I agree and would say much the same about WebOS, just being good though may not cut it in the marketplace these days.


I use a DAB clock radio myself, but on occasion have used the phone while travelling. You have to admit the phone bug (though it shouldn't have happened) didn't last too long.


I would agree there.


Good point.


So we can agree on that.

Android now has double the marketshare of iOS.

No surprise really as Android devices can cost less than 1/4 of what Apple charge.

http://mobchina.blogspot.com/2011/02...martphone.html

Doesn't mean they are better (probably 1/4 as useful) and it doesn't seem that people use them to do much.

Can you show me the sales figures that show iphone is "top" ... each time you bring out the smartphone data usage graphs but I'd to the see the top selling iphone sales charts.

1/4 as useful is a joke......

My Galaxy S does everything an iPhone4 does and more!

I can view flash embedded video direct from websites and with a touch of the screen turn it into a WiFi hotspot and surf on my laptop! I can even view all of my files on my phone over WiFi using Kies Lite.

Android has loads of facilities and it keeps getting better which is why it now is the most popular Smartphone OS. High end Android devices sell in very significant numbers and because they are generally free as an upgrade or on a new contract they are opening up new possibilities to millions more mobile users.

I'm interested in the fact that at the top end, Android handsets, (and very likely upcoming Nokia handsets) are closing the gap between themselves and the fantastic 'overall package'. that the iPhone offers.

I'm not convinced that point has yet been reached, but when it is reached, Apple with have a problem, as they insist on joke pricing, purposely block flexibility and upgradability, and shove the unlovely iTunes in one's face.

Please note davethorp's comment. Pay no attention to certain prolific posters who are simply commenting in order to flare up a brand war, and clearly wanted to derail the thread into the 'OS X is better than Windows' waste-ground.

Personally I'm more interested in people who can see both sides and maybe predict what will happen next, rather than just troll and obsessively denigrate 'the other side'.

My iPhone 4 does that

You absolutely should pay attention to the way this 'war of the operating systems' has played out, and try to understand why.

There are clear parallels between 'windows vs OSX' and 'android vs iOS', the relationship between hardware and software being the most obvious.

The apple approach of locking users in while working hard to make sure they receive a decent all round product has worked very well for them so far... personally I don't see any one company beating them with an android based product. Overall you would expect android to win out as the most popular OS, but across many different manufacturers.

Inevitably, this will lead to android based phone manufacturers competing against each other, leaving apple with a very respectable market share of both the phone and OS marketplace.

Until another manufacturer tries to take them on their own terms, Apple will remain relatively unchallenged.

To be fair, both sides of the debate have their fair share of prolific posters happy to derail thread after thread into little more than a willy waving contest and a MacOSX Vs Windows willy waving contest makes a nice refreshing change from an iOS Vs Android one even though it's in the wrong section.

Your last paragraph I totally agree with. These forums would be a lot less confrontational and have a lot less willy waving if certain people would just accept that others have different opinions on handets to them. It doesn't make them right or wrong, it just makes them different and it doesn't mean the same people have to troll their opinion until others submit and agree that they are right (which isn't going to happen)

The whole android vs iOS debate can be pretty much summed up with the FAQ that is in the useful information thread I had to create as forum host that no one has probably read and states

^^I am paying attention. I was referring to a pointless comments 'war', as described by davethorp above.

The iPhone may still be the biggest selling smartphone brand in major markets, but Android is the biggest selling OS. IMO this is not because Android is now 'better' than iOS, but because iPhones have been so overpriced that they have left plenty of space for even range-topping smartphones from other manufacturers to undercut them. iPhones are brilliant, but as others have noted, Apple are greedy. When choosing a smartphone now, one also needs to factor in the cost of apps and subs. Android recently announced that they will take only a 10% slice of magazine subs via their appstore as compared with Apples 30%. Apple caused the current smartphone trend, but their current position is wobbly.

Their ferocious marketing and untouched brand awareness will keep them some market-share, but people may vote with their wallets if they can get something shiny everybody claims is 'the iPhone killer' - e.g. a Nexus S2HD* with the kind of pretty alloy body the HTC Legend has.

