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Nov-05-2009T-Mobile to Bill for Google Android Apps, Get Android Market Channel(topic overview)
CONTENTS:
- T-Mobile will let its subscribers pay for Android applications on their monthly mobile bills starting Nov. 17, also introducing its own section of the Android Marketplace that day. (More...)
- If the iPhone gets Google Nav will TomTom be kicked out of the App Store for duplicating functionality?? I also really like the dockable modes that the Droid has. (More...)
- " is a step in the right direction, but we think that we have to go even further to get applications across different devices," he said. (More...)
- Word is it will be coming before 2010 hits, so we definitely don't think it will be anything earth-shattering, unless Google is working at warp speed, or has invented a way to time travel. (More...)
- According to Brighthand, a leaked screenshot from T-Mobile shows two version of a device called "Sholes", which has long been the codename for the Droid. (More...)
- If your online life is lock, stock and barrel Google, there really isn't a better or more powerful smartphone for getting stuff done in that universe. (More...)
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T-Mobile will let its subscribers pay for Android applications on their monthly mobile bills starting Nov. 17, also introducing its own section of the Android Marketplace that day. Users of the carrier's three Android handsets will have the option of picking out applications from among the roughly 12,000 in the Android Market and having the purchase charge show up on their T-Mobile bills. The carrier will then pay the app developers their share of the charge on the back end, said Cole Brodman, chief technology officer and senior vice president for technology, at the Open Mobile Summit in San Francisco on Wednesday. Apple spearheaded mobile-application shopping with its App Store for the iPhone and iPod Touch, which goes through a consumer's stored value or credit-card account on Apple's iTunes. With the App Store now boasting more than 100,000 applications, Android backers such as T-Mobile are trying to create a purchase experience that consumers will flock to as much as they have to Apple's platform. [1] News by Michael Oryl on Wednesday November 04, 2009. During a keynote at Open Mobile Summit today in San Francisco, T-Mobile USA CTO Cole Brodman talked of some of his company's plans for the Google Android smartphone platform. The most interesting piece of information that Brodman revealed is that T-Mobile will launch carrier billing for the Android Market on its smartphones later this month. This will allow customers to have Android Market purchases charged directly to their T-Mobile phone bills. He also said that the carrier will begin offering its own channel on the Android Market app store that will be called, fittingly, the T-Mobile Channel.[2] The iPhone is a phenomenon no one has seen before in the nascent smartphone market. With Droid versus iPhone stories dotting the world of wireless news, T-Mobile's CTO reminded everyone that the first company to make a phone based on Google's Android platform has its own dogs in the smartphone race. T-Mobile CTO Cole Brodman said at the Open Mobile Summit Nov. 4 that T-Mobile will let customers pay for Android applications on their monthly mobile bills starting Nov. 17.[3]
Android users generally have had to use Google Checkout to pay for applications, but Google has said it wants a variety of payment choices for the market. On Nov. 17, T-Mobile will introduce its own channel within the Android Market. It will allow T-Mobile to highlight its own applications and those of specific developer partners, Brodman said. Mobile developers have expressed concern about how they can get consumers' attention with their applications in increasingly crowded mobile marketplaces. Verizon plans to have its own channel in the Android Market when its first Android phone, the Motorola Droid, goes on sale Thursday. Last week, Sprint Nextel told developers it would launch its own application store with marketing opportunities for partner companies.[1] Brodman shared some insights into T-Mobile's Android business and explained how T-Mobile is looking to get the most out of the platform for itself, consumers and developers. T-Mobile has four Android devices on sale for this holiday season. He said Android has led to a 50x jump in data consumption for T-Mobile with 80 percent of Android users browsing at least once a day and 2/3 of Android users browsing several times a day. He said half of the users visit the Android Market at least once a day and nearly half of the users of the latest MyTouch 3G have "completely customized" their phones. More than 40 percent of users use their Android device for social networking, he said. "People are using (their Android devices) beyond voice, text messaging and simple communications," he said.[4] Half of T-Mobile myTouch 3G users visit Android Market at least once a day, according to a Nov. 4 report from T-Mobile USA. As you'll recall, the carrier released the T-Mobile myTouch 3G device in August. Here's why this is huge news: Until now, Android Market has not been as good at attracting smartphone users as the legendary Apple App Store, which now offers more than 100,000 apps to Android Market's 12,000. Most developers I've talked to say their Android Market sales have been tiny.[5] More than 40% of myTouch users access social networking sites multiple times per day. He also talked about the success of the Android Market which has grown to over 12,000 applications, while specifically focusing on the T-Mobile AppPack, an Android market features that shows off 3rd party applications that have been developed by T-Mobile developers and include both free and paid offerings. This month T-Mobile will even receive their very own channel on the Android Market for apps, while the Android Market will launch carrier billing features to streamline customer services efforts while purchasing applications. Developers will also be able to visit developer.t-mobile.com to pitch their apps for a daily "featured apps" spot in the channel, a great way for T-Mobile to show customers apps they believe to be the best of the best.[6] When the T-Mobile myTouch 3G appeared, the company created an "AppPack" on the Android Market which features hand-picked third-party apps and T-Mobile apps. Brodman said that later this month the company will follow up with a T-Mobile Channel on the Android Market, to make it easier for users to find and purchase applications. T-Mobile also now has a developer-focused site where application creators can pitch their apps for featured placement and marketing partnerships with T-Mobile. The company will also soon be offering carrier billing, so that users can get charges for applications they purchase on their phone bills.[7] T-Mobile recently refreshed AppPack with new, suggested applications ''' 34 apps in all, including a mix of free and paid apps. Later this month, the company will take this a step further by introducing a T-Mobile Channel on Android Market (that will be live by Thanksgiving), and Android Market (including the T-Mobile Channel) will soon feature carrier billing making it easier and more streamlined for customers with T-Mobile Android devices to purchase their favorite applications.[8]
Beth Goza, T-Mobile's Sr. Manager for Mobile Applications and Partner Programs told mocoNews that the new T-Mobile Channel in the Android Market will help customers easily discover new items. It will also co-exist with the AppPack, which currently serves more as a library or reference point for some of the must-have apps, like Twitter and Facebook. This is especially needed in the case of the myTouch device, which doesn't come with those services unlike the Motorola ( NYSE: MOT ) Cliq.[9]
T-Mobile USA CTO Cole Brodman confirmed the carrier billing rollout today at the Open Mobile Summit in San Francisco, adding that the carrier will soon add a custom "T-Mobile Channel" to the Android Market. By the end of the month, T-Mobile customers with Android phones can download premium Android apps from the Android Market and have the cost of the apps charged directly to their monthly phone bill. The T-Mobile Channel will offer customers customized content for their Android phone.[10] T-Mobile CTO Cole Brodman says at the Open Mobile Summit that T-Mobile will let customers pay for Android applications on their monthly mobile bills starting Nov. 17. On that day, T-Mobile will also launch the T-Mobile Channel on Android Market to recommend some of the Market's apps to T-Mobile customers.[3]
Over the summer, the company unveiled a kind of app store framework that carriers can then customize to suit myriad devices and operating systems. It's not used at T-Mobile USA. T-Mobile chief technology officer Cole Brodman took the stage just before Uddenfeldt to say that the country's third-largest carrier is preparing to launch not an app store but its own "channel" within Google's Android Marketplace. At another mobile-obsessed San Francisco conference this summer, Brodman said - in no uncertain terms - that T-Mobile USA would not launch its own app storefront. Part of the Google-driven Open Handset Alliance, T-Mobile was the first to launch a Googlephone, and clearly, it's sticking with Mountain View's Android vision.[11] OpenMobileSummit Ericsson senior vp Jan Uddenfeldt has called on the wireless industry to build its own "horizontal" mobile app stores that span operating systems and devices. Speaking this morning at an open-happy mobile conference in downtown San Francisco, Uddenfeldt hailed Google's momentum-building Android setup, but he urged carriers to move beyond Android's device-spanning app marketplace - not to mention the iPhone App Store[11]
Currently the number of apps in the Android Market pales in comparison to the App Store 10,000 versus 85,000 but the gap should narrow over time as more consumers and developers embrace the platform. Advertiser appeal: Google is already synonymous with desktop search, and the growing number of mobile web users will look to a familiar name to find what they need on the Internet, as well as what's around their area. The company is also starting to integrate its popular targeted ads into the free apps distributed on Android Market. While Android isn't the first platform for Google's numerous free properties to appear, it's the leading candidate to be the one that drives Google's growth to the next level.[12] Developer appeal: With a growing number of handset makers using the platform and availability on almost every wireless carrier in the world, the Android Market ]] Android Market Google's equivalent to Apple's App Store will have the broadest reach.[12]
Android Market currently hosts 12,000 applications, compared with the 100,000 applications Apple's iPhone App Store hosts today. While this makes the Android platform seem dwarfish by comparison, Android's growth is respectable for a platform that launched on smartphones little more than a year ago.[3] More than 40 percent of myTouch users access social-networking sites multiple times per day. While Android does have substantial momentum right now, it doesn’t yet have the?? iPhone’s overflowing ecosystem of applications. As Om reported today, Apple says that there are now 100,000 applications for the iPhone in its App Store.[7]
The most obvious change is the user interface and the clumsy, confusing clutter that we first saw on the T-Mobile G1 has been replaced with a much cleaner, crisper design. It's still not perfect, but Gizmodo reckons that the main reason for the fiddly aspects is the multitasking nature of the operating system and the need to manage multiple open applications -- something that the Palm Pre nailed with its 'card' concept and the iPhone doesn't have to worry about. The integration of contacts and messages from different email and social networking sites is also singled out for praise and this looks like a feature that will be found in all serious smartphone operating systems before too long. Support for multiple Google and Microsoft Exchange email accounts is now built into the native Gmail application too, but these don't get a combined inbox -- each account is kept separate. Another annoyance is that the Calendar application can only use data from one Google account, which isn't much use if you keep separate work and personal accounts. Android 2.0's web browser also appears to be much improved, but Gizmodo reckons that it doesn't support pinch-to-zoom on the multi-touch screen -- this feature is supposed to be included, so maybe it just hasn't been implemented yet.[13] Gadget site Gizmodo has posted a very lengthy review of Android 2.0, together with lots of screenshots of Google's new smartphone operating system. The gist of the review is that this update is a major improvement over the version that first shipped a year ago and, together with new features like Google Maps 2.0, should attract increasing numbers of users once it starts appearing on smartphones in the next month or so.[13]
Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG ) was founded in 1996 and went on to become the undisputed king of Internet search and advertising. Ten years later, it brought its ubiquitous search engine to mobile phones with the launch of Google Mobile. Now, with the proliferation of smartphones, Google is pursuing a broader range of mobile initiatives that will make it a leader in mobile software and take its advertising business into territory that so far has been uncharted. Google's original business model, as it applies to its trademark search engine, was to give away a product and have it funnel users to its targeted ads. Last year, the company built on that model by giving away its operating system (OS), Android, to any wireless handset maker that would have it. Android has only appeared on 12 phones worldwide since its launch a little more than a year ago.[14] Google denied, on October 31, 2009, making its own smartphone. Andy Rubin, the Android project president said that the company will remain loyal to its customers, offering Android as an operating system only for other hardware manufacturers. He also admitted that Google'''s influence on the G1 from T-Mobile was rather negative, as the company is not specialized in hardware design. The rumor concerning the release of a Google smartphone was also supported by some information saying that Google co-designed the Droid, offering it its brand, its applications suite and that Google helped Motorola design the phone'''s hardware.[15] There are no longer any doubts that T-Mobile has hitched its smartphone bandwagon to Google’s Android operating system. The company today said that it will be selling four Android-powered handsets to its (current and potential) customers during the vital holiday season. It is clear they are hoping to sell a lot of smart phones. As part of its push, the company is making some plans regarding applications and application discovery.[8]
