In case you haven't heard, Oct. 14 is National Dessert Day. If you haven't yet indulged in a tasty treat today, this news will surely put you in the mood.
Google released a video today teasing the name of its highly-anticipated mobile operating system "Android L." Even if you have no idea what "Android L" is or don't own an Android phone, this video is still guaranteed to put a smile on your face. And it will also probably make you hungry.
The 30-second clip features a casting session for a dessert beginning with the letter "L." Unlucky individuals dressed as giant versions of these delicious confections prepare for their big auditions as the names of the desserts appear on screen to hint at what the new Android operating system could be named: Lemon meringue pie? Lava cake? Lady finger? Lemon drop? OREO?!
It remains a mystery for now, but Google's past history suggests it will be a sweet title. The company has named its Android operating systems after desserts in the past, such as KitKat, Ice Cream Sandwich and Jelly Bean.
The prevailing theory so far is that the name will be either "Licorice" or "Lollipop," which are both conspicuously absent from the teaser. However, a recent Google+ post from Giovanni Calabrese, the owner of the New Jersey-based custom foam sculpture company Themendous, has people leaning toward "Licorice." The International Business Times points out that Calabrese posted, "What's with all the boxes of licorice?" on Google+, followed by the hashtags, "#thingstheTSAsays #googlebound #googlelawnsculptures." There are also photos of him outside Google's headquarters on his Google+ page. Because Google often announces the names of its new Android operating systems with sculptures, it seems very likely that the new name will be "Android Licorice."
Google also rolled out a bunch of ads for Android today. The three short spots are animated and feature variations of the little, green Android logo, styled as real people. The ads seem to not-so-subtly poke fun at Apple, especially the one where the little characters wait at a bus stop, and someone's phone rings. No one knows whose it is because everyone has the same ringtone. Sound familiar? The ad ends with the phrase, "All kinds of phones for all kinds of folks," obviously trying to sell the fact that unlike iOS, Android runs on phones from many different companies. The new tagline for the operating system, "Be together. Not the same," which also appears in the ads reiterates that.
It's unclear when Google will launch "Android L," although the Nexus 9 tablet, which will be the first device to run "Android L," is supposedly launching tomorrow, so maybe we'll get a glimpse of it and learn the new name then. Either way, this video is still pretty sweet.
