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Android usurped the limelight of Apple
Huawei has repeatedly offered Android cell phones to some of the world largest cell phone operators, which also attracted industry attention.
The operating platforms of Lenovo's Music Phone, Huawei IVY are both based on Android system, industry sources, domestic cell phone manufacturers Meizu's new products will use the Android system. Android has usurped Apple's limelight.
Telefónica executives expect in Spain in 2013, Android system will become the most popular operating system, accounting for 18% market share. "80% of the customers want to Android cell phones." Previously, vice president of Huawei Terminal spring XuXin also said like this to a Times reporter weekly.
U.S. market research firm NPD Group's latest statistics show that the first quarter of this year, the sales of Android phones in the U.S. market is more than iPhone, hold 28% of total sales of smart phones of U.S in this quarter, while the iPhone's market share was 21%. But Apple denied this. ”The first quarter, iPhone has a new high sales, rose as high as 131%. In addition, the new iPhone OS 4.0 will also launch in the summer, competitors can not catch up with us in the short term." Apple has raised questions about the data, The company spokesman said, from a global perspective, iPhone sales is far higher than the Android cell phones. IDC data released last week shows, iPhone market share of the global smartphone is up 16.1%, ranking only after the Nokia and RIM.
However, the Android open platform brought low cost, smart phones are so flat
However, the Android open platform brings low costs, which is making the competition of smart cell phone platform become more intense.
Thread moved to General as it is not Development.
Huh...What?
April 5th, 2011 by Andrew Greenfield
Today’s myth has brought up quite a stir in the community recently. The Android vs iPhone war is bringing a lot of people back to the Mac vs PC wars of the 90’s. So what’s the myth today? The ol’ “it’s one device vs a million” cover.
“Of course android has a greater market share. If I gave away a bunch of phones for free it’d sell better than the iPhone too even if they were crap. You’re comparing a phone to an OS, that’s not fair. How many android phones are beating the iPhone. Zero. Developers would rather develop for one phone than a hundred that are so severely fragmented that half the apps don’t work. Also, Google makes NOTHING on their phones. Apple makes a killing on the iPhone…” (goes on to make nerd jokes and the whole “all Android users still live with their mothers” thing)
It’s beautiful isn’t it? While yes, both of these parties have these people, the fact that the competition is so good that these people exist is great for business. While it’s easier to see competition helping in Android than iOS (only because Android is updated more frequently), both parties should be thankful for the other. Without this kind of competition our phones wouldn’t be half as good! Enough drooling over the free market…
“You’re comparing a phone to an OS, that’s not fair.”
I see this comment a lot, and honestly, I’m really confused why the hard core Apple supporters continue to use this. Yes, iOS is only on one mobile device (technically more if you count the fact that the iPhone 3G is still being sold). Yes, it is true that if you include iPods and the iPad iOS probably has a greater user base than Android. But that’s not what this war is about (at least yet…Tablet wars are definitely in the future). This war is about which company can put more phones in people’s hands. We (as in the Android community) are not comparing a phone to an OS, we’re comparing a mobile OS to another mobile OS. It’s Apple’s choice to only sell one device. It’s a great thing for their bottom line and right on par with the company’s brilliant business strategy. However, the fact that Android phones are now selling faster than iOS phones (note, iOS phones, not “the iPhone”) means that the market is shifting to Android and away from iOS….Which brings me to my next point:
“Developers would rather develop for one phone than a hundred”
This is false, and precisely why market share is important. Think about it this way: You’re selling girl scout cookies. You have the option to sell to one neighborhood that is admittedly, much more prone to buying your cookies. Or you have the option to sell on a county level. Which would you pick? Anyone with an understanding of economics would pick the latter. The larger your market, the more opportunities you have to make money. This is why developers think Android will be the best to develop for. It’s the same thing Apple did to RIM. Why would anyone choose to make an app for Blackberry when they can make it for iOS and have an audience that’s many times larger. If you look at it from a third party point of view, those companies will back the OS that has the most users. It’s exactly what happened during Mac vs PC. Only now (with Apple’s impressive growth in Mac sales) are programs being developed for both (here’s to hoping Engineering software will soon be brought to my Macbook Pro!). It’s a vicious cycle. If you fall behind in market share companies stop developing for you. If they stop developing for you, you lose customers (market share). The cycle continues and continues. It’s what happened to Apple computers in the 90’s, it’s what’s happening to Palm and Blackberry now, and it’s what happened to the PSP in its early scraps against the DS. Do I think this will happen to iOS? Absolutely not. iOS is too good and has too large of a user base to be pushed out of existence. However, it should worry the iPhone crowd that as Android continues to dominate you may have to worry about whether Andoid apps will be ported to iOS instead of the other way around.
