Tomorrow is the big unveil for Android Honeycomb, and like I said before, I wouldn’t be surprised if Google had something else up their sleeve for the event. Well, that just may be true, as it seems as though the search giant may be officially announcing their online Android Market and cloud-based music service, Google Music, at their Android 3.0 Honeycomb press event in Mountain View, CA. tomorrow morning.
I’m not sure if there’s much of a basis to this rumor, but it does make a lot of sense that the Big G would unveil their long-awaited Google Music streaming music service and the web-based Market to the world, alongside Honeycomb. While this particular version of the mobile operating system is quite a departure from past Android versions, it would make sense to have a media event for something along the lines of new services within Honeycomb. Granted, we may not have yet had the chance to get real hands-on with Honeycomb, but with the introduction of Android 3.0 tablets on their way in the very near future, we can’t imagine that Honeycomb will be the sole focus of the event.
The browser-based Android Market was demoed at last year’s Google I/O, and takes advantage of the already awesome Chrome to Phone feature that allows you to send web pages, Google Maps directions, and other things from your browser to your phone with just a click. The online version of the Market will give users the option of searching for applications online (which will likely help apps be more discoverable), choose the applications they want to download, and send them directly to their phone – all from the convenience of their desktop. The user could then simply watch the selected applications download instantly to the phone, hands-free!
But the web-based Android Market isn’t the feature we’re most excited for…
We may see the much talked about Google Music service at the event tomorrow. Last we heard, Google hadn’t signed any deals with record labels, but a lot can change in a couple of months. Like the online Android Market, Google Music would allow users to shop for music online, and have the music sent to their phone and downloaded immediately. But say your internal memory or microSD card is full, and you’d rather not have to delete anything from it. Well, Google Music has you covered in that aspect as well. As demoed at the Google I/O, you can access your home computer’s music library right from your phone, and never download a thing. This cloud-based service isn’t necessarily new, but if Google gets behind, you can be sure it’ll be quite a game changer. We were expecting to see Apple implement this sort of streaming music functionality, but they just decided to offer music from the Beatles. Looks like Google may beat them to the punch.
We have already seen Music Sync find its way into certain Gingerbread-toting devices, so what better way to announce this new, exciting service than at a highly anticipated press event?
While this isn’t confirmed, we have every reason to believe that this is what we may be seeing tomorrow. Who’s excited? Keep your eyes on IntoMobile for live coverage from the Honeycomb event tomorrow!
[Via: AndroidAndMe]