Top 5 reasons the iPhone is gonna keep beating Android

[daneoni]

App store app store app store. Its always the 1 reason everyone cites as the edge factor when its not really as big as people make out. There's no denying that Apple has a great app strategy but its not even close to perfect. Developers are resigning and Apple continues to get bad press for its draconian policies. Also majority of developers on the platform care about making a quick cash cow rather than building a great app with longterm support

As for quantity...ok 100,000+ apps...of which 95% are absolutely useless. How many of you have used or have anything close to 100,000 apps on your phone or even a fraction of that?

Most users have maybe 6-7 apps that they use constantly the rest is abandoned and serve as decoration on your homescreen or just outright deleted. Heck many of the iPhone users i've come across have the Facebook app, 2 or 3 games and nothing else

Also lets call a spade a spade Google's hype/press power is equally as good as Apple's. When Google has something to say people listen. Google partners like HTC, Verizon have also made great ads. Have you seen Droid Does marketing?

As for ease of use, functional GUI user experience and iTunes integrations...all subjective. Some hate iTunes with passion and rightly so..its bloated, slow & tethered, some think the iPhone in the name of simplicity has become too one dimensional and consequently limiting (i'm one of them after using Android, webOS & even Blackberry's relatively archaic OS)

The only thing i agree with is coolness factor. A lot of people want a piece of Apple...then again everyone wanted a razor and we all know how that turned out.

The iPhone in its own way is a great device/platform but lets not get carried away

I guess ill start, but feel free to chime in with your opinions and/or Top 5 Lists

1. App store
2. Ease of Use
3. Marketing
4. Overall User experience is superior
5. 2010 iPhone 4g and OS4.0 are gonna be game changers.

Reasons Mentioned by other users:

- iTunes integration
- "Apple Factor"/Coolness
- Ease of Use
- Functional GUI

 

[mstier09]

I should clarify. I am referring to the calendar alarms that remind you of an appointment. They pop up just like a text message. Unlike texts, they don't continue beeping until you unlock your phone... And once you unlock the phone, it will not remind you again... Almost every other smart phone including the blackberry and the droid have a snooze option when a calendar event comes up... but i guess since the iphone can't multi task, they weren't able to give us this option.

I gotcha, and fully agree. I don't think that anyone would argue that the iPhone has a particularly useful notification system, its way behind competitors like Android and WebOS in that department. I hope its on the top of the list for iPhone 4.0.

 

[Consultant]

Android: 0.2GB (~200mb) available for app install
iPhone: up to >30GB available for app install

1. Android has an app store. In this app store, one of the highest paid apps isn't "idiot test"
2. Android is pretty damn easy to use, have you tried it?
3. "Droid Does"
4. The Android has an equally superior experience.
5. Do you really think the iPhone will be the only 4G device? Or did you mean 4th generation?

T for tro

T1 Droid top app is process killer, because the phone doesn't have enough resources to go around, you have to keep killing your apps manually.
T2 Right, with the lack of multi-touch, it's not easy to use at all.
T3 Droid does seem to be modeled after a killer robot, the HAL9000.
T4 Right. The interface is choppy. Browser has no multi-touch. Zooming in the browser doesn't work well.


Here is a review by a android centric web site, most iPhone owners are going to laugh at it. (Note the tricky use of fades in some places to cut the lag)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9It6UPeF10

 

[LetMeBlastU]

Go iPhone!!! Just make it more affordable then we're talking

 

[fm.produktions]

Those are rather simplistic points which lack any real substance.

What is so significant about the App Store? The number of apps? How you install them? How you browse them? What apps are allowed on the store?

How is the iPhone easier to use than an Android device? When setting it up? Making Calls? Browsing the web? Music?

I'll leave the marketing because it's a bit of a complex issue given the differences between the US and the UK (i.e. we have several networks advertising the iPhone now)

How is the user experience better? Is this just a rehash of point two?

What do you think iPhone OS 4 and the next iPhone device will do that will be "game changing"?