Google affirmed that the Droid is representative for Android 2.0 and that is the only reason why the company was more involved in the phone'''s production and release. If Google ever decides to make its own phone, it risks the collaboration with other phone manufacturers, such as HTC, Motorola and even Apple, as iPhone depends on Google'''s Maps and YouTube. Now Google is developing an operating system of its own and will be a direct competitor to Apple. Therefore, Google CEO Eric Schmidt even had to recuse himself from some Apple board meetings and afterwards resigned from the Board of Directors given the conflicts of interests with respect to the Chrome OS.[15] The Android Market has over 10,000 apps, and its state of the union is still a mixed bag. It's finally got official apps from Facebook, Amazon, Pandora and other critical names people expect on their phone. On the other, and almost universally, these apps aren't nearly as polished or full-featured as their iPhone counterparts (look no further than the Facebook app, which lacks even messaging in Android). Games? It's a pretty desolate wasteland, if you're looking for something beyond NES emulators. The library is getting better, and will undoubtedly keep getting better, but it's hard not to lament Android's comparative app ghetto, even as the platform's poised to explode. ( Update : Another point I forgot to mention, and part of the reason Android games are limited in scope, is the storage limit for apps since they can't be installed on the SD card--for instance, it's 256MB on the Droid.) A problem that's currently plaguing the ecosystem, and is hopefully not a foreboding omen of the fragmentation to come, is that many apps weren't designed for the higher resolution screens that Android 2.0 supports, so their icons and graphics render crap-ugly on Droid, even in the main menu. (Granted, the phenomenon is partly Google's fault for restricting access to the 2.0 SDK to all but a select group of privileged developers until basically the day Droid was announced.)[16] Software is inextricably tied to hardware in many respects, and nowhere is that more true than performance. Droid, the first Android 2.0 phone--and the only one we've used--is ridiculously capable, with an ARM Cortex A8 TI OMAP3430 processor that's basically the same as the chips inside of the Palm Pre and iPhone 3GS. Point being, it's got heavy duty processor firepower. It's absolutely inexplicable that while it's overall the fastest version of Android yet--most apps fly open instantly, run zippily and practically zoom from one to another, even with a couple running in the background--very basic user interface elements, like the main pop-up menu on the home screen and sliding over from one desktop to another, often stutter or lag (with no apps running up front, and just a couple of widgets on the desktop). At this point, it's clear that these performance hiccups are an Android problem, not a hardware deficiency. It's maddening to hold a badass phone like the Droid and watch it handle menus like a pussy.[16]
Brodman said today that the number of Android apps in the Android Market has grown to 12,000, up from 50 when the G1 phone first launched. He also confirmed that T-Mobile is focusing on application discoverability an issue many iPhone users have struggled with for Android.[7] No credit card via the phone required. This lowers the barrier for buying. Perhaps what is more interesting is that T-Mobile is going to add its own "channel" to the Android Market. Similar to the Apps Pack that T-Mobile already recommends to Android users, the T-Mobile Channel will feature a number of applications and services that T-Mobile believes it will be beneficial for Android users to download.[17] The billing capability will be part of a new T-Mobile Channel on the online Android Market that is designed to recommend Android applications to T-Mobile customers. Users will be able to visit the T-Mobile Channel in the Android Market, browse for applications for their T-Mobile phones and click to buy them. They will be billed for their purchases on their regular wireless bill.[3] T-Mobile USA CTO Cole Brodman has confirmed that carrier billing will be coming soon for purchases made on the Android Market. While no timeframe has been set for the introduction of the service, this will allow customers the choice to bill purchases to their T-Mobile account instead of having to use a credit card for separate purchase transactions. In related news, T-Mobile will be launching its own content channel on Android Market where the carrier will recommend selected applications to customers, with the launch expected before the Thanksgiving holiday.[18] Today T-Mobile CTO Cole Brodman shared a number of data points regarding T-Mobile's Android customers. T-Mobile apparently has high hopes for Android adoption, as it is planning to roll out its very own T-Mobile Channel in the Android Market. It will also make carrier billing a reality later this year.[17]
SAN FRANCISCO--During a keynote address at the Open Mobile Summit 2009 conference here, T-Mobile USA CTO Cole Brodman touted his company's "belief in the power of open," and argued the carrier had supported the concept long before some of its competitors. Specifically, Brodman noted T-Mobile was the first carrier to launch an Android handset in the U.S. with its debut of the G1 device a year ago. That push will continue: He said the company will have four Android handsets available this holiday season, with that number doubling to eight in the first six months of 2010. Brodman also said that T-Mobile believes that 2009 is the "year of the smartphone," and expects that 40 percent of its sales in the fourth quarter will be smartphones, the majority of which will be devices with Android and BlackBerry operating systems.[19] Cole Brodman, chief technology and innovation officer at T-Mobile USA, provided details on the company'''s continuing plans for the open-source Android operating system in a keynote address at Open Mobile Summit today in San Francisco. In the company's fourth-quarter lineup a period that promises to see lots of Android action T-Mobile will feature four Android-based phones: the Motorola CLIQ (now available), the Samsung Behold II (coming soon), the T-Mobile G1 and the T-Mobile myTouch, according to a report provided to us on his keynote.[7] During a keynote at Open Mobile Summit today in San Francisco, Cole Brodman, Chief Technology and Innovation Officer at T-Mobile USA, discussed the company's continued investment in Android. In its Q4 line-up, T-Mobile will feature four Android-based phones in what promises to be a breakthrough quarter for smartphones. These include: The Motorola CLIQ (now available), the Samsung Behold II (coming soon), the T-Mobile G1 and the T-Mobile myTouch.[20]
T-Mobile has been out in front of the Android wave, having launched the first Android device, the G1, a year ago. The company plans on riding that wave well into the future, said Cole Brodman, T-Mobile's chief technology and innovation officer, at the Open Mobile Summit this morning.[4]
Musicians will get a list of good apps related to music. On Nov. 17, T-Mobile will also allow users to buy Android Market apps by just posting the purchase to their T-Mobile bill. "It's another accelerant to make sure the paid ecosystem can thrive and flourish," Brodman said. Brodman said this is the year of Android and he expects to see millions of devices sold now that the platform is gaining momentum. The company is also trying to stay ahead of the data curve by upgrading its still unfinished 3G network to HSPA 7.2 by the end of the year.[4] T-Mobile USA has announced that they would soon enable a feature that would let the user pay for items purchased from the Android Market through their bills. This feature would be available from November 17. The company would also launch its own new section on the Android store on the same day.[21]
Using the data collected by Google Analytics developers will be able to provide updates to existing applications based on use and new applications with commonly liked features. Developers know giving iPhone and Android users what they want will mean more downloads and that equals more revenue.[22] Google announced its free web traffic data tool Google Analytics is now available for iPhone and Android applications, enabling more efficient measurement of mobile marketing efforts. According to Google, developers can now track how users engage with their apps in respect to both pageviews and events--Google Analytics aggregates data in Content reports to display the number of visits, session length and bounce rates.[23] Google says mobile app developers can tell Google Analytics what actions taken by users would trigger the analytics tracking. Google uses those triggers to determine views, session lengths, and bounce rates. Developers can also use Event Tracking to track actions such as watching a video, clicking a button or conducting a download. The data provided by Google Analytics for mobile apps can be highly useful for developers as they choose to enhance and update their apps over time. It can also inform future app development by helping developers meet customer needs and desires. Check out this video on how online real estate brokerage Redfin used Google Analytics to track their mobile application.[24]
As with websites, you can track pageviews and events. Since there are no HTML pages involved in mobile apps, developers should determine when their apps should trigger pageview requests. Google Analytics then aggregates this data in the "Content" reports to display the number of visits, session length and bounce rates. Developers can track visitor actions such as watching videos, button clicks, downloads, etc. all which don't correspond directly to pageviews using "Event Tracking." Individuals and companies behind mobile apps can know which features are most popular and eventually fine tune their products. First, you'll need to grab the SDK and implement the necessary code in order for Google Analytics to start doing its magic. In case you're wondering whether someone has tried this already, here as a video featuring Redfin's Sasha Aickin who explains how they implemented Google Analytics in their iPhone app. That's actually after the jump.[25]
App Store is a distraction -- very important to iPhone as a handheld computer (its strength), but irrelevant to Apple or mobile industry in revenue terms, and potentially easy to replicate if the small group of key App developers port elsewhere (already happening seriously, I think). Most of the comments seem to assume iPhone has won and is dominant, seemingly oblivious to facts that the opine has <20% smartphone market share (Nokia still far bigger, and MS/RIM nearby), sub-2% handset share (ever heard of the world beyond the U.S., and it's not all undeveloped?), and the real giants and kingmakers are the cellcos (and, nowadays, possibly also internet giants like Facebook, Twitter. and, oh yes, Google).[26] The future of Apple is not in the control of Apple's hands, it is depending on how Google plays the Android. If Google can unite all the carriers (including AT&T) and hardware manufacturers, As Mr. Gates once said " It doesn't matter any more. your arguable better technology, you current market share, your leading App store, your iTunes, etc. etc[26] The Android Market is better than some other competing app stores, but Apple still has it outnumbered ten to one in app volume, and the Apple iTunes and app store platforms provide a compelling reason to consider the iPhone.[27]
You do not have to link to Apple's iTunes store to purchase applications from the Android Market. For those apps that have a price, you enter your information on the Google Market one time and you're done. This one is almost not fair, since Android was built with the intention of integrating with Google.[28]
You might've gone through 5 restores a week), apps crashing, etc. It wasn't until 2.2 did things get stable enough for the phone to be completely usable. 3.0 is a much more stable firmware so Apple is now able to take their time designing new functionality. I'm hoping they turn on the radio feature with the next release. I hate seeing features like this missing on the iphone but present on the nano. I would love to have the free google maps navigation upgrade, google is saying that they're working with apple to intergrate it to the iPhone.[29] It's too early to tell how successful Android will be. This threat to Apple wasn't made overnight. Subsequently, Apple wouldn't just rest on their laurels with the 3GS. The 3GS to me appears to be a "stop gap" solution and not a big jump like the 3G was from the 1G iPhone. Remember the fuss over a missing 4G prototype iPhone in China? Why do you think Foxconn was relentless in trying to find the phone and caused a poor engineer to commit suicide when they couldn't find it? Just wait until early next year for the new iPhone.[26] I don't own an iPhone(I'm waiting for more competitive contract terms here in the UK which will surely follow now that we will soon have three distributors) but have sampled every so-called smartphone available and also handled the Droid. None comes anywhere near the iPhone for all round user satisfaction. and it seems that the vast majority of it's users think the same. This is the distinguishing factor and it remains to be seen whether the legion of Android phones will get close to the high standard of Apples 3 year old design.[26]
One area where Apple has a clear advantage is development of innovative user interfaces that simplify complex tasks (like using multiple applications on smart phones, for example). If Apple made a truly great search engine for mobile devices that was only available on the iPhone, this could provide a serious sales boost and might help defend Apple's franchise position as the top dog in the smartphone world.[30] If an Android user searches the phrase "pizza" using Google's mobile search, the results will not only yield every pizza shop in the area but also highlight any paid advertisement by shop owners. Roughly 97% of Google's revenue comes from its targeted ads, and its foray into mobile searches not just on Android could keep that number high for the foreseeable future. "Advertisers are seeing 10 increase in click-thrus via mobile devices," Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C ) analyst Mark Mahaney wrote earlier this year. "Mobile search activity is ramping fast this smartphone summer, and ad dollars are following." While Google is already dipping its toes into the local advertising waters, rising sales of smart phones bode well.[12] While sales in the overall mobile phone market fell 6.1% in the second quarter, smartphone sales grew 27%, according to Gartner. Smartphones represent a new avenue for consumers and businesses to use the Internet, and Google CEO Schmidt reiterated his company's SaaS stance when an analyst asked if there was no opportunity for it to make money despite development costs. "For example, our Android product, there are many other pieces of technology that Google builds and the rough argument is that we do things that are strategic because they get people to ultimately use the Internet in a clever and new way," Schmidt said. "We know that as they use the Internet more, they ultimately search more or watch more on YouTube and we then know that our advertising works in a particularly strong and targeted way."[12] Huawei, for those who don'''t know, is a China-based company and is in fact, the largest networking and telecommunications equipment supplier in the People's Republic of China, will develop their own mobile phones, again, based on Google'''s Android Operating System. What is significant about this news is that Huawei will release these series of Android handsets in Europe, the Asia Pacific and Latin America.[31] China-based Huawei Technologies will release multiple mobile phones using Google's Android operating system in coming months, a company spokeswoman said Wednesday.[32]
