google-android

Consumers excited and confused by Ice Cream Sandwich

Ice Cream Sandwiches for everyone; at least for UK consumers in the market for the new Samsung Galaxy Nexus. The hotly anticipated device hit shelves in the UK yesterday, and will be available in other markets around the world by the end of the month. Google’s Ice Cream Sandwich software is the biggest selling point for the smartphone. The multi-platform OS release completely redesigns the Android user interface and offers a wide range of new features – including Android Beam, a NFC-driven application for exchanging content, and facial recognition to unlock the phone. Many existing Android users are wondering when or if their smartphones will get the new software, but manufacturers have been vague about the roll out and it’s unclear what devices will benefit and when it will happen. The uncertainty about which devices will get Ice Cream Sandwich is part of the larger market confusion that surrounds the rapid evolution of the Android operating system. In the three years since the Google OS has been on the market, there have been dozens of hardware options for Android phones, six major software releases excluding Ice Cream Sandwich, as well as several minor updates.

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Consumers excited and confused by Ice Cream Sandwich

google-android

Google Gaining Marketing Share with Smartphones, Browsers

Google is gaining ground in both the smartphone and browser worlds, according to reports mentioned in a Search Engine Land report this week. The site cited Nielsen numbers from November which show that Google Android is poised to overtake Apple’s iPhone as the leading smartphone operating system. Meanwhile, December numbers from Net Applications show strong growth of the Google Chrome operating system versus industry leaders Microsoft Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox.

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Google Gaining Marketing Share with Smartphones, Browsers