Google Buzz
February 10th, 2010 · buzz, google, social
Hello, Google. I use most of your products, and I like most of them. So I hear you have this new thing out called Google Buzz.
Hmm, interesting. Looks decent. But… do I really need another real-time messaging service?
There are plenty of services out there that seemingly do the same thing. Whether it’s an instant messaging service, a social network, or simply a microblogging service, there are plenty of ways to get your status heard:
- MySpace
- Google Talk
- AIM
- Yahoo
- MSN
- ICQ
- Jaiku
- FriendFeed
- Plaxo
- Netvibes
- ch.imp
- Tumblr
- Identi.ca
- Cliqset
- Streamy
- Brightkite
That’s 18 services right there, and I bet there are plenty more that I haven’t named. That’s enough to give anyone status update overload. So, why the heck do we need to add Google Buzz into the bunch? I mainly use Twitter and Facebook. What does Google Buzz give me that Twitter and Facebook don’t?
Google Buzz looks as simple as Twitter, yet it’s as full-featured as Facebook. Twitter’s so limiting, with its 140-character nonsense, so dozens of services are built around it to accommodate for its shortcomings: URL shorteners (like TinyURL), picture services (like TwitPic), and video services (like TwitVid). It works, but Facebook’s updates feel smoother in the sense that it’s not a group of services smushed together.
With Facebook, you can post updates to your heart’s content, with no character limit. The downside to Facebook is that it’s riddled with spam coming from all its Facebook applications. Unless you have your Facebook profile set to ignore Mafia Wars, FarmVille, and the dozens of other apps out there, you may find it hard to find actual updates from your friends.
Google Buzz sounds like the best of both worlds. It’s not riddled with Facebook spam, and it’s like a hyped up Twitter. But I already have two major status update services; having a third just means more work for me. Google attempts to alleviate some of that pain by letting you import your Twitter account. But, there’s no integration with Facebook (and I’m sure there never will be, considering Facebook and Google are at each other’s throats), and more of my friends are Facebook-centric than Google-centric. Not all my friends have or use a Gmail account (or even a Google account), but all of them have Facebook. If I wanted to share something with the world, I’d either use Facebook (for all my friends) or Twitter (for the public in general). So… where does that leave Google Buzz?
I’m still left questioning whether or not I want to use this service. While the interface is very nice, and it allows me to easily see friends’ updates (at least those with Google profiles set up), ultimately, it just gives me another service I’m supposed to update regularly.