T-Mobile was first to embrace the open source Google operating system, but with the addition of Sprint, and now Verizon, Android is mounting a quiet revolution that could see it squash the iPhone OS and rise to a dominant position among mobile operating systems. There has been a lot of media attention devoted to whether or not the Motorola Droid, available beginning this Friday from Verizon, is as good or better than the iPhone.[27] T-Mobile USA Chief Technology and Innovation Officer Cole Brodman spoke at the Open Mobile Summit in San Francisco today and he focused his message on the companies investment in the Google Android operating system.[6] T-Mobile USA is increasing its investment in the Google ( NSDQ: GOOG ) Android platform even more, by improving the application experience, according to a keynote given by CTO Cole Brodman said this morning at Open Mobile Summit this morning in San Francisco.[9]
Huawei Technologies has announced that they are working on several new models powered by Google Android mobile platform. These devices would be launched in the coming months. The company said that they are in talks to launch these new Android smartphones in several markets around the world. They are already selling one device named Huawei Pulse in the UK market through T-Mobile.[33]
I've never purchased anything over Android but is it really that difficult? I actually wouldn't want to have it end up in a carrier bill. I have an iPhone, so I have AT&T and they have screwed up my bill several times. One time they added AAA service to one of my lines, and one time they removed the unlimited family messaging plan that I have. We got credit for both after many hours on the phone. I think this would be HORRIBLE. I don't know how bad T-Mobile billing/customer service is compared to AT&T but I can't imagine they are that much better.[34] While other carriers might finally be dipping their toes in the Android water this month, T-Mobile has been in this game for a long time. They got their first Android phone (the G1) out last October, and managed to launch two more (the myTouch and the CLIQ) within the year. It makes sense, then, that they're the first to pipe up with some usage details. T-Mobile today shared a few interesting Android statistics, and announced a number of ways they'd be increasing their support for the Android Market. All of the details T-Mobile shared involve the T-Mobile myTouch specifically it is, after all, their flagship Android phone.[34]
One of the weaknesses of the Android Market is its current inability to support carrier billing. If customers want to purchase and download certain applications, they have to whip out their credit card. That's not so much fun and likely prevents squeamish people from going through with the purchase. Carrier billing will help customers and developers alike because it will allow consumers to purchase an app and have the charge show up on their T-mobile billing statement at the end of the month.[17] To help drive the Android ecosystem and keep customers and developers satisfied with the experience, T-Mobile is rolling out a number of initiatives specific to Android. In addition to embedding more apps on devices, T-Mobile is creating its own T-Mobile Channel in the Android Market on Nov. 17, a sort of recommended list of apps.[4]
Devices that can tap into the Android Market have improved, and become easier to use: myTouch 3G represents only one of a bunch of new, compelling gadgets based on Android software developed by Google and its partners that are coming out en mass. What's more, Android Market's functionality has improved, and should evolve further in the next few months, making the store easier to use for both developers and consumers.[5] Carrier would then transfer the money to the developer of the application. This would make it easier for the mobile users who prefer not to use Google Checkout for paying for applications on their Android powered mobile device.[21] Google Android Market currently has around 12,000 applications available for download and purchase. Users would pay for the applications through their mobile bill.[21]
Last week, Google Analytics expanded to offer reporting features for mobile applications on the iPhone and Android.[24] To learn more about Google Analytics for Android and iPhone mobile apps, you should read the technical documentation and check out the SDK on Google???s website.[35]
The new features let publishers and developers understand the mobile traffic coming to and activity occurring within iPhone and Android apps.[36] Before Android, there were few mobile OSes capable of delivering smartphone functionality (e.g. OTA updates, app store, WebKit browser, ), into the feature phone price range.[37]
Some may think that the tens of thousands of applications on the App Store make the iPhone entrenched. Remember that these were put together in a little over a year, so Android can do the same in a year.[26] Manufacturers are desperate, after two years, to copy the iPhone, none have come close - even to version one. They're also desperately copying OSX, and iPods, and iMacs, and MacBook Airs, and Macbook Pros, and the App Store, and iTunes. Apple is leading by as much as 5 years, and what comes out of PA Semi will send them further ahead too. The vertical integration of Apple is being copied, even by Microsoft, because the latter's model is so utterly devalued by customers today.[26]
There are some hints that the iPhone 4 may be released soon, within a few months (rather than middle of next year), but not yet convinced nor yet expecting fireworks. If it happened, it could be a wise move for Apple, especially if it shows a lot more hardware and OS progress than did 3G to 3GS -- iPhone's are pretty poor hardware-wise, and telephony is mediocre, so rational consumers might be far better off getting an iPod Touch (the only thing holding up iPod sales these days) featuring most of the handheld computer pluses, and save 90% of the lifetime cost and 24-month lock-ins of 3GS. By the way, I do have an iPhone, and very impressed with it as a handheld computer (where it deserves plaudits), but it sucks at the phone and hardware levels, and is murdered by the stunted O/S and control freakier, and is evolving far too slowly. Unless Apple pulls a few rabbits from its hat soon, the successor will be an Android, possibly third-gen, post-Droid, when vendors start to really differentiate the hardware and interfaces (and I'll have a Touch, to retain all that Apple's doing best).[26] Let me remind you all that competition for Apple will only mean Apple will be forced to churn out higher quality and more innovative products. "And exactly how am I supposed to move my thousands of hours of music and photos and videos from my iPhone to an Android phone?" Personnally I can't possibly understand why anyone other than an Apple investor who doesn't use their products would ever see this as a good thing. Comments like this are what lead people to believe Apple is a marketing company.[26] You have your Windows 7, your Linux, your original Android phone from T-Mobile in the UK. I have my iPhone, my iMac and everything good that's Apple (and even a few pieces that aren't). That's why I know it'll never work out between us.[38] Exactly how am I supposed to move my thousands of hours of music and photos and videos from my iPhone to an Android phone? Apple is a sticky ecosystem; once you go Mac or iPhone, you never go back.[26]
Will Android platform get fragmented like what happened to UNIX. If it does, Apple will win, otherwise Google will trump Apple. 2. What side will Nokia choose eventually, If Nokia embrace the Android, Apple will be dead, otherwise, it is hard to say who will win Nokia will never choose iPhone because Apple won't allow it, right? It doesn't matter Apple is the current leader or not (by the way, how long Apple has been the leader? not long). It is a consumer business, it is a flaky tough business.[26] As an affirmation of the platform's value, compare used iPhone prices with prices of other handheld devices at gazelle.com. iPhone OS devices will be reused in higher percentages than any other device. This fact, plus the fact that Apple is now selling the better part of 10 million (iPhone plus iPod touch) per quarter, make the math impossible to ignore. Can you really argue your way out of the 60 million vs. less than 5 million paradox? Third, you make it sound as if it's an aggressive strategy that has all those handset manufacturers converting to Android.[26] Just watch. That's how much iPhone has changed expectations and the playing field. I think if Android had made a major push in 2007 or 2008, perhaps they could gain a significant position, but the horse has left the barn. It will grow to some middling platform that is not terribly profitable for anyone involved, and will have just enough device sales to keep it modestly interesting for the top few sellers. The observation that Apple is now in a position to repeat its previous behavior - snatching defeat from the jaws of victory - is now the argument du jour used by bloggers who are predicting Android success. Technical details aside, how many credit card numbers and customer accounts did Apple have in 1985? How many does it have now? (Hint - it's 100 million and growing by 5% per quarter). That's the power of the platform, and that's a big part of why they will not lose again.[26]
Just as Apple's dominance of PC application software was quickly overcome when the MSDOS computers arrived on the scene in big numbers. Steve Jobs and Apple, having been there before, may have the answer this time. They need to entrench their position, which they are doing by going to multiple air time providers in each territory and by going to new territories. Android will be doing all this too. They need to very rapidly advance their hardware technology. There is plenty of room to do this; the iPhone has a rubbish camera and no OLED screen, for instance.[26] Apple only has to consider one hardware device and one wireless provider network (at least for now) when updating the iPhone operating system, but the success of the iPhone operating system relies on only one device that is available from only one wireless carrier. The draconian control that Apple maintains over every aspect of the hardware and software contributes to its ability to produce quality hardware and a slick user experience, but it also limits availability and increases costs.[27] In the meantime though, Android has quickly outnumbered and outflanked the iPhone operating system. It has gone from an obscure new-kid-on-the-block operating system to a preferred OS that is being used as the platform for a range of devices from the Droid, to Motorola's Cliq, to HTC's Hero (and the slightly modified HTC Droid Eris ), and the Samsung Behold II. The diverse hardware options are both a benefit and a challenge for Android.[27] Even if neither the Droid, nor the Cliq, nor any other device end up beating the iPhone as a device, the sheer volume of Android-based handsets pretty much guarantees that Android will pass iPhone as an operating system. Its simply a numbers game.[27]
RIM stock dipped (coincidentally?) with release of Android 2.0 on the Droid and with reactions to it in the blogosphere and with smartphone users. If the fire Android sets under RIM, Apple, Symbian and WinMob manufacturers results in better, cheaper devices and a race by wireless providers to get these into our hands at competitive prices then I'm all for stoking that flame.[37] Okay, correction: it doesn't have to go everywhere, but we certainly want it to -- and fortunately, it looks like some lucky carrier in the Americas is signed up for the Huawei U8220. You might know this puppy better as the Pulse over on T-Mobile in Europe, and a new variant of the device -- model number U8220-6 -- has just garnered FCC approval in the past few days with 3G on the 850 and 1900MHz bands. That means Bell, Telus, Rogers, Fido, and AT&T could all be on tap to get this one; we doubt that AT&T would make its inaugural Android plunge with a midrange Huawei, but stranger things have happened.[39] The ability to independently develop unrestricted applications for Android vs trying to write anything remotely useful for the previous locked-down carrier phones of the recent past is like night and day. Android is not perfect yet, but in a year or two its going to be really nice with even better hardware and a more polished experience.[37]
Until I can magically and perfectly sync 12 gigs of music and videos over the air, you can't get away with not having a media sync desktop application. DoubleTwist, a third-party app that can sync to Android, doesn't really count, since it's not bundled with it. ( Update : FWIW, if you know where to look, Motorola offers a PC-only Media Link application for its Android phones. It still doesn't solve the larger Android problem--Google needs to specify an easy-to-use syncing solution for people who need that.) Make no mistake, for a phone platform that's supposed to be ready for consumers now, this is a disaster, like a spaceship that's about to shoot into the atmosphere with a gaping hole in the side.[16] If an app has a notification, it can let you know quickly, and in the background. I hesitate to place this on the list because so many readers seem to think user-configuration is worthless. It's not. The Android phone allows users to configure their mobile to look and behave exactly how they want it.[28] Huawei Promises Series of Android Phones China's Huawei will release a series of mobile phones using the Google Android OS in Europe, the Asia Pacific and Latin America.[32] Huawei Technologies was included in the World's Most Respected 200 Companies list compiled by Forbes magazine in May 2007, one of the six from telecom industry. In December 2008, BusinessWeek magazine puts Huawei at number 3 after Apple and Google in their first annual list of 'The World's Most Influential Companies' in collaboration with an advisory board of 14 academics, consultants, and industry leaders worldwide. Other Chinese companies who previously announced Android phones for Europe include Haier and Beyond Radio Technology.[31]
