Android

There are 9 posts filed in Android (this is page 1 of 1).

Begun the Clone Wars Has…

Let’s rewind back to the 1980’s when IBM introduced the IBM PC.  It was based on off the shelf parts. Probably the first time ever IBM used non-IBM parts to build a computer. Every other computer that had come out of IBM had been built with IBM parts specifically done to their exacting standards.

Later around 1984, after the Mac 128K was introduced, or around that time frame, IBM introduced the IBM-pc-AT.  It was around this time frame that clones (they were there before, but not as prevalent as after the AT came out) started to encroach into IBM’s well-guarded territory.  Besides, “nobody has been fired for using IBM” so how could anyone not buy an IBM and go wrong?

Compaq, Dell, Gateway, Orange, Apricot, and countless other manufacturers of PC’s filled up the then “Computer” stores with cheap alternatives to IBM.

IBM reacted, panicked, and introduced the PS/2 line changing the AT architecture into its own proprietary format, the Micro Channel Architecture, vastly superior to the AT (ISA) architecture in hopes to lure back customers who were buying alternative PC’s. Following that, the “clone makers” formed their own consortium and came up with the EISA architecture so they wouldn’t have to pay IBM to license the MCA technology.

It was not long before IBM realized their “oops” moment as MCA was not compatible with the plethora of video, network, you name it board; any ancillary add on board was not compatible with MCA. EISA was. So everyone just ignored the PS/2 and continued to purchase “the clones”.

(ps: I was a proud owner of a PS2/60).

Now, let’s focus on OS’s. And this should be fairly short.

IBM PC licensed MS-DOS, clones licensed MS-DOS.  Apple had its own Finder. The niche alternatives had their own OS’s, Amiga OS, Atari OS, etc. Later, around the late 80’s came the GUI OS’s, Windows 3.1, GEM, DeskMate, Geos, X Windows, IRIS, NeXT, etc.

So what?

Wait, Apple had its own Finder? IBM and the Clones had MS-DOS? The niche players had their own OS’s. I won’t even mention Windows and IBM OS/2 because we all know what happened there. (Can we also say billions down the drain?  Taligent, BeOS, WebOS?!)

Apple iDevices have their own non-licensed OS called iOS
Google and all the clones have licensed Android
The (“now”) niche players have their own OS?
BlackBerry with their BBOS, Nokia with WP7, Samsung has Bada, HP had WebOS(Palm) and in Japan, NTTDocomo and some other big telcos are dipping their hands into other OS’s that we haven’t even heard of.

So there is a similar state in today’s mobile world as we saw in the early PC era of the 80’s.

Whatever happened to Compaq, Dell and some of the other major PC clones? What happened to the Niche players? Atari/Amiga? What happened to the bevy of GUI OS’s?

Compaq got bought out by HP = Google buys Motorola Mobility
Dell loses leadership in PC sales = RIM losing market share today
Gateway = Nokia
Atari/Amiga/etc. = Nook, Amazon Fire, and some others
The dead pool = HandSpring/VirginMobile/ESPNMobile…etc.

So, you say, Carlos what if any does this have anything to do with the Tablet wars?

In order to predict the future, as the adage goes, you must look at the past.

And this past month we saw the introduction of the Microsoft Surface and Google introduced the Nexus 7 tablet.

And all analysts, fan boys, hate boys, etc. came out of the woods to chime in and cast their vote.  We all do. Just like the NFL FanBoy who is the best Good Old Monday Morning Quarterback.  We have our analysis and a few words to say. This is our NFL – and now we are waiting to see who goes to the SuperBowl. (Ok, I get carried away sometimes but you know what I mean).

Google with the new Nexus 7 just bitch slapped Samsung, Amazon Fire, the NOOK, and the other Android tablets out there; crazy, it also gave a huge vote of no confidence to Motorola Mobility. Google teaming up with Asus to deliver on a 7” Android Jelly Bean tablet instead of Motorola. Sure, had it used Motorola the FTC/Sec and every other security TLA commission would have been on top of them like fly on shit due to some sort of insider knowledge, trade, etc.. crap that someone would have pulled against them in order to make an improper business allegations against Goorola merger, but seriously? Joining the space that your partners have been supporting you in?

Reminds me of the Microsoft of yesteryear. Norton Antivirus, check, Memory defragmenter, check, Disk utilities, check, Word processors, check, Spread Sheet, check. Them predatory practices that put Microsoft in a bind, is what to me, Google is doing to its partners.

