Microsoft and Google arent happy with mutant Android-Windows hybrids Ian Paul @ianpaul Mar 14, 2014 7:26 AMprintIan Paul Ian Paul [email protected], PCWorld Follow me on Google+ Ian is an independent writer based in Tel Aviv, Israel. His current focus is on all things tech including mobile devices, desktop and laptop computers, software, social networks, Web apps, tech-related legislation and corporate tech news. More by Ian Paul Microsoft may be comfortable with Windows Phone and Android splitting time on a single phone, but when it comes to PCs, fuhgeddaboutit. Google also isnt too thrilled with the idea of Frankenstein Android-Windows computers, and at least one PC maker may have to dump the hybrid devices from their lineup as a result. Asus, makers of the Transformer AiO P1801 and P1802, is reportedly being forced to put the kibosh on its year-old all-in-one-slash-tablet PCs. Whats more, the anticipated Transformer Book Duet TD300 shown off at CES in January is also headed for the scrap heap, according to The Wall Street Journal. These devices run Windows when theyre in PC mode. Slide out the AIOs screen or flip the laptop into a tablet, however, and boom! Youve got an Android slate. The concept is theoretically appealing to users since you get the best of both worlds in one device, but Microsoft and Google apparently werent pleased. Its easy to understand why Microsoft wouldnt want devices like this to catch on. The company is struggling to get users to adopt Windows 8.1, an OS designed with two interfaces: One for the traditional desktop and one for touchscreen devices. A convertible PC that switches from Windows 8.1 to Android instead of from the Windows desktop to the modern UI Windows Start screen would undermine the entire Windows 8 concept. (For its part, a Microsoft spokesperson told us after this story was initially published that the company’s “policies have not changed. Microsoft will continue to invest with OEMs to promote best in class OEM and Microsoft experiences to our joint customers.”) Google grimaces Googles opposition is a little more curious. The Journals report suggests Google simply didnt want Android sharing space with another OS. But as far as we know, Google never objected to Canonicals concept for a hybrid Android-Ubuntu phone, and Huawei plans on bringing an Android-Windows Phone hybrid device to the U.S. in the coming months. threat primar 100008981 gallery PCs are different, however, and perhaps Google simply didnt like the idea of Android playing a complementary role to Windows on a PC. Google cant stop a company from using the open source version of Android in its devices. But the search giant can clamp down on any company that wants to access Googles online services on Android. Those apps and services—such as Gmail, Maps, and Google Play itself—arent part of the open source version of Android and require striking a business deal with Google before theyre pre-loaded on a device. The reported objections from Google and Microsoft are a little late to the game. The Asus P1801 and P1802 were introduced more than a year ago, and Samsung announced another Android-Windows PC, the Ativ Q, in 2013 (though it has yet to ship). However, chipmakers AMD and Intel are both backing the dual-OS concept as a way to get their processors into more and more devices, and hybrid devices were a noticeable trend at this years CES and Mobile World Conference shows. The devils in the details Even with all the attention, a truly compelling Windows-Android hybrid has yet to appear. The Asus Transformer AiO is a Windows all-in-one that could be lugged around and used as a ginormous Android tablet. Asus dual OS all-in-ones werent entirely practical. In tablet mode the devices 5.73-pound, 18-inch screen meant it wasnt a tablet youd want to throw in your backpack. The plus $1,000 starting price tag didnt help much either. The Asus Transformer Book Trio, another Android-Windows hybrid introduced in 2013, was a low-powered Atom device that would only appeal to a select group of users. The lightweight Duet TD300, however, would have had much broader appeal thanks to its Intel Core processor, 4GB RAM, and up to 1TB of onboard storage—but according to the Journal well never find out just how appealing the TD300 would have been. Updated on March 16 with a cmoment from Microsoft.
Posted on: Mon, 17 Mar 2014 15:15:23 +0000
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