It's clear that market conditions are different - the easiest one you might understand is that unlike the days of yore where MS could buy up distribution - with the internet, no one can. You may not realize this market share does NOT equal margins or ROI. Apple makes $600-$700 PER iPHONE SALE including iTunes (with margins of 35-40%) - how much does GOOGLE make? ZERO. That's right. They are hoping to make money down the line with search and of course, stab WIN Mobile in the head and jump ahead of Yahoo. but its two different strategies - Apple is more than willing to concede the "free" market share to Google - Google is free to take 100% of the $49 smartphone market while Apple much prefers the 70% market share (like the ipod) of the top of the $600 smartphone market (with subsidy). Bottom line, guy, it's a new century - you might want to understand a little more before committing it to the internet.[26] Apple's own iPhone could end up providing a huge revenue stream to archival Google. This is not something that I can see Apple standing idly by on forever. The next question is how would Apple choose to monetize search? That's a tricky question. Apple could probably tie into the growing ranks of mobile ad networks and have them serve as a virtual sales force and self-service sales engine. Apple is very particular about the control of its devices and products and may not feel comfortable pulling in ads from third parties. Apple could also build out its own sales force and infrastructure. That may sound far fetched.[30] Urban legend has it that Microsoft often made more off of each Mac than Apple did. With the iPhone, Apple has figured out how to monetize every aspect of the mobile space: the hardware, the software, the "made for iPhone" peripherals program, the telco subscriptions, the sale of movies, music, TV shows and even a cut of the retail when they sell something at their own Apple stores/internet store. NOBODY, AND I MEAN NOBODY ELSE has figured this out! Not MS, not Google, not RIM, not Nokia, and not Palm, Verizon, Moto, or anyone.[26]
If Apple refuses to allow the Google Navigation app onto the iPhone, the hackles of the Federal Communications Commission would surely be raised. How does this tie into search? When I open up the Safari browser on my Apple iPhone 3Gs, the default search engine is Google. I don't know what Google's marketshare is on iPhones, but I'd wager its higher than even the 70 percent that Google enjoys among Web surfers not using handsets.[30] Google's Navigation app has features that blow away existing navigation apps. The mere existence of this app puts forth another implicit challenge to Apple's control over the ascendant iPhone platform.[30]
Gimmie better http proxy authentication support and I will be happy. Maybe they were waiting for blacksn0w, so that they can go ahead and fix that hole in the next release. YES. They need to add iTunes LP to the iPhone/iPodT. I have the LP version of Jay-Z album and I wish they content would be on the iPhone. They also need to get the google maps thing but they might wait until 4.0 since that's a pretty big feature. Or they might not. They need to add a lot more smaller features I personally think are worth added in a minor update. - Repeat/Shuffle on the iPod Shortcut - 3G switch in main menu. -Spotlight +Search History, Searches the web, Search in text message.[29]
"Developers can also track visitor actions that don't correspond directly to pageviews using Event Tracking," says Meredith Papp of the Google mobile ads team. "These user actions can include views of embedded videos, button clicks, downloads and more. App developers can then use this data to understand which features are most popular and inform decisions about which features should be promoted or prioritized for further development."[40] The data provided by Google Analytics helps app developers find out how users interact with their apps, what features they use more and so on.[35]
The solution provides data around pageviews and event tracking. Pageviews work by having developers determine when their apps should trigger pageview requests. That data is then compiled by Google Analytics and displayed to allow visibility into when specific functions within an app are triggered. Event tracking allows developers to track the use of items within an application such as embedded videos, button clicks, downloads or other actions.[22] Google is offering a solution which gives developers that ability. Google Analytics for Mobile Apps provides some of the same technology used by websites, but makes them available for mobile applications.[22]
I personally love to see a tech company always a step or two ahead of itself. Google is rumored to be in such a position, currently hard at work at version 2.1 of its Android mobile OS even though version 2.0 won't officially be out until Friday. It really shouldn't be a surprise to too many Android fans, considering the short turnaround time between 1.6 and 2.0. It's natural to assume Google would already be hard at work getting the next available version ready for developers as soon as possible. This ability to quickly update definitely can be a sign of a healthy mobile OS with a load of potential. Here's how it was discovered: Android and Me's webmasters were tracking the site's analytics reports and found that 0.04% of its traffic was coming from Android 2.1, instead of any other OS. It seems like such an incredibly simple approach, yet it worked rather well.[41] The company said that in time for Thanksgiving, T-Mobile will introduce a T-Mobile Channel, which will provide recommended content for the Google Android devices.[9]
Look for''a T-Mobile Channel in the Market and integrated carrier billing to pay for app purchases via your phone bill. This kind of differentiation and customization could help T-Mobile, and even Android in general.[42] ' With the introduction of the T-Mobile myTouch 3G, T-Mobile created T-Mobile AppPack on Android Market, which features select 3rd party and T-Mobile made apps.[20] As the Android Market has grown from 50 applications (when T-Mobile launched the G1) to more than 12,000 today, T-Mobile continues to look for ways to help customers discover compelling new applications.[20] Google, T-Mobile, Verizon, Motorola and the many other players betting on Android should be thinking carefully about further ways to offer incentives for outstanding Android applications, including financial ones.[7] For Android to compete as successfully as it can with the iPhone, good, easily discoverable applications are going to be critical. This month, Google will announce the winners of the second annual Android Developer Challenge, which offers large cash prizes for the best Android applications.[7] Google ( NSDQ: GOOG ) has recently updated its Analytics product to help developers see how people are using specific parts of their iPhone and Android applications.[25]
Android Market also lacks applications that support Android 2.0 devices' higher resolution screens, though that's hardly a surprise since Google only released the necessary development software last week.[13] Android Market currently hosts 12,000 applications, dwarfed by the 100,000 applications for Apple's iPhone.[3] Chances are, the Android app is free and works as well (or better) than the iPhone app. And, believe it or not, there are thousands of apps in the Android Market.[28] Historically, research has shown that with carrier billing, there's a big uptick of 30 to 40 percent in app or content downloads.We've been working very closely with Google over the last several months to integrate the Android Market with our internal billing gateway."[9] With credit cards now testing the waters with per-day interest rates, carrier billing could easily become the preferred way of charging for downloads on Android Market, Windows Mobile Marketplace, and Palm's App Catalog.[18] Find''Android apps easier and pay later ''( GigaOm ) Cole Brodman, CTO of T-Mo, offered up some deets on how the carrier will make it easier to find apps in the Android Market.[42]
In a statistic-laden keynote speech in San Francisco, Brodman told the crowd that half of all MyTouch users visit the Android Market at least once per day. 80 percent of MyTouch users browse the Web at least once per day, and two-thirds say they browse several times per day, he said. Nearly half of MyTouch users say they have customized their MyTouch phones, while more than 40 percent of MyTouch users access social networking sites multiple times each day.[3] Android clearly plays a big role in T-Mobile's future. Brodman said Android users consume 50 times the data of others, which is both a challenge (from a network capacity standpoint) and a huge benefit. "It's great to make products that people want to consume," he said.[19]
T-Mobile said it will have four Android devices in time for the holidays, the Motorola CLIQ (now available), the Samsung Behold II (coming soon), the T-Mobile G1 and the T-Mobile myTouch.[9] Today saw T-Mobile officially launch an Android smartphone, the Motorola CLIQ. Starting today, customers can buy the device in T-Mobile retail stores, partner stores and on-line.[43] And, with the Samsung Behold 2 scheduled to be unveiled next week, T-Mobile's Android lineup is going to become that much more formidable. To make the Android experience even better for its customers, T-Mobile will soon launch carrier billing for the Android Market.[10]
One Android phone from the company, the Huawei Pulse, is already sold by T-Mobile in the U.K. Huawei has used low prices gained from its base in China to quickly build its main business in networking equipment, and the vendor has similarly pitched the Pulse as an Android phone for lower-end customers.[32] One Android phone from the company, the Huawei Pulse, is already sold by T-Mobile in the U.K. Huawei has earned its reputation for selling low-priced networking equipments worldwide.[31]
When it comes to Android phones, T-Mobile offers more than any other carrier.[10]
Consumer appeal: Just like developers, the wide availability of Android on numerous phones and carriers will draw consumers looking for an alternative to the iPhone.[12] The default Android browser just can't be beat. It usually loads pages faster than Safari, has Flash support, and simply does everything a browser should do. Instead of just having icons littering your phone's desktop (like the iPhone), the Android phone adds widgets to the desktop. These widgets tend to have an actual purpose.[28] I recently switched from my AT&T iPhone to Sprint's HTC Hero. Now although the Hero is not a pure Android phone (it's the HTC Sense, which is a modified form of Android), it gives the same experience that Android gives (only with an HTC "bent" to the package). Through this phone, I have come to once again enjoy my mobile experience.[28] Installing applications on your Android phone is actually easier than it is on the iPhone.[28] No lock down. What do you think: Are these reasons enough to get you to move from your iPhone to an Android phone? If not, tell us why you prefer the iPhone.[28]
Ok, i don't like those stats. I don't like them because they actually have them. that means phone reports back what apps are being used. If i'm getting android phone, one of the things i'll be doing is either turning that option off or getting a custom rom that disables this.[34] While icons and menubars have been polished to fine gloss, and some things are cleaner and better organized--settings, for instance--overall, the user experience is basically the same: three desktops, which you can pack with icons and widgets; the still brilliant drop-down notification shade, which pools everything Android wants to tell you; and a pop-up tab where all of your apps are at. This is all still fine, mostly, if a bit muddled. The reason that cluttered interface confusion is mostly fine is that multitasking with Android is addictive, and it's a better, easier-to-use implementation than any phone but the Pre.[16] Gizmodo's conclusion is that if you're plugged into Google for much of your online life then Android 2.0 will really float your boat, but it still lacks the sophistication of the iPhone and Palm Pre. Those are companies that have lots of experience in designing user interfaces, of course, so given the improvements that Android 2.0 seems to offer, it seems logical to assume that Google will get there -- eventually.[13]
Google once again denied rumors that she is preparing a smartphone under its own brand. Project Android stated that Google would be unfair to compete with their own customers, so Android will continue to be the only project of Google's smartphone market, and use it will be third-party vendors.[44] Already, T-Mobile is providing a so-called "AppPack," which suggests 34 free and paid apps. The bigger announcement today is that T-Mobile will soon enable carrier billing, which will allow customers to buy apps using their monthly bill, rather than having to use Google Checkout.[9] Brodman said that on Nov. 17 T-Mobile will debut a channel in the Marketplace that will feature and recommend certain apps to T-Mobile customers. Brodman also said that T-Mobile customers will be able to download a paid app from this T-Mobile channel and it will be posted to their T-Mobile bill.[19]
T-Mobile's not set on just dumping out the hardware, though. It's unarguable at this point that the App catalog on any given platform makes or breaks the experience (psst, hey Palm pay attention), and it seems like T-Mobile realizes this. This is great news for developers I'd imagine that this streamlining of the purchasing process will cause a huge uptick in sales from T-Mobile customers.[34]
Availability on phones from many manufacturers is not necessarily a recipe for success. Not to mention that both of these existed way before the iPhone. The only smartphone manufacturer that has been able to hold it's market share even after the release of the iPhone is Research in Motion, which like Apple makes the hardware and the software. This business model in smartphones seems to be superior.[26] For Apple the iPhone is one of a stable of well selling products. For many of these companies, like Palm, these new phones are the equivalent of a Hail Mary pass to try to make it big in the smartphone market.[26]
