Will the iphone kill Android?

[itmike]

The iphone and their "app store" suck. Everything has to be approved by those jokers at apple. Like last week they took some comic app off of the store because it was "crude". Though they leave Boob Party on the store, yeah thats not crude. The great thing about android is it is OPEN. If I want to make the flashlight app that just turns your screen white and charge you $5 a pop I can. Android is young when compared to Apple, it has just really started too take off. Take offs in the software world are somewhat bumpy. Android is going through its growing pains right now. Android is the microsoft of this battle, this time around. It gives you the ultimate thing people want no matter WHAT you are selling. It gives them choice. If you want to use the iphone OS, guess what you got 1 manufacturer, 1 form factor, and 3 options and option 1 is outdated, option 2 is dated. With android you have 3 major manufacturers, several form factors including all touch and physical keyboards, and 15 different phones to CHOOSE from. The iphone will not stay dominant as long as they stay closed off from everything as they are right now. Up until now they haven't had anyone to compete with other than blackberry. Honestly alot of people are just getting the iphone not because they need it, but because it was cool. Most business professionals have been carrying blackberry and will continue to carry blackberry. I have a feeling that there is never going to be a clear winner like in the pc world, because people are changing mobile devices on average every 2 years if not every year. Though apple could really fall by the wayside because of the lacking options.

TBH, I don't think google is too worried about Apple. Apple doesn't ever announce anything groundbreaking they like to do it slowly but surely. Like from the iphone 3g to 3gs a camera, oh now it does video. Even then a jail broken 3g will do video. Look at the Ipad, wow its an ipod touch that won't fit in my pocket. Just what I needed right. Honestly, is it a big deal if they give the iphone the ability to be a webcam. I would almost bet if you had the money to pay a developer or found a very friendly one. He could take the most basic of android phones and make a web cam app as long as it had a camera.

IMO, the only thing that apple will always be a clear winner in is the MP3 world.

 

[mbell75]

I don't disagree that it can be frustrating having a recent phone on older android versions. However, I fail to see how this is any different than your home computer. I mean, these phones are essentially small computers. Not everyone is running Windows 7 on their home computers and are very happy with XP.

Terrible analogy as Windows 7 is available to EVERYONE at the same time! You want an analogy that compares to this? here ya go...It would be like Windows 7 only being available to people with Sony (Verizon) and HP (T-Mo) computers. Even then, its only selected models, not all their computers. Sorry you Toshiba (Sprint) and Acer (AT&T) users, you have to wait MONTHS later and maybe you can have Windows 7 too. How ridiculous would that be? Google needs to get their sh*t together and regulate their OS so everyone keeps updated at the same time.

 

[lekky]

Woah, wash the sand from your vag for a sec, no need to be a sarcastic prick.

Im not even a fan of the iphone, im just saying most of the apps in the market are complete shit, but im sure it will change as time goes by. Other point is when I originally had my Eris, with 1.5, there were many apps that i was not available to download, I understand not everything is going to be compatible due to hardware differences.

I just get fed up of that being used as a negative, or even mentioned at all. I don't think that most of the apps are crap at all, there are plenty of very good apps (games is another thing, although google realise this and are pushing it). There are plenty of crap apps for sure, but how many of the Apple stores apps are crap.

There are more than enough great apps on the android market right now, and is improving all the time.

 

[shawn1224]

With no 2.0/2.1 update on the horizon for the Behold II, I'll definitely be on the lookout for the Iphone when it hits T-mobile this summer.

 

[spottyelephant]

The iphone won't no. But android could kill itself.

Apps are the driving force behind a smartphone platform, and unless Google speeds up paid apps for more (if not all) countries, developers are never going to get a large enough base of potential customers to make any decent revenue and could leave the platform.

Also a bit of marketing needs to be done - outside of the US android is barely known.

I reckon slow down on the OS updates, and speed up the android market development.

