#googleio2015

In praise of Google's boring Google I/O.

(Read my column: http://goo.gl/gsXk4e )

 Nobody jumped out of blimps this year, but who cares when Google's products, services and platforms are getting this polished?

As a veteran of four Google I/O conferences, it's clear that this year's event was the least exciting for users and attendees, but it was definitely the most exciting for serious developers.

Unlike at past I/Os, nobody jumped out of blimps to deliver Google Glass to Sergey Brin. Rock star CEO Larry Page didn't give a hushed and momentous surprise speech. Google didn't give away a ridiculously expensive assortment of unreleased gadgets to attendees. The vast majority of announcements this year were either announced or leaked earlier, reducing the surprise factor. Even the food was poor cafeteria fare.

Some attendees were stunned by the conspicuous absence of such Google products as Google Glass, Chromebooks, Google+, Nexus smartphones, Project Ara and Project Fi.

But those are the complaints of shallow and entitled crybabies. Serious developers were thrilled by what they saw and heard at Google I/O.

Here's why: 

http://www.eweek.com/cloud/in-praise-of-googles-boring-2015-developer-conference.html

The Great Google                                    

Google Inc. unveiled payment services, security upgrades and access to HBO movies and shows for its popular Android software, seeking to push back against growing competition from rivals such as Apple Inc.

The new version of the mobile software, called Android M, will include Android Pay, which enables transactions at more than 700,000 stores in the U.S., Dave Burke, vice president of engineering for Android, said at the Internet company’s annual developers’ conference in San Francisco on Thursday.

Google is investing to extend Android’s reach by keeping users engaged on its services and attracting them to new platforms using the software, such as televisions, autos and wearable devices. The Web-search company’s mobile operating system grabbed 79 percent of the global smartphone market in the first quarter, down from 81 percent a year earlier, as Apple’s iPhone gained ground, according to Gartner Inc.

“For M, we have gone back to the basics,” said Sundar Pichai, Google’s senior vice president of products. “We have really focused on polish and quality.”

The conference, called I/O, comes less than two weeks before the start of Apple’s developer event at the same location. The companies are vying to attract software makers with more media platforms, better tools and new opportunities to make money from applications. Innovative mobile apps, such as messaging features, puzzle games and news services, can help keep users on the companies’ platforms.                         

Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg

Take your class on a virtual field trip with Google Expeditions

So much news with the kickoff of Google I/O 2015, but the most interesting I've seen so far is with Google Expeditions. It's an initiative to help teachers take their kids on field trips using the inexpensive VR headset Cardboard that Google released at last year's I/O conference.

If Google keeps up with Expeditions, this could be huge for the education industry. Since the Cardboard headset can be made out of a few lenses, magnets and, well, cardboard, the most expensive part would be an Android device for the headset. A high-end Android smartphone isn't even needed. A fairly wide range of Android devices that can fit into Cardboard are capable of producing VR experiences.

#virtualreality   #googleio2015   #education