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Cape Town - Google has launched its new operating system and could not hesitate to take a shot at Apple.
The search giant new Lollipop operating system (Android 5.0) is designed to synchronise with all your Android devices, and Google made big promises for the new OS.
"Now content responds to your touch, or even your voice, in more intuitive ways, and transitions between tasks are more fluid," wrote Sundar Pichai, SVP for Android, Chrome and Apps on the Android blog.
However, an ad accompanying the launch has raised eyebrows.
The new Android OS ad with the tagline "Be together.not the same" is undoubtedly a thinly veiled pot-shot at Apple.
The animated advert shows very different characters waiting for a bus when a phone rings. All the phones are different, yet are joined by the Google ecosystem.
While Google crafts the Android OS, several manufacturers build hardware and are allowed to customise their devices to differentiate themselves in the minds of consumers.
Ecosystem
The strategy has resulted in Android being a hugely successful OS, commanding around 85% of the smart devices market, according to industry groups.
Apple, on the other has total control of its ecosystem and despite launching two larger iPhones in September, the company generally has a limited range of devices, compared to the Android ecosystem.
Google's ad takes a target at Apple with the video saying that Android offers "All kinds of phones, for all kinds of people."
Indeed, Android is available in SA on devices starting at around R500 for Vodacom's Kicka and MTN's Steppa, all the way up north of R9 000 for the likes of the HTC One (M8), Sony Xperia Z2, LG G3, Samsung Galaxy S5 and others.
Google also launched the latest version of its Nexus smartphone, though pricing was not announced and it is unlikely that it will be coming to SA.
Check out the Android video here:
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