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There was a study a while back that said that Android is now the most desired platform: http://www.androidcentral.com/nielsen-android-americas-most-wanted-platf

by jnhnum1 15y ago

There was a study a while back that said that Android is now the most desired platform: http://www.androidcentral.com/nielsen-android-americas-most-wanted-platform http://www.androidcentral.com/nielsen-android-americas-most-... I don't believe that in that study "desired" was supposed to be inclusive of price.

huxley 15y ago
It wasn't a real study, it was some sort of survey done by The Nielsen Company (the ones who measure TV viewership): http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/u-s-smartphone-market-whos-the-most-wanted/ http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/u-s-smartp... It doesn't describe the selection method, the numbers of interviewees or even the margin of error. And the "desirability difference" is 1%.
ZeroGravitas 15y ago
I believe "desired" in that report means intends to purchase in the next 12 months. So devices that are priced to sell would have an advantage. Whether that's an unfair advantage is a bit of a philosophical conundrum, particularly as people might "desire" something more if it's less attainable. It reminds me of the TED talk by Benjamin Wallace where he sought out ridiculously expensive steak, champagne, jeans etc. to see if they were worth the price: http://www.ted.com/talks/benjamin_wallace_on_the_price_of_happiness.html http://www.ted.com/talks/benjamin_wallace_on_the_price_of_ha...
- huxley 15y ago
  The other problem with the desirability standard is that iOS and Android in the survey are pretty much even (30% and 31%). http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/u-s-smartphone-market-whos-the-most-wanted/ http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/u-s-smartp... If you look at their other graphs, however, they show that "recent acquirers" have favoured Android (50% bought an Android versus 25% who bought an iPhone). I particularly like how they handwave the discrepancy between desirability and reported purchases by saying "Those dynamics are already translating into sales." If one assumes their numbers are accurate, they point to other factors besides "desirability" behind the purchase of a smartphone.
  - cube13 15y ago
    >If one assumes their numbers are accurate, they point to other factors besides "desirability" behind the purchase of a smartphone. This survey was(presumably) from October/November 2010 to March/April 2011. There was a major Android release, and new phones during that time. The iPhone 4 was released in June 2010, so it's no surprise that sales were lower at that time, especially considering the early upgrade discounts AT&T gave out at launch. While the Verizon iPhone release certainly is in those numbers, I'm pretty sure the holiday push outpaced it by quite a bit. The real question is whether or not that kind of growth is sustainable. I personally don't believe that it is, and that we're just seeing Android get it's initial chunk of the market, after which it will settle down to more reasonable growth.
ddagradi 15y ago
"Desired" doesn't say anything more than "plan to purchase" in that article, which doesn't immediately include or exclude price (though it's clearly important to purchasing plans). On the flip side, when given a choice without considering purchasing and the burden of a contract, this is an interesting microcosm: http://www.electronista.com/articles/11/04/07/clorox.shows.shift.from.blackberry.to.iphone.in.it/ http://www.electronista.com/articles/11/04/07/clorox.shows.s...

by jnhnum1 15y ago

huxley 15y ago

It wasn't a real study, it was some sort of survey done by The Nielsen Company (the ones who measure TV viewership): http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/u-s-smartphone-market-whos-the-most-wanted/ http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/u-s-smartp... It doesn't describe the selection method, the numbers of interviewees or even the margin of error. And the "desirability difference" is 1%.

ZeroGravitas 15y ago

I believe "desired" in that report means intends to purchase in the next 12 months. So devices that are priced to sell would have an advantage. Whether that's an unfair advantage is a bit of a philosophical conundrum, particularly as people might "desire" something more if it's less attainable. It reminds me of the TED talk by Benjamin Wallace where he sought out ridiculously expensive steak, champagne, jeans etc. to see if they were worth the price: http://www.ted.com/talks/benjamin_wallace_on_the_price_of_happiness.html http://www.ted.com/talks/benjamin_wallace_on_the_price_of_ha...

huxley 15y ago
The other problem with the desirability standard is that iOS and Android in the survey are pretty much even (30% and 31%). http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/u-s-smartphone-market-whos-the-most-wanted/ http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/u-s-smartp... If you look at their other graphs, however, they show that "recent acquirers" have favoured Android (50% bought an Android versus 25% who bought an iPhone). I particularly like how they handwave the discrepancy between desirability and reported purchases by saying "Those dynamics are already translating into sales." If one assumes their numbers are accurate, they point to other factors besides "desirability" behind the purchase of a smartphone.
- cube13 15y ago
  >If one assumes their numbers are accurate, they point to other factors besides "desirability" behind the purchase of a smartphone. This survey was(presumably) from October/November 2010 to March/April 2011. There was a major Android release, and new phones during that time. The iPhone 4 was released in June 2010, so it's no surprise that sales were lower at that time, especially considering the early upgrade discounts AT&T gave out at launch. While the Verizon iPhone release certainly is in those numbers, I'm pretty sure the holiday push outpaced it by quite a bit. The real question is whether or not that kind of growth is sustainable. I personally don't believe that it is, and that we're just seeing Android get it's initial chunk of the market, after which it will settle down to more reasonable growth.

ddagradi 15y ago

"Desired" doesn't say anything more than "plan to purchase" in that article, which doesn't immediately include or exclude price (though it's clearly important to purchasing plans). On the flip side, when given a choice without considering purchasing and the burden of a contract, this is an interesting microcosm: http://www.electronista.com/articles/11/04/07/clorox.shows.shift.from.blackberry.to.iphone.in.it/ http://www.electronista.com/articles/11/04/07/clorox.shows.s...