Android to invade in-home gadgets during 2009?

Gadget manufacturers will launch a range of Android-based devices for use in and around the home this year, according to a touchscreen gadget company. Touch_Revolution_Nimble Touch Revolution's Nimble: an Android-based in-home "desk-phone" prototype Bill Brown, Vice President of Marketing at US-based firm Touch Revolution …

[James Geldart]

Self serving prediction, but so what?

The Register ran the story, and now lots of people who've never heard of Touch Revolution have. And he's probably got a point, if they're using Android to do this for the reasons outlined, surely others will too. Interesting story, and I look forward to seeing what Touch Revolution have to offer.

[Sebastian Brosig]

want one with DSL

that would be great an' all if it was a "landline" phone with a DSL modem, with a few ethernet prts in the back, so as to double up as a router.

Oh, and cheap.

Kind of like an "Amstrad em@iler for the modern age.

[Anonymous Coward]

Some competition?

It is good to see another OS out there - and one with potential wide appeal.

On the other hand there is still WinCE (I understand BT Vision customer UI is WinCE)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Windows_CE

[Anonymous Coward]

"I understand BT Vision customer UI is WinCE"

"I understand BT Vision customer UI is WinCE"

I believe that statement is true, it's certainly commonly believed.

I also believe that it is only true because BT engineering/commercial management are clueless and Microsoft management were desperate for a win in the set top box market. Hence some kind of a deal was worked out between the pair of HQs. I don't suppose much money changed hands, at least not in the direction normally associated with paying for a Windows licence.

How many Linux-based gadgets are in the average home today (visibly or invisibly)? A router, a NAS box, a TV, a satnav, a phone, etc...

How many WinCE based gadgets are in the average home today? There's no reason to use WinCE if it's invisible, so maybe we're looking at a satnav and a smartphone.

And why *not* have android as the OS in a few more gadgets? Better that than WinCE... where's the reset button...

[Don Mitchell]

It's Linux

People keep calling Android and Chrom OS "Google developed OS", which is a little annoying since they are both variants of Linux. Google seems to take a lot from the open source movement and give very little back. It's also disappointing that both Google and Apple punted on developing truly new operating systems, and fell back on tired old UNIX technology.

[Wrenchy]

Ummm.

> Quote from Don Mitchell:

> Google seems to take a lot from the open source movement and give very little back.

Uhhhhh. Didn't they just give the world Android and the upcoming Chrome OS and pretty much every service they have to offer? Free?

> and fell back on tired old UNIX technology.

Isn't that the more proven, secure and robust choice available? Creating an OS free from Windows and Unix/ *nix code and would be exceedingly difficult.

Am I missing something here?

[Mike007]

@Wrenchy

it's worth pointing out that your example of what they have given back is exactly the example he gave of the things they have taken as their own...

google have given a lot of free services, and i use many google services on a regular basis, however it is incorrect to claim they have given us an operating system when all they have released is just yet another linux distro

[Anonymous Coward]

"an OS free from Windows and Unix/ *nix code "

"Creating an OS free from Windows and Unix/ *nix code and would be exceedingly difficult."

Difficult, but not impossible.

An OS with Verylittle Microsoft Software (but a bit more Unix software) could exist.

One could call it V M S, and it would have been, decades ago, everything that Windows NT wanted to but never ever will be - scalable, reliable, trustworthy, even affordable and supportable.

If only HP would admit that VMS still existed.

More sensibly, if only HP would port it to relevant members of HP's very own "industry standard server" family (Proliants), as well as those HP-derived IA64-based Superdome followons.