[opendtv] PC with Google OS in the works, say reports
- From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 4 Jan 2006 11:11:30 -0500
I seem to remember that Netscape had similar ideas
back in the 1990s, with their Communicator suite
evolving into an OS. I liked their e-mail client
at the time.
Bert
--------------------------------
PC with Google OS in the works, say reports
Antone Gonsalves
(01/03/2006 2:38 PM EST)
URL: http://www.eetimes.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=3D175800919
A news report that Google Inc. has been in negotiations
with retailers to sell a Google PC had the blogosphere
buzzing Tuesday. The Los Angeles Times reported that
the search engine giant has been chatting with Wal-Mart
Stores Inc. and others to sell a computer that would
run a Google-developed operating system, not Microsoft
Corp.'s Windows.
Larry Page, co-founder and president of products at the
Mountain View, Calif., company, could use his scheduled
Friday keynote at the Consumer Electronics Shows in Las
Vegas to either unveil a Google computer or announce a
deal with a major retailer to sell what would be a
low-priced machine, the newspaper said.
The report unleashed lots of speculation and commentary
among bloggers. Here's a sampling:
"The Google PC could turn out to be a key support
mechanism for Google's various online services. It's
highly likely that the PC won't emphasize a high-powered
CPU and tons of storage. Rather, why not rely on Google
Web apps for both functionality and storage." Rogerd's
Notebook
OpenSource Watch believed that Google was going to use
the $100 laptop developed by researchers at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "My bet is that
Google is going to re-brand some of them and sell them
as a Google PC, complete with a Google operating system.
It's not rocket science to see what will happen next.
Google is taking Microsoft head on - Google Office,
Google Operating System and of course, Google.com as
home page."
"From what I can guess, this would help Google expand
it's video and music search offerings, by making the
search technology available to individuals, similar to
what the Google Desktop accomplishes, but on a grander
scale." TechBytes
"I'm still not convinced that it could gain that much
of a market share, considering that it'll come out
with a relatively unknown OS. Sure, Google has proven
that it's top dog in the Web world, but jumping into OS
and hardware doesn't necessarily mean it'll be on top
there too." The Cooler Zone
JupiterResearch analyst Joe Wilcox said it was certainly
possible that Google could launch its own computing
device, given Google's practice of releasing lots of
products in beta to see what sparks the most consumer
interest.
"Anything is possible, but just because it's possible,
doesn't mean that it's feasible," Wilcox said. "It's not
that they can't do it, but can they make it successful."
Wal-Mart has offered low-cost Linux PCs through its Web
sites, but have yet to sell them in its stores, Wilcox
said. In addition, while Google may be interested in
offering a computer that would give quick access to all
its services, the idea of such an "Internet PC" that
runs applications through a browser was available in the
late 1990s, but failed in the market.
Given the price of PCs today, some already selling for
as low as a couple hundred dollars, offering a low-cost
PC alone isn't enough of a reason to attract buyers,
Wilcox said. "It has to run applications that people
use."
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