So why would Samsung, Amazon, HTC and others continue to support Android? Hello?? I would not. Getting shafted by the maker of the OS is just plain bad business leaving a bunch of people with bad taste.  Besides, most Android device manufactures have to pay Microsoft a licensing fee of upwards of $15 dollars due to some Android patent infringements. It has been surmised that Microsoft has made over $500 million in Android patent fees, actually, making more money on Android that Google. I like to think of it as Google was the one who finance the Windows Surface project.

If I were the head of any of the aforementioned companies I would have a task team looking for alternative OS’s.

Samsung to take Bada out of Asia and start a US/NonPAC push
Amazon – revives webOS or gets something else fast
NOOK – just like Amazon, but with their current Microsoft partnership, hello Windows 8, here we go.
NTT-Docomo – they hate Android because there is no differentiator among the Android phones in Japan vs KDDI and the others big telcos. Hello Mozilla OS.
Microsoft – buy RIM for their assets, and distribution and the messaging/mail infrastructure. (Just get the patents and put them out to pasture).

So the theater of operations in the mobile clone war is beginning to take shape.

Microsoft, Apple – with their deep pockets, are not going anywhere.  Apple with iOS and iDevices will continue to make huge profits and continue to drive excellence.  Microsoft is a copycat but due to their deep coffers, can put up a good fight, well not really, but will be on the long run and out finance its compeititon.

Googrola/Amazon/Nook/Samsung/HTC – here comes the blood bath. This is where the real fight is going to happen and the battle lines were clearly drawn by Google at the I/O conference. This is going to be one hell of a blood bath and it is going to be a fight until their grasp continues to diminish.

Coincidentally, the only one in this pack that could suffer the most is Samsung. Unlike Amazon/Nook/Google, Samsung doesn’t have a Video/App/Streaming/Book/ “content” distribution similar to its brethren (at least not here in US).

And who is going to come out of left field and try to get into the action?  How about Mozilla with their HTML5 based Mozila Mobile OS(some of you may know it as Boot To Gecko)?

Given the latest reviews from notable technologist, the Google Nexus 7 has been given high marks.  And for Jelly Bean, (aka Android 4.1) reviewers are all googly eyes over it (pun intended), clearly making this an indisputable clone wars started by non-other than by Google.

Given the new battle lines, here is what I think:

Apple will undoubtedly continue its dominant position without any dent in its sales because of the Nexus 7.  Seriously, the Nexus 7 will eat into Amazon/Nook/Samsung/etc before it makes any dent in the Apple iPad Sales.

Microsoft and its Surface tablet – I think that MS has a good chance to become the 2nd place in the tablet wars. With its deep pockets and Android licensors having to pay MS for patent infringements, makes sense that given the Nexus 7 some of the early supporters of Android will move away from Android and into other markets where they either pay less per license or something completely different.

The Android Clones  will settle at 3rd place before some of the tablet makers realize how bad they have just been shafted and either move away from Android or from the market altogether.

RIM/Nokia – Dead

Mozilla OS – reminds me of IBM OS/2 will serve as a niche market.  Great opportunity for some manufactures to use instead of Android so as not to pay the hefty Microsoft patent tax. 🙂

So who wins this war after all?

Actually developers and cross platform framework makers like Appcelerator or Moai win.

Developers win because they have a job working on all the different platform, segmentation, etc.
Framework makers win because they can create tools to target multiple platforms at once.

Who loses?

Anyone building Android devices and, obviously, RIM/Nokia

Who is the real winner?

The real winner is the “App” because as long as I have my favorite App running on my bevy of devices, and as long as the app does what I need it to do flawlessly and my data is readily available anywhere, anytime, I will be ok regardless of device.

Lastly

In the late 80’s early 90’s we saw a consolidation of companies, both in terms of hardware and software. Some of them were, and still are synonymous with the markets they spearheaded. Pioneers in the true sense.

This mobile industry is still very young, but looking at the past, it should predict and or allow us to predict who will be the dominant players, who will die, and who will come in from behind and take over a specific niche market (i.e.: intuit).

And the now lingering question is, who is the next intuit of mobile? …. stay tuned….
Carlos.

So Adobe Finally Killed Flash on Mobile

In the I told you so department….

I have gotten a flood of emails, calls, text messages from industry analist, pundits, Adobe Flash Fanboys, haters, regarding the recent news on Adobe finally killing Flash on Android.

