The search engine market is one that tends to change only slightly for the most part with Google dominating, Yahoo coming in second, and Microsoft the perennial third place. That market has changed a bit since Yahoo started using Bing search results, but Yahoo and Microsoft are still reported separately by Comscore.
The latest numbers for September 2010 have been revealed and as expected Google is the top search site with 66.1% of the market, up slightly from 65.4% in August. Second place for the month went to Yahoo with 16.7% of the market, down from 17.4% in August.
Microsoft grabbed 11.2% for September, up a tiny fraction from 11.1% in August. ASK takes the fourth place spot with a scant 3.7% of the market, a decline from 3.8% in August with AOL in the same spot with 2.3% of the market for August and September. If you combine Yahoo and Microsoft search, the two still have about half the reach of Google.
Remember when Google opened up its own portal for purchasing the Nexus One? It was January 2010, and the URL was as simple as www.google.com/phone — ah, those were the days. Of course, the store has been down since late July when the phone sold out (permanently), so what’s the company to do with such a catchy web address? Simple: make a database of devices running your über-popular Android OS and help customers both compare and find where to buy. Only, it’s not just any devices running the platform: according to the Official Google Mobile blog, “all the phones in the gallery include Android Market, Google Search, and other Google Mobile services such as Gmail, Maps, and YouTube.” In other words, no phones that meddle with the Android Vision by opting for Bing or Yahoo instead. Maybe Fascinate can join the ranks after that purported Android 2.2 launch, but for now it’s conspicuously absent. Them’s the breaks — still, it’s fun to explore and draw up side-by-side comparison charts. Go on, give it a whirl, why don’t ya?
We’re not sure exactly what Verizon is up to with these high-end Android phones that aren’t Droids and feature Bing over Google, but it looks like the Fascinate is about to get a friend: BGR just got these snaps of the HTC ADR6325, which appears to be the Merge we’ve heard so much about, and the same dual-mode set we saw at the FCC. Nothing’s confirmed specs-wise except a five megapixel camera, microSD slot, and SIM slot for global roaming, but we’re still pretty sure this thing will basically be the CDMA version of the Desire Z / T-Mobile G2 and feature a Qualcomm MSM7630 processor with 4GB of onboard storage. And then there’s that Bing logo on the homescreen — we don’t know how thoroughly it’s integrated into Sense, but here’s hoping it’s better than what Samsung accomplished with TouchWiz on the Fascinate — hardware this promising shouldn’t be saddled with carrier-wrecked firmware.
We’d previously heard from Verizon that you’d be able to install Google search functionality once Android 2.2 gets rolled out (in other words, they wouldn’t actively block the app that’s supposed to be available on any device running Froyo), but if you can’t stand Bing, it turns out that you can fast-track the process in the current 2.1 firmware with very little effort. Basically, you download Google’s enhanced search APK — which is blocked from the Market in 2.1, so you need to download it and install it outside the Market proper — then use a third-party launcher like LauncherPro to add the widget and reassign the search button. Voice search still requires root to get working properly, but it is possible, so yeah — user community, one; Verizon-Bing search deal, zero.
There’s a rumor going around today that Verizon is stripping Google services out of its Android devices going forward in favor of their Bing equivalents (much the same way that AT&T has gone with Yahoo on some phones), but the company says this afternoon that it’s simply false:
“…that is not true. We have a relationship with Microsoft and Bing is the search engine on our multi-media phones but we have never said it would be exclusive on all of our devices.”
We think the wording here is pretty important: “on our multi-media phones.” We take this to mean that Verizon’s looking at using Bing on its high-end featurephones and its midrange smartphones, possibly keeping the end-to-end Google experience exclusive to its cream of the crop — which would also explain why the recently-launched Fascinate didn’t get the coveted Droid brand as a part of its name.
On a related note, we’re hearing from a tipster today that an upcoming low-end Android device for Verizon from LG is loaded with Bing services, which strengthens the case — it looks like Bing is the “cheap” experience for Big Red right now. We’ve gotta admit, we’re wondering how Microsoft feels about that positioning.