My top 5 list wasnt meant to represent my opinions specifically. It was meant to represent the smartphone market as a whole. Personal preferences aside, "Why is the iPhone so successful ? " "How will it continue being number one against other platforms in the market ?"

Personally i think Android is going to gain alot in market share over the next year, and like many people have pointed out, Android is a viable platform with many advantages over the iPhone.

Ultimately i think the iPhone is going to come out on top, so in a year from now people will still be talking about how to knock the iPhone off its throne.

BTW, great discussion so far. And heres a blog post I made about what i think will be in the iPhone 4g.

 

[greygray]

Because it's made by Apple.

 

[Warbrain]

I'm not sure marketing is going to have as much to do with it, especially because Verizon is doing a good job with marketing. iTunes integration and the "Apple Factor" are candidates.

If you ask me Verizon's marketing currently lacks any substance.

 

[jayenh]

Android: 0.2GB (~200mb) available for app install
iPhone: up to >30GB available for app install

i keep reading this, but from what i understand that 200MB is for the app's launcher/executable/whatever, not for the entire app. considering how small the launchers are this 200mb restriction is as good as meaningless.

 

[iPhoneStore.com]

There is no comparison, absolutely none. iPhone will always win, and there is a simple reason for it... Apple is backed by some of the most brilliant minds in the industry (customers I mean), and will always be considered the only way to go for most Mac/Apple lovers.

 

[DakotaGuy]

There is no comparison, absolutely none. iPhone will always win, and there is a simple reason for it... Apple is backed by some of the most brilliant minds in the industry (customers I mean), and will always be considered the only way to go for most Mac/Apple lovers.

Here is an example of caring one thing. Brand. No matter the quality of the product people will rush out to buy it because of a logo. If this is truly the case, then Apple should forget about upgrading the iPhone because upgrades or new technology does not matter. Only the Apple brand matters. Think about the profit that can be made if people will buy it no matter what. I bet Apple loves to see customers like this. They can be sold anything as long as the Apple logo is attached.

T1 Droid top app is process killer, because the phone doesn't have enough resources to go around, you have to keep killing your apps manually.
T2 Right, with the lack of multi-touch, it's not easy to use at all.
T3 Droid does seem to be modeled after a killer robot, the HAL9000.
T4 Right. The interface is choppy. Browser has no multi-touch. Zooming in the browser doesn't work well.

Do you own a Droid? Have you used one day in and day out for a few weeks? You claim that the device is choppy and unusable. I own a Droid and it's fast and very easy to use. OS 2.0.1 is being deployed at the present time and it is said to fix a lot of things and speed up the device even more. People "think" they need a process killer because they don't understand how the Android OS works. You don't need a process killer. The device is faster when you let Android manage it's memory the way it was designed to do so. The Droid has multi-touch. The browser doesn't use it, but it does not mean it is not possible in future updates. The double tap to zoom works fine. Why do you say it doesn't work?

 

[QCassidy352]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 3_1_2 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/528.18 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile/7D11 Safari/528.16)

My #1 reason is android's fragmentation problem. Too many flavors of the OS and too many different handsets. I can't imagine trying to be an app developer for android - or a consumer trying to fond the right android phone for me.

People complain about apple's lack of choices (with both macs and iPhones), but they keep the options simple, the integration tight, and the the user experience both painless and predictable.

 

[FearNo1]

Maybe its just me but the apps are overrated. Most of the apps are junk, repeats of existing apps, "tilt" games, etc.

It's not just the number of apps, it's that most of the brain-power in developing new apps is going to the iPhone right now. Many of the major (non-game) apps are available for both platforms, but a lot of the really unique apps that make using an iPhone special aren't available for Android.

 

[Cortezbanks]

1. Android has an app store. In this app store, one of the highest paid apps isn't "idiot test"
2. Android is pretty damn easy to use, have you tried it?
3. "Droid Does"
4. The Android has an equally superior experience.
5. Do you really think the iPhone will be the only 4G device? Or did you mean 4th generation?

iTunes integration is like a negative feature, but that's personal preference.
"Apple Factor" just shows how much of a tool you are.
You repeated Ease of use.
The Android UI is more functional than the iPhone, considering you can actually change the themes on the Android phone, unlike the iPhone. Oh and the pull down notification bar on the Android is the single best feature I've ever seen in a phone.



