In the world of smartphones, you definitely hear the most news about the iPhone. Whether it is because of Apple\’s enigmatic CEO or a collective obsession with the iPhone\’s sleek design, for some reason, that is the phone that the media loves to talk about the most. But recent reports on Google Android\’s market share indicate that it in fact is in the lead, with around 32% of smartphones users using an Android. So what does this mean for the iPhone and for the industry as a whole?
For one thing, there seems to be a consensus among the tech pundits that in order for the iPhone to gain the upper hand in the smartphone market share battle, it will need to expand its network beyond just AT&T, probably to Verizon. And since that appears to be at least a couple of years off, the iPhone probably won\’t be catapulting over the Android any time soon.
People also like options. While Apple\’s choke hold on the design of its products has been one factor in earning it a cult-like following, in general people like to be able to choose. This puts the single design of the iPhone at a disadvantage when consumers can pick another phone, like the Android, and have something that is after THEIR own hearts, not just Steve Jobs\’.
And what about the implications for mobile app developers? Clearly the rise of one phone above the others has the potential to make life simpler for them. It is much easier to design an app that is just going to go on one phone than one that has to work on several. This is not to say that the mass appeal of Apple\’s App Store is going to go away anytime soon, but if one type of smartphone becomes overwhelmingly popular over all the others, well, you see what I\’m getting at.
What about you? Where do you stand on the smartphone, Android vs. iPhone issue?