Android vs. iPhone — Who Wins In 2011? 424
Hugh Pickens writes "Philip Elmer-DeWitt writes in Fortune Magazine that Apple and Google have two very different strategies in the competition shaping up in 2011 between Android and iPhone. According to the conventional wisdom as espoused by Don Dodge, a Developer Advocate at Google, both Apple and Google will win because they are playing different games. Android will win the market share battle, but Apple will generate bigger profits. 'Apple goes for the high end of the market where they can charge high prices and enjoy great profit margins. Apple has been successful with this strategy multiple times, and will do it again with iPhone,' writes Dodge adding that Google's strategy with Android is to generate revenue streams from mobile search and advertising. Another Google employee, Tim Bray, sees things differently and says he won't be surprised if Apple ships a cheap iPhone and if this time next year, dirt-cheap iPhones were competing against Androids that push the user-experience lever farther than Apple. 'There's nothing fundamental in Android that would get in the way of a industrial-design and user-experience rock-star team, whether at Google or one of the handset makers, testing the hypothesis that these things are central to Apple's success.'"
Everyone wins. (Score:5, Insightful)
Based on my experience with both Android phones and iPhones, here's how I see it:
Do you want something that "just works" out of the box, but with somewhat limited customization options? Do you want something that's dead simple and requires little to no learning to use? Get an iPhone.
Do you like to be able to modify every little facet of your phone, right down to the hardware it runs on? Do you not mind a small learning curve if it means more flexible overall operation? Get an Android phone.
They both have their place...it all comes down to your preferences and needs.
Price Point (Score:3, Insightful)
he won't be surprised if Apple ships a cheap iPhone
Well, if there's one thing Apple itself has proven, it's that there is a real market segment that will pay more for a better product and won't just go for the cheapest product in the niche. Therefore, I predict this strategy will fail.
And before someone uses the 'f' word, Apple's traditional customers have been loyal for a reason - they've delivered quality and real, practical utility in exchange for the price paid. If someone else can come along and do the same thing, then we'll find out how much all these boys really are fans of Apple. I'm one, and I don't care whose logo is on the damn thing, if it's a gem, I'll save up for it rather than pay less to have some rickety piece of crap now. Just like I've done for 20 years with my personal computers.
Re:Everyone wins. (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Google's strategy with Android is to generate (Score:2, Insightful)
wait, how do you think that apple isn't doing the exact same thing?
the only difference is in the price of the devices, in which android has been vastly cheaper than iphone until they released 4g.
products are quite similar, except that new android devices come out continually (say every 3-6 months), while new iphones come out once a year if that. So while android continually evolves better products in between iphone product cycles, that only leaves the question of volume vs profit.
Anyone with a minute amount of business knowledge would know that volume is far more sustainable than profit in the long term, and it shows in that apple has started to sue the shit out of people because they cannot continue to compete at current profit margins.
Volume is also a much bigger deal due to market share. If android outsells apple 10 to 1, and apple makes the same profit on the device, apple isn't making the same profit on any additional profits to the device due to having 10% of the volume (app store purchases, advertising, etc).
Fatherly Advice (Score:3, Insightful)
I had a rather chauvanist father, and among other black pearls of wisdom, he offered me this: "At some point or another every woman becomes a whore. It can work for you sometimes, but in the long run it will not."
Now, with my wife as proof, I've found that this is not true about women.
However, with Apple and Google as proof, I'm becoming convinced it's true about corporations.
Android wins (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:The bigger questions is... (Score:5, Insightful)
It's not the tech, silly... (Score:5, Insightful)
Quote FTFA:
"There's nothing fundamental in Android that would get in the way of a industrial-design and user-experience rock-star team, whether at Google or one of the handset makers"
Nothing fundamental in Android, no. Except the solid design/UI-experience from Apple doesn't have anything to do with technology, but rather with the whole company structure and culture. I don't think that can be emulated by putting together "an industrial-design and user-experience rock-star team" and then planting it at Google or HTC or Samsung or whatever.
Re:Price Point (Score:2, Insightful)
A well-worded troll post is still a troll. Just because a certain product works "better" for you, doesn't mean that it is better for everyone. Just because a Windows based PC is cheaper, doesn't make it a "rickety piece of crap". The original post makes a point of saying that both Android and iOS have their places, and what works for one person doesn't work for all people. The only thing your post does is try to whip up another tired and stale Apple vs. Google fight. If you like Apple, great. You don't need to make a point to the /. world about how much better you think it is over everything else. Find another way to gain psychological validation.
Re:Everyone wins. (Score:5, Insightful)
Fair enough, but if you really want to be able to modify your phone, be careful about which Android phone you get. Many are pretty locked-down, and having an open-source operating system doesn't necessarily mean that the device will be open.
Re:Google's strategy with Android is to generate (Score:4, Insightful)
One manufacturer makes iPhone, many make Androids. It seems like an easy question to me.
And I'm a nerd, dammit, not a marketer or MBA. Why should I care who gets the most profits or market share? When did the Ferengi take over slashdot? I don't care how it sells, I care how it works.
What does "win" mean here? (Score:5, Insightful)
I mean, there is no doubt that Android will be on more devices sold. With uncounted devices from uncounted companies and carriers this is to be expected.
What's interesting is if there will be *one* model of an Android phone that will sell better than the iPhone. If the iPhone will stay the best selling smartphone in 2011, well, it's still the bestselling smartphone.
I'm totally expecting the prices for smartphones spiralling down. An unlocked Android smartphone for $99 with no contract should be possible. It will have crappy battery life, a crappy touchscreen and a crappy camera, though.
To paraphrase (Score:1, Insightful)
"We want to let go of this notion that for Apple to win, Google has to lose."
-- Steve Jobs
The decades of IBM/Microsoft monopoly have given a number of people in the technology industry the idea that it's natural for one big player to dominate. That's not the case. It was an aberration, born of a time when immature technology meant incompatible implementations ruled the day.
Here's a prediction. Google takes the dominant share with about 50% of the market. Apple takes another 25%, but makes as much money as Google and its handset makers combined. Microsoft, RIM, Nokia, and the rest squabble over the remaining quarter of the market.
I've got your solution (Score:2, Insightful)
I pay about $80 per month for cable TV
Or rather, you already have your solution: dump cable TV.
Hint: (1) Change your credit card number before you make the call. (2) When they demand an explanation, you're selling the house and moving out of the country.
Re:Everyone wins. (Score:1, Insightful)
There isn't anything rational about mindless pro-Apple propaganda.
Re:Fatherly Advice (Score:3, Insightful)
On cheap iPhones (Score:4, Insightful)
The analyst may not be surprised if Apple ships a cheap iPhone, but I would be. What on earth would make anyone think they would? There's a reason why the "conventional wisdom" is that Apple sticks to the high end of the market - not only has that been their strategy forever, but Steve J. never misses an opportunity to reinforce the idea that it's their strategy. Right now, Apple customers can count on the fact that whatever Apple puts out is at least going to be well-made. If Apple were to make a cheap, crappy iPhone, that friendly customer perception would be out the window - folks that now instinctively by Apple products would become open to persuasion by other companies.
I can't understand why anyone would think Apple would drop a strategy that's made them so much money. Apple can't be Dell, and doesn't want to be.
Easy. Both. It's not a zero sum game. (Score:2, Insightful)
The market is big enough for both of them.