Google Play Edition initiative is finally dead with the discontinuation of the last available smartphone – the HTC One M8.
Google had removed Moto G and Samsung Galaxy S4 Google Play Edition smartphones earlier this month and with no new additions in this range of smartphones, we anticipate a complete closure of the initiative. Google hasn’t made any official announcement in this regards, but as there have been no new smartphones since nearly a year now, chances are we won’t see any new releases.
Google started the Google Play Edition initiative to provide stripped down versions of Android software – the same available on Nexus range of smartphones – giving consumers a chance to experience a much lighter OS-laden smartphone.
The initiative appealed to quite a few consumers who wanted their devices to run on stock Android OS, but the consumer base was limited – something we presume that didn’t earn Google a lot of money. Further, providing updates for a large number of devices wouldn’t make sense if it wasn’t earning the anticipated cash.