“…so severely fragmented that half the apps don’t work”
There are two ways to answer this. First, I could make the point that most apps require 2.1 or higher, and 80% of Android users have at least 2.1. Secondly, I could bring up the notion that most of the people who REALLY care about their phone aren’t on the few that are running something under 2.x. The small share of Android users that are obsessed with their OS probably own the latest and greatest Android phone. Does my mom care that she has 2.1 on her phone? No. I don’t even think she knows what that is, let alone when she’ll be upgraded. The fact of the matter is is that the majority of the market won’t care if they have an older OS than the person sitting next to them as long as their phones work. Will older phones be useless eventually? Yeah, I can’t argue that the few people that are still running 1.5 are probably running into a lot of problems. However, the amount of people upset with their 1.5 phone aren’t even CLOSE to the people who have an iPhone 3G and are upset with how iOS 4 crippled their phone. It is important to note that not ALL iPhone 3G’s are slowed to a crawl with iOS 4, but the product was widespread enough that Apple is still offering fixes and updates to help out. 4.3 is MUCH better than 4.0, but a lot of 3G users still say that the problem is getting better, but not fixed (this only caught my attention because one of my good friends has the iPhone 3G problem and sent me this funny video to explain to me why she was praying that the iPhone 5 comes soon). I’m not pointing fingers, I’m pointing out that EVERY technology company has this problem; it’s just pointed out with Android more often because of how quickly it upgrades. Is it a “bigger problem” on Android than on iOS? Yeah. But it’s not half as bad as anti-Android enthusiast claim it to be, and whatever OS camp you reside in has the same problems.
“Also, Google makes NOTHING on their phones. Apple makes a killing on the iPhone.”
This statement is true. Apple makes a lot of money on their phone sales, Google makes next to nothing (if not nothing) on the their phone sales. However, unless your bottom line depends on Apple’s, this means nothing in this debate; but that’s for another time. The fact of the matter is is that these are just different approaches at making money. Apple’s business strategy is probably the best of any company out there right now; I can’t think of another company (except maybe Nintentdo) that is having more fun rolling around in their money. They make a lot of it. Google isn’t exactly hurting though. While Apple banks its earnings on the immediate sale, Google looks more long term (and even if you like Apple’s strategy better, you have to admit Google as a company knows what it’s doing…how often do you use Yahoo search?). They know if they put the device in your hands, you’ll buy apps, you’ll search, you’ll hit ads, you’ll use Google appliances, etc. Apple takes the “less devices, more money per” approach and Google takes the “more devices, less money per” approach. Both work in their own right. Apple has been doing it for years and they’ll continue to be immensely successful at it. They’ve never given a crap if Macs beat PCs in sales. They could be selling one Mac for every 400 PCs for all they care, as long as that one Mac is still pulling in as much money (and probably more) than the 400 PCs. Same with iOS. Apple users are so excited to have been the top dog in OS for once. They fail to realize that that’s not Apple’s business strategy. iOS will more than likely not be the most used OS in the mobile world at the end of the day, but who cares? Apple will still make a killing on the large market they still have. If you don’t believe me look at video game companies. Nintendo is the only company that makes money off selling its consoles. They make money on every DS and Wii they sell. They’ve been around for years, clearly their strategy works. Microsoft and Sony (Sony especially) take HUGE hits when they sell a console. Before costs were reduced, Sony took some $100 loss for every PS3 sold. They banked on making money once the device was in the consumers hands. They’d buy games and other services to negate that loss and eventually turn a profit. Both Sony and Microsoft are still around, so clearly their business strategy works. Just because you don’t agree with a business strategy doesn’t mean it isn’t successful. Tell either Apple or Google that they need to rethink their business strategy and they’ll walk away laughing.