I don't have, nor have I ever owned an Android device, I'm just saying.

Haha gtfo

 

[FearNo1]

I agree. That is all the iphone fanboys talk about. But if you honestly look at it, there are actually a small amount of good apps IMHO.

As for quantity...ok 100,000+ apps...of which 95% are absolutely useless. How many of you have used or have anything close to 100,000 apps on your phone or even a fraction of that?

 

[Outrigger]

I think I saw the same thread over at the Android forum but titled "Top 5 reasons Android is gonna keep beating the iPhone" and "Top 5 reasons Blackberry is gonna keep beating the iPhone" over at the Blackberry forum.

See where I'm going with this?

No shoe fits all, buy what fits your need. What is the point of these mine is better than yours threads?

 

[gr8ful]

This phrase I read online somewhere sums up why I believe the iPhone is a phenomenal success....."We make the complex simple and make the simple work!"

Truth be told, Android, Windows Mobile, or even Web OS are all good operating systems that will do what 99.99% of us need done. What's different about the iPhone is how its ease of use has helped many who were technophobic overcome that fear and intimidation.

When you sit behind an elderly gentleman (in his 70's) who seldom checked his email and has nevered ordered anything online and you watch him pinch and flick his Safari browser pages like a teenager, check and respond to email on a regular basis, and has downloaded several Sinatra CDs from iTunes to listen to on his iPhone while his wife shops, you realize that it is not any individual technological feature or killer app that makes the iPhone special. It is that the perception (real or not) is that the iPhone is so dead simple to understand and use that it coaxes many to try it and use the features that they formerly thought only techies could understand and perform.

Until Android, Windows Mobile, Web OS or any other mobile OS captures that, I don't think they will come close to the success the iPhone currently enjoys.

Nate

 

[kate-willbury]

I guess ill start, but feel free to chime in with your opinions and/or Top 5 Lists

1. App store
2. Ease of Use
3. Marketing
4. Overall User experience is superior
5. 2010 iPhone 4g and OS4.0 are gonna be game changers.

Reasons Mentioned by other users:

- iTunes integration
- "Apple Factor"/Coolness
- Ease of Use
- Functional GUI

marketing is generally the iphones one true strength. who cares about the app store now. its getting overly saturated with more and more crap and its harder to weed out the good apps. i havent bought a new app in ages now.

'overall user experience is superior' and 'ease of use' is such a joke statement and only used by mac people who can't actually name a real reason.

number 5 is just complete conjecture. how is that a reason? thats like saying android will be way better because they potentially might come out with something in 2010 that will be a 'complete game changer!'

 

[NoSmokingBandit]

App store app store app store. Its always the 1 reason everyone cites as the edge factor when its not really as big as people make out. There's no denying that Apple has a great app strategy but its not even close to perfect. Developers are resigning and Apple continues to get bad press for its draconian policies. Also majority of developers on the platform care about making a quick cash cow rather than building a great app with longterm support

As for quantity...ok 100,000+ apps...of which 95% are absolutely useless. How many of you have used or have anything close to 100,000 apps on your phone or even a fraction of that?

Most users have maybe 6-7 apps that they use constantly the rest is abandoned and serve as decoration on your homescreen or just outright deleted. Heck many of the iPhone users i've come across have the Facebook app, 2 or 3 games and nothing else

Also lets call a spade a spade Google's hype/press power is equally as good as Apple's. When Google has something to say people listen. Google partners like HTC, Verizon have also made great ads. Have you seen Droid Does marketing?

As for ease of use, functional GUI user experience and iTunes integrations...all subjective. Some hate iTunes with passion and rightly so..its bloated, slow & tethered, some think the iPhone in the name of simplicity has become too one dimensional and consequently limiting (i'm one of them after using Android, webOS & even Blackberry's relatively archaic OS)

The only thing i agree with is coolness factor. A lot of people want a piece of Apple...then again everyone wanted a razor and we all know how that turned out.

