Google Nexus One Phone Not an iPhone Killer?

[*LTD*]

The iPhone has become like the iPod, everybody has to have one, even if it's crap. Apple is riding on the market success of it's iPod to sell the "desire" for the iPhone. It's the American way, "gotta have it just because everyone else has it".

It always starts somewhere. It starts with a great product. Whether it's "cool" or "shiny" is beside the point. It has to do well early on, and from then on it can snowball.

iPhones and iPods sell because they're great products. They're desirable from every technological standpoint for the simple reason that Apple's entire attitude about what happens from the time a user picks up the product to the time the desired action is executed, is reflected completely and consistently across all of its products. Apple's found the ideal combination between hardware and software, that "sweet spot" that consumers find so desirable. This supersedes everything else, even specs.

It's just that simple.

 

[daneoni]

It always starts somewhere. It starts with a great product. Whether it's "cool" or "shiny" is beside the point. It has to do well early on, and from then on it can snowball.

iPhones and iPods sell because they're great products. They're desirable from every technological standpoint for the simple reason that Apple's entire attitude about what happens from the time a user picks up the product to the time the desired action is executed, is reflected completely and consistently across all of its products. Apple's found the ideal combination between hardware and software, that "sweet spot" that consumers find so desirable. This supersedes everything else, even specs.

It's just that simple.

Q.F.T.

 

[elppa]

Throughout its existence, Apple has always been a niche player with a lot of hype and press coverage.

Apple II, Mac, Powerbook, iPod , iPhone. These were industry defining products. Yes hype, but some of it was justified.

The biggest obstacle between Apple and their grand scale success is... Apple. They are a closed shop that does not play well with others and they seriously get the entire third party ecosystem wrong.

So do you explain away the blooming and profitable third party market in Mac accessories, iPod accessories, Mac software and last but not least iPhone software?

Sure, we haven't yet seen the end of Windows for mobile devices. But the killer argument for Android are its strong Open Source roots.

Fascinating.

And ultimately, the developers make or break a platform. Which, by the way, is another area where Apple is currently losing sympathy ever day because of their ridiculous approval process.

Yes developers make or break a platform, and more third parties develop for iPhone than Android.

Anyway. The iPhone was an important product for many reasons, and it certainly had its moment of glory. However, I don't think that its momentum will last. The competition is not sleeping and especially the Android platform has that element of openness that will attract all those developers that have been pissed off by Apple's closeness and their arbitrary AppStore policies.

So why is Android marketplace growth slower than the iPhone App Store growth? Why do the numbers not show this trend?

 

[Cleverboy]

People need to recognize that any Android offering doesn't NEED to "beat" the iPhone... it just needs to slowly saturate the market and keep lowering their prices. If Google can undercut Apple's price using ad-based subsidies... then "killing" the iPhone will happen slowly, without ever really overcoming any perceived "advances" Apple may or may NOT have over it. So... price, please. That's the REAL question.

~ CB

 

[darkplanets]

My my. The trolls and fanboys are out today, for both sides.

No product is single handedly the best for all users. To each his own. Just as some on this site prefer Windows, it's whatever gets the job done for you which makes that product your ideal choice.

This notion of i-killer is utterly absurd, and product specs (especially on a phone) aren't that relevant for a large portion of the consumer base. It comes down to what works best for your specific needs.

 

[lex750]

It always starts somewhere. It starts with a great product. Whether it's "cool" or "shiny" is beside the point. It has to do well early on, and from then on it can snowball.

iPhones and iPods sell because they're great products. They're desirable from every technological standpoint for the simple reason that Apple's entire attitude about what happens from the time a user picks up the product to the time the desired action is executed, is reflected completely and consistently across all of its products. Apple's found the ideal combination between hardware and software, that "sweet spot" that consumers find so desirable. This supersedes everything else, even specs.

It's just that simple.

Most consumers can't even program a VHS. So yeah, for those people the iPhone is the second coming of Christ. The rest of us we know better.

 

[rwilliams]

right - the wallpaper on the nexus is always there until you launch an app (like a jailbroken iPhone, right?). the difference, at least on the one i played with, is that the home screens are more sparse. on the iPhone home screen the app icons are so closely packed together you wouldn't be able to see much of your wallpaper.

Absolutely, which is why I use the Glasklart theme with the transparent icons whenever I want to display a nice wallpaper on my jailbroken iPod Touch.

