Originally published June 3, 2009 at 12:00 AM | Page modified June 3, 2009 at 12:37 PM
Comments (0)
E-mail article
Print view
Share
Google's Android will run laptops
Google's free mobile-phone operating system will begin running computers next quarter, entering a market dominated by Microsoft's Windows...
Bloomberg News
Google's free mobile-phone operating system will begin running computers next quarter, entering a market dominated by Microsoft's Windows and deepening the rivalry between the two companies.
Acer, the world's second-largest laptop maker, will release a low-cost notebook featuring Android in the third quarter, Jim Wong, head of information-technology products at the Taipei, Taiwan-based company, said Tuesday.
Asustek Computer, pioneer of the sub-$500 laptops known as netbooks, also developed a model that runs on Google's software, Chairman Jonney Shih said.
The development of Android netbooks indicates that the software is powerful enough to replace Windows, which runs about 90 percent of the world's personal computers. Google's move into PC operating systems escalates the pressure on Microsoft as it prepares to introduce Windows 7, according to Calvin Huang, an analyst at Daiwa Securities Group.
"This is a negative and may force Microsoft to lower the price of Windows 7," said Huang, who covers the computer industry from Taipei. "More and more vendors are adopting Android and non-Windows in their products, so this is a very good chance for Android to penetrate the PC market."
Acer's Android-based Aspire One netbook will be cheaper than the Windows XP model, though the two products will have the same electronic components, such as Intel's Atom processor, Acer's Wong said.
"Competition in the marketplace is good and people have the right to choose software that is best for them," Amelia Agrawal, a Singapore-based spokeswoman for Microsoft, said in an e-mailed statement. "Microsoft remains confident that people will keep buying Windows, as evidenced by the robust Windows growth on small notebook PCs."
Google introduced Android in 2007 as a software system for mobile phones. Android is based on Linux, an open-source operating system that's free and developed by hundreds of engineers worldwide. Asustek said in February that its engineers were trying to develop an Android-based netbook this year.
"Anyone can take the Android platform and add code or download it to create a mobile device without restrictions," Google said in an e-mail. "We look forward to seeing what contributions are made and how an open platform spurs innovation."
Microsoft also is challenging Google's main business. Last week, the company unveiled Bing, an Internet search engine designed to compete against Google's.
Asustek released the Eee PC netbook in October 2007, initially only offering Linux software. Microsoft jumped into the market and was able to grab 85 percent of mininotebook sales by the fourth quarter of 2008, according to estimates at research firm Gartner. Linux accounted for the rest.
"Google really does have the brand name and the financial resources to be able to be a rival to Microsoft," said Warren East, chief executive officer of chip designer ARM Holdings. "The whole Linux community is a bit fragmented when you compare it with Microsoft."
![]()
ARM, based in Cambridge, England, is a potential beneficiary of Android's success because Microsoft's Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 don't run on ARM-based computers.
"Microsoft going forward may have to work on an ARM-based solution," said Daiwa's Huang. "If Microsoft doesn't want to see Google Android get into the PC market, they will have to support ARM; otherwise, ARM will go perfectly with Android."
Qualcomm and Freescale Semiconductor, which make chips based on ARM's technology, said they expect to release products this year for netbooks that run Google's operating system.
Google's cachet will help get the computers into retailers such as Best Buy or France's Fnac electronics chain, said Henri Richard, chief sales and marketing officer for Freescale.
"It's important to be able to convince Fnac or Best Buy to put a product on their shelf, and that's where I think Android is going to be more helpful," Richard said in an interview.
Copyright © 2009 The Seattle Times Company
More Business & Technology headlines...
E-mail article
Print view
Share
Chase shrugs off loss of CD investors
Sunday Buzz: Expedia, Intelius, Classmates slapped by Senate report
Denny Triangle gains skyline, but tenants slow to come
UPDATE - 08:56 PM
Senate Democrats at odds over health care bill
Your Funds: Money for nothing: Some investors pay for advice they never get

LA Galaxy's David Beckham
Los Angeles Galaxy's David Beckham talks about the upcoming MLS Cup final during after a team practice.
nwjobs

Post a comment

Michelle Goodman blogs about work/life balance.
How to tell your office you're gravely ill
Post a comment
nwautos

Choosing a new sedan? Weigh the impact of your choice on your wallet and on the planet.
Post a comment
- 'The Road' takes Viggo Mortensen to Mount St. Helens and Astoria, Ore.
- Craigslist adoption ad: A plea by young mother-to-be? A scam?
- Italian lead prosecutor argues Knox motive was hatred
- Tugboat sinks on Seattle's waterfront
- Child-support error costs nearly $21,000
- Italian prosecutors request life sentence for UW student
- Man shot in chest on E. Union Street in Capitol Hill
- Washington state wines make annual best-of list
- Chase shrugs off loss of CD investors
- Mariners Blog | A Mariners-Tigers swap makes a whole lot of sense for both teams
- Senate vote clears hurdle
239 - Vikings easily beat the Seahawks
121 - Child-support error costs nearly $21,000
120 - Tight Senate vote launches health care over hurdle
119 - Palin excitement builds in Tri-Cities
119 - Cutting through breast-cancer confusion
90 - Prosecutor requests life in prison for Amanda Knox
88 - Game thread
70 - New York terror trials will restore faith in rule of law
54 - Chase shrugs off loss of CD investors
48
- Washington state wines make annual best-of list
- Nonprofits get creative using Twitter and Facebook to make donation easier
- It's possible to recover a life lost to hoarding
- Lynnwood is reinventing itself — again
- Great places to cross-country ski for free (or almost) in the Methow
- 'The Road' takes Viggo Mortensen to Mount St. Helens and Astoria, Ore.
- Child-support error costs nearly $21,000
- Recipes: Sesame Pork Roast, Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes, Gingerbread with Lemon Sauce and more
- Banff: powder, peaks & purity
- 175 foster kids in Washington get 'forever families'





