Is there no end to Google’s portfolio of products?
This week, the company’s development team has announced the launch of its own Android-driven tablet computer. The device will run the brand new ‘Jelly Bean’ version of the company’s trademark operating system, which is considered to contain a more user-friendly interface and a wealth of improved features. Manufactured by Asus, the machine offers technology enthusiasts a cutting-edge quad-core central processing unit shelled inside an attractive 1280-by-800 high-resolution screen. It’s lighter than the iPad and boasts an exceptional battery life (as long as several complicated programmes aren’t running at once). Put simply, it’s already being flagged as a great product by reviewers and is sure to fly off the shelves when it’s released in the middle of July.
The Nexus 7 is designed to work well with Google Play and is intrinsically driven towards entertainment and media applications. However, it’s the device’s ability to bring its user the ‘best of Google’ that particularly interests me. All popular Google apps are installed as standard, meaning you can access Gmail, check your G+ account, view videos on YouTube in high definition and use Chrome to surf the web to find what you’re looking for in an instant. Is this indicative of Google’s intention to incorporate all of its products into one easy-to-use platform? It would seem that the multi-billion pound firm is ramping up its business model to incorporate both software and hardware into the broad range of products it currently boasts to its name. This move could have an indirect impact on the search industry, especially if search platforms are eventually modified depending on the usability feedback received from hardware customers.
The market is expanding rapidly, with each rival developer trying to out-do its competitors by creating devices with smoother design features and slicker graphics. I’ll be interested to see how the Nexus is received by avid tablet fans and hearing what they have to say about its functionality.
