GSlusher

Android and Apple: Smartphones Require Smart Strategy

"Anyone can make an Android handset ..."

That's a negative feature, in that every manufacturer can make a substantially different Android handset with a MODIFIED OS and with different versions of the OS that may or may not be upgradeable. On top of that, they vary in buttons, hardware features, radios, etc. That makes it had for developers to ensure that their software will work on all Android handsets. What works on a Motorola handset may not work the same on a HTC handset. (What works on one HTC handset may not even work the same on another HTC handset.)

This was the situation in the PC world until Microsoft essentially imposed standard hardware requirements--I think that it was with Windows 95. In PC gaming those many years ago, a game developer would have to worry about different video cards as well as different processors.

Daniel Eran Dilger of Roughly Drafted had written extensively about the problem with Android's fragmentation.

Maybe the Droid Launch Wasn't So Bad After All

1. You can get the iPhone battery replaced by Apple. Besides, most people will upgrade or change phones before the battery becomes an issue.

apple.com/batterie...

The iPhone will hold up to 80% charge through at least 400 charge cycles. If you get AppleCare with the iPhone, Apple will replace the battery free during the 3-year period of AppleCare if the battery capacity goes below 50%. If the iPhone is out of warranty, the battery can be replaced for $79 + $6.95 shipping.

2. It doesn't matter what the Droid can do. Verizon's CDMA network can't handle simultaneous voice and data. One probably can do simultaneous data and voice if one is also connected via WiFi. Some CDMA phones will stop Internet data traffic when a call comes in. Some may be able to put a call on "hold" (in effect), use the web, then go back to the call. That's not the same as simultaneous voice and data. You can't talk on the phone WHILE you are using the browser.

3. Your comment about TDMA being "analog technology" is way off the mark. It's purely digital. See:

searchmobilecomputing....

4. Re: Navigation: It's free NOW. Any solid guarantee that it will remain so? Verizon likes to charge extra for everything. Also, I'm not sure that I'd want to use my phone for in-car navigation.

How much do you want to bet that Google will make an iPhone app that does everything that the Droid does? It would be in Google's interest, as they want the ad revenue.

On top of that, Apple bought a mapping company. They may well add their own built-in navigation application shortly.

5. The iPhone doesn't "convert" music to another format. I don't know where you got that idea. iTunes (and the iPods and iPhones) can play AAC, MP3, and other formats, as is. Today, all of the iTunes Store music is in AAC (a superior format to MP3, but one that can be played on nearly any "MP3" player, including the Zune, for example), but it is not "protected." You can easily add MP3s from, say, Amazon, to the iTunes library and it does NOT change their format. I've done that many times.

It's easy to use music from your iTunes library on a non-Apple device--you just can't do it with the iTunes application. There are other applications that will load music from your iTunes library (an .xml file, that's all) to a phone or other MP3 player.

For further "proof," remember that, at one time, the Palm Pre could be synced with iTunes, until Apple updated iTunes to prevent that.

Also, iTunes IS free.

On Nov 09 06:20 AM Droidum wrote:

> GSlusher... I understand your comment, but you may have gotten a
> few things wrong. The battery issue for instance, is not necessarily
> for a change in the battery today, but for when the inevitable happens
> and the battery can no longer hold a decent charge. With the iPhone,
> you basically have to buy a new phone. Not a major issue for most,
> but something to think about... Now for the technology issue.. the
> Droid does data and voice simultaneously. CDMA is a superior technology
> to GSM, but GSM was first, much like the iPhone is first and took
> off around the world because of it. CDMA is digital, therefore you
> have a crisper quality call, where GSM uses TDMA technology, basically
> analog technology and can be choppy and produce static on the line.
> In addition, EVDO is how the data link is run. Two separate technologies
> integrated into one system.
>
> Enough about the technology though... lets talk about why the Motorola/Google/Verizon
> phone is better. Navigation to start... with the iPhone, you have
> to pay for the service and many people do. It's free with the Droid
> as you know. The Droid has a bigger screen with better resolution...
> the Droid is customizable with widgets... I could go on, but you
> get the point.
>
> The iPhone has the music player, but if you give it a few months,
> once Google comes out with their open source music player, the competition
> will really open up. Why then would anyone stay latched to the iPhone
> where all of your music gets converted to their format and you have
> to pull your teeth out to get it to play on anything else… maybe
> Apple can get ahead of the curve and change that now before Google
> stomps all over them with the free one.

Maybe the Droid Launch Wasn't So Bad After All

First, I'm a long-time (17 years) Mac user and an Apple user for even longer (25 years). I own a few shares of AAPL--my only "individual" stock--other holdings are all mutual funds. I hope to get an iPhone, maybe next year. (It was set back by losing almost $7K of photo gear to theft. I won't replace all of that, but do need enough to push back buying the iPhone--not the cost of the phone, but the service.)

