You probably didn’t know: Android OS was originally developed for cameras, not phones

Tram Ho

Today, Android is synonymous with smartphones. Android is the most popular mobile operating system in the world, with more than 2.5 billion active devices. However, many people don’t know that Android was originally developed for digital cameras, not phones.

At the Economic Summit in Tokyo in 2013, Android co-founder Andy Rubin revealed that the operating system was actually developed for digital cameras. The goal is to create a platform for cameras, which can integrate cloud storage for photos and videos.

Có thể bạn chưa biết: HĐH Android ban đầu được phát triển cho máy ảnh, chứ không phải điện thoại - Ảnh 1.

Android was originally developed for digital cameras.

It is a useful solution that helps users easily store photos and videos with unlimited storage, and can easily share with many different devices. Andy Rubin also shared the slide that he used to present to investors in 2004. However, that idea was not well received by investors, so the project was terminated shortly thereafter.

“We recognize that digital cameras are not a big enough market.”

About five months after meeting with investors in 2004, Andy Rubin and his colleagues in the Android development team decided to change the strategy. They realize that digital cameras are not a big enough market, and see another opportunity in the smartphone market.

After making a few changes, the Android operating system we know is officially born. Android was much different than the smart operating systems on the phone at the time, especially in terms of price.

Có thể bạn chưa biết: HĐH Android ban đầu được phát triển cho máy ảnh, chứ không phải điện thoại - Ảnh 2.

Andy Rubin and colleagues in the Android development team decided to change the strategy, after being rejected by investors.

The development team knows that the phone market is very price sensitive, so Android is available for free. The goal is to make Android a popular platform, selling other services and software.

But to make that idea a reality, the Android development team needed a partner with enough money. And that’s when Google jumped into the game. The search giant acquired Android in 2005, and hired Andy Rubin as senior vice president for mobile and digital content.

One goal is to have a 9% market share in North America and Europe within 5 years. As a result, that goal has been excellently accomplished, even though Android accounted for 24% of the North American market share by the end of 2020. Today, Android accounts for more than 80% of the global smartphone market share.

Failure is another door to success

It was the refusal of investors in 2004 that led the Android development team to change from the camera market to the smartphone market, which has led to the unimaginable success of Android.

If you look at the numbers, the global smartphone market reached 122 million devices in 2007, but increased to 1.5 billion in 2019. Meanwhile, the digital camera market fell from 100 million. device in 2007, to 15 million in 2019. A huge difference.

Có thể bạn chưa biết: HĐH Android ban đầu được phát triển cho máy ảnh, chứ không phải điện thoại - Ảnh 3.

And we have today’s extremely successful Android.

If that year, Andy Rubin and his development team were adamant with the original idea of ​​an Android operating system for cameras, really didn’t know what would happen. Chances are Android will become a forgotten name. Google may never enter the smartphone market, and Microsoft may have been very successful with the Windows Phone platform. Even Nokia and Symbia can still be a popular operating system to this day.

The story of Android shows us that failure can be another door to success. And just one decision can change the whole world.

Reference: androidauthority

Share the news now

Source : Genk