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This is a great example of what's wrong with Android marketing. Most consumers are not interested in checklists, comparisons, "anything you can do I can do bet

This is a great example of what's wrong with Android marketing. Most consumers are not interested in checklists, comparisons, "anything you can do I can do better!" Consumers are interested in apps. Services. Angry Birds. iTunes. Status. Style. Just look at some of these. "Can be used as HDTV remote control." "microSD slot." "Content Stores." These don't matter to the average person. They may matter to you or me, sure - I certainly envy a handful of Android features - but they do not matter to most people. And that's the biggest flaw in high-end Android phones, and why they don't take away iOS market share in the high end, only replace dumbphones in the low end. This, by the way, is why the Droid is the only Android phone brand that has been impressed on the average users. They had the standout commercials, and as weirdly overproduced as they were, it worked far better than the average feature checklist, announcer spouting off stats, or comparison chart. The whole is greater than the sum of the parts when it comes to smart phones. Comparisons like this miss the big picture.

mberning 15y ago
And they never, ever highlight any qualitative differences. Such as 'can actually scroll through pictures and contacts smoothly', 'pinch to zoom doesn't haphazardly move you to a different part of the webpage', etc.
- avolcano 15y ago
  Exactly! And you know, the newer Android phones I've used are far smoother than they used to be, but you still don't see that in the ads. I think a big deal about the iPhone ads that just show someone using it is that it creates this image of "responsiveness" - something that is especially attractive to those using dumbphones with resistive touchscreens. Android hasn't made any strides in that; manufacturers are too busy spouting off numbers.
juliano_q 15y ago
I agree that this is the problem with this specific article. But I don't think Android in the current state lacks anything to the iPhone. There are zillions of great apps in the Market. The evidence that the Samsung Galaxy S series are selling a lot proves that high-end Android phones are going very well.
- fleitz 15y ago
  The problem on Android is the unknowns. You don't know whether your hardware vendor will supply updates. Or whether your carrier and vendor will get in some spat over who knows what. And then when you buy the latest greatest you have to be sure you're picking the popular phone that actually gets apps tested against it, etc, etc, etc. And then what particular carrier installs the least crapware, etc. Does it have the right chip that will have acceleration in the future? Does the battery last 2 hours or 20? How many extra batteries should I buy for my particular Android phone? Does my iPhone have the right external buttons to make the apps I want to use most productive, etc? Should I get a phone with or without a physical keyboard? Apple's value prop is primarily that their providing a known commodity, you know the apps are going to work, it's almost impossible to choose the 'wrong' iPhone, and Apple doesn't get into silly spats with carriers about updates. You can definitely put together an Android experience that's on par with Apple but you're rolling the dice unless you wait 6 months to buy the hardware. And then there's the issue of going to the multitude of stores to find out which one has the phone for the cheapest.
  - lookelsewhere 15y ago
    Software updates and pre-installed crapware, as you mentioned, are now a thing of the past when you consider the works of the community creating customized roms for just about any Android device out there. The device owner can simply apply an update or delete any app themselves after rooting. Yes, rooting is risky and hardware manufacturers should keep their damned devices updated, but the process is simple enough to perform and the benefits are really great.
    - fleitz 15y ago
      Yes, I could probably spend 3 to 4 hours of my time fucking around with a phone to get it to work, but why would I want to do that? And more importantly why would I want to pay for that experience? Even if I do get the phone working, at best it's on par with iPhone. IMHO the only thing that Android has going for it is that Scala sucks less than Obj-C. It's like changing the oil on my car, yes I know how to do it, I even have jack stands, yet I take it to the shop and pay someone else to do it? Why? Because my time is worth more than it costs.
DrJokepu 15y ago
People are interested in different things. Some people, like me, appreciate the superior design of Apple products. Those people will not buy Samsung products. Some people are interested in apps. Some people are indeed interested in checklists and base their purchasing decisions on them. Samsung is targeting those people with this checklist as they are trying to differentiate themselves and serve a part of the market that is more interested in feature counts than other aspects of a product.
- jsavimbi 15y ago
  You're right. It's not about one being better than the other when compared side-by-side, it's about re-enforcing a particular market segment's belief that their purchasing decision or decision to be was the correct one. Samsung, or any other same-space competitor is making no allusions about converting hordes of Apple customers based on a chart or infograph; they're reconverting existing customers and trolling for virgins. td;dr: your wife will put out if you talk about the new girl at the office.
krmmalik 15y ago
Not to nitpick but i thought the quote was "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts" ? That would also tie more with what you are saying here, i think ;-)
- avolcano 15y ago
  Agh, you're right. I shouldn't comment before coffee. Thanks :)

