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iPhone closes in on Android in growing U.S. smartphone market - Page 2

post #41 of 51
3/31/12 at 3:42am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hmm888 View Post

The main reason Android is still ahead of the game, which surprises the heck out of me since I hardly see anyone with an Android but with an iPhone 4 or 4S is the carriers are selling the Android phones really cheap. Sure, when the new model is first introduced, it is sold comparably priced to the iPhone. Only the early adopters get them, but within several months the price rapidly declines to nothing with a contract. Compare this to the iPhone where users are willing to pay $159/199 (lowest in Canada) for the iPhone 8+ months after launch. What does that tell you about the iPhone?

The Samsung Galaxy II is only $50 less. Furthermore, the Galaxy II is outselling the cheaper HTC and Moto phones.

So the point about Android only selling because of price is a flawed one. Price matters, but not the only thing that matters. Android is a platform losing its direction but the arguments about iPhone surge here are misdirected. Case in point above.
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post #42 of 51
3/31/12 at 7:40am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tetzel1517 View Post

I'm honestly surprised that RIM deserters are going to iOS over Android. The one thing I hear from people who still cling to their Blackberries is that they can email faster from it than any other device. So you'd think they'd go with the platform that offers phones with physical keyboards - less of a learning curve. It'd be interesting to know what the psychology is there. Perhaps iOS works better with Exchange than Android?

I think people just really like the keyboard. I was really upset when our company went from the Blackberry Bold to the Samsung Note. I loved having a keyboard and I still miss it. As far as the iPhone closing the gap well that's great but there are some pretty nice phones that are coming out in Q2 so we will have to see those numbers again after 3 months.
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post #43 of 51
3/31/12 at 7:50am
Quote:
Originally Posted by stelligent View Post

The Samsung Galaxy II is only $50 less. Furthermore, the Galaxy II is outselling the cheaper HTC and Moto phones.

So the point about Android only selling because of price is a flawed one. Price matters, but not the only thing that matters. Android is a platform losing its direction but the arguments about iPhone surge here are misdirected. Case in point above.

The Galaxy III will be released sometime next month, plus with the all ready released Galaxy Note will make for a interesting Q2. I'm still holding my breath for a iPhone with a larger screen. If it doesn't happen well there a still lots of great phones to choose from.
I've seen things you little people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion bright as magnesium. I rode on the back decks of a blinker and watched c-beams glitter in the...
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post #44 of 51
3/31/12 at 8:40am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gatorguy View Post

Lest we all lose the forest for the trees, MobiThinking (who has every mobile stat you'd ever wish to know and several you might even rather not see) has a reality check:

"The media tends to overegg the importance of smartphones and Apple in particular. Before media hype lulls you into focusing your marketing/development budget on smartphones or the Apple platform exclusively, consider this: 61.3 percent of handsets sold in 2011 were not smartphones, they were feature phones; 94 percent of all phones sold were not Apple.
N.B. smartphone sales is not the same as market penetration. Market penetration of smartphones will be lower. There are almost 6 billion mobile subscriptions worldwide (Source: ITU), yet only 968.2 million smartphones have been sold in total in 2009, 2010 and 2011, according to IDC i.e. only 16 percent of global mobile subscriptions."
http://mobithinking.com/blog/2011-ha...es-big-picture

I could show you the same sort of statistics about a lot of tech in its early days. Digital cameras come to mind. Smartphones will take more than 50% share within 5 years. Android will still be on the losing end when it comes to mobile ad sales and developer's ability to monetize their software (even more so, imho). I also predict that the worldwide market share gap between iOS and Android will close significantly.

... and none of this changes the fact that Google's mobile ad revenue would hardly change at all if it sold Android to another company. Google's intent was to steam roll Apple with Android but when it comes to $$$... Android is a fail for Google.
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post #45 of 51
3/31/12 at 8:53am
Yes, in Canada an iPhone 4S is around the same subsidized price as the Galaxy note, only slightly more than a Galaxy S2 (which has been around for a year), and over a 3 year contract, I don't think the extra 50 dollars will sway anyone who wants an Apple.

Android is a great platform for some things. iOS is better for others. Android operates more like a computer - you can download torrents, use file managers, do basic programming, access more websites (flash sucks, but it's still widely used), etc... Sure, iOS has a few more games and is a more 'elegant' design, but if you want a computer in your pocket, Android gives you many more options.