 

[poultrum]

to all the apple lovers
This all comes down to one thing and one thing only, choice, I like being able to do what I want with my phone and how I want , if i want my homescreen full of icons for stuff I don`t want then yeah i`ll get an iphone but i don`t I want shortcuts on my phone to stuff i actually use.
and yeah their is a bit of a delay with firmware updates and such, but who cares at the end of the day I`d like to see you getting 2.1 working on all the android phones,within weeks of its release plus then having all the different carriers create the firmware on top. but then again you don`t like choice so you would only have to do it for the 1 carrier and 1 device
What some people don`t seem to understand is apple only have to work on 1 device, not several , so yeah they get it done quicker, is your life that boring that you sit around waiting for the next update, I certainly don`t.

As for the apps, not really fair comparing that is it, maybe if they had both started creating apps at the same time then yeah maybe you could compare one with the other but they didn`t.but which phone can i create my own apps for without paying and waiting to be4 approved?

Now, as for the rest of the companies are just playing catch up with apple crap, are you being serious? when did apple first release the iphone 2007, so what were they doing for the previous 15 years ,let me guess working on the iphone?

If you want to be the same as everybody else and have decisions made for you by a dictator then go for apple , want choice pick android

 

[gwmAstoria]

Put your money where your mouth is -- literally. Buy stock in whatever company you think is going to "kill" the others. Then shut up and get rich.

 

[JoeProcopio]

we've debated this before, and I'm sure we will again, surprised to see it coming from a Hero owner though to be honest.....

here is why Android devices will remain relevant for years to come: OPEN SOURCE

we got in on the ground floor of something extraordinary. Apple may have some great devs, and there are certainly many app devs out there that can write rings around other coders, but Apple doesn't have them all...and the apps people only create apps. Our community has some of the greatest minds around working on the phones AND THEY DON'T EVEN WORK FOR GOOGLE...they whole idea of taking control of your devices and not having to take what Apple says you must have is what will keep Android going for a long time.

PS try running iPhones OS 3.x on the first gen iPhone and get back to me on how much it sucks....

iPhones and Android devices need to coexist, if not only for competitions sake. If someone feels the want ease of use, then maybe iPhone is the right choice for them. I for one am not a dev, but I am an engineer and I like tweaking and tinkering...AND I am all Google'd up...even before I got my Droid, Gmail, Docs, Calendar...so for me, and many other people, Android is right, even if I didn't root the phone, I would still own it over the iPhone. I waited for the iPhone to come to VZW, and if it had before this big Droid explosion, I may have bought one, but since there is a choice, I won't switch from my Droid...I'll keep it until the 4G LTE phones come out, and then buy a new Android...maybe by then we'll be at 4.x and both OS's will be VERY equal...we'll see what the future holds...it's a bright and exciting time to be in the game though.

 

[JoeProcopio]

Terrible analogy as Windows 7 is available to EVERYONE at the same time! You want an analogy that compares to this? here ya go...It would be like Windows 7 only being available to people with Sony (Verizon) and HP (T-Mo) computers. Even then, its only selected models, not all their computers. Sorry you Toshiba (Sprint) and Acer (AT&T) users, you have to wait MONTHS later and maybe you can have Windows 7 too. How ridiculous would that be? Google needs to get their sh*t together and regulate their OS so everyone keeps updated at the same time.

it is not available to all computers though, you must meet certain criteria to run it...

yes, i'm reading the post from the bottom up, lol. sorry if this point has be said already

 

[bbrosen]

to all the apple lovers
This all comes down to one thing and one thing only, choice, I like being able to do what I want with my phone and how I want , if i want my homescreen full of icons for stuff I don`t want then yeah i`ll get an iphone but i don`t I want shortcuts on my phone to stuff i actually use.
and yeah their is a bit of a delay with firmware updates and such, but who cares at the end of the day I`d like to see you getting 2.1 working on all the android phones,within weeks of its release plus then having all the different carriers create the firmware on top. but then again you don`t like choice so you would only have to do it for the 1 carrier and 1 device
What some people don`t seem to understand is apple only have to work on 1 device, not several , so yeah they get it done quicker, is your life that boring that you sit around waiting for the next update, I certainly don`t.