Update: Microsoft is basically corroborating Verizon’s statement, saying that “the deal for Verizon Android devices is not exclusive.”
Update 2: Verizon is additionally saying that Google’s revamped search box that includes its new voice action capabilities will be available for download once the Fascinate hits Android 2.2 — in other words, they’re not explicitly blocking Google services from being installed on the device. Of course, that doesn’t solve the root problem, which is that Bing is baked into the shipping ROM — but it’s something, we suppose.
There’s nothing quite like going to a city where you’re going to need a cab. Sure, if you’ve lived in one of these areas and dealt with the cab fares, you probably know what you’re getting yourself into. However, if such things are a rarity, you can get surprised by your fare, and spend more money than you had originally planned. If you want to be a smart traveler, Bing can actually help you out with this.
A new feature recently added to Bing Maps is the ability to roughly calculate taxi fares. All you need to do is search for directions as usual, then use the Taxi Fare Calculator tool. It takes into account the initial charge, mileage and even projected wait times. I rarely have a desire to use anything besides Google Maps, but this feature certainly makes Bing Maps look rather appealing.
It’s not guaranteed to make you any smarter, but having such an intelligent little bird upside your ear may at least give you a minor boost in confidence. A full 1.5 years after the original Q1 made its debut, BlueAnt is introducing its Q2 Smart Bluetooth Headset. Aside from being able to cancel out noise while traveling at up to 22mph (read: Usain Bolt’s average walking speed), the Q2 also touts a fully integrated text-to-speech feature that belts out news, weather, sports and the latest gossip from Microsoft’s Bing 411. And if you just so happen to use a smartphone with Android 2.0 or newer, it’ll actually read your text messages and emails aloud without you having to fish your handset out of your britches. It’s available now at AT&T stores for $129, and just in case you’re wondering, you can freak mall walkers out for five solid hours without needing a recharge. Not that we’d encourage such behavior.
Remember the first time you used Google Street View? Amazing, right? Thing is, traversing a busy urban street in a 360-degree photographic bubble can be disorienting, especially when searching for a specific address or business. So check this: Microsoft Research has developed a rather nifty solution it calls Street Slide. Zoom out of your panoramic bubble and the street is presented as a dynamic, multi-perspective “strip” giving you an instant visual summary of the surroundings — similar to viewing the entire street from a distance. Fortunately, Microsoft took advantage of what would otherwise be the unused letterboxed screen above and below the strip to add navigational and informational aids like clickable business logos and building numbers. Pretty impressive, and Microsoft is already working on taking Street Slide mobile with an iPhone port, and no doubt a version for the upcoming Windows Phone 7 series of devices. Unfortunately, don’t expect this to be released anytime soon as the team has only processed about 2400 panoramas so far covering just 4 kilometers of streets. Check the video after the break, you’ll be glad you did.
Microsoft’s Bing and Google’s Android aren’t exactly complete strangers (hello, Moto), but now the company is saying it’ll bring a full-featured client to the platform sometime within the next six weeks. Not much is known, but according to PC World (via Yahoo! News), it’ll at least include desktop-parity with features such as web, image, and news search (in addition to maps, of course). ¿Está tu Nexus One listo para los links?
What turned into a pretty frenzied rumor this afternoon ended up being much ado about nothing, but there is something noteworthy. As the story goes, TechCrunch reported that Microsoft was going to completely replace Google with Bing as the search engine of choice for the iPhone once OS 4 launches next month. Enter All Things Digital’s Kara Swisher, who has a pretty strong track record on all things Redmond. According to her sources, what’s being discussed isn’t a full swap — instead, Bing is being considered for an “option” that users can decide between. None of this is what we’d call brand new gossip, and in fact, it sounds exactly like what we heard back in January. So, discussions still seem to be ongoing four months later, which is pretty interesting. For its part, the original TC article has been amended to say the issue is “more complicated” than originally presented. Hey June 7th? You really can’t get here fast enough.
The search engine market is one that tends to change only slightly for the most part with Google dominating, Yahoo coming in second, and Microsoft the perennial third place. That market has changed a bit since Yahoo started using Bing search results, but Yahoo and Microsoft are still reported separately by Comscore.
