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Today
- Thread starter jefboyardee
- Start date
Kicksilver
Android Enthusiast
Android's gotta fix some simple things.
The updates are the most concerning.
The updates are the most concerning.
jefboyardee
Extreme Android User
Not only that, changing Android Market to Google Play is almost a sign of dementia.
Things have changed -- when I got this tiny droid in Jan ‘11, Androids were all the rage. But it seems like an unending series of missteps might put me back where I was with my Palm “smart”phone.
In my case, LG and/or Sprint botched the Optimus Gingerbread update, I froze at Froyo, the local store says stay there. It’s still a good phone, just hasn’t kept up with the times, whatever they are.
Things have changed -- when I got this tiny droid in Jan ‘11, Androids were all the rage. But it seems like an unending series of missteps might put me back where I was with my Palm “smart”phone.
In my case, LG and/or Sprint botched the Optimus Gingerbread update, I froze at Froyo, the local store says stay there. It’s still a good phone, just hasn’t kept up with the times, whatever they are.
chanchan05
The Doctor
Honestly, here's my take on the articles. Its not about Apple hate or Android love, its simply about Android being different from iOS:
FRAGMENTATION ARTICLE
1. There is no clear-cut forward path for existing Android models. Apparently because there's so many of them. Yes there is that "reason", but for me the most important part is the hardware differences. Just the same way as iOS4 bonked out iPhone 3G due to hardware limitation, its the same thing here. The phones with older hardware or same level performance as those older models (cheap Android phones) are obviously unable to handle updates and suffer the same fate as the iPhone 3G. A Galaxy Ace doesn't have enough muscle power for ICS for example, but we see people getting mad and saying that iPhones and expensive Androids get their updates, why not them? They seem to forget that their phone's cant even begin to compare to those devices because they bought cheap and thus this is a consequence of their buying. I chalk this up to "irresponsible consumers", not a problem on the Android side.
2. Because its open source, and this is in compliance with that premise.. Although honestly this is only a problem in the US and its stupid carrier policies. In Europe and other parts of the globe, its as easy as buying an unlocked, unbranded phone from an authorized seller and inserting your carrier's sim.
3. Again this is in compliance with its open source identity. There's no point in arguing with this really.
4. Apps issue -
Free apps - Yes while this indeed may be a problem, one must realize that people chose Android because its cheaper than an iPhone. Even if we put all apps for paid on Android at prices that are way cheaper than on iOS, that limitation will still be in place. Even if we remove Android from the picture entirely, it doesn't mean that everyone who owns an Android now will actually have bought an iPhone. There is a reason why iPhones are a huge success in 1st world countries, but not so much in 3rd world. You are selling to a different market in general with Android, where the lower earning class citizens outnumber the higher earning ones who have the capacity to buy their apps. In some Asian countries, you can't get a credit card without posting a $3000 bond with the bank, which is quite expensive for a lot of people since the average salary in many Asian countries stands at under $800 a month. Start getting more carriers on the direct carrier billing for Android and you will see app purchases grow. Its all about the market you are dealing with: Android buyers comprise more of the lower end of the earning spectrum, while the iOS buyers are mostly nearer the 1%.
Different OS for Tablets - That's what ICS is for. The next generation tablets and phones will be running the same OS from then on.
5. Defining Standards - then that means going everything against what open source and freely customizeable is. That's the whole point of being open source IMO: You can do anything you want to it. Google has put out recommendations, and that's it.
Honestly, while some of these indeed may be a problem, it seems to me that's its just because Android is designed to be open source, and the writer just fails to see it. The author seems to be so weaned on the Apple way that he yearns for it. And the problems are all US-based problems. Thing is, companies like Google take the entire world for survey. The world is much bigger than the US. It doesn't mean that if it loses in the US, things would look bad for Android. Nokia has already proven this isn't so: Before the rise of the iPhones, Nokia held the world together, standing head and shoulders above every manufacturer in getting more than 50% of the world using their phones, despite hardly ever selling more than 10% in the US phone market. And despite US developers losing interest in Android, if you would notice some of the biggest Android developers aren't in the US: They're in Europe or Asia. Take Go Dev Team for instance. They have the most widely used and one of the best launchers and apps in the whole Market, and they're Chinese.
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DEVELOPERS:
-While indeed it may seem a problem, I find it good to notice the healthy interest in WP7. Anyway, this is sought to be resolved with ICS, so Google is working on getting a single version on all Android devices in the near future, so I shouldn't worry about it too much.
------------------------------------------------------
GOOGLE
- Honestly, its THEIR apps. They can be as closed with it as they want. Any developer has the right to decide to close their API to others. Its Android that's open source, not Google.
FRAGMENTATION ARTICLE
1. There is no clear-cut forward path for existing Android models. Apparently because there's so many of them. Yes there is that "reason", but for me the most important part is the hardware differences. Just the same way as iOS4 bonked out iPhone 3G due to hardware limitation, its the same thing here. The phones with older hardware or same level performance as those older models (cheap Android phones) are obviously unable to handle updates and suffer the same fate as the iPhone 3G. A Galaxy Ace doesn't have enough muscle power for ICS for example, but we see people getting mad and saying that iPhones and expensive Androids get their updates, why not them? They seem to forget that their phone's cant even begin to compare to those devices because they bought cheap and thus this is a consequence of their buying. I chalk this up to "irresponsible consumers", not a problem on the Android side.
2. Because its open source, and this is in compliance with that premise.. Although honestly this is only a problem in the US and its stupid carrier policies. In Europe and other parts of the globe, its as easy as buying an unlocked, unbranded phone from an authorized seller and inserting your carrier's sim.
