3 ms·

AT&T was not in the Android game because they had the iPhone. Verizon was in the Android game because they didn't have the iPhone. The carriers will go where th

by cletus 16y ago

AT&T was not in the Android game because they had the iPhone. Verizon was in the Android game because they didn't have the iPhone. The carriers will go where the consumer goes. If Verizon's customers stop buying Android in favor of the iPhone it's of no consequence to Verizon's. IMHO the reasons Android sells are: 1. It's not the iPhone. A minority of Apple haters rail against the notion of a walled garden; 2. US specifically: their chosen carrier didn't have it. One thing about the US I haven't seen elsewhere is that family plans are fairly common; 3. Android competes in markets the iPhone doesn't, specifically low end. You'll note that I didn't mention cost as a factor, other than buying lower end phones (which is obviously a significant market). To reiterate this point: all the top end phones in the US have $199 up front and this isn't a significant factor over 2 years of service so, if this is a factor, it ranks far below carrier choice (IMHO). Personally I think the Verizon iPhone will probably add a net 10M iPhone users in the first half at least.

ergo98 16y ago
Are you a time traveler from the past? You might have had a point a year ago. Now, sorry, your argument is tired and dated. People want something that can play a couple of games, access Facebook and Twitter, visit websites, etc. There is a lot of competition, and the iPhone is only one option. It has no entitled right to that market, nor is it necessarily the superior option. For many users it is the inferior option, rhetoric and flag waving aside. A lot of customers are deciding among the available smartphones and walking out of the store with a Galaxy S or some other high-end Android device (which overwhelmingly dominant Android sales, despite the continued notion that it's some sort of low-end platform). It does what they want. And that competition is only getting fiercer. Gingerbread, plus the upcoming (meaning weeks) gauntlet of devices == Android is putting aside the training bra. But again, let's revisit this in six months. I'm sure there will be some new angle.

by cletus 16y ago

ergo98 16y ago

Are you a time traveler from the past? You might have had a point a year ago. Now, sorry, your argument is tired and dated. People want something that can play a couple of games, access Facebook and Twitter, visit websites, etc. There is a lot of competition, and the iPhone is only one option. It has no entitled right to that market, nor is it necessarily the superior option. For many users it is the inferior option, rhetoric and flag waving aside. A lot of customers are deciding among the available smartphones and walking out of the store with a Galaxy S or some other high-end Android device (which overwhelmingly dominant Android sales, despite the continued notion that it's some sort of low-end platform). It does what they want. And that competition is only getting fiercer. Gingerbread, plus the upcoming (meaning weeks) gauntlet of devices == Android is putting aside the training bra. But again, let's revisit this in six months. I'm sure there will be some new angle.