So, instead of babbling on what Adobe shoulda/coulda/woulda done, I will point you to these articles and let them speak in my behalf

Wired

ReadWriteWeb

carlosicaza.com

Have fun reading them and let me know your thoughts.

Carlos

The Microsoft Surface, Apple No Need to Worry

Lots of emails on the new MS Surface. Here is my short answer.

Microsoft has fallen wayside in innovation. I can write a whole book on Microsoft from its early days up until today. They missed the Browser/Internet Train. They missed a lot of stuff. All because they want to milk their Office and Windows products. Product after product and stories after stories of how it is not a product unless it runs some sort Windows/Office combo.

Blah. That’s all I have to say. I was not impressed by the new Surface tablet. Not only was it a dud, flat, dull and lackluster event, it is, as the old adage goes, a day late and a dollar short.

So why even bother? Will it kill the iPad?

NO. The Microsoft Surface is not an iPad killer. It is an Android replacement. It is a reason not to buy an Android tablet. Which are notoriously bad and fragmented. Sue me. Yes. They are.

Most tablet and phone manufacturers have to pay Microsoft up to $15 patent/licensing fee for using Android on their devices. Wait a minute? HTC, Samsung, and all other Android device manufacturers have to pay Microsoft a licensing fee for supporting Android? With sub-par software?

According to IDG, over 300 million Windows PC’s will ship this year (sue me part II, don’t have a link) and a lot of these users will want a tablet that will run their software without a hitch. Hello Microsoft Surface. Adios Android.

Samsung is the leading Android device vendor (sue me part III, no link) and Samsung has an alternative OS called Bada. Well, Samsung’s relationship with Google most likely will go sour once the Motorola Mobility merger clusterf**k gets some sort of respite and they work out their merger kinks. So Samsung will have to stave off Motorola at their own game. Google will most likely push new features of Android first on its own devices. Why buy Motorola in the first place. I would do the same. I would keep some hot features only available on my product line not  to a competitor. Hell no.

And as I mentioned before, with all the other Android manufactures having to pay the Microsoft tax. Why just not switch to Microsoft tablet and pay less.

Anyhow, NO, the new surface will not out seat the iPad. But it could give Android a big headache.

As to the Surface introduction last night. Totally FUD announcement from Microsoft.

No pricing announced, no battery duration information announced, no major apps demoed, the one app they demoed crashed the unit (it would not be a Microsoft show without a blue screen of death) and worst, two models were announced, an ARM based model and an Intel Sandy Bridge model were announced with higher disk capacity. Yet, the worst part? No release date. Worst part numero 2, two different versions of XP will be available for the surface, one for ARM CPU chipset, the other for the Intel chipset. Yikes !

So this was a total FUD on Microsoft. A panic move as I would describe it. Balmer said, it took them this long to get something right, I call that BS. It took them this long to figure out how to run Windows/Office on a tablet without crippling the software.

But, setting all my sarcasm aside and MS bashing, will it sell? Yes. Why? Because it is Microsoft after all and while in the US it may not be as appealing and hot and sexy as Apple, there are dozen’s of other countries where Microsoft is as much of a brand as “Coke”. Does it have a chance to displace Android? I hesitate to give it an absolute yes, but the only way it would do that if is Microsoft gets the pricing and battery life right. Android may become 3rd.

In other related tablet news, RIM is about to expire and Nokia is entering life support. MS do us all a favor and buy them out. You have got plenty of cash and you can tap into their talent and distribution.

Carlos.

On Entrepreneurs and Artists, on Corona and on being Number One.

A long time ago, during my late teens early twenty’s a friend of mine used to be a tennis instructor. He didn’t teach the fine art of how to play tennis, the didn’t coach, he didn’t teach you how to hit the ball and how to serve or how to move around the court, he didn’t teach, he certainly didn’t coach. His job, or as he would described it was that of the guy who you hired to play tennis against while learning how to play tennis. His clients would usually have hired a coach or an instructor or a motivational speaker, he was there to play against the students. He got to that position by being a really good player. He qualified at the state finals and won numerous tournaments throughout the state.

Couple of things to jot down, he came from a middle class hardworking family, he certainly wasn’t rich and his family could never afford to hire a coach, enroll him on private classes or sign him up to posh tennis clubs to learn how to play tennis. He played at the local park court, but played for hours on end. Often until he got kicked out by the park police and had turned off the court lights. He never had “tennis” attire. He never had a “graphite” tennis racket, nor “professional grade” tennis shoes. He just loved to play and by the sheer love became a top tennis player and instructor in the area. He was sought after and often was booked in advance for months. He demanded top dollar and made a good living at it for a while.

