While Google didn't have any major announcements besides Android Things at Mobile World Congress which concluded last week, its senior vice president for its hardware unit Rick Osterloh shed some light around its new found strategy around consumer electronics. In the interaction with PCMag India, Osterloh highlighted the importance of user experience and said that Google would go to any length to develop components, which would offer its Pixel smartphones an edge in terms of user experience.
"We will go anywhere where innovation requires us to go," he said. "Without a doubt, the company will make bold and audacious bets on technology if they impact the user experience," he added.
He cited the example of TPUs which Google has developed for its data centres, however, he did say that Google wasn't specifically developing custom silicon for the Pixel smartphones.
While Google had taken that direction for its TPUs to run tensor flow in its data centres, Osterloh said if that kind of an approach was needed for its consumer electronics division, Google would do it. Famously, Apple designs its own ARM processors for the iPhone and the iPad which has been a reason for the perceived superior user experience of iOS devices.
Not designing chips, co-developing with supply partners
But currently he indicated that kind of an approach wasn't needed as Google wasn't "just" sourcing "off the shelf" components like the Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor and marrying it to its software. He said that many elements in the supply chain are actually co-developed by OEMs and the supply partner.
"Well, off the shelf is a funny term. What you really do is that you work very closely with every supply partner who has a critical piece in your user experience and you co-design elements of the component. We certainly expect to continue doing that with all of our partners," he said.
This was on expected lines as component makers like Qualcomm and Sony which are the lead players in smartphone silicon and camera modules largely sell their products to companies that make devices based on Google's Android platform. Additionally, for certain use cases, these supply chain partners develop features in tandem with their OEM partners.
For instance, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 was the first fully VR ready mobile processor and it debuted with the Pixel and the Android Daydream View headset which was for Google's VR platform.
Why Pixel and Google Home?
Osterloh explained that Google wanted to offer products that best represented what the Google brand stood for and that's why it got into the hardware game. Google's philosophy behind Android allows its partners to modify Android in a way they could showcase their own brand. But this also means that Google's name doesn't come out properly and at times the modifications don't represent Google's brand.
Pixel 2 coming later this year
At the briefing Osterloh also addressed the elephant in the room. The successor to the Pixel and he said that a successor was in the works which would come later in the year without divulging much information.
"There is an annual rhythm in the industry. So, you can count on us to follow it. You can count on a successor this year, even if you don't hear a date from me now," he said.
He further specified that the Pixel line would remain a premium offering, and Google would work with their OEM partners for cheaper Android alternatives squashing any report of a budget Pixel branded smartphone.
Disclaimer: Qualcomm paid for the journalist's travel and stay in Barcelona to cover Mobile World Congress.
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