 

[fat phil]

Looks decent, pretty much as I expected, although the lack of multi-touch is baffling, especially since it's a 2.1 device. I want the screen res, for sure...

 

[lex750]

Absolutely, which is why I use the Glasklart theme with the transparent icons whenever I want to display a nice wallpaper on my jailbroken iPod Touch.

I use that theme on my iPod Touch too. It's the best one ever!

 

[LagunaSol]

I love all this chatter about Android being "open." Hmm, the G1 on T-Mobile is still stuck on Android 1.6 with no ability to upgrade (yet). The Droid on Verizon has an older version of Android than the Nexus One (what a stupid name) will have on T-Mobile and I'll bet they'll be no upgrade for the Droid available immediately.

The software for these devices is still being controlled by the wireless carriers, people. The "open" part of Android seems to be mostly just talk right now.

And thus the disintegration/fragmentation of Android continues. Is the Nexus One Google's version of Microsoft's Plays For Sure betrayal?

But hey, I'm rooting for Android to be the #2 mobile OS after iPhone. Anything that kills Windows Mobile (and anything Microsoft, really) is a friend of mine.

 

[rwilliams]

I'm not singling you out personally but your statement got me thinking so I'll ask you.

To me multi-tasking on any device that is 3-4" in size is useless. I do multi-tasking on my computer because there is real estate to use.

Can you please name three applications you use simultaneously on the Droid ?

And how do you fit all three apps on the screen.

Multitasking doesn't necessarily mean that all running apps are open on the same screen at the same time. It just means that they are all running and performing their tasks simultaneously. Right now, for all non-Apple iPhone apps, you have to close one app in order to use another one.

For example, with Backgrounder on jailbroken iPhones, you can keep your Twitter client running while listening to Pandora and composing an email all at the same time without losing your current "state". Some people find this to be invaluable, while many people probably wouldn't use the feature all that much. I believe that it should have been a feature long ago, and if the battery life suffers because of it, then either improve the batteries you put in the iPhone, or let the end users deal with the consequences of running multiple apps at once.

 

[LagunaSol]

The iPhone has become like the iPod, everybody has to have one, even if it's crap. Apple is riding on the market success of it's iPod to sell the "desire" for the iPhone. It's the American way, "gotta have it just because everyone else has it".

Hmm, don't you have an iPod???

 

[Peace]

Multitasking doesn't necessarily mean that all running apps are open on the same screen at the same time. It just means that they are all running and performing their tasks simultaneously. For example, with Backgrounder on jailbroken iPhones, you can keep your Twitter client running while listening to Pandora and composing an email all at the same time. Currently, you'd have to close down your Twitter app to use Pandora, and then you'd have to close Pandora to check your email.

Ok. I understand that but how do you "tweet" and type email at the same time ?.It's not like a Twitter app takes an hour to open on the iPhone. It opens in a nanosecond.

Is the new world order so important that you must have those apps open constantly?. Take a break and look at some trees. If there's any left in the cities.

 

[ChazUK]

I'm not singling you out personally but your statement got me thinking so I'll ask you.

To me multi-tasking on any device that is 3-4" in size is useless. I do multi-tasking on my computer because there is real estate to use.

Can you please name three applications you use simultaneously on the Droid ?

And how do you fit all three apps on the screen.

No problems Peace. I'm not a Droid user, I own a HTC Hero and an Archos 5 Android Internet tablet.

Recent situations where I have multitasked on my Hero/Archos 5:

Whenever I listen to music in the Android music player, I have it scrobbling to last.fm in realtime. http://www.last.fm/user/ChazClout (if you check it now you can see I am listening to music right now, with the iPhone tracks are scrobbled after you sync with iTunes).

Last night I was streaming music from last.fm in bed whilst checking out twitter feeds in twidroid and browsing the web, all in one go.

When I was converting some of my DVD's to h264 on my iMac. I was able to transfer them via FTP in andFTP from my iMac once completed and still use my Archos for music and browsing.

Add to all that ebuddy instant messenger to communicate via IM to friends.

Not all applications are on the screen at once, if an update happens or an app needs your attention (say you get an instant message) the notification bar will inform you and you can directly switch to the app via the task manager (hold home on Android) or leave it until later.

I'm obviously not the average user as I do so much with my portable devices so the iPhone will suit the majority of people who don't need multitasking.

Hope this clears things up!

 

[boyplunder]

Looks decent, pretty much as I expected, although the lack of multi-touch is baffling, especially since it's a 2.1 device. I want the screen res, for sure...

