Google could finally develop the full hardware potential

Google is a software company and therefore earns its money with data and advertising and not (like Apple or Samsung, for example) with hardware. That’s why the focus was never really on this area, but rather on the services. In the past this course led to good devices (Pixel 3a, 4a, 5), but a real “flagship”, which Samsung, Huawei or Apple could have been dangerous, was never created by Google.

It seemed like Google was just experimenting with their devices, but not really taking the business seriously. This was also evident in other areas. While the Google Assistant as a service is (probably) the smartest assistant on the market and therefore better than Amazon’s in some respects, Google is inferior in the hardware of smart speakers and displays. Innovations such as a screen that follows the user have so far come from Seattle.

But that seems to be the end of it now, at least if current rumors are to be believed. This is what 9TO5Google wants have experiencedthat the next pixel smartphones should be equipped with an in-house processor. This is being developed by Google under the code name “Whitechapel”, which was also only recently named by XDA-Developers spotted.

This could be a big step for Google. With your own processors you can not only set yourself apart from other manufacturers, but also tailor Android to the processor and vice versa. Companies like Apple or Microsoft shine with their own chips because hardware and software come from the same company. So far, Google has had to adapt Android to the chips from Qualcomm or MediaTek; this regulation would no longer apply with its own chips.

Why is that so exciting? Google could become a kind of “Apple” for Android. Because in the Android area it is currently the case that many issues are about numbers. “108 megapixel camera, 120Hz display, 16 gigabytes of RAM, 512 gigabytes of memory, 5000 mAh battery”. On the pure data sheet, an Apple smartphone resembles that of a mid-range Android smartphone. But all the magic with Apple lies in optimizing iOS on Apple’s hardware.

This would also allow Google to turn less hardware into better battery life or better cameras. Google has already started doing this, but Qualcomm’s limitations have stopped it.

Another big benefit could be updates. Why do customers buy an iPhone? Is it siri Is it ios I’ve heard many reasons in my community but one of the most common reasons was “It’s an investment”. Because “I can keep an iPhone for 4-5 years”. Google is currently promising software updates on the first day for three years. Only last year did Google come up with Qualcomm announcedthat future SoC (from the Snapdragon 888) will now support updates for 4 years.

However, Google would still have to rely on Qualcomm to cooperate. With its own SoC, the group could provide pixel smartphones with updates for 4-5 years without any problems, since the chip and the software come from a single source. That would be a “unique selling point” in the Android area, which could move many customers to a pixel. Because until now they were the market leader at three years of age, but Samsung has now trumped Google with three years of updates and four years of security patches.

But that could not only help Android on the smartphone. The rumor of Google’s own smartwatch has been around for years and according to the US YouTuber “Jon Prosser” a new pixel watch is already being planned for this year. With its own Google chip and adapting the software, the problem of poor battery life could also be solved.

Google indirectly confirmed this at their I / O conference. The Group announcedthat Samsung and Google will merge their operating systems into a new “Wear”. This would be a lot faster, more resource-efficient and it would be much easier to develop apps. In the same breath, the Fitbit CEO said “Fitbit will manufacture Smartwatches with the Wear operating system in the future”. Google acquired Fitbit earlier this year and this move was talked about a lot during the takeover.

Then there is the Pixel 6. In addition to its own processor, this is to be given a radically new design. Google was previously known for very simple, rather “older” designs. The Pixel 5 still had a fingerprint sensor on the back and slightly thicker bezels than other smartphones. That seems to be the end of it now. Jon Prosser claimshow he received real images of the Pixel 6 with the help of the Pixel Watch, with the help of which he had a 3D model reconstructed by a graphic artist. However, the design was done by Max Weinbach, a well-informed editor at Android Police, approved.

These pictures show a completely new design language. In addition to a front camera in the middle of the screen, thin display bezels, a fingerprint sensor in the display and a new camera design, the two-color design of the Pixel 3 is back.

This radically new design stands out from everything we know from Google so far and also suggests major changes in the hardware area. With software that is directly adapted to its own processor, the Pixel 6 could become a very powerful smartphone. Android 12, which was announced at the I / O, is also the largest upgrade for Android since version 5, so an equally large upgrade for your own hardware would be logical.

It all fits together like a puzzle, which is now put piece by piece. Last fall quit Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai said in a conference call that Google had a “grandiose roadmap” for 2021 and “some deeper investments in hardware” would be made. These now seem to be bearing fruit.

I am very curious to see whether Google can finally develop the full potential in the hardware area and show off with their own chips, a real smartwatch and a modern-looking smartphone.