Android versus iPhone

There have been a few reports out this week on smartphone trends. The reports have touched on operating system dominance, user loyalty, and carrier acceptance. One analyst predicts that the Android platform will surpass the iPhone platform in 2012, with Symbian still being number one, and iPhone number three. This is based on the belief that multiple carrier adoption of the Android device will drive growth. I think this makes sense, if you assume Apple does nothing and the carriers that adopt the Android platform can develop a user interface on the Android OS that can compete with the iPhone user interface. The iPhone user interface and the sleekness of the device have created a level of loyalty that is unmatched. One recent report had the factors most important to smartphone users as: operation (30%), operating system (22%), features (21%), physical design (18%), and battery life (9%). For overall satisfaction across all dimensions of satisfaction, the iPhone out scores all others by a healthy margin. Another smartphone survey showed that 92% of iPhone users feel the device is their ideal smartphone. All other smartphones users (Blackberry, Android, etc.) responded between 1% and 3% on this question. That's pretty darn impressive, but not surprising. The device is revolutionary. It's more than an OS; it's an experience, at least that's what some say.

So, what does Apple need to do to defend its lead? Well, if you believe that multiple carrier adoption will drive growth, perhaps they should get rid of the exclusivity deals. Moreover, they might want to come out with a few different flavors of the device, perhaps one should have a real keyboard, in addition to the fantastic touch screen. This would appeal to more business users who like the BlackBerry.

Sources:

http://forums.pinstack.com/f52/iphone_android_and_pre_beat_blackberry_and_legacy_smartphones114378/#post1204807
http://www.mobiadnews.com/?p=4032
http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/09/10/08/multi_phone_android_platform_seen_to_overtake_iphone_by_2012.html