Closing Thoughts
Anybody can take facts and spin them towards their preference. The original quote was taken from someone who took facts about Android/Apple and spun them towards Apple. I took the same facts and spun them towards Android. The fact of the matter is is that neither of these companies are in any danger of being phased out. Android has a lot of work to do before it truly passes iOS as the preferred OS, but at the same time iOS has a lot of catching up to do to be able to compete with the innovation of Android. This is how competition works. Now, as a consumer, sit back and reap the benefits; whichever device you prefer.
http://www.talkandroid.com/36011-debunking-the-sheep-part-3/
Awesome article, i have both the iphone and an android phone, xperia x10. im gonna post this article on my facebook page just cause this morning in my status i posted that i would use both and see which is user friendlier. Then came all the hate, but it really just comes down to preference. Ios and android are going to rule the mobile os for now and both will be succesful. The debate mostly comes from new android user and some old iphone users and how the newer version of android are actually as user friendly as an iphone. Iphone was on its own for a while but since the newer version of android, more and more people are as satisfied with the their android devices
AT LAST!Someone who speaks with reason on the matter!I don't care whether you prefer iOS or Android,I just care that you have a balanced opinion on the matter.It all comes down to personal preference.What do I care if the guy/gal next to me prefers a different OS than I do?Yeah,I'm one of the guys who use Ubuntu as their daily OS on my PC,so what?Does that make me better or worse than the guys who use Windows or Mac?No.Same with phones.
More people should read your article.From me you have a well earned thanks.
Nice article
.......or you can just remember the old saying "arguing on the internet is like special olympics, even if you win, your still retarded" , and do something better with your time ....
no offense at op , but the average fanboy is dumber than a rock and even worse with apple
Lawl no one cares for WP7? xD
I really love my Apple products, and that includes all sorts of things (even some screwdrivers, hats, pens, water bottles ...)
But my iPod touch 1g is running Android. Apple has dropped support for me with that product, and I figured I may as well do the same thing to them with it
Sent from my DROID2 using XDA App
Yes... sadly enough WP7 is done for in a few ears...
The argument is APPLES and ORANGE.......... or to put more succinctly a non-sequitor
Apple market approach is and has been always has been to market the image and sell the image " only apple is unique or the best, only the best people, etc."
This is a piggy backed approach from the IPOD basis, which capitalized on online music in a mp3 format. It was and is a successful. But,... they're approach still states that they sell you WHAT THEY think is pertinent and decide on what you need, then charge you retail plus 20% for it. It is and still remains a locked and closed system. Creating a image fervor much like when xbox 1st came out, ...long lines customer fights etc.......... 2-digit mob mentality.......... they are good at this .....and it shows.
Android, on the other hand was not created to be closed system since it was based on Linux, it was open source, and the effort was to see if the public would drive development as well as create the new market that would automatically follow...... in essence a novel experiment.......... The result speaks for itself. An open more stable platform that has been embraced around the world. People need to remember that the market is not USA or Europe, but the Entire World. And that, Android has taken over and will continue until the market share of the Iphone IOS will be that of the Mac to the Windows platform. A solid following but, a minority player.
THE DANGER,---- is if Android then is turned upside down by Google, who then figures we are all addicted so now pay up or no support.......... I personally do not think this will happen, BUT... then I don't trust any corporation at all and so, I never let my guard down.
Like I said different animals vying for the same market................
^_^
thank you for your objective approach.