The iPhone in its own way is a great device/platform but lets not get carried away

You and i think exactly alike.

 

[bigjnyc]

If next summer Apple releases an iPhone which supports both GSM and CDMA and the iphone becomes available on Verizon and AT&T the droids will rot in the stock room collecting dust, Motorola will go back to reminiscing about its glory Razr days and Verizon will be apologizing profusely for it's ill-advised anti-apple campaign.... all their commercials going forward will be iPhone-centric and they will have to say 100 hail-steve jobs every morning for their sins to be forgiven.

 

[dread]

The number one reason should be women actually want them. How often is it that technology is desirable to a large number of women. The droid has already limited itself as a man's phone in the marketing campaign. The iphone is very appealing to women for some reason and that is why it will continue to dominate.

 

[sinsin07]

I think I saw the same thread over at the Android forum but titled "Top 5 reasons Android is gonna keep beating the iPhone" and "Top 5 reasons Blackberry is gonna keep beating the iPhone" over at the Blackberry forum.

See where I'm going with this?

No shoe fits all, buy what fits your need. What is the point of these mine is better than yours threads?

Good Point. I would venture to say the following reasons why you see these same post over and over again are:

1: Fear. Fear that something might actually come along and be a serious contender to the iPhone

2: Insecurity. Is the iPhone better? I need reassurance from the Fans

3: Boredom. Nothing interesting going on at Macrumors so lets stir up some controversy

4: Fanboyism. Let's call out the troops and rally 'round the iPhone

5: Supercilious. Look at me I have something to say

6: Post whore. I want to boost my post count

Edit: forgot one

7: Honesty. The poster was actually looking for a real give and take on the pros and cons

Please note. I am not applying any of this to the OP or anyone who posted on this thread. The OP may not have been aware that there have been these types of post before.

I'm sure there are others...

 

[The General]

Um, there is a snooze button for the alarm. Unless you mean a physical button?

sleep/wake button = snooze on iphone

 

[sysiphus]

I guess ill start, but feel free to chime in with your opinions and/or Top 5 Lists

1. App store
2. Ease of Use
3. Marketing
4. Overall User experience is superior
5. 2010 iPhone 4g and OS4.0 are gonna be game changers.

Reasons Mentioned by other users:

- iTunes integration
- "Apple Factor"/Coolness
- Ease of Use
- Functional GUI

Frankly, I don't have a horse in this race, since my platform of choice is Symbian S60, but I'd like to see Apple and Google keep pushing each other to innovate.

1) As mentioned before, Android has an app store--and thousands of worthless apps aren't a big advantage for Apple. With that said, I will concede that Apple has a larger base of apps to work from.
2) Anything specific? Having used both extensively, they're both pretty darn easy to use. On top of this, Android allows for far more customization/tailoring to individual preferences without hacking/jailbreaking (which, easy as it is, still is neither appealing to all users, nor is it a stock feature)
3) Apple's got fantastic marketing--but the Droid Does campaign is pretty darn good, too. Also, in the specific case of Verizon Android devices, they can market a far larger/reliable 3G network--and face it, selling a modern smartphone to run on EDGE speeds is a joke.
4) Again, anything specific? I think an awful lot of smartphone users would vouch for things like multitasking being a big point in Android's favor. Don't forget--every other smartphone on the market aside from the iPhone can multitask. Symbian, WinMo, Android, Maemo...
5) Pure speculation. Besides, it would be foolish to assume that the Android hardware/software options will remain stagnant. On top of this, there's already more choice available with the Android handsets availible--the touch-only crowd and the gotta-have-qwerty market are both covered with tailor-made devices for Android.

The iPhone has lots going for it--but the hardware design has effectively gone nowhere in two years, while the competition is offering multiple convincing/technically superior alternatives. The software platform is good, but limited--I maintain that the day that iPhone multitasking is available, there will be an almost instant about-face in the Apple community, admitting that it's a great feature. I had an iPhone from day 1, and was all ready to buy an iPhone 3G on launch day...until the basic hardware and software platform were shown to be almost the exact same as the original.

