Apple has even bigger plans for Android, Apple CEO, Tim Cook, hinted in a Town Hall meeting with employees last night, so what services might it bring to Android in future? Here’s a few suggestions:
Town hall speak
Apple already offers Apple Music for Android, Cook explained that Apple Music for Android isn’t just about the music, but is also a way for the company to test the potential of bringing its services to other platforms.
(Apple also offers a much-used Android to iPhone “switcher’s” app and reportedly under pressure from regulators to make an app to make it easy to switch back).
Cook talked about a range of additional topics during the meeting, as reported by 9to5Mac and summarized below:
- iPhone is “the greatest business of the future” and still matters.
- Cook is bullish on iPad sales which he expects to see climb this year.
- Developing markets are highly important and success doesn’t depend on cheaper products
- Apple TV is off to a strong start, setting new records over Christmas and setting the stage for a “bright” future in the den.
- Apple Watch sales exceeded those of the original iPhone in its first holiday quarter.
iAndroid for iPhone
So, which of Apple’s services make sense on Android? Here are a few suggestions:
iCloud
The capacity to sync data and services across platforms would certainly be useful to people, particularly Family Sharing for those using multiple platforms. Photos sync would be useful, too, which of course requires Apple also introduce Photos for Android. The latter could also create an opportunity for developers to sell Photos plug-ins on the other smartphone platform. Probably built using Swift.
iWork
iWork in iCloud already lets users work on documents, spreadsheets and presentations online using a browser on Windows and Mac platforms, with the Pages, Numbers and Keynote apps available for iOS. Can Android equivalents be in Apple’s plans? Doing so would enable much easier cross-platform collaboration, which enterprise users are already clamouring for.
Maps
Apple Maps have improved so much the app is now more popular than Google Maps on iPhones and iPads, but it’s impossible for Android users to see these improvements themselves. Why not change this? After all, the lingering after effects of the original Maps release debacle means diehard Android users continue to slam Apple’s mapping service - perhaps the only way to quell such critics is to let interested Android users see for themselves. They may well be pleasantly surprised by the ads-free mapping service. And another reason not to switch to iPhone would evaporate.
Siri
Why is Google Now available for iOS but you can’t get Siri on Android? After all, we all know Google uses its products to gather information about its users to help it sell ads and whatever else it does, but now Apple has abandoned interest in ads sales, surely some Android users would enjoy an ad-free alternative? Not only this, but because Siri’s AI learns as it is used, the more people using the service the smarter it will become. While because it’s a cloud-based service, Siri for Android would only require Apple build a decent front end.
iBooks
Apple and the entire publishing industry would like to break Amazon’s stranglehold on the publishing industry. Bringing iBooks to Android would be good for Android users, publishers, authors and Apple – what’s wrong with that?
Apple Pay
Apple Pay for Android without a Secure Enclave? Preposterous. There’s one insanely easy way to do it, of course – introduce Android support for Apple Watch.
Streaming
Perhaps the most likely all-platforms service Apple could be thinking about might be the much-rumored streaming television service…after all, the one take away we do have of the new Apple is that whatever it does offer to Android, the company hopes to yield a new income stream from it.
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