However, I hope that the Droid sells well. Competition helps keep Apple pumping out improvements, though not the way many people think. If Apple based its current or next-year improvements on the Droid, they'd be in the same position as those desperately trying to catch up with the iPhone. Apple has to ANTICIPATE what its competitors WILL do, not REACT to what they HAVE done. (The Wayne Gretzky cliche comes to mind.) Apple has to assume that some companies will come out with very good phones, in some case beating the iPhone in some ways, though not the ways so many simplistic "analysts" harp on, like physical keyboards and user-replaceable batteries. (Side note: when the iPhone first came out, the non-replaceable battery was a "big deal" in the press. I asked people I knew who had an advanced phone two questions: 1) Can you replace your phone's battery? and 2) Do you have a spare battery? If so, do you carry it around with you? The surprise was that more than half didn't even know if they could replace the battery. Many assumed that they could, but didn't know how to do it. Only 3 of the 50+ I asked had an extra battery and only one carried it with her. She showed me by changing the battery, but the extra battery wasn't charged.)

Apparently, Apple was right that a user-replaceable battery wouldn't be a big issue for most people. (If it's important to YOU, then get a phone with one. 30+ million buyers apparently didn't care.) A company can lose its direction AND spend a lot of money chasing the needs/desires of that last segment of potential buyers, with negligible returns. (That's also why Apple hasn't--and probably won't--get into the "netbook" business--they don't need it.)

Instead, Apple has concentrated on the user experience, not the phone specs. Little things like the sensor that turns off the screen when you put the phone to your ear, the intelligent auto-correction that adapts to the user, the consistent interface (a big problem with Palm OS software for my TX), even the form factor (thin, rounded for comfort) are examples. Thus, to me, it will be any enhancements to the user experience in the Droid that will have an effect on Apple's plans, not the hardware.

I have a feeling that Apple was not all that serious about partnering with Verizon because of CDMA. They would have had to make two iPhones--CDMA for the US and GSM for nearly every other country. That increases R&D, manufacturing and support costs. Add to that the inherent limitations of CDMA (e.g.,no simultaneous voice & data, so you can't access the Internet while on a phone call) and Apple wouldn't be likely to go that route--not then and not now. When Verizon implements a LTE network over a significant area, then Apple may come out with an LTE iPhone.

It will be interesting to see how many Droids are sold to people who were not already Verizon subscribers. (A high percentage of iPhone sales are to "switchers.")

Motorola's Droid Comes in Peace - For Now

That's only part of the problem. CDMA does not allow simultaneous voice & data; GSM does. Thus, a Verizon Droid user cannot check something on the Internet while on a call--she will have to terminate the call, first. While that may sound trivial, it isn't. I've known people who carry two phones, one for calls, the other for data, for this reason. If a client calls, they need to be able to access their company's private web site & database. Telling a client (or boss or spouse/significant other/partner), "I have to hang up so that I can check that on my brand-new Droid. I'll call you back," is not good.


On Nov 07 05:31 AM kbear2 wrote:

> Regarding the CDMA/GSM issue, there are phones that can work on either
> system. The HTC TouchPro2 has capabilities built in for both but
> the GSM has been disabled by firmware in order to avoid FCC testing.
> It would be very easy for Apple to include dual use capability.

Quest for the Droid Crowds: Not So Epic

Congrats on your new Droid! Try a little experiment: make a call, then check something on the web, or send or receive email, while you're on the call.

Once you have the results of the experiment, imagine that the person on the other end was 1) your spouse/significant other/partner; 2) your boss; 3) your most important client; 4) your mother. Suppose 1) your spousigothpartner wanted the address of a restaurant where you will meet at lunch--a restaurant you've never been to; 2) your boss wanted some data from a report that you have on the company's network, but not on the Droid; 3) your client wanted information on a product or service, information that's on the company's private web site, but not on the Droid; 4) your mother said that she had just emailed you a photo of your new nephew and wanted to know if you think he's as adorable as she does--she's waiting in her usual impatient way and wants an answer right now.

Apples to Apples: Will History Repeat Itself as Android Gains on the iPhone?

Some things to ponder:

1. What will happen when a Droid user is on a call with her boss or a very important client and need to check something on the company's web site. As I understand it, she will have to terminate the call in order to get the information, as Verizon's CDMA network cannot handle voice and data simultaneously. Will her boss be pleased? Will the client stick with her? In both cases, her own choice led to the difficulty. (The one person I know who bought a Pre is ready to ditch it and get another phone--probably an iPhone--for this very reason.)

2. What will happen when the first virus strikes Android phones? "Open source" could equate to "virus heaven." Combine that with little or no control of applications and there may be a major disaster just waiting to happen. It could make the problems with the Sidekick look benign.

