Canalys: Apple's iOS now world's 2nd largest smartphone platform - Page 3

Maybe a few people did say that but anyone with a clue (ie - most people on this forum) just ignored them as much we ignore the trolls (I made an exception just for you).

I wasn't giving you any. But thanks for the entertainment.

In their Q3 2011 results Apple said they sold 20.34 million iPhones, 9.25 million iPads and 7.54 iPods (of which half were iPod touches). The iPhone was roughly 60% of iOS sales in Q3.

Speaking of ouch:

http://www.infoworld.com/t/iphone/th...he-dust-168680

That was already the subject of a fairly lengthy thread yesterday.

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles...ext_model.html

I believe that Apple's natural level lies at 30% market share, and anything above that is a bonus.
Within the first week or so of Androids introduction I was advising clients to quit development of Nokia/Blackberry applications and to focus purely on iOS/Android.
I do not believe that 30% is 'niche', that 'niche' (as you put it) will continue to earn Apple >50% of the market.
I will go on record now to say that Android (or Microsoft) will do well in the tablet market, eventually. How long Apple can retain it's current market share dominance depends on many factors legal and technical. I would also say that Microsoft still has a chance at unseating Android as the 'open' (I hate that term) business model.
In the long term only one 'open' model can survive. That's where the real battle lies.

Amen.

So, if I understand you correctly, you're saying that a higher market share is a good thing for the buyers of a product. Sorry, I don't "get that" thinking at all. Please help me out with an explanation .... I'm all ears.

Reminds me of an old SNL skit "First CityWide Change Bank".

"How do we make money doing this? It's simple....volume."

That about says it all - thank you moderators!

Market share generally nets a large ecosystem. I have owned phones in the past for which I could not easily find, for example, a car charger. Buying a popular product often means wide choice in aftermarket accessories and easy-to-find service options.

I owned a SAAB in the 1970's (yeah, I think different ). The car had superior engineering and performance, compared to others, back in the day. But getting it repaired when it broke down on the side of the road in rural Louisiana was not easy. A part was needed, and the closest one was in Miami. I was in a motel for days. Had I been driving a popular car, parts would have been available locally, for cheap.

Almost certainly none. But how many iPhone4's have been sold? I don't think Apple has ever broken that down have they? Certainly possible the 3GS is selling nearly as well as the 4G in the US.

And while on the subject, up until very recently I didn't think that Apple had any reason to be concerned with Samsung's smartphone models. Figured they were a poor substitute for an iPhone for any true-blue Apple fan. But I got a huge shock reading a tweet from a British friend of mine this morning.

He's always been die-hard Apple, one of those that stands in line for hours on end to be one of the first with any new release. He's also an App Store developer, and beta-tester. Android? OK for those too poor to afford Apple. A few days ago he was offered a Samsung Galaxy S2 for a trial. So what did he think of it?

"I've just put my work SIM in the Galaxy S2, yes it's that damn good. Test/PAYG SIM now in the iPhone. My world has been turned upside down!"

Yes, it's just one voice. But one that carries some weight with other Apple users. Of course that doesn't mean he'd ever give up his iPhone. Overall, Android just isn't his cup of tea.

See, now that is where you and I will disagree.

To me, if I examine the true reason for market share in the Android system, for instance, I see something completely different. I see a system that most phone manufacturers choose based strictly on price .... and therefore, because of more companies going with Android, they have a larger market share .... but, as most of us know, larger is not always better .... in fact, larger is hardly ever better. Are "Big Macs" better than hamburgers than can be found at your favorite local "sit down" restaurant ? Not likely, and the same thing can be said for many products. IMHO "popularity" is quite often achieved by way of pricing .... and that method very seldom, if ever, produces quality.

It would seem, if you're using the "what's most popular" method of choosing your purchases, you're failing to find out what is really best for you because you're failing to do the research necessary to arrive at the best solution possible but rather, just assuming that the combined intelligence of a larger data base is better than your own powers of reasoning. An easier method, to be sure, but not nearly as effective.

Apple, for instance, although having a smaller market share, can be argued to have, by far, the better "ecosystem" ..... A better chain of dedicated Apple stores, a more dedicated philosophy to producing quality over price and, even more important, with the cost control built into their ecosystem by Tim Cook and others .... more competitive than ever. All of this can be, and is, verified by customer satisfaction survey after survey.

IMHO, market share, in the grand scheme of things, means absolutely nothing ....Cheers.