Google has unveiled an optimized version of its Google Mobile App for the Apple iPad, looking to make its mobile search tools easier to navigate with the tablet’s larger size. The company’s web-based apps, including Gmail, Reader, Maps and Buzz, have also seen some optimization, giving Google a step ahead of Microsoft for iPad-specific mobile app updates.
The distinction is important, as Google focuses on search and access to your Google Apps through any mobile device. As this is how Google “owns” its user content, ensuring every access point is as usable as possible for its existing and potential consumers. Yet the problems Google has faced in previous app releases for Apple products also means that Google has to be calculated in its feature roll outs.
This comes into play when you consider the plans Google has for enhancing its mobile apps to work better with iPad-specific features. There’s no word yet on what iPad-specific features Google hopes to employ, but the ongoing battle between Apple and Google could heat up further if Google oversteps its bounds. Those boundary lines are a matter of contention when it comes to the two companies’ approaches to mobile platforms, and Apple will not hesitate to shut down a competing Google App that runs on its products. Just look at what happened when Google tried to launch its Voice app for the iPhone.
It’s unlikely that things will reach this point when it comes to iPad apps, especially as the primary difference of Google Apps experiences with the iPad is the device’s size and increased comfort in navigating. To that end, Google has improved its web-based Apps for iPad access, taking advantage of Apple’s desire to make mobile browsing a much easier task. This desire is extended to the iPhone as well, which will see additional improvements with the upcoming OS4.
This doesn’t incur much more conflict between Apple and Google for the time being, but it’s also evident that Apple is looking to improve some search tools on its own. This revolves primarily around iTunes and the ability to more easily find apps for Apple’s mobile devices, which would encourage activity around the profitable marketplace. Not entirely the same grounds as Google’s ownership over search data, but notable nonetheless.
Google has its own mobile platform to optimize as well, with the Android Market seeing continued growth in recent months. As Android is more open than Apple’s mobile platforms, further impeding on Apple’s space would be another way in which Google eats away at Apple’s presence. Google has already announced its plans for expanding Android’s availability to other devices, such as televisions. Tablet computers are yet another step for Android that we will see in the near future.
That being said, Google may still end up with the dominating presence, even if Apple retains its higher numbers. When it comes to mobile platforms, their supported devices, and the marketplaces that are able to thrive through increased access and usability for consumers, there are still several factors that are up for grabs, with even more combinations and overlapping system structures for cooperative or intrusive profitability.
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