Apple NEVER had a majority market share. It was IBM that legitimatized the PC. Nobody got fired for buying IBM. And since PC's were bloody expensive back then, and software was as well, once a business or an individual made a huge investment in hardware and software, there was no going back. Today, Apple is a leader because they make a quality product. It is easy to switch mobile phones and carriers.[26]
"An anecdote: circa 1998, I was working on cryptography for mobile devices (my career also includes Apple, and I'm currently an engineer at. I had a meeting with a number of very senior engineers at Motorola, and this convergence question came up. One engineer pooh-poohed the idea of convergence, and when I asked him explicitly, he asserted that yes, people would carry a cell phone, a pager, and a PDA to solve those specific problems (I envisioned Batman's utility belt). "You can't even buy a PDA anymore, as far as I know--it's a feature integrated into phones.[45] If the Google Maps for Mobile is going to depend on a good data connection, then I don't really see how it can match a dedicated GPS device which only needs "sightlines" to satellites (assuming of course that there is no brownout. hey, convergence of two of your tech threads!). When we were camping in Acadia National Park this summer, my wife's Google phone had no phone signal, never mind 3G. "I think Maps for Mobiles is great in densely populated areas, but if I were planning a long trip with lots of detours in rural areas, I don't see how this could be a dedicated GPS with the maps data downloaded previously to the device."[45] Google's advantage will be in the cloud, which it is positioning as a more efficient way of working, since it prevents two different copies of the same edited file from being e-mailed among employees. Similar mobile platforms such as BlackBerry and Windows Mobile already offer the ability to edit files through their phones, but still require users to e-mail them to one another.[12] Because so little revenue is being generated from mobile apps, any free alternative to fee-based approaches is likely to disrupt the market. Google seems to be offering developers and publishers a cheap and easy way to get basic metrics from their mobile apps and in a form that is familiar to them. Competitors in the space will need to distinguish the depth and added value of their metrics.[36] The analytics follow much the same patterns as standard Web site metrics, offering visibility into page views and events. Developers decide when their apps should trigger page view requests and Google Analytics compiles the number of visits, session length and bounce rates so publishers can see how users are interacting with the app. Publishers also can track user interactions that do not entail page views, such as video views, button clicks and downloads.[36]
In a move that is sure to shake up a nascent market in mobile analytics, Google announced today that it has expanded mobile reporting features in Google Analytics to include mobile apps.[36] The SDK and technical documentation for Google Analytics for Mobile Apps is available through the Google Code Labs website.[22]
If the iPhone gets Google Nav will TomTom be kicked out of the App Store for duplicating functionality?? I also really like the dockable modes that the Droid has. [29] I've lots of apps on my iPhone but have only paid for some of the more popular ones like NeuroMobile. It turns out that it is also one of the few apps I use everyday. It makes me wonder how many of the 100K apps in the app store are even used more than once.[23]
Apple has thus far not allowed GoogleVoice into the iPhone app store, a move that appears to have been tacitly supported by AT&T (although AT&T has publicly denied any involvement).[30] Now, there is legitimate competition and I think Apple needs to raise the bar again. Being able to tout their superior App store, with it's 10 billion apps (the majority of which are useless, of marginal quality, or redundant with other apps) isn't enough anymore.[29]
Apple's end game was always apps, but as far as I know Android now has around 10,000, which is a whole lot more then we need.[38]
I can see Android eating away at Windows Mobile and Symbian, but not iPhone. If Apple stumbles, they'll lose.[26] King of amazing how far Android has progressed in twelve months, and shows Apple up very badly in how little the iPhone has evolved in 2.5 years. mobile is currently a journey, not a destination.[26]
The major players prior to the launch of Android were Windows Mobile, BlackBerry, Symbian and the iPhone. Each of these platforms have its own strengths, but none of them were imaginative enough to catch the eyes of both consumers and industry players.[37] While the G1 is generally considered clunky, if not amateurish, by the standard set by iPhone, the MyTouch has made a strong case for Android as a viable smartphone platform.[3] More than 40% of myTouch users access social networking sites multiple times per day. These statistics clearly demonstrate that smartphone users are customizing their devices and putting them to solid use. I'd really be interested to see similar statistics from AT&T on how its iPhone customers behave.[17] IPhone may have been a 'fashion item' or 'cult' object 2 years ago, but again no longer. 60 million devices in use make it a powerful, flexible force that can be all things to all users thanks to the customization that apps provide.[26]
Cameras have become so cheap that Apple included a video camera in the $149 iPod, just to justify the price point against the $199 iPod Touch. It's much, much cheaper to add new elements to a convergent device to try and overcome its limitations than it is to build new services on top of dedicated devices. Adding a better camera to a iPhone is trivial, because all the interfaces are already in place, but adding cellular services and the interface to upload photos to a camera is very difficult because those interfaces were never considered. It's just a matter of time before high resolution color screens hit a price floor and the screen technical difference between an iPhone and a Kindle vanish. The devices with the most software and interface flexibility are going to win out, simply because they can adjust to the marketplace much, much faster. That was the whole point of the iPhone - to build a platform with that flexibility.[45] The barrier to switch platforms is zero. Therefore, if Android is BETTER than Apple, people will switch.[26]
The fact that the operating system is license-free provides manufacturers with a cost incentive for designing handsets around the Android platform. Because Android is open source it is also easier for handset manufacturers and third-party developers to customize the platform and design applications that extend its capabilities.[27] As Google continues to develop and evolve the Android operating system it has to ensure that changes and modifications work across a range of devices and networks and don't break any existing functionality.[27]
"If I went to my shareholder meeting, my analyst meeting, and said, 'hey, we've just launched a new product that has no revenue model!'I'm not sure that my investors would take that very well. That's kind of what Google's telling their investors about Android." Ballmer contends that wireless carriers would ask to be paid to carry Google's search, but since that statement, there's been no mention of such actions. Google's aim is to put all of its products in consumers' pockets, purses or belt clips, and it's not just limited to search.[12] Wow, sorry you don't like what I do. I would appreciate it if you could direct me to these forums you mention, I haven't seen why people are leaving in droves as you stated. This post wasn't sucking up to Google, it was stating that I am glad to see how Android has shaken up a lackadaisical smartphone world.[37]
In time, Android very well could be the internet phone, hands down, in terms of raw capabilities. While it's not as easy to use or polished or seamless as the iPhone--or to some extent, Palm's WebOS--it's way more usable than most other smartphones, and keeps evolving, way faster than anyone else, continually closing that gap.[16] "You have all the necessary conditions: You have the vendors, you have the distribution, and so forth." Open source code: Android, based on a Linux kernel is distributed for free to handset makers, which then can customize it any way they wish. This gives handset makers a way to differentiate their Android phones from others.[12] If you want an Android phone, you can join any number of carriers and have your choice of any number of outstanding phones using Android.[28] Chinese companies Haier and Beyond Radio Technology previously announced Android phones headed for Europe as well.[32] Don't forget Android is poised to be embedded in Appliances, DVRs, netbooks, smartbooks, eReaders, Slate computers, etc. So Google is shaking up a lot more than just the cell phone world it is shaking the entire Electronic World as we know it. It's a game changer (aka Disruptive Technology).[37]
TomTom has and Google is developing turn-by-turn software for the iPhone. Why buy both a phone and a GPS? Fitness apps that map where you ride or run, how fast you go, how far you go, how many calories you burn, and so on.[45] "Examine some of the unexpected iPhone apps. Multiple insurance carriers have created apps that allow you to submit claims right from the phone - including those crappy photos that you probably didn't expect to need to bring your camera for.[45] Unlike the iPhone, you don't need to have iTunes to manage your phone. Now, I say this with a bit of a chewed-up tongue because Android can't sync with the Linux desktop yet. That's okay for now.[28]
Why does being open make Android better than iPhone? For the same reason that being open helps Linux: a planet full of developers with the ability to aid Android's developers.[28] Anyone can get access to the source of Android to better the system. This is also a double-edged sword, in that it allows those will less-than-ideal intentions to discover any weakness of the phone. That can be seen as an indirect plus because when weaknesses are found in the open source community, they are quickly fixed. This is yet another reason why Android is superior.[28]
Many people with wireless phones do not have credit cards. As such, many Android customers (this is really more for future customers, but anyways) will be able to purchase downloads on the Android Market, and have the charges appear on their next monthly billing statement.[18] Google, however, is allowing the OEMs to customize the OS, look and feel, apps, etc. which has the strong potential of completely fragmenting the Android market. 6.[26] The best apps have only sold thousands of copies in the Android Market vs. millions in the App Store.[5] Not only titles and subjects. - Set brightness time out - Copy within app store -Dictionary + a section in the settings to add our own words. + words from apps, music artist names automatically added. - Select a few lines instead of an entire block of text in SMS app - record phone conversations using Voice Memo App. These are only a few of what I've kept record of.[29] Some days I would lose 50% of my battery just using the phone for about 20 minutes, I had all settings like location services, bluetooth, wifi and push email off. This went on for a couple of weeks and tried multiple settings and restores till finally I did a restore without using any old settings. I hope they put a cancel button for our message app. Ex: wrong person or wrong word you sending to someone.[29]
Universal search isn't quite as universal as we'd like, though. It only pores over apps, contacts, YouTube, music and the web--you have to go into the messaging and email apps separately to search through them, which doesn't make a whole lot of sense. While Android 2.0 is capable of multitouch, other than making typing smoother, it's nowhere to be found, at least not where I want it: the browser and maps.[16] Android 2.0 is glossy--not in an Apple "the whole world is shiny and reflective" kind of way, but more like molded plastic for a collectible action figure.[16] The browser actually starts you out on each site with a view of the entire page now, which is nicer in theory, but then it makes you want to pinch to zoom in--which, like Maps, is not enabled. You're stuck with unwieldly buttons and double-taps that never quite line the page up the way they should. If Palm, who's an insect by comparison, can pinch and zoom with impunity, why can't Google? Don't say it's out of friendship, because Apple doesn't even like you guys anymore. It's just too bad that on the Droid, the camera's completely unresponsive garbage. I don't know if it's software or hardware, so I'm mentioning in it both here and in our Droid review.[16] However the business model employed here is easily copied." This business model is one that ties the software, ecosystem and the hardware to the same company. The only way Google can copy this is to make their own smartphone.[26]
Google sees a completely open Mobile Internet with open smartphone operating systems and communications networks that will allow any company to compete.[30] Windows 95 destroyed Apple, not anything else mentioned here. I still remember a VP at the movie studio I was working at walking up and down the hall saying, "Now PCs are just like a Mac!" This when he seriously argued months before that the command line interface of MS-DOS was superior to Apple's GUI. In other words, theft by Microsoft (a corporate theme) almost destroyed Macintosh. IBM legitimized personal computers in business, and by the time Apple realized IBM was not the threat, Microsoft, it's corporate pal, had licensed the Mac operating system and with it the keys to the kingdom, i.e. subsequent Mac GUI development. This is somewhat similar to Google waking up recently to the fact that Microsoft isn't the real threat to them, but their pal Apple.[26] Introducing Macworld's Total Snow Leopard Superguide Every time Apple releases a new operating system, we pull together the most essential, in-depth, and up-to-date information about the Mac OS and create a new.[32]
The new OS was spotted by Android and Me, when the site was looking at which mobile operating systems were being used to check the site. It's not a huge amount (just 0.04% of all Android visits) but if you consider the forthcoming 2.0 update only has 0.24% of all traffic, we can assume that 2.1 is pretty far along. The word is this isn't going to be the same kind of jump as previous 0.1 updates (unlike the raft of changes in 1.6 ) merely bug fixes from the big 2.0 update.[46] The iPhone operating system has lots of room for improvement. Android will be doing all this too.[26] Android can mount the SD card so that it is usable (via drag and drop) by any operating system. On this you can add music and files, which will then be usable on the phone.[28]
