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One explanation: The rapid rate of change in Android phones vs Iphones? Consider if a car company released 4 model updates per year instead of one. Your Hyand

One explanation: The rapid rate of change in Android phones vs Iphones? Consider if a car company released 4 model updates per year instead of one. Your Hyandai 2013 Quarter 1 would depreciate faster as the 3 newer models came out (granted that each new model would have more/better features - heated seats, leather, auto drive, whatever). So as an iPhone buyer/owner, you know your phone will be state of the art for foreseeable future, where as with Android, you phone will be (perceived anyway) as antiquated, much more rapidly.

ConstantineXVI 15y ago
This has been a problem in the (US) wireless industry for a very long time, long before Android. OEMs have always been more than happy to make 4 variations of the same phone for 4 carriers with 4 different names; putting Android on everything simply makes the problem that much more obvious. HTC was the worst offender for a time, even forgoing their own branding for the carrier's. It'd help the situation much if OEMs simply made ~4 models (not counting radio configs) every year, and stuck with them across carriers. Moto, for instance, would have: * RAZR (flagship) * Milestone Pro (keyboard) * Milestone X (mid-range) * Defy ("free" phone) on every carrier, and that would be that.
sounds 15y ago
Can you explain how it's different than 4 car companies releasing once a year? Android's plunging prices are not really a depreciation of the hardware value, but rather an indication of the rapid pace of the software - well, I'm ignoring fragmentation for the sake of argument. Like you said, "antiquated, much more rapidly," but not by specs - by software features. Example: Ice Cream Sandwich is slowly becoming available. The iPhone lives off in its little garden - I agree that "you know your phone will be state of the art for foreseeable future." Apple strives to maintain vertical integration, so their software moves slowly. It's lock-stepping with their hardware. Hardware innovation generally moves at a steady, predictable pace. Why does it matter that Android's value is more closely tied to the software? That's Google's area of expertise. They've tried to make the hardware a commodity. If it doesn't end up fragmenting so badly consumers start leaving (and I don't think they will) -- then the hardware will not garner the big margins. The software will (under Google's control, hopefully monetizable by them). Software innovation can be more volatile, but especially for mobile phones it can be what sets you apart. Arguably, Apple has the software edge - hence, Android's furious pace.
- pragmatic 15y ago
  Two Examples: -Dual Core -4G
  - InclinedPlane 15y ago
    Screen size & resolution. Memory. Cameras.
    - sounds 15y ago
      Agreed. Like a scooter (instead of a sedan), some phones don't have everything you normally expect from a "smartphone." But the sales figures for those kinds of "cars" indicate those "cars" aren't worth much attention. Same for phones. If Android can run on them, great. What other commenters said: maybe it would help if we focused on premium Android phones.
RyanMcGreal 15y ago
20 months ago, I paid a lot of money for my Android phone when I signed on for a three year contract. Just a couple of weeks ago, my wife replaced her phone and got an Android phone for free with her contract. Her phone is lighter, faster and slicker than mine and has significantly longer battery life. That in itself can explain the depreciation rate: new Android phones are so much better and cheaper than old Android phones that the old ones can't compete except at a very low price point.
- r00fus 15y ago
  3 year contract??? That is horrible.
  - wmwong 15y ago
    In Canada, that's pretty normal. They lock you in tight. We're disadvantaged in almost every way when it comes to mobile carriers. Horrible.
newlyminted 15y ago
Another related explanation: the much smaller number of models makes it easier to understand what you're buying. In the past year, Samsung has released the Sidekick 4g, the Galaxy Nexus, the Galaxy Y Pro, the Galaxy Y, the Galaxy Pro, the Admire/Vitality, the Galaxy S II, the Droid Charge, the Galaxy Fit, the Galaxy Ace, the Replenish, and the Galaxy Mini. Even having just limited it to one year's worth of Android handsets from one manufacturer it's a daunting list. In the same timeframe, Apple released the iPhone 4S, and a Verizon variant of the iPhone 4. One of these is incredibly easy to understand, the other is not.

ConstantineXVI 15y ago

This has been a problem in the (US) wireless industry for a very long time, long before Android. OEMs have always been more than happy to make 4 variations of the same phone for 4 carriers with 4 different names; putting Android on everything simply makes the problem that much more obvious. HTC was the worst offender for a time, even forgoing their own branding for the carrier's. It'd help the situation much if OEMs simply made ~4 models (not counting radio configs) every year, and stuck with them across carriers. Moto, for instance, would have: * RAZR (flagship) * Milestone Pro (keyboard) * Milestone X (mid-range) * Defy ("free" phone) on every carrier, and that would be that.

sounds 15y ago

Can you explain how it's different than 4 car companies releasing once a year? Android's plunging prices are not really a depreciation of the hardware value, but rather an indication of the rapid pace of the software - well, I'm ignoring fragmentation for the sake of argument. Like you said, "antiquated, much more rapidly," but not by specs - by software features. Example: Ice Cream Sandwich is slowly becoming available. The iPhone lives off in its little garden - I agree that "you know your phone will be state of the art for foreseeable future." Apple strives to maintain vertical integration, so their software moves slowly. It's lock-stepping with their hardware. Hardware innovation generally moves at a steady, predictable pace. Why does it matter that Android's value is more closely tied to the software? That's Google's area of expertise. They've tried to make the hardware a commodity. If it doesn't end up fragmenting so badly consumers start leaving (and I don't think they will) -- then the hardware will not garner the big margins. The software will (under Google's control, hopefully monetizable by them). Software innovation can be more volatile, but especially for mobile phones it can be what sets you apart. Arguably, Apple has the software edge - hence, Android's furious pace.

pragmatic 15y ago
Two Examples: -Dual Core -4G
- InclinedPlane 15y ago
  Screen size & resolution. Memory. Cameras.
  - sounds 15y ago
    Agreed. Like a scooter (instead of a sedan), some phones don't have everything you normally expect from a "smartphone." But the sales figures for those kinds of "cars" indicate those "cars" aren't worth much attention. Same for phones. If Android can run on them, great. What other commenters said: maybe it would help if we focused on premium Android phones.

RyanMcGreal 15y ago

20 months ago, I paid a lot of money for my Android phone when I signed on for a three year contract. Just a couple of weeks ago, my wife replaced her phone and got an Android phone for free with her contract. Her phone is lighter, faster and slicker than mine and has significantly longer battery life. That in itself can explain the depreciation rate: new Android phones are so much better and cheaper than old Android phones that the old ones can't compete except at a very low price point.

r00fus 15y ago
3 year contract??? That is horrible.
- wmwong 15y ago
  In Canada, that's pretty normal. They lock you in tight. We're disadvantaged in almost every way when it comes to mobile carriers. Horrible.

newlyminted 15y ago

Another related explanation: the much smaller number of models makes it easier to understand what you're buying. In the past year, Samsung has released the Sidekick 4g, the Galaxy Nexus, the Galaxy Y Pro, the Galaxy Y, the Galaxy Pro, the Admire/Vitality, the Galaxy S II, the Droid Charge, the Galaxy Fit, the Galaxy Ace, the Replenish, and the Galaxy Mini. Even having just limited it to one year's worth of Android handsets from one manufacturer it's a daunting list. In the same timeframe, Apple released the iPhone 4S, and a Verizon variant of the iPhone 4. One of these is incredibly easy to understand, the other is not.