mberning 15y ago

And they never, ever highlight any qualitative differences. Such as 'can actually scroll through pictures and contacts smoothly', 'pinch to zoom doesn't haphazardly move you to a different part of the webpage', etc.

avolcano 15y ago
Exactly! And you know, the newer Android phones I've used are far smoother than they used to be, but you still don't see that in the ads. I think a big deal about the iPhone ads that just show someone using it is that it creates this image of "responsiveness" - something that is especially attractive to those using dumbphones with resistive touchscreens. Android hasn't made any strides in that; manufacturers are too busy spouting off numbers.

juliano_q 15y ago

I agree that this is the problem with this specific article. But I don't think Android in the current state lacks anything to the iPhone. There are zillions of great apps in the Market. The evidence that the Samsung Galaxy S series are selling a lot proves that high-end Android phones are going very well.

fleitz 15y ago
The problem on Android is the unknowns. You don't know whether your hardware vendor will supply updates. Or whether your carrier and vendor will get in some spat over who knows what. And then when you buy the latest greatest you have to be sure you're picking the popular phone that actually gets apps tested against it, etc, etc, etc. And then what particular carrier installs the least crapware, etc. Does it have the right chip that will have acceleration in the future? Does the battery last 2 hours or 20? How many extra batteries should I buy for my particular Android phone? Does my iPhone have the right external buttons to make the apps I want to use most productive, etc? Should I get a phone with or without a physical keyboard? Apple's value prop is primarily that their providing a known commodity, you know the apps are going to work, it's almost impossible to choose the 'wrong' iPhone, and Apple doesn't get into silly spats with carriers about updates. You can definitely put together an Android experience that's on par with Apple but you're rolling the dice unless you wait 6 months to buy the hardware. And then there's the issue of going to the multitude of stores to find out which one has the phone for the cheapest.
- lookelsewhere 15y ago
  Software updates and pre-installed crapware, as you mentioned, are now a thing of the past when you consider the works of the community creating customized roms for just about any Android device out there. The device owner can simply apply an update or delete any app themselves after rooting. Yes, rooting is risky and hardware manufacturers should keep their damned devices updated, but the process is simple enough to perform and the benefits are really great.
  - fleitz 15y ago
    Yes, I could probably spend 3 to 4 hours of my time fucking around with a phone to get it to work, but why would I want to do that? And more importantly why would I want to pay for that experience? Even if I do get the phone working, at best it's on par with iPhone. IMHO the only thing that Android has going for it is that Scala sucks less than Obj-C. It's like changing the oil on my car, yes I know how to do it, I even have jack stands, yet I take it to the shop and pay someone else to do it? Why? Because my time is worth more than it costs.

DrJokepu 15y ago

People are interested in different things. Some people, like me, appreciate the superior design of Apple products. Those people will not buy Samsung products. Some people are interested in apps. Some people are indeed interested in checklists and base their purchasing decisions on them. Samsung is targeting those people with this checklist as they are trying to differentiate themselves and serve a part of the market that is more interested in feature counts than other aspects of a product.

jsavimbi 15y ago
You're right. It's not about one being better than the other when compared side-by-side, it's about re-enforcing a particular market segment's belief that their purchasing decision or decision to be was the correct one. Samsung, or any other same-space competitor is making no allusions about converting hordes of Apple customers based on a chart or infograph; they're reconverting existing customers and trolling for virgins. td;dr: your wife will put out if you talk about the new girl at the office.

krmmalik 15y ago

Not to nitpick but i thought the quote was "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts" ? That would also tie more with what you are saying here, i think ;-)

avolcano 15y ago
Agh, you're right. I shouldn't comment before coffee. Thanks :)