An Android phone? You don't really know an Android phone until you've worked with one. That's when you'll find how far you can push your mobile experience. Note: This article is also available as a PDF download.[28] The smartphone space was looking for something, anything to ignite passion into a staid scene, and along you came with Android. It can't be argued that Android hasn't turned up the excitement factor a notch or two. There is almost continual buzz about this Android phone, or that one. It seems as if everyone and his smartphone making brother is working on getting an Android phone to market.[37] The new range of Android phones will be sold in Europe, Asia and Latin America.[47]
There are also rumours circulating that T-Mobile may be getting ready to launch the sexiest new Android device out there - the Droid.[43] T-Mobile has been out in front of the Android wave, having launched the first Android device, the G1, a year ago.[4]
T-Mobile Plans On-bill Android Purchases Nov. 17 T-Mobile will let its subscribers pay for Android applications on their monthly mobile bills starting Nov. 17.[1] To showcase Android applications, T-Mobile the week of Nov. 2 added the ability for Android developers to pitch their applications daily for featured placement and marketing partnerships with T-Mobile.[3] Goza T-Mobile has already been working closely with developers. She reached out to the Android developer behind the "Virtual Guitar" app, which was built by a husband and wife team in England. She asked whether they would consider expanding the acoustic game to include the electric guitar.[9] In order to discover the applications for the channel, T-Mobile has come up with a solution for that too. Today, T-Mobile launched the “Pitch Page,” where developers can contact the carrier to tell them about their apps.[9]
What's that mean? Well, if you have a hosted Google apps account for work, and a personal one (like all of us at Giz do), you can use the awesome native Gmail application for both, instead of being forced to relegate one of the accounts to the separate, okay-but-not-as-good email app, which is what handles all of your Exchange, IMAP and POP mail.[16] Google is selling licenses to use Docs to companies for $50 per user per year, which it says is one-third the cost of competing applications.[12]
Google's newly released navigation application -- priced at $0 -- wiped out in one afternoon what looked to be a very promising revenue stream for Apple in the form of pricey GPS applications downloadable on iPhones.[30] There have been some warning signs. Google CEO, Eric Schmidt, resigned from (or was asked to leave) Apple's Board of Directors in August. Another Apple director, Genentech CEO Arthur Levinson, left the Google board not long after. He did this, ostensibly, to avoid conflict of interest. Verizon ( VZ ) then dialed up the rhetoric with its "Droid Does" blanket media campaign, which took nasty swipes at the failings of iPhones.[30] Of course, Verizon started that debate by running the iDon't ad campaign that directly attacks the iPhone and compares it to the Droid. The fact though is that neither Verizon, nor Google need the Droid to "kill" the iPhone in order for it to be a check in the win column for them. For Verizon all that matters is that the Droid is a success in its own right --regardless of the iPhone--and that it generates some excitement and brings in customers.[27] Wait! Wait! I thought the BB Storm, or was that the Bold, was the "iPhone killer"? Please. Why does anything have to be a "killer" and not a worthy competitor? The sad thing is that Google and Palm and Motorola have had almost three years to work and have a a working competitor to aim at and the Droid is the best they can do? The Droid is a "me too" and not even good at that, with a newer technology screen and camera.[26] Only CGP, jpan and a few others show a semblance of additional balance and insight. I said with the first iPhone that Apple might not understand the mobile industry (far more dynamic and innovative than PCs and music players, with the added factor of cellco hegemony) and could take years to catch up on 'mobile' technology (just as Palm and RIM before it struggled for years with GSM and 3G), and don't yet yet see reason to change this view.[26] The search engine market is likely to get much hotter in the coming year if Apple ( AAPL ) adds a mobile search engine as the default option on its popular iPhones.[30] Then again, the real answer might be, Apple won't monetize search. It just will use search as a way to differentiate the iPhone. Let's face it; mobile search in its present form is still very clunky with hard-to-read pages and lots of fumbling on touch-screen menus.[30]
The presence of Google as the default search on iPhones is surely now viewed as a cancer by Apple CEO Steven P. Jobs.[30] If Google can start to create their own hardware-solutions, it could damage relations with many traditional partners, including HTC, Motorola and other manufacturers. Especially harmful can be a gap with Apple, because the iPhone is closely linked to the various services Google, such as Maps and YouTube.[44]
Something WILL eventually replace the iPhone, but given the financial strength of Apple and its superb marketing, I doubt very seriously that it is going to be Android.[26] This is no repeat of history. This is NOTHING like what is going on now. People want an APPLE device, which plays all their music, syncs to their computers, etc. iPod has evolved into iPhone.[26] People who cheers iPhone today will do the same to Droid a year later if Droid offer more value and experience. Of course, I exclude these die hard Apple fans.[26] Android didnt excite anything or you would have made this post ANYTIME within the last year, it was the hardware design of Droid that got people excited. Kev should fire you or get a job somewhere else, you are dragging him down. he seems to "think" much more than you do before coming too conclusions.[37]
With Android 2.0, it's evolved into something sleeker, more refined and focused--but still something not quite human. Over the last year, Android's evolved more rapidly and appeared in more shapes than any other smartphone OS. Every major update has made Android more capable and advanced, while custom interfaces from companies like HTC and Motorola, mean it's constantly and continually shifting shapes.[16] I would like to thank you for lighting a fire under the butt of smartphone makers by releasing Android into the mix. The smartphone world had been languishing for quite some time, unusual for such a young market.[37]
I've been intrigued by Android for a long time. Its still maturing but the floodgates are just now finally starting to open, with all the carriers coming to market with devices from several manufacturers.[37] Android is different because it doesn't need Google marketing, it will be marketed by all the handset manufacturers and air time providers.[26]
T-Mobile plans to continue to work closely with Google on the Android Marketplace.[19] The firm is not giving any other details at the moment but more PAYG Google Android handsets are likely to pop up on T-Mobile.[47]
Right now to purchase content on the Android Market, you must associate a Google Account with a credit card number. This is cumbersome, and potentially unacceptable, for many families with children or other authorized users.[18] About half myTouch users visit the Android Market at least once per day. Nearly half of myTouch users say they have '''completely customized''' their myTouch.[9] Android will have to continue to develop and innovate the Android Market to provide similar value to Android users.[27]
Of the plethora of products Google is bringing to Android the one that has the most potential is Google Docs, which gives users access to word processing, spreadsheet and presentation programs.[12] Google's competitors all have cloud initiatives, but Google has a head start and the momentum. "Inherently, Android is tailor-made for enterprise business of its open platform," Jason MacKenzie, vice president of North America operations at HTC Corp. told The Wall Street Journal. Internet searches are becoming more local, and Google knows this.[12] The SDK can be downloaded and used on iPhone, iPod Touch and Android application platforms.[40] Last week Google revealed it was working on a free navigation application for the latest version of Android to be released on Friday.[12] A spokesman for Huawei revealed earlier today that it is planning multiple Google Android OS sporting mobiles in the next 6 months.[47] Market research firm Gartner Inc. (NYSE: IT ) expects Android to appear on 14.5% of all mobile phones by the end of 2012, second in market share behind Nokia Corp.' s (NYSE ADR: NOK ) Symbian OS, which the firm predicts will command a whopping 39% of the market.[14] Every time we are together, I can't help but shudder over the fact that your Android phone is not of the latest generation.[38] Yeah, thats it. Maybe all these android phones together will act as some competition. That is like comparing a Corvette to. er. every other sports car out there and saying how they are in the minority.[26] The Huawei Pulse has been advertised as an Android phone for lower-end customers.[31]
It doesn't necessarily mean the phone reports back anything. T-Mobile is the ISP for data users on its network. They could just analyze their network traffic to see what apps are being used by whom and when. Or they could survey some sampling of their customers and statistically extrapolate from that.[34] Users will be able to tap into T-Mobile Studio, a collection of lifestyle themes, which will then recommend a number of apps to you based on your interests.[4]
T-Mobile recently refreshed AppPack with new, suggested applications ' 34 apps in all, including a mix of free and paid apps.[20] Brodman meanwhile said T-Mobile's fourth-quarter phone lineup includes the seminal T-Mobile G1 phone, the T-Mobile MyTouch, the new Motorola Cliq and the upcoming Samsung Behold II.[3] Mr. Brodman spoke about the success of the Motorola Cliq, the companies upcoming Samsung Behold II and the T-Mobile G1 and T-Mobile MyTouch devices, all of which are featured in the companies Q4 line-up.[6]
Brodman also offered up specifics on myTouch and Android application usage trends.[7]
Huawei, the Chinese firm behind the T-Mobile Pulse, has announced plans to release a whole range of new Android handsets in Britain.[47] T-Mobile'''s goal is to be the easiest carrier to do business with and the most open to new innovation. If they can stop stupid data issues from occurring it could be a great time to be a T-Mobile USA customer.[6] Originally attracted to it because it was sleek and new, our relationship has grown cold. She doesn't let me do the things I want to do - like use Google Voice or have Flash in my browser. She isn't reliable, dropping or mangling calls at the worst moment. I'm afraid I'm dumping her this week for her much more open minded friend - Droid.[38] The financial clout that Apple can bring to the table cannot be minimized. Only Google has a similar position but, by your admission, they are leaving the marketing up to the phone makers. This looks to me like bringing a knife to a gun fight.[26]
I think we need google nav definetly, the ability to end SMS messages after you send them, and definetly a new UI, it is getting old. I think Apple has something up their sleeves.[29] Waiting for Google Nav. "They need to add a lot more smaller features I personally think are worth added in a minor update.[29]
Compare your arguments with the past eight years of the iPod where the features were far more limited and the ecosystem just starting to grow. Jobs and co are not thinking NOW they are twenty moves down the road far beyond where any shallow and stupid thinkers are today. Thats why Apple rolls out the next great thing each time some idiot like Ballmer mouths off shooting his puck at where the net appeared to be three years ago.[26] The hardware manufacturers had to compete against each other on price and features. It was war. The result of this war was the survival of the fittest, rapid evolution that improved the breed. Apple was left well behind looking underpowered and overpriced; they could not even vaguely get near competing with the MSDOS machines. In just a couple of years they went from near monopoly to sideshow.[26] Apple's advertising notwithstanding, the competition is between Apple and Dell and other hardware manufacturers, with Mac OS being a differentiating feature. If every consumer buying any brand of PC were given a choice of Windows, Mac or Linux, then OS market share would be meaningful beyond its undeniable affect on third party software development.[26]
Apple is a technology company first. Their software, hardware, and industrial design are arguably ahead of competitors in using technology to provide solutions that work better and are enjoyable to use.[26] Apples were also expensive but were worth the extra. They became a bit of a cult, a fashion item, as well. The big strength of Apple computers was that the software and the hardware came from the same company, so they worked. The resultant dominance in the early 80s was such that other PCs might as well not have existed.[26]
This is one of those articles that starts with a premise - 'Apple is doomed to fail' by dint of history repeating itself, then tailors each argument to suit this false assumption. For example: 'In terms of range of products they(Apple) have left every other platform behind. However the business model employed here is easily copied.' Lets see, what exactly is their business model? Utilise your core strengths in software - 'OSX' and high quality hardware design, manufacturing skills, legendary ease-of-use, beautiful product design, integration, and sheer chutzpah in offering a product so different to anything else on the market.[26] Now Apple has a seamless universe with Mac, iPods and iPhones. They all overlap with software, development platforms, peripherals, media and iTunes.[26]
Now, Apple is keeping tight control of strategic apps on the iPhone even while the iPhone is opening up opportunities to more developers than Apple could ever have dreamed of in 1984. 8.[26] Apple is not doing stupid. Small minds of course will swallow your article as they always have. Fortunately the innate human desires being satisfied by Apples ecosystem doesn't allow one off their hook creating the oft quoted statement that "Once you go Mac (Apple) you never go back!". Disagree? Tell me what percentage of Mac users ever change to Windows or anything else, right approximately ZERO. When it comes to how many leave the iPod ecosystem once they have an iPod, right ZERO! Same thing for iPhones nobody is willing to let go of their applications and usability.[26] Apple Inc.' s (Nasdaq: AAPL ) iPhone OS will be third by that time with 13.7%, while Microsoft Corp.' s (Nasdaq: MSFT ) Windows Mobile will be fourth with 12.8% of the market.[12] Apple did not have anything like a virtual monopoly. They never had a 90% market share, not even 50%. Why should we substitute MSDOS with Andriod? Why not with Windows Mobile, or even better, with Symbian? Both are available on smartphones from multiple manufacturers, and both are losing market share.[26]
