INBOX:Google's Android may become the standard operating system for mobile phones

OVER THE course of the history of the mobile phone, its use has changed not just as hardware improved, but also as software allowed phones to do more things. We all began by talking. We later moved to talking and texting. Today, handsets let us do many other things, like check e-mail or surf the web.

But that move means it is now not the hardware running the show, but the software that actually runs the phone. That’s why the iPhone is still a great device, even though it only has one big button to control it.

So with the emergence of Google’s software for mobiles are we seeing the creation of a new, all-powerful player? And what does it mean for you?

Android is a wonderfully retro name for the operating system that powers Google’s phones. Since its launch last year, it has evolved at a rapid pace. One of the key advantages of Android for handset makers like HTC and Samsung is that the operating system comes free.

Unlike Apple or Microsoft, Google has given Android away, which significantly reduces costs for the manufacturer and encourages them to bring out a variety of handsets.

And because the platform, based on Linux, is built in an open way, software developers can easily make applications for it. Of course, all this plays into Google’s hands. With more people encouraged to enter the Google world, it can become the ultimate middle-man, generating clever, targeted advertising for anything you see.

But what does Android mean for us right now? Well, it looks like the next version of the operating system will create several new features when it launches later this year. You will see new features such as onscreen keyboards, home screen widgets, live folders and speech recognition.

Google is also working on a way for the software to insert itself automatically into the Google phone you already have. This, of course, is part of the reason the iPhone is so successful. Although many people cried foul when it emerged that Apple could update the iPhone’s operating system remotely, saying people would no longer control their phone, in fact most people love this feature. It means that every six months or so you end up with a better phone without lifting a finger.

If Google can also manage this, it will put it on a level playing field with Apple. Meanwhile, Nokia owners are for the foreseeable future left using the software their handset came with.

Google’s own applications on Android, including Gmail, Google Talk, YouTube and Picasa, are all being tweaked with the new release and will offer a number of improvements.

But Android won’t just be confined to mobile phones.

Because it is a lightweight operating system, rumour has it that mini-notebooks, or “netbooks,” will soon start running Android in addition to smartphones. Suddenly that puts Google, once again, up against Microsoft’s Windows operating system.

With an all-dominating search engine, a mobile phone business and a move onto the desktop, it really is shaping up to be a Google world.