As for the apps, not really fair comparing that is it, maybe if they had both started creating apps at the same time then yeah maybe you could compare one with the other but they didn`t.but which phone can i create my own apps for without paying and waiting to be4 approved?

Now, as for the rest of the companies are just playing catch up with apple crap, are you being serious? when did apple first release the iphone 2007, so what were they doing for the previous 15 years ,let me guess working on the iphone?

If you want to be the same as everybody else and have decisions made for you by a dictator then go for apple , want choice pick android

What choice? Under powered htc hero as well as waiting on HTC and my carrier deciding whether or not I can, if ever upgrade the OS, seems too many people in my way for me to have any choice, as well as limited room on handsets to have decent apps.

 

[vikas]

Lets face it, Android is a mess right now. Google seemingly has no control over which phones get what update. You have year old G1s running 1.6 while a 3 month old phone like the Hero and 2 month old phone like the Moment are still running 1.5, it makes no sense at all. Carriers and manufacturers are skipping updates like 1.6 and 2.0 and promising 2.1 updates while leaving their customers on outdated software.

With Apple and AT&T's contract ending this summer and with it being hinted the iphone will make its way too all the major carriers, this could mean the death of Android. The new iphone will almost certainly do alot more than even 2.1 can dream of and with how badly Google, manufacturers and carriers are failing with Android updates, I wouldnt be surprised to see a TON of Android users jump off the bandwagon and get an iphone. I know I sure will if this keeps up and I have only been an Android user for a few weeks.

I have been an iPhone user for 2 years from iPhone 2G till 3G and had switched to Android because i see lot of potential in this platform...the app Market is extra ordinary and unlike App Store it here the apps are good and in a short span of time lot of Dev had endorsed this platform....the multi tasking and email sync are amazing....Android just getting warmed up

 

[lekky]

What choice? Under powered htc hero as well as waiting on HTC and my carrier deciding whether or not I can, if ever upgrade the OS, seems too many people in my way for me to have any choice, as well as limited room on handsets to have decent apps.

Yeah, unlike iPhone right, where there is no one blocking you upgrading the firmware... oh wait a minute...

 

[bbrosen]

Yeah, unlike iPhone right, where there is no one blocking you upgrading the firmware... oh wait a minute...

Nope as soon as it was ready and released by Apple, Plug it in and it works..no waiting on my carrier to decide if they will persue it or not and leave me dead in the water with whatever os level i had when i bought it. Sorely dissapointed to find this out with Android, after switching from, yes, the iphone.

 

[mbell75]

it is not available to all computers though, you must meet certain criteria to run it...

Well of course you do, just as you cant expect to run the internet on a 6 year old Razr That wasnt my point.

 

[seeking]

You think Apple hasnt developed anything new? It will do far more than the N1 I am pretty positive.

I'm pretty positive that they havent developed anything new. Have they ever developed anything new...ever? They might improve some of the things they've already had but thats it. The new iphone will be the same as the old iphone with just better specs. The software will most likely be more optimized and MAYBE allow for muti-tasking. Apple isnt in the business of inovation/invention. They are in the business of marketing. They are really good at marketing their version of someone elses idea but we are at the point where if you want to be relevant in a smart phone world you need more than just marketing. You're going to have to be original as well. I wish apple lots of luck on that front.

So far there has only been speculation and claimed leaks like the new iphone's ability to be used as a webcam, respond to finger gestures like the new mac pros and such. Have to wait till its announced.

so...nothing new to the smart phone world...just new to the iphone.

 

[JoeProcopio]

Well of course you do, just as you cant expect to run the internet on a 6 year old Razr That wasnt my point.

but that is what you said, lol

that directly relates to Android phones, you wouldn't want to run v2.x on a phone that can't handle it...and some of the earlier phones, and even some of the newer phones won't handle it correctly...so find someone who has the phone you have that is still developing things for it, should be easy enough with the plethora of forums and Hero users around.

 

[MarcMaiden]

No one will ever be happy with what they have...i see this all the time on the forum...people complain about lack of updates and what not.