(Bias disclaimer--I'm a Symbian fan--my current devices are an E66 (daily lightweight smartphone) and an E90 Communicator (laptop replacement for travel etc). I like carrying a phone with non-network-restricted tethering enabled out of the box--something which neither ATT iPhones nor T-Mobile Android devices can provide. I've used everything from the Sony Ericsson P800 (Symbian touchscreen device from 2004) to the iPhone to the G1 to even a short foray in the WinMo world)

 

[sinsin07]

Frankly, I don't have a horse in this race, since my platform of choice is Symbian S60, but I'd like to see Apple and Google keep pushing each other to innovate.

1) As mentioned before, Android has an app store--and thousands of worthless apps aren't a big advantage for Apple. With that said, I will concede that Apple has a larger base of apps to work from.
2) Anything specific? Having used both extensively, they're both pretty darn easy to use. On top of this, Android allows for far more customization/tailoring to individual preferences without hacking/jailbreaking (which, easy as it is, still is neither appealing to all users, nor is it a stock feature)
3) Apple's got fantastic marketing--but the Droid Does campaign is pretty darn good, too. Also, in the specific case of Verizon Android devices, they can market a far larger/reliable 3G network--and face it, selling a modern smartphone to run on EDGE speeds is a joke.
4) Again, anything specific? I think an awful lot of smartphone users would vouch for things like multitasking being a big point in Android's favor. Don't forget--every other smartphone on the market aside from the iPhone can multitask. Symbian, WinMo, Android, Maemo...
5) Pure speculation. Besides, it would be foolish to assume that the Android hardware/software options will remain stagnant. On top of this, there's already more choice available with the Android handsets availible--the touch-only crowd and the gotta-have-qwerty market are both covered with tailor-made devices for Android.

The iPhone has lots going for it--but the hardware design has effectively gone nowhere in two years, while the competition is offering multiple convincing/technically superior alternatives. The software platform is good, but limited--I maintain that the day that iPhone multitasking is available, there will be an almost instant about-face in the Apple community, admitting that it's a great feature. I had an iPhone from day 1, and was all ready to buy an iPhone 3G on launch day...until the basic hardware and software platform were shown to be almost the exact same as the original.

(Bias disclaimer--I'm a Symbian fan--my current devices are an E66 (daily lightweight smartphone) and an E90 Communicator (laptop replacement for travel etc). I like carrying a phone with non-network-restricted tethering enabled out of the box--something which neither ATT iPhones nor T-Mobile Android devices can provide. I've used everything from the Sony Ericsson P800 (Symbian touchscreen device from 2004) to the iPhone to the G1 to even a short foray in the WinMo world)

+1

Thanks for a well rounded opnion!

 

[zhenya]

2) Anything specific? Having used both extensively, they're both pretty darn easy to use. On top of this, Android allows for far more customization/tailoring to individual preferences without hacking/jailbreaking (which, easy as it is, still is neither appealing to all users, nor is it a stock feature)

See my post earlier in the thread, which I will expand upon further after today's additional experience. Today he asked me to look at his Exchange email account as he was having a couple of troubles - 1) he couldn't open attachments, it just hung with no error messages. 2) He couldn't view mail inside sub-folders.

After some research it turns out that sub-folders do not get mail pushed to them (you have to manually open the folder then trigger a refresh) and Android does not support a self-signed certificate (this was also responsible for the attachments issue). This means that Exchange was a no-go. We installed a $20 3rd party mail program that got by these issues, but that program took over an hour to synchronize. This is something that takes minutes on every other phone. All told, setting up Exchange to work satisfactorily for him, a task I have done dozens of times on other phones, took up 1/2 of my work day. Awesome.

As far as customization goes, yeah, Android largely wins there, but for most users, it turns out that's a negative, not a benefit, as, like today, it means that there are multiple solutions to many problems, none of which are ideal. Furthermore, I really fail to see how jailbreaking to open your iphone to customization is really all that different than customizing Android. A user that wouldn't jailbreak their iphone wouldn't do anything but add the most basic apps to their Android phone, either.