Goodbye Google TV; hello Android TV. At least, that's according to the latest reports from GigaOM, which indicate that Google will officially debut its new television software platform at Google I/O in late June.
While the core differences between the company's Google TV efforts and its new Android TV platform can be a wee confusing, GigaOM reports that the latter is going to be designed with simplicity in mind. Think online services and Android-based video games, with some of the usual media services lining up for the platform's launch (Netflix, Hulu, et cetera).
Android TV users will be playing with a brand-new "card-based interface" to access content. Google has been calling this setup "Pano" internally, and it's designed to put content front-and-center instead of the apps used to play it.
"Content will be presented in a series of cards that can be browsed horizontally, and each movie or TV show episode has deep links into publisher's apps, giving users the option to start playback right away. That's different from the traditional smart TV experience, where users generally first have to launch an app from a publisher, and then browse that apps catalog before they can play a title," writes GigaOM's Janko Roettgers.
For a sneak peek at just what that might look like, you'll want to refer to an April report from The Verge which spilled an earlier version of the look and feel of this cards-based layout. While Pano has likely gone through some design tweaks since then, GigaOM indicates that Google's announcement at Google I/O will showcase a similar interface. That, or you could just check out Amazon's Fire TV — Pano is said to closely resemble that, with a bit more of a push toward Android-driven gaming.
That all said, it remains to be seen just how Google's somewhat-popular ChromeCast device will fit into the TV ecosystem, assuming Android TV takes off. If manufacturers sign on board to the idea (they didn't, to a great degree, with Google TV), then it stands to reason that Google's ChromeCast device will serve as an entry-level item of sorts to Google's living room aspirations. After all, the ChromeCast can't do much of what Google's allegedly envisioning for Android TV.
"Gaming in particular will never be its strong suit, and a more powerful device capable of running full Android apps, as opposed to the web apps that power Chromecast, could help to capture a market of casual gamers that aren't willing to spend $500 for a next-generation game console, but still want to be able to play games that are at least as good as those on their tablet," Roettgers writes.
As for the hardware partners that will accompany Google's third major trip into the living room, it remains to be seen just who is signed on board with Google's vision. Additionally, there's no word yet as to when Android TV hardware might see the light of day. We would presume within a few months of Google's announcement, if not sooner