By Motorola’s “Social Networking” Android Phone has caused a lot of buzz in the past couple weeks. Combined with the recent news that Motorola was focusing on Android, axing all but 2 other operating systems Motorola would develop for, and you would think the company was surging for a bundles of Android Phones as soon as possible.
Well, Motorola moves at a different pace than we’d like them to… and that… pace…. is…. excruciatingly….. S….L…O….W…. on a 3rd Quarter Earnings phone call the company reported that the first Android enabled Motorola handset won’t be launched until Christmas of 2009!
That timeline of course doesn’t take into account delays. But as Gizmodo properly points out, Android is supposed to make the lives of manufacturers EASIER and if you’ve got 350+ people hellbent on making it work, the SDK has been out for months and months, and you’re still one year away you’ve got to start looking in the mirror and asking some serious questions.
Its like Motorola is steering the titanic quite purposefully into an iceberg. What are the chances that when this Android Phone finally comes out, it will be able to compete with the Android Phones that weren’t developed a year previously?
To Motorola’s credit, at least they’re being honest and up front about timelines and goals. They lost $400 Million dollars last quarter and claim they won’t be able to right the ship until at least the second half of 2009. Non-coincidentally, when their first Android Phone comes out.
So are they putting a lot eggs in the Android basket? Seems like it. The question is, what kind of eggs are they? Rumor has it that they’re working on SOFTWARE. My question is…. WHY? Half of the purpose of Android is the fact that the open source community and third party developers drive all the software you could ever need/want for the device courtesy of the Android Market.
Come on, Motorola. People are craving Android. Drop the software BS and just focus on making a nice piece of hardware that can run the cookie cutter Android OS and you’ll be all good to go.
Now, on the flip side, perhaps I’m giving Android too much credit and not giving Motorola the benefit of the doubt. Maybe Android is much harder for manufacturers to integrate than was initially thought. Perhaps there are unperceived complications inherent in the system?
As they say, timing is everything and I’m not sure if Christmas 2009 is soon enough to count for anything. I hope dearly that it is, because every manufacturer in the market is capable of bringing something unique to consumers. Motorola has proved that in the past and I hope they gain regain their luster. For themselves, for consumers and for Android.
And lets try to beat that Christmas 2009 timeline by as much as we can… okay guys?
[Via Giz, Silicon Alley Insider, MocoNews]
my guess is that motorola is working on some sweet apps, that come preinstalled on their social moto phone, and you can purchase from the market. then they would be generating revenue not only from thier own handsets, but from dozens of handsets that will be running droid by dec 09, through app sales.
PLEASE at least get the design and functionality right and provide an Android phone like this – http://www.googleandblog.com/slick-google-android-phone/3215/
,Michael Martin
WOW I was really hoping for a android based Verizon phone. I was hoping it would be Motorola by the end of this year but I guess not.
Wow,
They are losing money like crazy so the solution is to lay off people and focus their product line. I does not seem to occur to them that a time to market of 18months can’t possibly be part of the problem. LOL! 18months is an eternity for consumer products. They are doomed. Going with Android is a smart move on their part but taking 18months to get there is crazy. They might as well just throw in the towel when their competitors can do it in half the time.
Wow, I can’t belive it’s almost Christmas! Time for white snow, snowmans, sleds, santa, cookie, and everything else! Thanks for the post very Cool and keep them coming!