What will Android look like in the next ten years?

Text messaging

The history of Google with messaging apps is legendary, with Android having at least three over the past decade. The company was never able to get one, however, and none was confronted with the Apple iMessage platform. As such, text messaging on Android feels stuck in a bygone era where keystrokes and read receipts have never occurred.

The cat could change that. It's not just another application, Chat relies on the Rich Communications Services (RCS) protocol, which replaces obsolete SMS. To truly compete with iMessage, Google will need to deploy a desktop email application and offer end-to-end encryption, not just support for group chats and animated stickers. We have not seen any proof of a desktop application (but there is a web version), but this one has unfortunately been ruled out.

Success depends on the number of carriers and hardware manufacturers available. Until now, Google has partnered with Samsung, T-Mobile and Sprint to promote the adoption of the standard. Apparently, there are more than 50 operators, nearly a dozen hardware manufacturers and two operating system manufacturers (Google and Microsoft) supporting RCS, but there are still notable absences from other vendors. Apple, AT & T and Verizon. With the upcoming Pixel 3 announcement, maybe that will not be the case for much longer.

Android One

Android One is not Android Go. The latter is a line of budget handsets designed for developing markets. The first requires a little more explanation. One of the biggest strengths of Android (an open platform) is also a huge weakness. If you want pure Android, and not a bare-bones version of what the third-party hardware manufacturer has decided, and without bloatware, your options are limited for most of the last decade.

The idea with Android One is to give customers the assurance that the Android phone that they buy meets a certain set of standards, including security updates and a uniform interface. Google keeps a closer leash on Android One than the Android Open Source program, but unlike its internally developed Pixel devices, it does not control every aspect of the design.

This gives manufacturers some flexibility to adjust specifications and features for different regions or to prioritize one aspect of the material over another. For you and me, Android One offers the promise of regular security updates and software directly from Google.

No doubt, it's an extension of the old handsets of the Nexus line and Play Edition. All you have to do is look for the Android One badge, and you're ready to go – a stark contrast to the "will I go? / Will not I?" guessing game involved with updates for other Android handsets. This strengthens the platform as a whole and ensures that more people have access to the latest and most secure version of Android.

Google mobile apps