelly Bean sculpture on its campus alongside the ones representating previous versions of Android, such as Eclair and Gingerbread. Another confirmed tidbit is that Google CEO Larry Page has been ruled out of the conference due to illness. 

With Google involved in a number of software initiatives--a glance at the schedule should give you an idea of the breadth--we should see plenty of announcements this week. Google TV is one area where the company has its work cut out for it, and the conference will provide an avenue for Google to renew interest among developers in the platform.

You can catch CNET's liveblog of the first keynote session later today. Or you can watch it as it happens straight from the source--Google will be streaming a live video feed of the keynote, and if you think your phone (and data plan) can handle it, there's even a mobile app for Android devices.

Via CNET

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