Seems a very strange move.
unwiredview said:
As you have probably heard, a major patent war is raging in mobile industry, and competitors are ganging up on Android, exploiting Google’s weakness in intellectual property assets. Mostly by suing manufacturers of Android devices for various patent infringements. If Google loses in this fight, Android vendors might have to pay $60 per device in patent fees eventually. It’s no wonder many people are worried about Android right now.
Amidst this Android patent insecurity, Motorola recently started touting the strength of its IP portfolio. Nothing surprising here. Motorola is one of the oldest players, with one of the strongest patent portfolios in the industry. Heck, they invented the mobile phone and have been at it for decades. If other mobile industry players decide to go after Motorola’s Android devices, Moto has a lot of patents to retaliate with.
However, things made a turn for the worse few weeks ago. During its Q2 earnings conference call Motorola hinted that it is ready to join Android patent racket, and start demanding licensing fees for its IP from other Android manufacturers.
This week Motorola’s CEO Sanjay Jha reiterated this message, and made it even more clear – they do indeed have plans to start collecting IP royalties from other Android makers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://www.unwiredview.com/2011/08/...ollect-ip-royalties-from-other-android-makers
Another excellent reason to avoid Moto products. You'd think they would be hitting back, not jumping on the bandwagon.
Dirty pool Moto.
I doubt google will standby and let one of their licensees attack the rest.
LOL... They should focus their strong patent pool on the largest threat (Apple). Not that I encourage this behavior from any company, but they (Android manufacturers) should be banding together right now to take down Apple, as it's not each other they have to fear.
I hope some of these greedy companies go bankrupt ...
Tone_ said:
I doubt google will standby and let one of their licensees attack the rest.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right... by buying Motorola. No biggy.
What now
That will be interesting with the new possible Google acquisition.
moot point with the google acquisition in hand
By Susan Decker - Dec 19, 2011 3:46 PM GMT-0800
Apple Inc. (AAPL) won a patent-infringement ruling that bans some HTC Corp. (2498) smartphones from the U.S. starting next year, bolstering efforts to prove that devices running Google Inc.’s Android operating system copy the iPhone.
The U.S. International Trade Commission, in a review of a judge’s findings in July, said yesterday that HTC is violating one Apple patent related to data-detection technology and issued a limited import exclusion order that takes effect April 19.
“HTC will completely remove it from all of our phones soon,” Grace Lei, general counsel for Taoyuan, Taiwan-based HTC, said in an e-mail. The six-member commission determined that three other patents in the case weren’t infringed.
While less than what Apple sought, the ruling gives the company its first victory in patent cases designed to slow the growth of Android, which former Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs claimed “ripped off the iPhone.” Apple has one other case against HTC, as well as complaints against Samsung Electronics Co. and Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc., and is involved in more than a dozen other cases before the trade commission.
“The battle between Apple and Android is going to continue,” said Peter Toren, a patent lawyer with Shulman Rogers in Potomac, Maryland, who has been watching the cases. “I’m not sure this decision, the way it is, is enough to push the parties to settlement. Apple doesn’t have the leverage of a total exclusionary order.”
Nexus One
The list of affected products and a full reason for the commission’s decision, which is subject to appeal and a presidential review, wasn’t immediately made public. Apple’s original complaint named HTC’s Nexus One, Touch Pro, Diamond, Tilt II, Dream, myTouch, Hero and Droid Eris.
Kristin Huguet, a spokeswoman for Cupertino, California- based Apple, declined to discuss the possibility of a settlement. She repeated the company’s position that “competition is healthy, but competitors should create their own original technology.”
Representatives from Google had no immediate comment.
The ruling is the first definitive decision in the dozens of patent cases that began to proliferate in 2010 as smartphone makers battle over a market that Strategy Analytics Inc. said increased 44 percent last quarter from a year earlier to 117 million phones worldwide. HTC, the second-largest maker of Android phones, used its partnership with Google to help transform itself from a contract manufacturer founded in 1997 to the biggest U.S. smartphone seller in the third quarter.
HTC Sales
HTC generated about $5 billion in U.S. sales last year, according to a separate patent complaint it filed at the trade agency against Apple. That’s more than half of HTC’s $9 billion (NT$275 billion) in global sales last year.
