I've read that systems integrators and hardware vendors already could be testing the product, but it won't be commercially available until late in 2013. So it's got a long way to go.
In other words, there's no Web page where you can download the alpha or beta software. It needs to be integrated into a device, although I don't know if I has to embedded into the very deepest level of the firmware.
The performance issue is a good point. Will the Optio version of Android bog down the applications?
There are other questions, too. For example, will businesses have to install specific in-building location products (Bluetooth?) within specific areas to accurately enable/disable the phone's capabilities?
I can see where some employees will think about the Big Brother aspects of this software, but many companies already use device management software that can remotely disable or wipe phones and remotely install and activate other IT policies. The Optio software is an evolution of this type of device management.
Many contextual awareness applications are in the lab, but the Optio Labs is already being offered to systems integrators and handset vendors for testing, so it's not in the very early stages. Supposedly, the completed OS will be available in products late in 2013.
As for potential problems for employees, I'm sure companies that give these handsets to workers will explain how the software works. I assume the initial users of this new Android configuration will work for companies that are extremely security conscious, such as government security organizations and the military.
With all of the security-related issues that keep cropping up in regard to Android devices, this article is a refreshing look at what the platform is capable of. Now the challenge is selling this technology to companies that need it. One of the issues I can see IT having with this is lack of performance. We've all seen how location-based services can come up short. If this is the real deal and can be proven to work at a high-level, it is going to be very successful.
Google might have already studied on legal issues and should have solutions to market their product. Yet various regions and countries have different legal aspect that Google will have to consider.
Contextual awareness OSs or apps sounds a good idea, but it still looks like a lab project that will take time before it hits the market. I don't know how the IT policies will be implemented, but I can imagine that some legal issues should be dealt with before users can consent to have their device hiped off without their explicit permission.
When I suggested that Optio's security-oriented capabilities could be integrated with Google Now-like capabilities I was hoping that commenters would discuss some useful/interesting proactive enhancements for the enterprise!
What software do employees use that could be "Google Now-ed" to display data without asking for it?
What if a sales person enters a customer's office and the phone or tablet automatically displays information about the customer? Perhaps the sales person's customer database includes "tickler" type information, like the customer just had or is having a birthday, likes fishing and is traveling to Prague in two week-- so the user could mention those as ice-breakers at the start of the conversation?
Let me give you a more futuristic example, an employee is sitting as her desk speaking on the phone to a client and the computer is "listening" to the conversation. The computer picks up on key words and thoughts and automatically pops up information relating to those thoughts.
Example: A real estate agent is speaking to a potential home buyer who mentions he's concerned about mortgage interest rates, and up pops a screen that lists the latest interest rates and, more advanced, lists the monthly payments based on the price of the house the potential buyer is discussing (because the price was mentioned in the conversation)?
Or less futuristic, a company's accountant needs to keep track of short term interest rates in order to switch the company's cash to certificates of deposit -- and the phone/tablet automatically shows the highest interest rates of banks.
My thought is there are many contextual types of data that could be displayed for enterprises. Software can keep track of any non-hidden WiFi hotspots, even if they can't be accessed, so the location can be determined (more or less) in order to proactively display information about the company or person(s) there.
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