That being said, iPhone appeals to so many because they don't need full computer functionality, and they like the elegant design. But they're becoming so widespread that having an Apple product no longer makes a 'statement', and the next generation of Androids are coming out, so it'll be an interesting time. Especially since Google is rumored to be targeting PCs with Android 5, they just released version 1 of their programming language, and are looking to make Android even more versatile.
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post #46 of 51
3/31/12 at 9:25am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mikeb85 View Post

Yes, in Canada an iPhone 4S is around the same subsidized price as the Galaxy note, only slightly more than a Galaxy S2 (which has been around for a year), and over a 3 year contract, I don't think the extra 50 dollars will sway anyone who wants an Apple.

Android is a great platform for some things. iOS is better for others. Android operates more like a computer - you can download torrents, use file managers, do basic programming, access more websites (flash sucks, but it's still widely used), etc... Sure, iOS has a few more games and is a more 'elegant' design, but if you want a computer in your pocket, Android gives you many more options.

That being said, iPhone appeals to so many because they don't need full computer functionality, and they like the elegant design. But they're becoming so widespread that having an Apple product no longer makes a 'statement', and the next generation of Androids are coming out, so it'll be an interesting time. Especially since Google is rumored to be targeting PCs with Android 5, they just released version 1 of their programming language, and are looking to make Android even more versatile.

Yea I just downloaded the GO kit and I am having a blast learning how to use it.
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post #47 of 51
3/31/12 at 9:52am
Quote:
Originally Posted by island hermit View Post

I could show you the same sort of statistics about a lot of tech in its early days. Digital cameras come to mind. Smartphones will take more than 50% share within 5 years. Android will still be on the losing end when it comes to mobile ad sales and developer's ability to monetize their software (even more so, imho). I also predict that the worldwide market share gap between iOS and Android will close significantly.

... and none of this changes the fact that Google's mobile ad revenue would hardly change at all if it sold Android to another company. Google's intent was to steam roll Apple with Android but when it comes to $$$... Android is a fail for Google.

Why do you think they were after Apple? At the time they were still friends. I had always thought they had Microsoft more in mind, with perhaps not enough trust in Apple alone to keep Microsoft an also-ran in mobile. Numerous commentators mentioned Google's worry that they could someday be pretty much locked out of mobile ads. I don't think Google's intent was ever to attack Apple in any way.

melior diabolus quem scies

"No theatrics and no more personal attacks, just stick to the logic and tell me why I don't have any argument ~ Jragosta/2012

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melior diabolus quem scies

"No theatrics and no more personal attacks, just stick to the logic and tell me why I don't have any argument ~ Jragosta/2012

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post #48 of 51
3/31/12 at 3:31pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gatorguy View Post

Why do you think they were after Apple? At the time they were still friends. I had always thought they had Microsoft more in mind, with perhaps not enough trust in Apple alone to keep Microsoft an also-ran in mobile. Numerous commentators mentioned Google's worry that they could someday be pretty much locked out of mobile ads. I don't think Google's intent was ever to attack Apple in any way.

Well, fine, put any company name in there that you want, it doesn't change anything. (actually, it was RIM they were after originally).

If it wasn't Apple then, it certainly is now.

My comments are about Android being phased out or sold. Nothing in your comment changes that view.
We know where you are. We know where youve been. We can more or less know what youre thinking about. - Eric Schmidt
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post #49 of 51
3/31/12 at 11:15pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by island hermit View Post

My comments are about Android being phased out or sold. Nothing in your comment changes that view.

Will never happen unless Google shelves it for another mobile platform. Google's business model does not depend on them making money from their services, if they intended Android to be a cash cow they would have simply licensed it, not given it away (source code and all) for free...
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post #50 of 51
4/1/12 at 7:51am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mikeb85 View Post

Will never happen unless Google shelves it for another mobile platform. Google's business model does not depend on them making money from their services, if they intended Android to be a cash cow they would have simply licensed it, not given it away (source code and all) for free...

Don't be silly. Of course they intended it to be a cash cow. Why the hell else would they do it. It's just a different business model than the one you are talking about. Google was hoping they would be the main driver of mobile ads by pushing Android out the door. Google was only up against RIM and MS when they originally designed Android. As mentioned earlier, I guess they never foresaw Apple's iPhone and the success it would be.

... and so far it hasn't been as successful as Google had intended.
We know where you are. We know where youve been. We can more or less know what youre thinking about. - Eric Schmidt
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We know where you are. We know where youve been. We can more or less know what youre thinking about. - Eric Schmidt
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post #51 of 51
4/2/12 at 2:24pm
1 New model 4s, 2 'old' Model and iphone are catching up the hundreds of google model. What a great achievement
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