The commission’s order applies to new phone imports and doesn’t force HTC to pull existing devices off U.S. store shelves. The company can import refurbished phones to fulfill warranties or insurance contracts through Dec. 19, 2013.
“This exemption does not permit HTC to call new devices ‘refurbished’ and to import them as replacements,” the commission said.
Apple’s so-called ’647 patent covered a feature in which the phone recognizes a telephone number so it can be stored in directories or called without dialing.
“The ’647 patent is a small user interface experience,” Lei said. The company is pleased with the commission’s overall decision, and “we respect it.”
IPhone 4s, Galaxy
HTC phones accounted for 24 percent of the U.S. smartphone market in the third quarter, based on shipments, Palo Alto, California-based researcher Canalys reported Oct. 31. Samsung held 21 percent of the market, and Apple 20 percent. The market is volatile, and the Apple iPhone 4s that went on sale in October and Samsung’s newest Galaxy phone are likely to change the rankings for the fourth quarter.
Apple contended in its complaint that the HTC phones infringed four patents. Administrative Law Judge Carl Charneski in July sided with Apple for two of the patents: the data- detection one and the other covering the transmission of multiple types of data. The commission overturned the judge’s findings on that patent, and affirmed his determination that the remaining two patents weren’t infringed, which covered ways software programs are written and executed.
The commission, a quasi-judicial arbiter of trade disputes with the power to block products that infringe U.S. patents, chose in September to review Charneski’s findings.
‘Destroy Android’
Apple has a second complaint pending before the commission that claims other HTC smartphones and Flyer tablet computers infringe five patents related to software architecture and user interfaces. Apple also has cases before the trade commission and in district courts against Samsung and Motorola Mobility, which Google agreed to acquire in August.
The fight can be traced back to a decision by Jobs in March 2010 to file the HTC case, the first patent complaint by a device maker targeting Google’s Android operating system. Jobs, who died Oct. 5, made it his mission “to destroy Android,” which he said “ripped off the iPhone, wholesale,” according to Walter Isaacson’s biography of the Apple founder.
HTC has retaliated with two trade commission cases against Apple, one submitted last year and one in August. HTC lost a preliminary ruling by a judge in the case filed last year, a decision that the commission is now reviewing. The other case has yet to be decided. S3 Graphics Co., a company HTC agreed to buy in July, also has two commission cases against Apple, one of which Apple won last month.
Mobile Advertising
Google, which hasn’t been named in any of the Apple cases, denies copying the iPhone and said in a filing that Apple is trying to control the U.S. smartphone market through litigation.
HTC’s Android devices “are helping prevent Apple’s iOS from becoming the sole viable mobile platform and thus ‘locking in’ consumers and software developers to that platform,” Google said in the Oct. 6 filing.
Google’s Android accounts for about 70 percent of the smartphone operating systems used in the U.S., according to Canalys. Mountain View, California-based Google licenses Android to handset makers for free as a way to further its business of selling display and search advertising on mobile devices.
Google’s share of this year’s estimated $2.1 billion U.S. mobile-ad market will expand to 24 percent from 19 percent in 2010, Framingham, Massachusetts-based researcher IDC said Dec. 13. Millennial Media Inc.’s slice may climb to 17 percent from 15 percent, and Apple’s will decline to 15 percent from 19 percent.
The case is In the Matter of Certain Personal Data and Mobile Communications Devices and Related Software, 337-710, U.S. International Trade Commission (Washington).
This is hardly a win for Apple if you look at the facts of the case:
- Only android 1.6 - 2.2 devices are affected
- HTC has already stated they will be working around this to remove the infringing item from their phones
- Out of an initial ten patent violations alleged by Apple, the ruling has been in Apple's favour 'only partially' for one patent.
