Talk about a single, branded GPhone more or less died down after the announcement of Android, but it seems that you just can’t completely kill a good rumor. According to TechCrunch, an Android phone made by Google may actually become a reality, based on two new bits of information-the first being a quote in The Hollywood Reporter from a press conference with Larry Page, Sergei Brin and CEO Eric Schmidt. Update: Silicon Alley Insider says the quote is actually inaccurate, noting none of the other major news orgs there picked it up.
https://gizmodo.com/everything-we-know-about-the-gphone-android-and-open-318882
The reporter noted that “The trio of Google execs also used the opportunity to talk about the inroads the company is making with its own branded mobile phone as a replacement for the iPhone.” [That appears to be a mix-up by the reporter, with Sergey and Larry actually talking about not producing their own phone, according to Reuters’s Ken Li’s notes in SAI.]
But, TechCrunch does have its own source, who “swears” that the Ammunition Design Group “is designing the Gphone and that it is a seriously beautiful device.” They’ve worked with companies like Palm, Hewlett-Packard, Dell Computer and Logitech in the past (a phone they designed for Sprint is pictured above). Not a confirmation by any means, but TechCrunch usually has decent info-so take that for what it’s worth.
The more probable explanation for any sort of design work on a handset for Google is that they could be prototypes for marketing or other promotion-no one can make the call whether it’s for production yet. [Tech Crunch and Mediaweek via BGR, Silicon Alley Insider]
