In recent months, pundits have suggested Android and Chrome OS will converge into a single operating system. For its part, Google expects a slow convergence of the two operating systems. But Android and Chrome OS will remain separate projects for the foreseeable future, since customers and partners continue to demand highly specialized devices.
At last year’s Google I/O, the company made a firm commitment to Chrome OS on Chromebooks — which are low-cost notebooks that leverage Google Apps and cloud apps. More recently, Samsung has launched Chromeboxes — which resemble the Apple Mac Mini but again, depend heavily on cloud applications and services.
In some ways, Samsung seems to be Google’s closest, most successful Android partner — particularly because of the well-branded Galaxy tablet business. But it’s a safe bet Google I/O will generate chatter about Motorola Mobility, the Android smartphone business that Google recently acquired.