3. Again this is in compliance with its open source identity. There's no point in arguing with this really.
4. Apps issue -
Free apps - Yes while this indeed may be a problem, one must realize that people chose Android because its cheaper than an iPhone. Even if we put all apps for paid on Android at prices that are way cheaper than on iOS, that limitation will still be in place. Even if we remove Android from the picture entirely, it doesn't mean that everyone who owns an Android now will actually have bought an iPhone. There is a reason why iPhones are a huge success in 1st world countries, but not so much in 3rd world. You are selling to a different market in general with Android, where the lower earning class citizens outnumber the higher earning ones who have the capacity to buy their apps. In some Asian countries, you can't get a credit card without posting a $3000 bond with the bank, which is quite expensive for a lot of people since the average salary in many Asian countries stands at under $800 a month. Start getting more carriers on the direct carrier billing for Android and you will see app purchases grow. Its all about the market you are dealing with: Android buyers comprise more of the lower end of the earning spectrum, while the iOS buyers are mostly nearer the 1%.
Different OS for Tablets - That's what ICS is for. The next generation tablets and phones will be running the same OS from then on.
5. Defining Standards - then that means going everything against what open source and freely customizeable is. That's the whole point of being open source IMO: You can do anything you want to it. Google has put out recommendations, and that's it.
Honestly, while some of these indeed may be a problem, it seems to me that's its just because Android is designed to be open source, and the writer just fails to see it. The author seems to be so weaned on the Apple way that he yearns for it. And the problems are all US-based problems. Thing is, companies like Google take the entire world for survey. The world is much bigger than the US. It doesn't mean that if it loses in the US, things would look bad for Android. Nokia has already proven this isn't so: Before the rise of the iPhones, Nokia held the world together, standing head and shoulders above every manufacturer in getting more than 50% of the world using their phones, despite hardly ever selling more than 10% in the US phone market. And despite US developers losing interest in Android, if you would notice some of the biggest Android developers aren't in the US: They're in Europe or Asia. Take Go Dev Team for instance. They have the most widely used and one of the best launchers and apps in the whole Market, and they're Chinese.
---------------------------------------
DEVELOPERS:
-While indeed it may seem a problem, I find it good to notice the healthy interest in WP7. Anyway, this is sought to be resolved with ICS, so Google is working on getting a single version on all Android devices in the near future, so I shouldn't worry about it too much.
------------------------------------------------------
- Honestly, its THEIR apps. They can be as closed with it as they want. Any developer has the right to decide to close their API to others. Its Android that's open source, not Google.
Gmash
Extreme Android User
Those articles are just more of the same blah, blah, blah. And honestly Froyo is still fine, you're not missing much. If its bothering you that badly, there are plenty of custom ROMs for the Optimus. Eclair was the last really crappy version of Android. Gingerbread isn't much different from Froyo, and from what I've seen of ICS i'm not impressed.
About fragmentation, isn't Windows on PCs one of the most fragmented things that's ever been? Multiple versions of Windows and we all know PCs come in all manner of specs, shapes and sizes. Has that ever been a problem for devs, have they jumped-ship to say Mac OS X as a result?
One might develop a game that requires a certain minimum spec of PC, you state what the minimum specs are to run the game. One can't really complain when something like Medal of Honor(2010) or whatever fails to run on a Win7 Starter netbook with Atom CPU. Similar when one develops for Android, you state minimum version and specs required to run your app.
One might develop a game that requires a certain minimum spec of PC, you state what the minimum specs are to run the game. One can't really complain when something like Medal of Honor(2010) or whatever fails to run on a Win7 Starter netbook with Atom CPU. Similar when one develops for Android, you state minimum version and specs required to run your app.
jefboyardee
Extreme Android User
I agree and think it compelled Google to start the Android regime, or at least not be spooked out by it. They could see fragmentation would happen to the Android before it even began and they went for it anyway. Hard for me to think that was clever right now, but we
Where I am, I see Android devices everywhere now, phones, PMPs, tablets, TVs, electronic dictionaries, student learning computers, etc. They sometimes show the green robot logo as well as the word "Android"(in English) with these devices as well. It's an extremely successful OS here. However the only time I see anything Google is my own phone that came from the UK and when I read Phandroid and AF.
It's Android...
It's Android...
Attachments
Martimus
One bite at a time...
For what it's worth, back in 2005 Google purchased a small company called "Android Inc." in order to get control of the Android operating system.
As MikeDT previously stated, Google's Android isn't the first OS product accused of fragmentation... And I'll add that they're likely not going to be the last to be accused of OS fragmentation.
Is fragmentation a benefit or detriment? Well it really depends on your personal perspective. Fragmentation is there because there are a lot of different handsets on the market, each designed to a set of general hardware guidelines.
Products like the fruit phones have much less fragmentation because their designer maintains an iron grip on the hardware design. One company decides what to release and how often to release it. With Android, however, you have lots of different choices at any point in time. More variety... less control! On the other hand, less variety... more control! Less variety also equates to fewer choices for the consumer. If you want a new fruit phone but don't like the current model, oh well! Wait upwards of a year and a new fruit phone will be released. With Android, if you don't like handset A... try handset B. If you don't like handset B... try handset C. And if you don't like handset C... wait a month and a whole new crop of smartphones will be released.
Android is all about choice!
And with choice comes fragmentation...
jefboyardee
Extreme Android User
I look forward to that, having outgrown my microscopic Optimus. I appreicate that it helped me onto the droid platform, but agree there’s a bunch of somethings coming.
jefboyardee
Extreme Android User
Wait, they’re not done dumping on Google:
What Google Must Do to Keep Android Tablets Alive
The Case Against Google
What Google Must Do to Keep Android Tablets Alive
The Case Against Google