Rick Richardson's Views On Technology
  • Home
  • Blog

Microsoft Close To Making An Android Phone

9/20/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
While Microsoft continues to maintain that its mobile offering is Windows 10 Mobile on Nokia hardware (and potentially other manufacturer’s gear as well), the reality is that people just aren’t buying it. Android and iOS rule the mobile market, period.

So an Android-based Microsoft smartphone might be a possibility and given several recent developments it seems that could be sooner rather than later.

It’s important to note that Google legally binds Android manufacturers to agreements that stipulate that Google search and the integrated Google apps suite must be a part of any phone sold and for access to the Play Store for other apps.

Given the tight integration of Google’s app suite, Microsoft couldn’t offer individual apps to replace some of Google’s offerings. Instead, Microsoft had to have a complete suite of its own to entice users to download and get them to do so through Microsoft’s own store.

You may not be aware of it, but Microsoft is surprisingly close to making this a reality.

Mobile versions of Office apps to replace Google Docs, Sheets, Slides and Forms, Outlook to replace Gmail, OneNote to handle Keep, Skype for messaging and video chat, Groove Music instead of Google Play Music, Nokia Here to replace Maps, and of course OneDrive to connect them all together and offer cloud storage. This handles your basics, and even two years ago might have been enough to help people make the switch, but Google's integration goes a lot deeper than cross-app chatter nowadays.

Microsoft needed Cortana to replace voice search and act as a virtual assistant now that Google Now was baked in to all of the search functions. Between Arrow Launcher and Next Lockscreen for personalized access to apps and features, and half a dozen clever extras like Word Lens and On{X}, Microsoft as the default on an Android phone starts to look not only feature complete, but downright enjoyable.

The one big gap in Microsoft's plan for total Google Service replacement at the moment is a browser. While there are dozens of alternatives to Google's Chrome in the Play Store, it'd be nice to eventually see Edge come to Android with some of the features that make it interesting on Windows 10.

Looking at all of these apps installed and used in place of the current Google Apps demonstrates just how close the company is to a complete thought. And given Microsoft’s partnership with Cyanogen, they may be able to pull this off without even signing up with Google!  

Picture
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    Rick Richardson, CPA, CITP, CGMA

    Rick is the editor of the weekly newsletter, Technology This Week. You can subscribe to it by visiting the website.

    Rick is also the Managing Partner of Richardson Media & Technologies, LLC. Prior to forming his current company, he had a 28-year career in technology with Ernst & Young, the last twelve years of which he served as National Director of Technology.

    Mr. Richardson has been named to the "Technology 100"- the annual honors list of the 100 key achievers in technology in America. He has also been honored by the American Institute of CPAs with two Lifetime Achievement awards and a Special Career Recognition Award for his contributions to the profession in the field of technology.

    In 2012, Rick was inducted into the Accounting Hall of Fame by CPA Practice Advisor Magazine. He has also been named to the 100 most influential individuals in the accounting profession in America by Accounting Today magazine.

    In 2017, Rick was inducted as a Marquis Who’s Who Lifetime Achiever, a registry of professionals who have excelled in their fields for many years and achieved greatness in their industry.

    He is a sought after speaker around the world, providing his annual forecast of future technology trends to thousands of business executives, professionals, community leaders, educators and students.

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Archives

    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015

    Categories

    All
    Artificial Intelligence
    Audit
    Back Up
    Back-Up
    Blockchain
    Climate
    Cloud
    Collaboration
    Communication
    Coronavirus
    COVID 19
    COVID-19
    Digital Assistant
    Display
    Drone
    Edge Computing
    Education
    Enterprise
    Hardware
    Home Automation
    Internet Of Things
    Law
    Medicine
    Metaverse
    Mobile
    Mobile Payments
    Open Source
    Personalization
    Power
    Privacy
    Quantum Computing
    Remote Work
    Retail
    Robotics
    Security
    Software
    Taxes
    Transportation
    Wearables
    Wi Fi
    Wi-Fi

    RSS Feed

    View my profile on LinkedIn
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.