Introducing the Google Phone

[Telekom]

The Internet is buzzing about it, but only a privileged few know what it looks like, what it will do, or when it will hit the streets

By Scott Kirsner | September 2, 2007

Cambridge has a chocolate factory, and a Willy Wonka. The chocolate factory is Google's local research lab, located on the seventh floor of a Kendall Square office tower, and the resident Wonka is Rich Miner, a Google executive sometimes described as the company's vice president of wireless but officially a "technical staff member," according to a Google spokesman.

The golden ticket is a chance to see a prototype of Google's new mobile phone, which Miner has shown to a handful of Boston entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, some of whom have signed nondisclosure agreements and some of whom haven't.

Dan Roth, president of VoiceSignal, a division of Nuance Communications Inc. which makes speech recognition technology for cellphones, is under NDA. Mike Phillips, founder of Vlingo Inc., a speech recognition start-up, has seen the phone - but neither company would say whether they're working with Google. Paul Ferri, a founder of the Waltham venture capital firm Matrix Partners, has seen it, as has Murali Aravamudan, founder of a start-up called Veveo that is building a video search engine especially for phones. "We'd love to support a Google phone, if and when it becomes available," Aravamudan says, adding that there isn't yet a deal in the works.

Miner and Google are saying next to nothing about the work they're doing in Cambridge - nor are they commenting on the speculation about what Google's phone strategy will be, which has been spreading across the Net this summer.

"I have been having a lot of fun at Google, including helping to build the Boston office," Miner writes via e-mail. (He later sent out an e-mail to a large number of his contacts advising them not to talk with me for this column.)

Google spokeswoman Erin Fors wouldn't confirm whether software for mobile phones was being developed in the Cambridge office, where there are more than 50 employees.

"Mobile is an important focus for Google globally, and the team is reflective of that focus - there are people around the world working on a variety of Google mobile products," she wrote.

Introducing the Google Phone - The Boston Globe

[RJB]

You know this seems to be a great phone I want to know the styling of it though

[Bill Clinton]

Google usually does things right so it will be interesting to see what happens with this.

[RJB]

Google phone details? | The Boy Genius Report

some more detail

[Mobile Mike]

Originally Posted by RJB

Google phone details? | The Boy Genius Report

some more detail

Gee that Google phone looks an awful lot like an AT&T 8525...

Got to admit I'm interested in what their phone will be like.

[walkguru]

Wirelessly posted (Walkguru's: Opera/8.01 (J2ME/MIDP; Opera Mini/3.1.7196/1704; en; U; ssr))

Originally Posted by Mobile Mike

Gee that Google phone looks an awful lot like an AT&T 8525...

Got to admit I'm interested in what their phone will be like.

i feel the same. google has some neat ideas.

[Fire14]

This is going to be interesting to see how this pans out & are they going to be an MVNO or use a WiFi network ?

[bobolito]

So any word about when the Gphone will see the light?

[RJB]

Originally Posted by bobolito

So any word about when the Gphone will see the light?

No but I know it will go to GSM lol

[Mobile Mike]

Originally Posted by RJB

No but I know it will go to GSM lol

Shhh, don't give them any ideas...

Maybe Google will be generous and do CDMA as well, or even a GSM/CDMA combo!!!

Yeah, yeah, I know, wishful thinking.

[bobolito]

Isn't Sprint doing business with Google right now? Imagine if Sprint gets the exclusive on the gPhone!

[walkguru]

sounds like 3 or 4 differant models.


Google Phone is based on a mobile variant of Linux, and is able to run Java Virtual Machines. All applications that are supposed to run on the Google Phone are Java apps. The OS has ability to run multimedia files, including video clips. The user interface is similar to a UI typical of mobile phones, and the image (with red background) floating around isn’t representative of the Google Phone UI. The entire UI is said to be done in Java and is very responsive. The UI, of course has a “search box.” There is a special browser which has pan-and-browse features that are common to modern browsers such as browsers for iPhone and Symbian phones. The entire browser is apparently written in Java. Initially there was one prototype, but over past few months Google has the mobile OS running on 3-to-5 devices, most of them likely made by HTC, a mobile phone maker, and all have QWERTY keyboards. The model that folks have seen is very similar to the T-Mobile Dash. Around 3GSM, there were rumors that Google, Orange and HTC were working together on mobile devices. There ya’ have it. Linux, Java apps, familiar UI, crazy browser, and a HTC-sourced device. Good enough?

[Mobile Mike]

Originally Posted by walkguru

sounds like 3 or 4 differant models.


Google Phone is based on a mobile variant of Linux, and is able to run Java Virtual Machines. All applications that are supposed to run on the Google Phone are Java apps. The OS has ability to run multimedia files, including video clips. The user interface is similar to a UI typical of mobile phones, and the image (with red background) floating around isn’t representative of the Google Phone UI. The entire UI is said to be done in Java and is very responsive. The UI, of course has a “search box.” There is a special browser which has pan-and-browse features that are common to modern browsers such as browsers for iPhone and Symbian phones. The entire browser is apparently written in Java. Initially there was one prototype, but over past few months Google has the mobile OS running on 3-to-5 devices, most of them likely made by HTC, a mobile phone maker, and all have QWERTY keyboards. The model that folks have seen is very similar to the T-Mobile Dash. Around 3GSM, there were rumors that Google, Orange and HTC were working together on mobile devices. There ya’ have it. Linux, Java apps, familiar UI, crazy browser, and a HTC-sourced device. Good enough?

That would be awesome if there were several different versions of the GPhone. With the GPhone on it's way and the new Apple iPods just being announced, I'm in technology heaven...