Yes it is extra work for HTC but not the nightmares that were painted in the press. And *it does not effect new devices*
I first read about it here:
http://gizmodo.com/5869507/htc-android-phones-are-being-banned-from-the-us-next-year
droidwizzo said:
This is hardly a win for Apple if you look at the facts of the case:
- Only android 1.6 - 2.2 devices are affected
- HTC has already stated they will be working around this to remove the infringing item from their phones
- Out of an initial ten patent violations alleged by Apple, the ruling has been in Apple's favour 'only partially' for one patent.
Yes it is extra work for HTC but not the nightmares that were painted in the press. And *it does not effect new devices*
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good!
I know it's a long shot, but I do hope this shallow victory deters Apple from trying to use patents as a weapon. Why can they just go back to innovating things and beating the competition through trying to be better?
Sigh, I miss Y2K-era Apple...
nak1017 said:
Good!
I know it's a long shot, but I do hope this shallow victory deters Apple from trying to use patents as a weapon. Why can they just go back to innovating things and beating the competition through trying to be better?
Sigh, I miss Y2K-era Apple...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why do many sectors of industry fight against knock-off and copies? Answer that and you'll have the answer you seek.
Apple sauce is slimey and another big brother corporation!
MartyLK said:
Why do many sectors of industry fight against knock-off and copies? Answer that and you'll have the answer you seek.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
evrey 1 copy appul. herp derp. appul invent smartpone and mp3 player. Herp a derp.
Things apple copied:
fruit
Phones
3G
Bluetooth (Although they made it semi-unique by crippling it)
Mobile operating systems
Microsoft
Lies (especially in advertising)
Steve Jobses DNA
Android
Shops
1 gig processor
fanbois
Samsung (They get samsung to sopy their own stuff for them)
LG
LG Prada
Trolls
Reality distortion field
Themselves
Ubuntu
The linux penguin. (He was cool long before apple)
coolness (Other, mainly only percieved by other apple fans)
Delusion
Windows
Satan
Obviousness (once again especially in advertising, "Herp - If you don't own a eye pad well you dont own an eye pad -derp"
All of these companies are taking losses with this whole patent war
hungry81 said:
evrey 1 copy appul. herp derp. appul invent smartpone and mp3 player. Herp a derp.
Things apple copied:
fruit
Phones
3G
Bluetooth (Although they made it semi-unique by crippling it)
Mobile operating systems
Microsoft
Lies (especially in advertising)
Steve Jobses DNA
Android
Shops
1 gig processor
fanbois
Samsung (They get samsung to sopy their own stuff for them)
LG
LG Prada
Trolls
Reality distortion field
Themselves
Ubuntu
The linux penguin. (He was cool long before apple)
coolness (Other, mainly only percieved by other apple fans)
Delusion
Windows
Satan
Obviousness (once again especially in advertising, "Herp - If you don't own a eye pad well you dont own an eye pad -derp"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ROFL.... Hahhahahahaaa. I love this post, although I'm not in complete agreement with that.
Steve Jobs made it his "MISSION" to destroy Android... Whoa! Either that's a statement made by the media, or Late Mr. Jobs was an arrogant dummy. Methinks it'll turn out to become... MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE.
theultimate1 said:
Steve Jobs made it his "MISSION" to destroy Android... Whoa! Either that's a statement made by the media, or Late Mr. Jobs was an arrogant dummy. Methinks it'll turn out to become... MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Honestly, the man seemed to be filled with a lot of hate near the end there so I kind of believe it's something he would say... I don't think he was a dummy, but it is sortof sad.
You know everyone's making a huge deal about this when it only covers 1.6-2.2 do you know any device on the market that sells with 2.2 on it everything's on 2.3 even the cheap budget phones
LOL exactly
if i were managing HTC, i'll simply pull those outdated phones off the shelf and replace them with another dozen of low budget HTC phones on 2.3 or 4.0 as they always like to do
it'll cost them less, than spending man hours and pushing a new ROM and convince people to use the new ROM with the replaced apps
and we all know older 1.6 phones wont be able to use any updated OS, so it'll pointless
it seems now Apple want to be the top brand of smart phone and for that they have to beat rivals like android etc because they know that some HTC phones are much better than the iPhone and just want to get rid of every smart phone maker by using court
I kinda have mixed feelings here. I hate Apple with a passion. I also hate HTC because their from from way back in the day sucked. I guess the lawyers/judge were all Apple sheep with their iphones and what not. lol
I know its not a "big" win, but in the law world it is a win and helps Apple set some precedence in any other patents cases. Apple, why you no like competition?
