Google is launching Android One devices in the Philippines next

The pursuit to getting the world connected to the internet is moving along slowly but steadily for companies like Google. Keeping that momentum going, Google has just announced a couple new Android One powered devices, destined for the Philippines.

We recently took a shot or two at Android One in our Friday Debate Podcast, our general approach was that the devices did not offer enough bang for the buck vs some of the competition out there right now. As true as they may or may not be, Cherry Mobile and MyPhone will each have a new Android One device on store shelves in the coming weeks.

The Cherry One and the MyPhone Uno will be Android 5.1 Lollipop powered devices, with dual SIM and microSD card slots. Front and rear facing cameras will help users keep up with all the social trends and Google is happy to point out the battery saving and data saving features of Lollipop as benefits to users in the parts of the world, like the Philippines, that do not have power and data readily available for all.

Check out Google’s Asia Pacific focused blog post for all the details, including the fact that the Philippines is the sixth country to launch Android One devices. With more to come.

To all of our readers in the Philippines, are you excited for Android One, or do you already rock something a little bigger and better?

Report: Google in talks with developers to subsidize app data costs

Google may be on the verge of breaking into developing markets with their cheap Android One handsets, but there seems to be a problem stifling many smartphone users in those specific countries. According to data from McKinsey and the International Labour Organization, a Jana survey of 8,000 smartphone users found that data expenses were among one of the biggest reasons why users don’t download or use applications on their smartphones. Specifically, over 25% of respondents of the survey from India, Indonesia, Thailand, Egypt and the Philippines considered high data costs to be the biggest obstacle holding them back from using apps. Google’s Android One platform might offer low-cost devices to emerging markets, but that doesn’t help the high prices of data costs at all.

According to a new report from The Information, Google may be looking for ways to subsidize data costs so users can actually use their smartphones. Google engineers have reportedly been in talks with app developers in emerging markets to reduce or even completely eliminate mobile data costs using a practice called “zero rating.” Zero rating is nothing new in the mobile world. It’s basically a way for app developers, such as Facebook or WhatsApp, to strike deals between wireless carriers to subsidize data costs, which can then be promoted by both the app developers and the carriers involved.

So where does Google come in? According to “sources familiar with the matter,” Google has plans to pilot this initiative in India with notable services like Flipkart, Snapdeal, Redbus and even Ola Cabs, India’s version of Uber. These services tend to rack up much more data than users are allotted per month, so the developers are already willing to pay the high bandwidth costs to get more users connected with their services. These are obviously the first apps and services Google is targeting with their initiative – companies that already practice the subsidization of data – to bring more users online.

Acting as the middleman would allow app developers to not have to make these zero-rating arrangements with individual carriers.

The Information reports that Google could act as a middleman between the services and wireless carriers that are charging the huge data fees. Acting as the middleman would also allow app developers to not have to make these zero-rating arrangements with individual carriers. In theory, when someone uses the Ola Cabs app from their smartphone, Google will be able to recognize that data and pay the carrier for the data charges. In turn, the third-party developer would also be expected to pay some of the charge. Even though the app developer would need to pay the wireless carrier for some of the data used, it would still likely make the developers more money since more users are taking advantage of their services. One person who has been involved in Google’s discussions says:

The user should be able to say, ‘I want this service’ and then use it, without worrying about draining their data plan.

The report also states that it’s unclear whether or not Google has discussed this deal with wireless carriers yet.

This new initiative is reported to first be tested in India on Android One handsets, later expanding out to other Android handsets and other geographies.

But how would Google make money from any of this? Let’s first take a look at Google’s past efforts to bring data to low-income countries. If you can recall back to the launch of the Android One program, Google guaranteed that users on Airtel would not be charged for data used to update their mobile devices for future OS updates. Moreover, Google includes 200MB/month of free data to use on apps downloaded from the Google Play Store. Now, a bit of free data likely won’t be the sole reason for buying an Android One handset for most, but it can’t hurt. And remember, Google wants your information, and they want you to use Google services. So, app developers, mobile carriers and Google could all promote this zero-rating initiative as a benefit to users, thus making more consumers sign up for mobile phones now that they can afford to actually use the handsets. It could also help bolster Android One sales, which have apparently gotten off to a rough start.

Remember, this is all hearsay for now, so only time will tell whether or not this all proves true. What are your thoughts on this new initiative? Is this a good way to get more users on the Android platform, or is Google just wasting their time? Let us know your thoughts!

Android 5.1 (!) spotted running on Android One devices headed for Indonesia

Now here’s something you don’t see every day: a new version of Android spotted in the wild with nary a word from Google.

Google announced a few hours ago the upcoming availability of the Android One program in Indonesia. Following India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, this is the fifth country where Google is rolling out its affordable smartphone program. So far, nothing special… except Android 5.1 is mentioned multiple times on the Indonesian Android One landing page, and there’s even a subtle reference to it in the press image (above), where time is set to 5:10.

But the more solid evidence comes from images of the device hitting Indonesia obtained by the folks at Android Police. The images show, black on white, that the software running on the Android One-powered Nexian Journey is Android 5.1.

Given this and the references from the promo site, it looks very likely that Android 5.1 is real, and, probably, coming soon to more devices. Now that the cat is out of the bag, we don’t see Google delaying an official announcement for too long.

What will be new in Android 5.1? We have no details yet, but last year, Android Pit ran an exclusive story claiming Android 5.1 would land by the end of this month, bringing fixes to several glaring problems present in Android 5.0, including the return or proper silent mode and better memory management.

It’s odd that Google is shipping updated software to new devices before even announcing it, but it happened in the past, albeit with smaller revisions. Hopefully, official info is coming soon.

What do you hope to see in Android 5.1?