I think that pure tech won't make the difference alone - Apple is seldom bleeding edge for features, but are never far behind. Thus davethorp can tether via his iPhone 4, and even run Flash if his warranty has already expired and he's prepared to get his hands really dirty. Jailbreaking an iPhone really opens it up, and there is already an app for almost everything you might want to do with an iPhone.

Android appears to be dominating the mass-market so far (I'm expecting Apple to strike back with an iPhone nano), but the real top-range battle is still to come. It might even be a three-way battle, if Nokia have anything to say about it...




*theoretical model, folks

Which is best, iOS or Android?

There's only one way to find out - FIGHT!

Seriously though, my dad's bigger than your dad.

Cool.... no playing of flash embedded video yet though

It cant be denied that the iPhone has been a good product but it has also been a very overpriced one.

I'm not so sure.

Android is the biggest selling OS simply because it is available to multiple manufacturers... these are the guys who will be watching each others prices. It's just betamax vs VHS, betamax was 'better' but VHS won the format war by being available to all manufacturers.

Will Apple eventually succumb in the same way betamax did?

I doubt it... they've already got such a large market share they'd have to really get caught with their pants down.

Just to clarify, my ability to wifi tether my phone has nothing to do with jailbreaking, though that is another way to achieve the same result.

I'm running iOS 4.3 which has the feature added in

It can do that too

Like most of your claims I don't believe a word of it and as usual it stinks of fabrication.
If you worked for the Girl Guides I might believe it.

You've surveyed the 10,000 + employees and how would a small cog in such a large wheel have access to this information?

iOS 4.3 has no support for flash embedded video. It only supports h.264 web embedded video with authorisation tags.

Full Details: http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/art...h-screenshots/

PS: Facetime will soon be a chargeable service... oh dear!!

Never said it was a feature of iOS 4.3. It is a feature of skyfire though

Can't say I'd be too bothered if FaceTime did become chargeable (though I would like to see a source to back that statement up). I've used it a whole........ let me count....... Zero times since buying my iPhone 4 at launch

OS/X is an open computer platform while IOS is almost fully closed off and more limited.
Visiting IOS is like visiting a stadium where they search you and confiscate your own food before you enter.

Facetime and 3G video calling have been leadsinker applications. Free, cheap or chargable the concept of mobile videocalling just never took off for fairly obvious reasons as nobody want to look daft making such calls in public!

3 tried to make videocalling a big 3G benefit when they launched and dumped the thing when it bombed.

02 made videocalling the same price as voice calls on their 3G network to encourage uptake of 3G phones but got nowhere with it either.

The initial 3G proposition was videocalling, videoclips, mobile tv etc - none of that worked for folks. Then along came Apple with a proper mobile proposition with apps and real Internet on mobiles. A hit for sure but at a huge cost. No surprise others have replicated their user experience and have gained market share offering the same facilities at more affordable prices. Apple will no doubt retain the loyalty of its core users but many who bought iPhones to experience apps and use Internet services on the move will move on to more cost effective devices that networks don't have to share revenues with.

Excellent analogy

Video calling is an interesting feature. I've never used it, and I know why few other people use it on their handsets. [LIST][*]It means the phone takes up 100% of your attention,[*]Means that you would have to start being conscious of your appearance*[*]Prevents people from telling white lies about their location, company etc[*]Tends to make calls less private[/LIST]Was never going to be a killer app, and I wonder why some industry bods ever thought so. In the meantime, PTT was purposely still-born in Europe. Amazing.


*Hey... are you sitting on the bog?

Isn't that called going the cinema?

Not really a surprise considering Android is a leech OS. An OS which leeches to any hardware as opposed to iOS which is on very set hardware. It's not really a comparison that makes sense.

As for the article. Again. . .not really surprising considering they're cheaper handsets and also cheaper line rental / free handsets.

Bit like saying "OMG OMG OMG Ford sell more cars than Ferrari!".

/Non-news.

Absolute nonsense.

iOS is like visiting a beautiful walled garden. A heavenly experience.

I think you mean open rather than leech Android is on more devices as it doesnt have a licence fee and is of course open source. Using your car analogy Android supports car rebadging and IOS does not