Since we have gone to the same high school and were part of the same group of school friends, we remained close friends well until after graduation. As he kept playing tennis and getting better and better he taught me a lesson. He never sat and said, here let me teach you this, this is of those lessons learned by osmosis. 🙂 Like I said earlier, while in high-school, he could not afford the super expensive tennis rackets, the shoes, nor the “attire”. Yet watching him play, he played with passion and determination and would beat the crap out of anyone on the other side of the court with am amazing grace. It was like it was just too easy for him to win. Yet, he would never, at least when I saw him play and then through the reports of friends and others, make you feel as though you lost. For him, it was a match, a game and he came to win and win he did.

The irony here is that he would win, and in his words, using a $15 dollar tennis racket. He could only afford regular tennis shoes, t-shirts and shorts, those that at one point were jeans and you just cut off the legs. That’s how he would win and win top games.

So what’s my point? What am I trying to get to?

Lets look at it from another perspective. A guitar has only six strings. A piano has 52 keys. Yet, how many variations of sounds can you generate from just six strings? and 52 keys? Some of the best music in the world, created by some of the best composers in the world, some of them even deaf, have endure time and time again and have become classics and every other adjective I can find out there.

If I we were to look at my friend, the tennis player, and say Beethoven, and if I could try to find a correlation, what would that be? that of two great artists who had love and passion for their respective skills. Both of them artists, and great artists use any tool to convey their passion. A tool, wether it is a tennis racket or a piano, is a method to convey their artistry, and their passion.

Carlos, where are you going with this? It is great and all but what does this have anything to do with either entrepreneurship or Corona?

Well, just like my friends canvas was that of a tennis court and Beethoven’s canvas was a stage, theater, etc, the new canvas is that of a mobile device. And the canvas size is not any bigger than the size of your palm or two palms if you are talking tablets.

Although, prior to the App Store, there had been app stores, Apple popularized it to what it is today. It enabled the democratization of  not just building apps but also distributing them and creating an entire new industry of mobile apps, and with it, a new breed (insert trite jargon marketing phrase) of entrepreneurship was born.

And here is where both entrepreneurship and obviously Corona comes into this blog. Corona is a tool for your entrepreneurship passion in creating great mobile apps.

I have seen what you guys can do with our tool. I have been blown away by some of your creations. Heck, Walter and I can’t believe what you guys often create and how you can push us in the right direction to take Corona to the next level. Yet, with each new game I see, each one is different, each app I see, each one is different. Your creative mind and passion makes Corona do things I am blown away by. But more importantly, what really excites me the most is seeing not just what you can do with Corona but how Corona has changed peoples lives. It has enabled some of you follow a dream of becoming entrepreneurs and have done so quite well. Often, what was impossible is now possible. Mobile programming has a high learning curve in general, but Corona is one of those tools that lowers the barrier to entry without sacrificing quality and game play.

Which brings me to my closing argument 😉

Corona has allowed you to become the creative entrepreneur you have been wanting to become by producing some outstanding games and selling them at both iOS and Android market places. Some of you never thought it would be possible, but with a tool like Corona, it has become possible and you embraced the challenge and have become successful at it.

But the best part for me is that you have trusted Corona to be part of your entrepreneurial spirit and because of it, are establishing Corona as the new industry standard.

An what gives me that right to say Corona is becoming the new industry standard?

By having the number one game on the Android Market place Arcade and Action done in Corona, beating both Angry Bird and Angry Birds Rio. It is Monkey Blast by the Yobonja guys.

Not just that, six months ago, the number one game on the iTunes App store, Bubble Ball, by 14 year old Robert Nay was also done in Corona.

I am very proud of the fact that two completely different set of people using the he same tool, were able to create two different apps resulting in the two apps hitting the number one spot in two different markets and establishing said tool as solid, de-facto standard in mobile app development.

That common tool being Corona.

Now that’s what I would call Corona and the spirit of entrepreneurship.

Carlos.

Maybe Adobe is not killing Flash after all. But Google certainly is.

Google debuts Flash to HTML5 Converter. More from InformationWeek

And from Google, the tool can be found at “swiffy”

You can accuse me all you want for being biased about our Corona SDK – but be honest, the reality is that Adobe is being embattled from all sides. First Apple, now Google, a long time ‘friend’. Walter and I said it and keep saying it, Flash is not ready for mobile, never was, never is, never will be. Certainly now more than ever.

Carlos