You must be living under a volcano if you haven’t heard about Google. Even if you aren’t a tech savvy person, I’m sure Google has played some role in your life. Google, a search giant, has helped people around the world better their lives by providing solutions to its customers free of cost. (well, almost)
Are you lost? Google Maps is there to help you find a way out of the puzzle. Forgot your files on the desktop? Google Drive will help you avoid your boss’s frustration. Those lovely moments are taking too much space? No problem! Google Photos will help you securely back them up. Important events coming up but you want to have fun? Google Calendar will help you plan your recreational activities around them. I can go on and on.
What started as a small search engine developed in a garage, is now one of the top, if not the best, player in the tech field. Google has expanded from just being a website which helps you search the humongous internet to a company which invests itself in technology helping people better connect with each other – something they initially planned. (Google’s name is inspired from Googol – meaning one followed by a hundred zeros so as to signify the amount of information it would be providing)
If you’re a tech-geek, you’d be aware of the excitement Google stirs before its annual exhibition named Google I/O. Every year, Google comes up with new technology that gives us a peek into the future of the company, and pretty much also where everyone will be heading. Mind you, some of the world’s best gadgets have been showcased here, and Google has always managed to make our jaws drop.
Being a close follower of Google’s parent company, Alphabet, it’s quite easy to observe the developing trend in the company’s releases. Do you remember Google Cardboard? Do you remember Google Glass? Do you still occasionally hear about Google Plus? Haha, this is getting interesting – I hope you’re catching the idea, did you know about Google Lively? Google Answers? Google Buzz? iGoogle? Yup. That’s correct. All of these are failed Google Projects. Everyone discusses what a huge success Google is, but it’s no brainstormer that Google has done some of the worst mistakes of the decade, and if I’m not wrong, continues to do so. Let’s get deeper.
Some of the projects of Google were merely a mismatch – some products were launched when the people simply did not understand the importance of it – while others were launched when people moved way past it. We won’t be talking about either of these situations. We’ll talk about that one secret formula which will ensure Google never fails again. Yup. Consider yourself lucky.
That one secret formula is: Watch and learn.
That’s it. Don’t tell me I’m wrong. Advertising Google Pixel because it has a headphone jack is not what I’m talking about. Bringing your competition down for the sake of cuckoo-publicity isn’t what I’m going to talk about either. Have you ever seen Apple bring down Google? Well, if you take a look at last year’s I/O conference, there were a lot of iPhone jokes being exchanged – most of which backfired thanks to the shifting mindset. It proved once again, that Apple was scaring Google.
Everybody knows that Google has been long trying to make a mark in the mobile industry – whether it is by acquiring Motorola, or it’s by tying up with LG for the Nexus series, then Huawei, or even the Android One series – Google desperately wants to capture the smartphone market, and why not? It’s the biggest industry of the decade. Everybody loved the Nexus 5, then came the Nexus 6 which was priced way more than the mountains, then eventually Google focused on a new flagship phone – “Google Pixel” to be sold using the tagline “Made By Google.”
Google has been trying, and it’s been desperate. A lot of Pixel’s features were a direct competition to the iPhone flagships, and it wasn’t long when Google decided to go all out on Apple like Facebook decided to go all out on Snapchat. Where have the work ethics gone? It’s understandable to implement the same feature in a better way but to criticize the company that started the feature is certainly not a good place to start.
Another big mistake Google makes (and Apple doesn’t), is that it displays the “upcoming” projects way before they’re actually made. A perfect example is the Google Cardboard – which aimed at providing Virtual Reality without having a ton of equipment – something everybody craved for. What actually happened? Before Google could even sell the product, a lot of other third-party vendors started selling the same product for a much cheaper price. And Google was defeated in its own race. This isn’t the first time Google has been overtaken by other people – simply because Google couldn’t deliver earlier than it planned.
Google should understand that not everybody is into technology and that people might be excited about your new amazing product, but they won’t necessarily buy them. Google Glasses is what I’m talking about. It’s a step into the future, literally. Do everything with your eyes. It’s cool, but not cool enough for me to spend any dollars on it.
You see, Apple doesn’t do that. Apple takes the right risks at the right time. Their technological leaps aren’t way into the future – rather, they simply guide the public to the future they were aiming at by giving them little things, one at a time. Apple has never spoken in the future tense. Their technology is right on the table – for you to see, use and judge. Unlike Google, where the phrase “This is where the future lies.” is flying around like a careless UFO.
I may not be a huge Apple fan (personal reasons), but I sure know that they got their plans right on the buck. What do you think? Will Google ever stop making such silly mistakes, or will Apple continue dominating the future?