Well, even if Apple did won, it's not that big of a victory from what I see. In fact, HTC has already made a workaround according to cnet: http://cnet.co/sC3XnE. I'm thinking HTC has foreseen this and created one before hand just in case.
Not that hard to work around. And well, why are they afraid of competition? Because as soon as Apple sheep see a CHEAPER, and BETTER device that is just as dumbafied for them, they'll surely jump on a new bandwagon. For a corp that feeds solely offa those people, I'd be scared of losing them too.
A P P L E=Assholes Placing Patent Lawsuits Everywhere.
Someone needs to stop this madness!
sooyong94 said:
A P P L E=Assholes Placing Patent Lawsuits Everywhere.
Someone needs to stop this madness!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh man, I really like that!
sooyong94 said:
A P P L E=Assholes Placing Patent Lawsuits Everywhere.
Someone needs to stop this madness!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I like that. Someone make a t-shirt out of it so I can where that at the Apple store!
Anyways, this is one of the many reasons why I don't like Apple. I like to say they are arrogant but it's not due to their products or pricing, but due to how they rather use patents to kill healthy competitors instead of thinking up newer and better ideas for their products. They rather kill and destroy innovation rather than allowing others to embrace it. If Apple keeps this up, the mobile market could might as well stay stagnant.
Samsung has released a new flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S3, including voice control, wireless beaming of content and exclusive apps, as it aims to consolidate its position at the top of the mobile sector.
The S3 has a super AMOLED 4.8in screen, larger than its predecessor the S2, with an 8 megapixel rear camera and 1.9MP front camera which offers "intelligent camera features" that the company says will adapt to what it sees you doing.
The phone runs on Google's Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) software, but has a number of Samsung additions – including voice recognition and eye tracking.
The phone will go on sale on 30 May in the UK, with Orange and Phones4U already lined up to sell it. No price has yet been given. It will go on sale in the US this summer. Samsung said it will go on sale with 296 carriers in 145 countries. It can connect at "4G" speeds in compatible countries.
"S Voice" can respond to spoken orders such as "wake up" when its screen is off, "snooze" for an alarm, or to play a particular song, change volume settings, and take pictures. It also responds to gestures, so that lifting the phone to the face while sending a text message will dial the recipient's number instead.
Samsung has also souped up Google's Android Beam (which can pass data such as business card details) so it is capable of sending a 1GB file between two S3 phones in three minutes, or a 10MB file in two seconds by touching them together.
It comes in a 15GB or 32GB version, though the company said a 64GB model would come soon. Buyers can get an optional wireless charging pad, similar to that offered with the now-defunct HP TouchPad last year.
At 4.8in, the screen size is only just below the minimum 5in that most analysts class as a tablet – indicating Samsung's confidence that top-end users will want larger screens. The first-generation Galaxy S in 2010 had a 4in screen; the S2, a 4.3in screen.
The company sold an estimated 44m smartphones across its entire portfolio in the first quarter of 2012, more than any other company. It dominates the Android sector too, selling around 50% of phones on a platform which itself makes up 50% of smartphone sales.
Jason Jenkins, editor of CNET UK, said: "The Samsung Galaxy S3 is a cracker of a smartphone that makes the iPhone look a little like yesterday's model. It cements Samsung's place as one of the leading phone manufacturers and really puts the pressure on Apple to come up with something different for its next iPhone later in the year.
"It's also starting to look like this will be a two-horse race – Samsung and Apple fighting it out for the number one spot with everyone else left to pick up the crumbs. HTC, Sony, BlackBerry and Nokia are the ones with the real work to do."
