Android This Week: Apple vs. HTC and Gesture Search
Android news this week was dominated by Apple — in the form of a lawsuit Cupertino filed against Android phone maker HTC alleging that it infringes on 20 patents that Apple holds “related to the iPhone’s user interface, underlying architecture and hardware.” The move is clearly a shot at Google as Android is at the heart of all of the HTC phones named in the suit. I believe Apple is also running scared ahead of the Chrome OS release due out later this year.
In the meantime, I had a chance to do a full review of Motorola’s latest Android phone, the Devour. The Devour is one of the heaviest smartphones I’ve tried, with a sleek industrial design that’s pleasing to the eye. It runs Android 1.6, not the latest and greatest version of the OS, but it handles it without any laggy performance. And of course, it comes with the social networking aggregating MotoBlur technology.
And it is now possible to search for information stored on Android phones by writing on the screen using just a fingertip, with Gesture Search. A Gesture Search icon sits at the bottom of the Android screen; once tapped, the user simply starts spelling the desired search term on the screen, one letter at a time. Gesture Search will search all information on the phone, including music and contacts. It learns as it is used so frequently accessed information on the phone will appear at the top of results for searches.
Ah the joys of Blog journalism. All the exposure of real journalism without any of the facts or research. You can say whatever you want and people will accept it. Seriously, “The move is clearly a shot at Google as Android is at the heart of all of the HTC phones named in the suit.” Have you spent more than 30 seconds reading about the suit or is your “knowledge” purely based on reading headlines. First of all that entire paragraph is completely unrelated to the article and present purely to draw hits. But thats an entirely different problem. Anyone who has spent even 30 seconds reading actual information regarding the case against HTC will see that the models listed run both the Android operating system as well as Windows Mobile. I would list off the exact models for you that Apple lists that have nothing to do with Android but maybe this way you will ACTUALLY read before you write next time. “Journalists” can try and spin the lawsuit however they want to make headlines but the facts remain that Apple has not sued Android or Google in this suit, nor has it brought lawsuits against other makers of Android phones. At bare minimum, even if you want to convince yourself the move is “clearly a shot at Google”, at least get your facts straight.
I read through the suit and while Windows Mobile handsets are specifically mentioned only one patent infringement is alleged with these devices: a DSP. As I read it, all of the other alleged infringement counts apply specifically and only to HTC’s Android devices, not those running Windows Mobile.
From the link you provided for this app – “Gesture Search currently recognizes the English alphabet and requires Android 2.0 or above.”
Too bad it won’t work on my myTouch (1.6).
Nice write up. Gesture search is the best thing to hit my Nexus One since I bought it. I love the app, it gives me speedy access to everything I need.
And I don’t know what the previous commenter is ragging the author about, Apple’s lawsuit is clearly aimed at Android. My guess is that Apple has no real intent other to create a cloud of FUD to attempt to slow down the Android juggernaut.
Apple is defending against the whole sale coping of the complete engineering assemblage that constitutes the iPhone look, feel and function. If HTC had used many of these elements in a new and differential product they would have likely been ignored.
Apple moved the industry out of it’s decade long innovative slumber by investing in some very expensive long term R&D.
Within 18 months of the iPhone’s release the market is full of iPhone look a likes that, do not only use most of the same software, hardware, look/fell and interface elements but deliver a virtual design copy of the complete engineering assemblage without any real note worthy changes. HTC is, in essence, a general supplier of cloned iPhones to a wide array of Apple’s competitors. HTC is a third party, one stop knockoff shop, reselling the value of Apple shareholder R&D to everyone else at commodity pricing.
It is this whole sale product copy of the complete iPhone engineering assemblage that Apple objects to and rightfully so!
If any car company came out with a revolutionary new car design with a look/fell and functional interface that was as radically game changing to all other cars as the iPhone was to all other earlier smart phones, no one would ever dare copy the complete engineering assemblage to produce cars that were a virtual carbon copy. Other car companies would indeed design their new products to compete with the new innovations but not as a obvious look/feel and functional knockoff.
Where is it written that Apple should owe other competing corporations a free ride on the back of Apple shareholder financed R&D. The commodity produces are not owed a free lunch producing the latest and greatest product designs free of normal R&D overhead.
Commodity producers should stick to producing low margin commoditized goods, produce newer products under license or do their own R&D. The wholesale stealing of complete product designs is not nor should it be on the innovators menu.
I guess apple must of patented the usage of paragraphs and that is why you don’t use them.
How can one patent basic human gestures? It’s like patenting a monitor based on the way eyes look at it.