Let’s settle the iOS vs. Android debate once and for all: it doesn’t matter.
Everyone happy?
Photo by nicolasnova from Flickr used under Creative Commons
I actually enjoy reading what people love about their phones and hate about the other camp’s phones because what people value in a phone tells you a lot about them and what they value. However, it really doesn’t matter which is better, assuming any standard metric could be agreed upon for a decisive call.
People are buying the snot out of both. Yesterday, Andy Rubin announced on Twitter that daily Android activations were topping 300,000.
For some perspective, that’s like everyone in the Bahamas or Iceland deciding to head to the store and buy an Android phone, on the same day. If that doesn’t mean anything to you, try Pittsburgh on for size.
Everyone in Pittsburgh woke up this morning and during the day, went to a retailer and purchased an Android phone. All of them.
I’m getting my population statistics here, if you’re wondering.
You can bet Apple will come out with a similar number, maybe after the holidays, that is even more impressive. They reported 230,000 daily iOS activations back in September.
So, daily Android and iOS activations fall somewhere in the 550-600,000 range.
That’s a lot of people. I wonder how this pace is sustainable.
Today, Rich (@rmanalan) clued me in on what I already suspected. His EVO’s mini-USB port has come loose, making it impossible to charge the battery.
Apparently, this is a common occurrence with the EVO, and it’s reported that the mini-USB port is only good for 10,000 or so uses. Given how often I have to charge my battery and move files to my laptop, that’s not enough.
I hear the Apple fanbois snickering, but let’s not forget that Apple has already aggressively moved its software beyond the capabilities of recent hardware, e.g. the OG iPhone won’t run iOS 4 at all, the 3G runs it very slowly.
It’s a bitter pill to swallow when your $500 OG iPhone is a paperweight in less than three years.
Like their ancestors, smart phones have become disposable hardware. It’s sad really, and a gadget-obsessed culture has made it worse.
The question is would you pay a premium for a better device, one that is made to last and supported as such by its manufacturer.
That’s supposedly one of Apple’s advantages in laptops. With the exception of cosmetic annoyances (e.g. scratches on brushed surfaces, cracks in the original Macbooks), I can attest to the build quality of Apple’s hardware. That doesn’t mean they don’t have issues; they do, and when they do, you have to pay full bid to get repairs.
Even so, Apple compensates with iOS devices by building software that obsoletes older hardware.
I love gadgets and shiny objects, but the inherent wastefulness bothers me. I don’t have an answer, so I continue to be part of the problem. The economy built around smart phones won’t change anytime soon, but at some point, I guess I’m hoping demand will slacken, or people will demand better features without upgrades.
That’s the next sector ripe for innovation, i.e. doing more with less, optimizing and advancing old hardware.
Of course, as I write this I wait with baited breath to get my CR-48 from Google, essentially a disposable laptop. It doesn’t matter what happens to the hardware because all your data live in the heavens.
Thoughts?
Hi.
There are plenty of people still using older iPhones with no worries. I for one won’t be upgrading my iPad hardware for a very long time, if ever. If they stop releasing OS upgrades, so be it. I’ll just stay out of date because the device does what I need it for already. Once a gadget is good enough to serve your needs, then upgrades are for snob value only. I’m guessing most iOS4 and Android 2.2 users won’t be that bothered about OS upgrades because they’ve got a pretty sweet OS already.
This “settling” has already happened in the PC market. Look at all the businesses and people that still use XP because it’s good enough to do what they need. The smartphone market is still quite young, but as it matures, will people really be so keen on the next new phone? I think not. I can;t see what more you can add to an iPhone that is really worth having…
Cheers
Tim…
I know. My wife is still rocking the OG iPhone, and I have no plans to update my iPad. I’d probably still be carrying my OG iPhone too, if I hadn’t got the EVO for free.
Still, I think you must admit that it gnaws at you that Apple will leave you behind at some point. Upgrades aren’t part of the snob value when you pony up big dough. It’s not wrong to expect some love in return for the investment.
The PC market only settled bc Microsoft let it. The smart phone market has different economies, ones that can’t afford long commitments. One very interesting case study will come if Verizon gets the iPhone in January as rumored.
The hardware vendors want to move product, and carriers want to keep/lure you. The hardware becomes a disposable commodity, and any attempt to break the cycle exposes the real cost (unsubsidized). Sticker shock ensues, and everyone shrinks back into the vicious cycle of upgrades. That’s not changing, at least in the US.