Ian Fogg, an analyst at IHS Suppli, said: "What's striking is that Samsung is focusing on software and the experiences, more than the hardware (although that is excellent too). Features like Pop over, social tag, and S Voice all aspire to differentiate from the opposition through the user experience that Samsung's software customisation delivers.
"Samsung have been leading up to this for a while, but this is the first time they've led their product positioning on user experience and software."
Francisco Jeronimo, IDC's smartphones analyst, was downbeat, saying: "It is not an eye-catching device that will overwhelm consumers."
He noted that analysts had not been given the chance to try out the voice control in pre-release demonstrations of the phone. Of a brief test, he said: "Overall, [it] seems very similar to Siri, but my first impression was that is not as well integrated with the phone as Siri is with the iPhone."
Carolina Milanesi, smartphones analyst at the research group Gartner, said that Samsung was looking for ways to remain ahead of rivals in the Android space, as well as Apple.
"They need to push the boundaries in order to remain ahead," she said. "It will be interesting to see how many of these new features [in the S3] will be open to developers so that they can take advantage of them in their apps."
However, if developers start to target Samsung APIs for apps, that could potentially split the Android platform still further beyond the individual versions produced by Google – and would also tend to increase Samsung's control of Android.
Such an "embrace and extend" manoeuvre would build its control of the platform, where it already presently has half of worldwide sales and is the biggest profit-maker.
Jeronimo observed: "Samsung definitely embraced Android, and is extending it. We shouldn't also forget that Samsung has a quite opportunistic approach to market trends.
"If Android is now the new kid on the block that can best contribute to its success, they will invest and nurture it to maximise the opportunity. But if the trend changes (and they are very good at anticipating that), they will also change the platform they embrace in the future."
But, he added: "It is clear that Samsung has no other strong options at the moment."
No price was announced, though Milanesi suggested that it would be priced similarly to the Google-branded (but Samsung-made) Galaxy Nexus, released last October, and that prices of the year-old Galaxy S2 would be cut to boost Samsung's already dominant share.
Milanesi was generally impressed with the device, though with some reservations. "The design is much improved, and despite the fact that it is still plastic it feels much less cheap than the Galaxy S2 and the Nexus," she said.
But she thought the S Voice control was less convincing: "It came across as a little gimmicky when I played with it. But to me the main issue is that these features are quite buried in the device, so might not be that obvious to consumers. S Voice is not as complex as Siri – more like voice activation for simple commands."
Overall, she suggested: "I think Samsung has similar challenges to Apple but with a less convincing overall package and a weaker brand."
But Fogg suggested that the real problem would be for other companies. "For Nokia, this must be deeply concerning," he said. "One of Nokia's stated reasons they opted for Windows Phone was because they believed that it would be impossible to differentiate using Android.
"Samsung is showing with the the Galaxy S3 that it's perfectly possible to innovate with Android software. In fact, Android is enabling faster innovation than any handset maker has managed with Windows Phone."
But the new Galaxy S3 could also pose problems for the smaller players in the Android space, Fogg suggested. "Samsung's marketing spend and brand awareness are second to none. This combination of marketing spend and channels will cause serious problems for smaller handset makers such as HTC, LG and Motorola."
Jeronimo warned that Samsung needs to consolidate its position: "Samsung needs to come up with unique features and not to catch-up once again with other vendors. What is there that's completely unique on the S3 that we haven't seen on other devices? Maybe slight differences on the features, but nothing disruptive.
"They entered a new era. The only way to succeed is to set the pace of innovation. I believe that's exactly what they want to do, but they still suffering from the 'follower-syndrome': to improve what others created. That's why consumers will compare the S Voice to Siri and not the other way around."
If you're going to copy/paste an article that someone else wrote, I believe common courtesy would be to cite the source. Also, what is the point of starting a thread like this? There are already a ton of other GS3 threads, why not post your OWN opinions in one of those threads instead of starting a new thread with someone else's words?
All that said, I don't think Sammy is going to dominate anything with this phone, it is downright hideous. I really hope the US variants look a lot nicer.