Google’s teasing something huge for its October 4 launch event, and it could even be the formal announcement of the project to merge Chrome and Android into one harmonious device-agnostic OS.
We already know that event will likely include a range of different devices, including its Amazon Echo competitor called Home, and a 4K version of Chromecast, but the folks at AndroidPolice think that a tweet from the company’s Senior Vice President of Android, Play, and Chrome hints at something bigger than a Pixel phone, specifically a project known as ‘Andromeda’.
“We announced the 1st version of Android 8 years ago today. I have a feeling 8 years from now we’ll be talking about Oct 4, 2016,” Hiroshi Lockheimer tweeted.
This isn’t a new concept by any means, and is admittedly a bit of a reach with nothing more than a celebratory teaser tweet as the evidence, but it’s a move that desperately needs to happen.
Odd as it seems, there’s not really any consumer electronics maker that has successfully cracked the desktop and mobile space simultaneously. Microsoft and Ubuntu are the only companies to have (publicly) given it a proper shot, and both have failed to rouse any notable interest from mass markets with their mobile OSes.
That puts Google in a prime position to make the jump before Apple does (which it will) to a single OS approach. That’s not to say it’ll be easy, Chrome is by no means a perfect desktop OS but forks like Remix’s Android OS that combine the best of the two show some genuine potential.
There’s no suggestion that the October 4 event will offer more than a glimpse of the project (previous reports suggest a 2017 timeline for launch) but a glimpse would be welcomed right now.
Or, perhaps, Lockheimer was referring to the Pixel phone and we’re all a bit too excited. Not long to wait to find out either way.
Related: Google’s Amazon Echo rival will reportedly cost $129
Watch: Google I/O 2016
Would you consider ditching your OS for a Chrome-Android hybrid? Let us know below!
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.