Much fanfare met the purchase of Motorola (one of the world’s leading Android phone manufacturers) to Google (the only Android operating system developer) last year. It was like an Android fanboy’s fantasy: The operating system and hardware would be made by the same organization. Take that, Apple!
Recently, Motorola has been sold by Google. The buyer is Lenovo.
If you recall, Lenovo is the Chinese company that made news about a decade ago. That’s when IBM sold them their entire PC division. IBM decided it wanted out of the consumer computer division, and that was a smart move.
As a consumer of consumer computers, I was a bit worried. I prefer the IBM brand. My first PC was a (used) IBM PC. (My first computer was a TRS-80 Model III.) Since IBM sold their PC business, I’ve purchased many Lenovo computers. In fact, the first one I bought still had the IBM logo.
My most recent Lenovo computer is a laptop I bought last year. It’s a solid machine. In fact, I recommend Lenovo laptops. The extended warranty is worth the price, and the service is excellent. Lenovo delivers a good product, so I’m not concerned about them dipping into the smartphone waters.
In the big picture, I believe Google wants to remain a software company. True, they have the Nest line of products and Chromecast. But these, too, may be spun off to various hardware manufacturers. I see that as a good move.
The only concern I have is that Lenovo try to keep the Nexus line pure. The Nexus phones and tablets are as close to stock Android as you can get. I like that.