The reason?

in the Musicians world we call it: G.A.S.

Gear Aquisition Syndrome


meaning: We will always want the newest and coolest and will never be content with what we have


I have gas for Guitars, Girls, and phones

 

[pbp776]

I think Android has more potential than Iphone. To me Iphone is old kid on the block and Android is the new kid on the block. Will Iphone kill Android? I guess not, but hey everyone has their own opinion.

 

[jamespg81]

blah blah blah get a life! Android isnt going anywhere,there will always be android lovers and there will always be iphone lovers..

 

[takeshi]

Will the iphone kill Android?

Neither one will kill the other. The whole "-killer" mentality is a fanboy's unicorn. There's no such thing. The smartphone market has plenty of room for more than just once device. No single device will appeal to everyone.

Does Android have some serious issues to contend with to become a major player? Yes, it certainly does.

You think Apple hasnt developed anything new?

Of course they've developed new stuff. Just look at the iPad...

The new iphone will almost certainly do alot more than even 2.1 can dream of

Sources? I mean, other than the Kool Aid that Jobs served at his town hall meeting? Or are we supposed to take your word for it?

Buying an Android phone and being concerned about the success of the OS and questioning whether it will survive makes me a troll?

Oh, please. I've gone through years of the "concerned customer" on discussion forums. That archetype was played out log before you thought of giving it a shot. If you aren't trolling then offer some real solutions rather than a rant. Or switch and save everyone the headache of yet another pointless thread.

 

[t1jordan]

Software wise I feel Android has the potential to move ahead of the iPhone and then remain there, if it isn't already the front runner. However, hardware wise I think the only phone that rivals the iPhone is the Nexus One and the rumored Supersonic is going to surpass both. So, NO I think once all carriers have a phone that has comparable or superior hardware an iPhone will not steal the show if it becomes available to all carriers. And having so many Android phones with hardware keyboards is a huge bonus.

Good post!

 

[usmc0911]

I had the Iphone for years... The droid is definately faster and better. The Iphone is a great phone (don't get me wrong). But the droid by far is better than the Iphone...

 

[24bear]

I think one of the biggest problems with Android is that the updates are not rolling out as fast from many of the phone makers. Which is why I chose a Nexus One - as I feel Google will continuously make updates available more quickly for that one particular phone.

 

[jamezelle]

Lets face it, Android is a mess right now. Google seemingly has no control over which phones get what update. You have year old G1s running 1.6 while a 3 month old phone like the Hero and 2 month old phone like the Moment are still running 1.5, it makes no sense at all. Carriers and manufacturers are skipping updates like 1.6 and 2.0 and promising 2.1 updates while leaving their customers on outdated software.

With Apple and AT&T's contract ending this summer and with it being hinted the iphone will make its way too all the major carriers, this could mean the death of Android. The new iphone will almost certainly do alot more than even 2.1 can dream of and with how badly Google, manufacturers and carriers are failing with Android updates, I wouldnt be surprised to see a TON of Android users jump off the bandwagon and get an iphone. I know I sure will if this keeps up and I have only been an Android user for a few weeks.

dude are you high???

android == win!!!

iphone == lose!!!

 

[thetingster]

Lets face it, Android is a mess right now. Google seemingly has no control over which phones get what update. You have year old G1s running 1.6 while a 3 month old phone like the Hero and 2 month old phone like the Moment are still running 1.5, it makes no sense at all. Carriers and manufacturers are skipping updates like 1.6 and 2.0 and promising 2.1 updates while leaving their customers on outdated software.

With Apple and AT&T's contract ending this summer and with it being hinted the iphone will make its way too all the major carriers, this could mean the death of Android. The new iphone will almost certainly do alot more than even 2.1 can dream of and with how badly Google, manufacturers and carriers are failing with Android updates, I wouldnt be surprised to see a TON of Android users jump off the bandwagon and get an iphone. I know I sure will if this keeps up and I have only been an Android user for a few weeks.

Written by Steve Jobs himself.