The Droid is not even available for sale to the general public yet and already all the Applezelots are declaring the device and the platform DOA with not a single sale to anyone!!! One thing you will never do is argue facts & logics with a zelot. Try it with a religious zelot Try it with a political zelot Try it with an Apple zelot Apple will never lose its zelots, hence its market share. It's not worth arguing with these people over Apple, Steve Jobs is Jesus and has come to save the world.[26] Once your in the Apple ecosystem you simply don't WANT to get out and in fact would fight to STAY in. Now Apple is readying to add another leg to their many legged stool to keep all the brighter or at least self aware people in their ecosystem. We all know what we want when we lose it few know it before they have it and it's rare that any know what others want before it is conceived of. Jobs knows what you will want after each of his next twenty moves and has alternate paths for each eventuality. Thats what makes his job fun. Thats why he only hires the cream of the crop and they rarely leave this creative environment that is so satisfying. Apples ecosystem is the elephant in the room that the dull and stupid don't see but the part that everyone recognizes they are unwilling to give up at any cost once they're in it. A few stray temporarily because they have no insight into themselves nor anything technology related but people like YOU Bruce are rare as are the truly ignorant.[26] Realistically this is the 1st act and the eventual whole story doesn't necessarily center on Apple. Apple has done an excellent job locking onto those into the ecosystem "ethos". I'm sure there are certainly a lot of other people out there who are looking at smartphones for other reasons and will base their decisions on them (i.e. cost of ownership, service provider and yes those "miscreants" who consider Apple a cult). For those who need to pick a "winner" (Apple/not-Apple) the real tell won't be until 2011/2012 (LTE/WiMax).[26]
Great article, but I think one factor that is often overlooked in the smartphone war is that people love the Ipod function of the Iphone. People take their Ipods with them nearly everywhere they go, and now with the Iphone they've got an Ipod built into their phone.[26] Nokia and Microsoft. If you think either one will just roll over and let Android take over the market and lets not leave off the lowly WebOS and the PRE which was destine to kill the Iphone due to all its superior capabilities.[26] Android 2.0's potential finally feels as enormous as the iPhone's, and I get kinda tingly thinking about it. I can't say Android 2.0 is ready for your mom yet, but it's definitely ready for anybody reading this.[16] Android 2.0 from Google won't be officially out until Friday, but it seems that Google is already busy preparing Android 2.1 for the masses.[48] Of course, considering the relatively short period of time between Android 1.6 and Android 2.0, we shouldn't be too surprise. Apparently a webmaster of an Android site was tracking the site's analytics and found that 0.04% of its traffic was coming from Android 2.1 devices.[48]
We reviewed on Android 2.0 on the Motorola Droid--our review of the actual phone is here.[16] unfortunately, the vast majority of phone buyers could care less about hardware specs. what matters most is that it works reasonably well, and has good presentation/aesthetic. from looking at that video that was posted, the android OS is still pretty ugly; AAPL still wins.[26] Android, however, is available to all hardware manufacturers. Most of them are developing models that use it. They will have to compete against each other on price and features. It will be war with rapid evolution improving the breed.[26] Jack Wallen has jumped on the Android bandwagon in a big way. Find out which features won him over.[28]
"You have all the necessary conditions: You have the vendors, you have the distribution, and so forth." Open source code: Android, based on a Linux kernel is distributed for free to handset makers, which then can customize it any way they wish.[14]
While the buzz around Android is not as big as that surrounding the original iPhone, it is growing every day.[37] Your battery will last all day, and you can also enjoy life like a normal person does. They also need to fix live updating. It doesn't display the same way on the iphone as it does in iTunes.[29] I personnally own and iPhone but do not have blinders on like so many Apple fanbois who comment here.[37] Apple continued to sell truckloads of iPhones, but the excitement factor was beginning to wane. Each iteration of the phone began to resemble "more of the same", primarily because they were.[37] Apple are moving on from the iPhone with a tablet device and probably a home console. Maybe this is their strategy.[26] Ecosystem! Ecosystem! Ecosystem! Your position only makes sense if you start as you have with your conclusion and dive very deep for any supporting ideas that can be massaged separated from reality to look better than a dead fish. Apple just as they have done in iTunes, iPod and now iPhone have revolutionary technology ready to roll out as soon as the competition is preparing something to try an compete.[26] Text message cancel, using the home button to end calls, more landscape (app store, maps), non slip back, better file transfer support to and from iPhone.[29] The iPhone and App Store have produced the biggest flowering of gaming creativity in history. In terms of range of products they have left every other platform behind.[26] The iPhone also has the benefit of having the most popular app store with the largest selection of apps.[27] The app store makes the iPhone an all in one computer that fits in your pocket.[26]
Perhaps Google will be able to provide some real insight into the app store.[23] Add in the marketing which actually is small potatoes in terms of overall development costs, build the first online app store to offer decent terms to developers, with lots of goodies for the consumer which is essentially free at the point of entry and what do you get? Clue. something that is almost impossible to clone without the same level of investment at every stage of the product's life.[26]
Barcode readers that use the iPhone camera so you can a book and get the Amazon listing for it. What's more, Amazon offers a service where you can take a picture of an item that you see - maybe a toaster at your friends house - and someone at Amazon will try and match it to a product that they sell. There are apps that allow your friends to share their location data so you can find out if one of them is physically nearby - discovered one of my best friends was given tickets to a baseball game I was at.[45] And, there's not even a built-in video player! I have a phone with drop-dead gorgeous screen that I can't use to play movies without digging up my own video app, even if I could figure out how to get videos onto it.[16] Exchange calendars, on the other hand, use the separate-but-equal-as-far-as-I-can-tell "Corporate Calendars" app. We tested Exchange support using mail2web's free service, and everything seemed to show up correctly, FWIW. My assessment is mostly the same after a weekend in a car--it's pretty good, but occasionally befuddling and hard to get around. A potential point of confusion is that Navigation is both integrated into Maps and also its own distinct app, unlike Latitude.[16]
Google has also provided a video which shows how Redfin, an online home broker, has benefited from using Google's solution. Google realizes that when it comes to offering a new service they do not have to reinvent the wheel. In fact it's OK to use a proven platform in a new way.[22] Apple is still as greedy as 30 years ago -- keep the whole pie for itself, and let all other players to have the leftover The only problem is that all the other players are not happy with the situations, who will? The further trouble is that there is one big guy called Google who want a BIG piece of pie, I admire the courage of Apple to fight against the whole industry, but sometime, hero died in an ugly way.[26] Google is already openly challenging Apple and AT&T with the battle over Google's disruptive VoIP application, GoogleVoice.[30] Google, you have single-handedly done for the smartphone segment what no one had been able to do except Apple.[37] MS will be Borlandized (or Ashton Tate-ized, if you prefer) sometime in the coming decade, made a division of some other rising company while the two great computer giants, Apple and Google, fight it out.[26] The Cupertino, Calif. company has been giving ( GOOG ) a tremendous branding and revenue opportunity -- free of charge -- by incorporating Google Search as the default option in Safari browsers, the only browsers on iPhones. That the two titans are going to clash, big time, is a foregone conclusion.[30] If you want an iPhone (at least for the time being), you better be open to AT&T. If you don't like AT&T and you still want an iPhone, you better be open to doing a little jail breaking or move to another country.[28] One thing that drives me crazy that should have been implemented since day one was the ability to quick reply SMS. Leaving an app is insane everytime. I read an article a few months ago stating that they were revamping the mail app. That's needed like right now. I also think they should have a better notification process on deck.[29] "We think the carrier billing platform is a great way to collect payment for paid apps on behalf of our partners," Brodman said.[19] I would NEVER, ever buy apps if it was left up to the carrier I would rather leave it up to Google checkout.[34] Google's app analytics do not seem to include tracking of the ad inventory within sites, which still must be served by third party mobile ad networks and servers.[36] The only bummer is that you still have to toggle between each Google account mailbox in the Gmail app. (Yes, there are two different email applications.[16] The Google Talk app, if you have a bunch of friends using Gtalk, is fantastic.[16] Select a few lines instead of an entire block of text in SMS app record phone conversations using Voice Memo App."[29]
Even the non-techie consumer space is getting invaded, with major advertising for Android phones invading consumer's awareness.[37] Huawei Technology has become the third largest supplier of Android 3G phones, according to the report.[49] Telecom equipment manufacturer Huawei Technology has recorded sales of more than 100,000 of its self-developed Google (Nasdaq: GOOG ) Android-based 3G smartphones in the European market, less than one month after the phone's October 6 release, reported Sohu.com.[49] Solr/Lucene could easily challenge Google's own search engine technology should a large enterprise decide to tune it up for a wider Web usage.[30] Apple also has, believe it or not, a team of search engineers who are quite well versed in a very powerful open-source search engine technology roughly referred to as Solr/Lucene.[30] Apple understands, clearly, the power of the search model as a means of making piles of money. Apple definitely understands that mobile search and revenue streams coming off of mobile advertising are both set to soar in the next decade.[30] In 1984, Apple was begging MS to create software for the Mac in order to avoid the chicken and egg syndrome, but now, Apple has one of the best and largest development ecosystems in place for any mobile player. 7.[26] Thanks for the review, Joel! The release of Bluetooth A2DP software (finally!) for the Apple iPhone and iPod touch incl.[22] The hardware is far far above that of Apple, and far above that of even whatever iPhone 4 will be.[38] No one else has that synergy. 2. Macs were way overpriced 1984 but Apple has shown every intention of keeping their iPods and iPhones priced competitively.[26] I know Apple has a winning formula with the iPhone, but I think the UI is starting to feel a little old.[29] I wouldn't consider myself the heaviest user but it definitely gets a beating from me. On that note, have you done a full restore to 3.1.2? I thought I noticed a slight battery issue when I initially upgraded (though I only used it for 1 day) so I did a full restore and it's definitely just as good as it always was. I'd also have to agree on why Apple hasn't released a beta yet?! They always seem pretty quick to do so. Though I'd be happy to wait if they told us there would be a huge UI change. Maybe there will be no 3.2? Apple loves to rest on its laurels when it can.[29] The situation is very different now vs. the early days of the PC. Back then, systems were expensive (hard to believe I paid $3000 in 1992 dollars for a desktop system), and the major cost was the hardware. This drove innovation in hardware design and supply system management that Apple couldn't keep up with, pricing them out of the picture. That's completely changed now. Dell and HP don't do much supply chain management for notebook systems, or even build them. They just do the design.[26]
Apple innovates better and faster than anyone and they have the $$$to do it. this company will still be here in 2020. will the others? It's not a fad when your product has the highest customer experience rating on the planet, no matter who conducts the survey! When you go to a mall with an Apple store, look around.[26] You make it sound as simple as sourcing all the bits to produce the same effect for another company. Your mistake, repeatedly, is to think that all these aspects of a products development are the same for anybody else and that Joe Public will be content with something almost as good as the original. If it were that simple there would be more than one Apple in the world and we know the answer to that. its just not possible and especially not in the short timeframe available to Apple's competitors.[26]
If there were a company that is a marketing company first and a technology company second, I don't know how Microsoft slipped your mind. The amount of press they buy, the pre-announcements of upcoming technologies, and the money they spend is notorious. Apple's marketing budget for a company it's size is not anything to brag about. If you mean they know how to successfully spend that money, I agree you are right.[26] Mostly fair article, but you lose tremendous credibility with this oft-stated myth, parroted by AAPL detractors: "In fact, to me, Apple is a marketing company first and a technology company second." This is just silly.[26]
