The Mysterious Google Entertainment Device
Written by Alan Sunday, 5 February 2012 04:36
Most people think of Google as a search company, but their primary source of revenue is actually advertising. It permeates everything they do – there are ads in the search results, they sell ads to advertisers through AdWords and publishers through AdSense, and much more. Last year they made their first tentative steps into the entertainment business with Google TV, which met with a less than ideal response, although that is beginning to change. Now it appears Google in beginning to test a new entertainment device.
There’s a real possibility that this is nothing more than the next generation of Google TV, but at this point it all seems a bit mysterious. Google has filed a request with the Federal Communications Commission to test a WiFi and Bluetooth enabled device in the homes of employees in four different cities. From the FCC request:
“Google is developing an entertainment device that requires testing outside the laboratory environment. The device is in the prototyping phase and will be modified prior to final compliance testing. … Users will connect their device to home WiFi networks and use Bluetooth to connect to other home electronics equipment. This line of testing will reveal real world engineering issues and reliability of networks. The device utilizes a standard WiFi/Bluetooth module, and the planned testing is not directed at evaluating the radio frequency characteristics of the module (which are known), but rather at the throughput and stability of the home WiFi networks that will support the device, as well as the basic functionality of the device. From this testing we hope to modify the design in order to maximize product robustness and user experience. Utilizing the requested number of units will allow testing of real world network performance and its impact on applications running on the device, so that any problems can be discovered and addressed promptly.”
The test will be carried out in Mountain View, CA, New York City, NY, Cambridge, MA, and Los Angeles, CA. The test period will run from January 17th until July 17th. That means it will likely be quite some time before we get any real information on what this product is.
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