3. What will happen if the Android phones start crashing because of poorly-designed apps, as well as malware? The Treo was plagued by "problem" applications that could crash the phone, even if they weren't "viruses." ("Multitasking" in the sense that Android uses it could make the probability of crashing higher.)

4. One reason that Verizon seems to have the "better" network may be that they don't have to support the data load that ATT does. Will their system stand up to a much greater data load?

The Problem with iPhone Killers

Sorry, Tom B, but the Razr was made by Motorola. Palm had nothing to do with it. That rather negates your first paragraph.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

On Oct 27 01:38 PM Tom B wrote:

> I had two friends who had RAZR's; they both hated them. Like Peter
> Lynch, I believe first hand exposure to products can really help
> inform buying decisions. I'm not SURPRISED the Palm RAZR sucked;
> I owned an early Palm and two later iterations.

Motorola Droid: A Promising iPhone Challenger

As Roger Knights said, it's not that simple. Different phones may use different processors & graphics chips, different radios, etc. If you're old enough, recall Windows 95. You often had to get special drivers for each graphics card, for example. Google doesn't build in that flexibility--it has to be added by the phone manufacturer. Also, what's to stop Verizon from only allowing apps that it sells (like Apple) to be used on the Droid? Verizon has a history of crippling its phones. My cheap little Samsung phone is supposed to be able to load ringtones from a PC through the battery/data connector, but, because it's from Verizon, the data part of the connector is disabled. The only way to get ringtones is to buy them through Verizon for $2.99+.

Also, I've been trying to find out if the Droid will be able to access data WHILE simultaneously making a call. The iPhone can, because it's on a GSM network, but the Pre cannot on Sprint's CDMA. As Verizon also uses CDMA, the Droid may have the same limitation.


On Oct 23 04:31 PM RLLH wrote:

> I have to agree with RPG that developers would be more interested
> in developing an application that runs on many phones than on only
> one, even if that one is iphone. Look at the number of Microsoft
> applications for pc's versus the number for the Macintosh.

Verizon's Droid Is the Real Deal

A few questions:

1. Will the Droid use CDMA? If so, will users be able to access data (web, email) at the same time that they're making a call? A friend who bought a Pre is rather "disappointed" that he can't do that.

2. What will be the pricing structure by Verizon? What will the phone and service cost?

Verizon Launches Direct Ad Attack Against the iPhone

One question: will Verizon's Droid users be able to access the web and email while they're making a call? Can they be talking to a friend, look up a restaurant and make a reservation by email? Can they be talking to a client and send her an email while still on the call? Can Verizon Droid users take their phones to Europe or Asia and expect them to work?

The EU Stabs Apple in the Back

From a pure engineering standpoint, that would be "nice," but also a major disaster. It might require replacing every outlet in a country. The economic cost would be staggering, but so would be the environmental cost. It's why the US (and Britain) have not embraced metrification. It would require re-tooling of entire industries. The impact on plumbing, alone, could be many billions. Every plumber would have to carry complete stocks of both British/US hardware (inch-based) and metric hardware for decades. It would double their inventory.

However, MOST countries in the EU already DO use a standard power plug for ungrounded systems. (Some countries use a different plug for major appliances, just as in the US.) The UK, Ireland, and Italy are different. The "Euro-plug" may be the most widely-used in the world.


On Jun 30 02:13 PM numinary wrote:

> from a pure engineering/efficiency standpoint, it seems to make the
> most sense to try to drag all of the EU countries into using a similar
> wall plug outlet and electrical power source would provide the largest
> returns. Does this make too much sense for legislators? Or is it
> just that this is a more inconvenient issue for them to deal with?
>
>
> As someone that goes on company junkets around Europe, I would certainly
> like to see a universal power plug rather than a universal cell phone
> power cable...

RIM Beats Apple in One-Hit Wonder Quarter. What's Next?

On May 05 09:51 AM jmmx wrote:

> 1- IT'S THE PRICE!!!
> 2- BB BOLD IS NOT A SMARTPHONE!

The Bold is not on the list. The top smartphone was the Blackberry Curve.

However, despite .crazylegs sneer, it's hard to tell what the overall impact is.

Also, in the article, the author uses words like "smash" and "skyrocketing" without any data. The only numbers given are for overall market share for each manufacturer, NOT the sales of the Curve. There's no way to tell if it's just 0.0000000001% higher than the iPhone, for example.

Which CEOs Have the Best and Worst Approval Ratings?

Jakw: While the approval rating of "Congress," as an institution, is quite low (in part because the Republicans keep blocking the process), the ratings of INDIVIDUAL Representatives and Senators by their own constituents (the only ones who matter) are usually pretty good, much better than President Bush's. Do your homework.