The game now is design, software, and marketing--exactly what Apple is good at. That's the game for smartphones, too--design, software, marketing, and in Apple's case a unique marketing ecosystem. Apple won't be left out of an innovative manufacturing and supply chain scene this time.[26] In addition to more devices, the number of applications have also increased from 50 at the time of launch to 12,000 (of course that pales in comparison to Apple’s announcement today of 100,000 apps).[9] Apple and its close partner wireless carrier AT&T ( T ) envision a more closed, controlled system of tightly integrated devices, software and services.[30] Besides, a device like the iPhone can tap into wifi, if you're in a city, and side-step the carrier issue.[26] Carrier billing is where downloads purchased on a third-party service (like the Android Market) are charged onto your carrier wireless bill.[18] We're looking forward to seeing the Android story sort itself out - handsets like the Motorola Milestone will be packing Android version 2.0, but the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10, due out next year, is still only built on version 1.6.[46] Android's growth is respectable for a platform that launched on smartphones little more than a year ago.[3] Android 2.0 blows all of that away, and lays down a platform for the next year that's wildly more compelling, even as it retains a lot of the same fundamental weaknesses.[16]
As far as I'm concerned, the new hotness is the Sony Xperia X10 running Android 2.0.[38]
The company's working on giving Android users full functionality enjoyed by computer users.[12] There are 2 categories of user interaction that you can track, which are pageviews and events. Developers can determine when their apps should trigger pageview requests, since they don't contain HTML pages.[40] Since you've written about on-demand air travel, Zipcar has an app that will locate the closest car to your location, reserve it, and when you go to pick it up, will let you honk the horn and unlock the car from the iPhone. "And you can do all of these things from one device that you probably always have with you.[45] There is also an app in the Market called Y5, which will turn off Wi-Fi automatically when no known wireless network is available. To do any of this on the iPhone, you have to go into the Settings screen and navigate your way around the various options.[28]
The reports that are available as a result of last week's expansion of mobile reporting features are now available for mobile apps as well.[40] Well said. Those features right there would hold me loyal to the iPhone for months upon month upon months.[29]
Symbian was trying valiantly to slap a smartphone veneer over a feature phone interface, but many weren't buying it.[37] Adoption of smartphones which are more Web-friendly is on the rise, despite a slumping overall mobile phone market.[12]
The expanded Google Analytics service also tracks mobile websites, offering insight into traffic generated via any web-enabled device, regardless of whether the device runs JavaScript.[23] Google doesn't figure into that at all. People expect to get Google services on the net, not to carry a google device, which it isn't anyway, it's a MOTOROLA device. They couldn't even make decent Mac clones when they had a license.[26] The drawings posted showed said device with only 3 to 4 buttons with a HUGE screen. WELL making a long story short ANAL ists laughed it off. and the #1 complaint of a yet to be released device was. GET THIS!!!! The screen will SMUDGE and be covered with finger prints YADA YADA YADA!!!! Well, I look back now and emphatically say to them FU!!! You know WHY I say FU!!!???? It'''s because NOW all those playing catch up, have or WANT huge touch screens with minimal buttons. and the same user experience. Go Figure. ????? All those NAYSAYER'S are now scrambling to create the very device they once scoffed @. And people still have the audacity to criticize the device they are attempting to COPY!!!! iJah420 is now done with this rant. 4 the record.[26]
For the record I am tech savvy across MULTIPLE PLATFORMS. Prior to the release of said iPhone in 2007 which btw was doomed to fail by OH so many VASTLY more knowledgeable players in the ANAL ist world than I. If my memory serves me correctly. ? I seem to remember AAPL had released patent drawings on the rumored device. (I printed them out and have them to this day).[26] I don't expect iPhone customers to defect en masse. They may not love AT&T, but they are a devoted bunch when it comes to the device itself.[27]
I asked my teenage daughters who go to an exclusive private school in Redmond, Wa (home of msft) what phones the kids have / want. basically - they feel sorry for the few who are forced by their msft parents to use other than iPhones. the iPhone is considered the pinnacle.[26] The iPhone entered an existing cell phone market, including competition against existing Smart Phones, a very different situation from the early years of personal computing.[26] The iPhone, just as with Andriod based phones is available from multiple carriers in many countries. Those who have not signed any distribution contracts are very eager to do so.[26]
" is a step in the right direction, but we think that we have to go even further to get applications across different devices," he said. "We think it's very important when it comes to the application store, carriers need to launch their own - and this is happening all over the world. [11] At last a really open and capable platform on compelling hardware that has a real chance for an ecosystem of services and applications across carriers.[37]
Google does not have much experience in developing hardware and experience with T-Mobile G1 on the negative rather than positive.[44] The T-Mobile Channel will be updated as much as every two weeks with the latest app suggestions.[9] The company plans on riding that wave well into the future, said Cole Brodman, T-Mobile's.[4] Brodman characterized T-Mobile's billing system as a simple, "one-click" purchase method that doesn't require the user to give credit-card information or personal credentials.[1] By next year, T-Mobile will be upgrading again to HSPA+ which will give users speeds of 21 megabits per second.[4] Nifty. T-Mobile shared some interesting information from its current myTouch 3G users that is worth passing along.[17] T-Mobile is very encouraged by customer adoption and excitement for what myTouch enables.[20] I have been with t-mobile since back when they were voicestream. Their customer service is far superior to AT&T. Their coverage (here in Denver) is superior as well.[34]
I hope you don't mean like AT&T? (ha) btw: there was no outage at my locale, the Cali people made it sound like the t-mobile network was down U.S. wide.[34] I've always wanted the iPhone to become an alarm clock and speacialized media player while on the dock that I have. The Droid has a very cool implementation of this that I'd like to see implemented in the iPhone.[29] Do you think for a minute Windows7 would be today had it not been for Vista and Mac? We need competition, I hope the iPhone gets some, but the Droid isn't it.[26]
Word is it will be coming before 2010 hits, so we definitely don't think it will be anything earth-shattering, unless Google is working at warp speed, or has invented a way to time travel. [46] Google's software as a service (SaaS) model has rivals like Microsoft perplexed.[12] Fortunately Apple is years ahead of the competition and skates to where the puck is going to be while competitors like Microsoft skate to where it was three years ago.[26] Deep thinker your not and no doubt you have been living in your limited conceptual understanding ever since you failed to find any way to sell your exclusive distribution of Apple computers thirty years ago.[26] Until a few years ago so did the idea of hundreds of Apple retail stores dotting the land.[30]
My understanding is Solr/Lucene underpins the fabulous Spotlight search tool that Apple installs on every desktop. Apple also uses Solr/Lucene to power the search functions on its sites and on iTunes.[30] Apple computers were well made, came with excellent documentation and were easy to use.[26]
Apple's proprietary hardware and software, and the AT&T exclusivity offer similar pros and cons though.[27] Papp points to the software development kit and technical documentation for Analytics Tracking for Mobile Apps.[40] What a strange coincidence to see this post, as I was just thinking the same thing earlier today. They also need to add " skip this update " in the app store.[29] Aside from the base operating system, the update includes an AT&T Wi-Fi app and Vlingo for voice commands.[42]
According to Brighthand, a leaked screenshot from T-Mobile shows two version of a device called "Sholes", which has long been the codename for the Droid. [43] I have a Samsung flip-phone that uses the T-Mobile network for 4 years without any problems.[34] I tried at least 10 different solutions but finally I did a restore on my phone and input all new info, didn't use a backup to restore info.[29] Yes it took some real hardware coming to market, other than one clunky problematic phone. People definitely are excited and interested in all these new phones, otherwise they wouldn't be buying them.[37] There is no syncing, no easy way to get your music library onto your phone. How are normal people supposed to figure this out? Verizon reps actually joked about how putting music on the Droid is sure to make for a lovely Saturday afternoon.[16]
WinMo has been stale and going nowhere forever. I used to like it but in spite of its power and versatility it has never made for a great (or cheap) phone experience. Palm has a nice try out I wish them luck. Blackberry is just blackberry its not going away but its too dork-tastic to be mainstream with consumers any time soon.[37] To add to mix, one of the two versions is labelled a "tablet" device - which makes it possible we could be looking at a larger touch-screen version of the device with no slide-out keyboard. GoMo has been following this story with great interest. There is struggle going on between mobile operators and regulators in South Africa - and at the moment it looks like the operators are coming out on top. In mid-October, the Ministry of Communication directly ordered operators to lower their interconnection fees (the fees charged to place a call to another network). The Ministry stood in directly because the telecoms regulator in South Africa was effectively powerless to stop the operators doing what they wanted. In late October it looked like the government stance was going to work, as Vodacom and MTN agreed to reduce charges.[43] All of the other technical bits would naturally show up in time. That's why general purpose computers won out over stand alone adding machines, typewriters and stand-alone word processors, and so on. Remember, computers were the convergent devices of their time, and they won flat-out - except in the mobile space.[45]
Is there any way of making my mobile receiving my e mails as text? I have been looking for various applications / opt.[22]
If your online life is lock, stock and barrel Google, there really isn't a better or more powerful smartphone for getting stuff done in that universe. [16] What's more, Jobs and his team understand that control of the phone is control of a large chunk of future revenue growth. What is the top use of most smart phones, after voice and email? That would be search.[30]
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3. T-Mobile to Bill for Google Android Apps, Get Android Market Channel
4. The Technology Chronicles : T-Mobile ramps up for an Android future
5. myTouch's Users Tap Into Android Market - BusinessWeek
6. Open Mobile Summit: T-Mobile Discusses Continued Investment In Google Android
7. T-Mobile's CTO Talks Up Android Going Forward, Apps Are Key
8. The New New Carrier Deck
9. Updated: T-Mobile USA Will Add Its Own Channel And Carrier Billing to Android Market | mocoNews
10. T-Mobile: Android Market to get carrier billing and custom app channel
11. Ericsson calls on carriers to out-app-store Google ''' The Register
12. Hot Stocks: Google's Drive for Dominance Extends Into the Burgeoning Smartphone Market
13. Google Android 2.0 gets reviewed ' it's great (mostly) - Mobile Computer Mag
14. Hot Stocks: Google'''s Drive For Dominance Extends Into The Burgeoning Smartphone Market
15. Still no Google phone yet | High Tech Lounge
16. Android 2.0 Review: Almost Human - Android 2.0 review - Gizmodo
17. T-Mobile Adding Own Channel To Android Market - Mobile Blog - InformationWeek
18. T-Mobile Confirms Carrier Billing for Android Market | PhoneNews.com
19. T-Mobile CTO: 40% of Q4 sales will be smartphones - FierceWireless
20. MobileTechReview.com Discussion Forums: T-Mobile to Offer Carrier Billing Soon on the Android Market
21. T-Mobile set to launch on-bill Android Store purchase feature
22. Google Analytics now for mobile applications ''' Cell Phones & Mobile Device Technology News & Updates | Geek.com
23. Google Analytics expands to mobile apps - FierceMobileContent
24. Digging into Google Analytics for Mobile Applications - Search Marketing News Blog - Search Engine Watch (SEW)
25. Google extends the reach of its Analytics product to mobile apps
26. Apples to Apples: Will History Repeat Itself as Android Gains on the iPhone? -- Seeking Alpha
27. iPhone Under Attack from Android Invasion - Business Center - PC World
28. 10 things Android phones do better than the iPhone | 10 Things | TechRepublic.com
29. Where in the World is iPhone 3.2? | The iPhone Blog
30. Mobile search: Here's why Apple may take on Google -- DailyFinance
31. Huawei Announces Cheap Android Phones for Europe : Mobile Wire: Mobile Phone News
32. Huawei Promises Series of Android Phones - Business Center - PC World
33. Huawei Technologies to launch several Google Android smartphones
34. T-Mobile shares some Android statistics, will soon support carrier billing
35. Google Analytics now available for mobile apps (Android and iPhone) » Unwired View
36. Google Analytics Now Can Track Your App :: MinOnline
37. Thank You, Google, For Firing Up the Smartphone Space
38. iPhone user survey gives excuses to dump gadget-undesirable romantic partners
39. North American version of T-Mobile Pulse gets FCC approval, but for which carrier?
40. Google Launches Analytics for Mobile Apps | WebProNews
41. Google Hard at Work on Android 2.1 » Unwired View
42. The Party Line Phone Buzz of the Day
43. Mobile operator round-up: Verizon, Sprint, Orange, T-Mobile and more
44. Google does not confirm the rumors about creating Google Phone » IT - Chuiko | Information Technology News
45. All-in-one, nearing the finale - James Fallows
46. Google already working on Android 2.1 | News | TechRadar UK
47. Huawei plan new Android handsets to follow T-Mobile's Pulse - mirror.co.uk
48. Google Busy With Android 2.1
49. JLM Pacific Epoch - Huawei: 100,000 3G Androids Sold in Europe
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