Smartphone buyers want Apple, Android The iPhone's appeal may be settling down - at least in the US - and it's almost entirely due to the rise of Android, according to a survey conducted by market watcher ChangeWave. In September, it asked 4000 consumers about their smartphone purchase plans. Of those who intend to buy such a gadget in the next three months, 38 …
Maemo was crap. I ditched my N800 and didn't even consider an N900. Meego is "haha, more of the same" I was very disappointed that my N800 didn't even have a hope of running the newer OSes after spending so much time and money on it.
Nokia? Ass? Both hands? What?
For all the crap about Android fragmentation, Google has a plan, a direction, and talent. Nokia has none of those. Nokia has managed to fragment a single line of phones. I'd buy an iPhone over another Nokia product, and for me that says a LOT.
My guess is that not many people give enough of a shit for the Nokia OS's to register. Anyone that knows anything about phones knows that Maemo is dead, it's been replaced with Meego and Symbian has had too many false starts in the last 3 years. Simply put Meego is too much OS for a mobile phone and iOS and Android are significantly better than Symbian. Nokia have never been particularly strong in the US market place either.
Until they realise that:
- 2 in 3 Android apps are using user details "suspiciously" (see Reg article)
- there is no effective vetting process for androids app store. Goodbye security, hello malware. That'll get really old, really quick, unless Google tightens it up. Apple may get slated for it's maniacal grip on it's app store, but it works for users, and it works for the devs (see another Reg article). Expect to see Google edge closer to that model.
- Having a Google-compatible phone doesn't guarantee you'll get the OS you want, or that it'll be as Google intended. Recent stories of "bloat app customisations" by the telcos (see yet other Reg article) is a good example.
Thing is - these are all "OS" issues as far as the user is concerned. Just need a few good scare stories in the news of malware hidden in apps stealing bank details (zeus for android anyone?), and the percentage figures in the article will drop.
However, the good news is, the OS is a lot more fixable than the hardware; hardware's a bugger to fix, once it's in production. So these issues don't need to stay as problems.
Oh, what's this? I've been downvoted massively by the droidbois? There's a surprise.
The article suggests that it's US punters who were asked, and the presence of Symbian in the US market is negligible (though of course that's certainly not the case there).
And with only one current product using Maemo, and none using Meego yet, it's hardly surprising they don't figure on buyers' radar.
Any of you Reg readers see this poll? In the end, the N900 beat every device it faced, probably because it's not just a smartphone, it's a 'superphone' with an OS written to allow full exploitation of its capabilities. It's the first practical phone which offers a true mobile computing experience limited in potential only by the user, not the platform or hardware maker. Whether the mass market has any interest in this concept is debatable, but 8086 based computing took off pretty well.
http://www.fonearena.com/blog/23538/smartphone-championship-grand-finale-nokia-n900-vs-samsung-galaxy-s.html
It makes for interesting reading, especially the comments posted by the voters during the various polls. The most revealing was the vote between Palm Pre/webOS and N900/Maemo. Instead of the usual 'your momma's so fat' insults there was actual constructive argument. The supporters of iOS and Android devices seemed to mainly churn out illiterate txt-speak gibberish. Maemo and webOS are probably the two most capable mobile phone OS's right now, but they don't figure in the US survey. So much for meritocracy!
It's clear the survey in this report is US only and so does not represent the global view. This should have been pointed out with a 'health warning' right at the head of the article. Those 'merkins are incredibly aspirational / bovine and so too easily led by effective marketing.
Both Android and iOS are going to hit the ceiling of their capabilities soon. Those top end buyers (who currently steer the media) will still expect increasingly impressive hardware year on year. The 'one OS fits all' plan could be a fail. Although your budget phone buyer will be happy that he can buy a phone for <$100 that runs the same Android OS as the top models, how will the punters paying $800+ feel about that? And what is the difference? iOS already appears to have mined-out the thicker veins at the top end of the market and has nowhere to go now but deeper into the slimmer pickings, but Android is there already with trenches dug in.
You may mock Nokia for their apparent lack of direction today and their small existing US market presence, but they are the world's largest mobile phone producer, not the underdog. It's clear they have a comprehensive strategy and it looks to be a good one for the future. Three distinct mobile operating systems for three hardware segments all able to run the same applications written in a cross-platform language offering a vast market for software developers.
Go ahead, call me a fan-boy if you want. I don't have any loyalties - Apple make the best mp3 players as far as I'm concerned, and I advise friends looking far a new phone to look towards Android at present if they want simplicity at a reasonable price. Just don't write Nokia or MeeGo off as a joke.
There's nothing wrong with being a fanboy, as long as you don't take it to the extreme, where you buy every available accessory and can't listen to other people's view points or see any wrong with your fanboy brand
I have an X10 and Google Maps is running in the background quite often when i get up in the morning, even though i rarely use the satnav and use a task killer.
Possibly Google spying?
Steve Jobs is a liar and will release a slightly upgraded phone every year at a higher cost and can't ever be wrong.
And his phones cost do not reflect the quality of the hardware
"There's nothing wrong with being a fanboy, as long as you don't take it to the extreme, where you buy every available accessory and can't listen to other people's view points or see any wrong with your fanboy brand" followed by "Steve Jobs is a liar and will release a slightly upgraded phone every year at a higher cost and can't ever be wrong.", then "And his phones cost do not reflect the quality of the hardware" You do realise how stupid you look, don't you? I ask because I see trolling on the net everyday, but none quite so ironic...
but I can't see the bit where I said "I LOVE APPLE!!!" In fact the logo on my laptop has the letters D-E-L-L and the operating system has a sort of browny-orangy default theme with a silly code name; but hey, if it make you feel better about yourself, then OK, I'm an Apple fanboy.
"You're the troll on this post AC, well done on showing yourself as a fanboy extremist"
Seriously though, did you read your post?! Since you missed what I was mocking you for, the irony is that you wax lyrical about how there is nothing wrong with being a fanboy so long as you keep in check and you listen to others and then attack Steve Jobs; who has nothing to do with this article or anything to do with the OP's post at all! You compound this by attacking me for pointing out the stupidly of that, calling me a fanboy! Sorry mate, but you need help.
"They can't all succeed". Well, they *could*. I don't think it's likely, but back in the day when there were a mass of different systems -- IBM, Amiga, Atari ST, Mac, CP/M, Atari 8-bit, Apple II, Commodore 64, etc., there was plenty of software available for all. Of course ultimately most of them folded but it took years and years.
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