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Google TV Debuts

Will the second time be the charm for Google TV? We’re about to find out, as the search giant debuted its second attempt at conquering -- or, at least complimenting -- consumers’ living rooms on Friday.

“This time, Google TV has a simpler user interface, smarter tools for searching, and is open to developers to build TV apps,” writes The New York Times. “It also has much humbler goals … Google no longer has visions of cord-cutting. Instead, it says it wants to complement what is already available on TV by offering new channels.

“The new version of Google TV isn’t really all that groundbreaking; rather, it’s what Google TV should have offered all along,” writes GigaOm. Likewise, “For the most part, it sounds like it’s not adding new stuff so much as trying to make what’s already there easier to use,” writes Technologizer.com.

“Google TV is real and its ambition levels remain high,” concludes Wired.com. Yet, as the Los Angels Times reports, “Analysts say the new version of Google TV is a step in the right direction, but won't win over consumers yet.” IDC analyst Danielle Levitas, for one, calls Google’s latest TV effort "incrementally better."

 Meanwhile, Gartner Research analyst Van Baker writes: "Is this going to cause everyone to race out and buy Google TV? I don't think so."

Google had also originally said that the new software update would be quickly followed by new hardware. “Today, the company said that would-be Google TV buyers will have to stick with the existing products from Sony and Logitech, or wait until early next year for second-generation products,” AllThingsD notes.

 

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