I think multi-touch is an Apple-owned patent technology. Not sure other companies can use it in the same way. I thought Microsoft's table thing got round it because it uses cameras.

 

[rwilliams]

Ok. I understand that but how do you "tweet" and type email at the same time ?.It's not like a Twitter app takes an hour to open on the iPhone. It opens in a nanosecond.

Is the new world order so important that you must have those apps open constantly?. Take a break and look at some trees. If there's any left in the cities.

That was just an example. But going with that example, you can't tweet and type email at the same time on your desktop/laptop either - you have to switch between the two apps that are open and running. The same concept applies to multitasking on a mobile device. Just because you don't have a need for such capabilities doesn't render it pointless.

 

[zacman]

Who cares if it is an iPhone killer?

MacOS X also isn't a Windows killer. But still around 4% use it. Must be pretty stuipid guys.

And people choose Android phones for being different than those that use the mainstream iPhone. Well... I think I have an idea for an whole ad campaign.

(BTW: Google today announced that the Chrome browser has now more marketshare than Safari. Not bad for a browser that isn't even out of beta yet)

 

[ChazUK]

I love all this chatter about Android being "open." Hmm, the G1 on T-Mobile is still stuck on Android 1.6 with no ability to upgrade (yet). The Droid on Verizon has an older version of Android than the Nexus One (what a stupid name) will have on T-Mobile and I'll bet they'll be no upgrade for the Droid available immediately.

The software for these devices is still being controlled by the wireless carriers, people. The "open" part of Android seems to be mostly just talk right now.

And thus the disintegration/fragmentation of Android continues. Is the Nexus One Google's version of Microsoft's Plays For Sure betrayal?

But hey, I'm rooting for Android to be the #2 mobile OS after iPhone. Anything that kills Windows Mobile (and anything Microsoft, really) is a friend of mine.

Please tell these guys that their platform is closed.
http://htcpedia.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=55
http://android.modaco.com/category/409/htc-hero-hero-modaco-com/
http://forum.xda-developers.com/

There are hundreds of people involved in hacking and creating their own software and roms on various Android devices.

 

[AidenShaw]

Nope. If that were true...90% of silicon valley wouldn't be carrying iPhones and consequently crashing carrier networks at tech conferences/event

exactly!

I think multi-touch is an Apple-owned patent technology. Not sure other companies can use it in the same way. I thought Microsoft's table thing got round it because it uses cameras.

Actually, multi-touch has been around a long time before Macs:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-touch#History

Multi-touch technology dates back to 1982, when Nimish Mehta at the University of Toronto developed the first finger pressure multi-touch display.

A breakthrough occurred in 1991, when Pierre Wellner published a paper on his multi-touch “Digital Desk”, which supported multi-finger and pinching motions.​

So, even "pinch" was more than 15 years old when Apple showed the Iphone.

 

[GQB]

One word missing in the title: yet.

It's not a iPhone killer yet. But it soon will be.

Because, of course, Apple will stand still.
Funny, but y'all never seem to remember the word 'yet' when denigrating the iPhone itself.

 

[zacman]

Ok. I understand that but how do you "tweet" and type email at the same time ?.It's not like a Twitter app takes an hour to open on the iPhone.

What about writing a blog and uploading lots of photos. I guess you don't want to wait 2 hours before you can do anything else.

I know a guy who is broadcasting live mountain bike tours. He's using a Loox with WM and constantly uploads his GPS tracks when he drives around. He also uploads the photos he made and that takes lots of time because often there is only GPRS speed available in the mountains.

Of course he needs to have a GPS program open all the time so he can view his topographical map and direction.

That's just not possible with a phone that can't multitask.

 

[thetexan]

With as good as the iPhone is, it has yet to kill any other phone on the market. RIM is doing better than ever, and Google is off to a great start. Hell, WebOS is doing good in the US considering the fact it's tied down to a struggling carrier. Why should we expect something to kill the iPhone, when the iPhone has yet to kill anything?

The Droid is an amazing phone, better than the iPhone in many aspects in my opinion. Saturday I went with my girl to the Verizon store and all four salespeople working that afternoon were setting up Droid or Droid Eris phones. My friend who works for Verizon doing customer care said they've been selling those phones like crazy. They won't kill the iPhone, but if Verizon sold 1,000,000 droid phones that means 1,000,000 people were out of contract, had the chance to get the iPhone, turned it down and got Droid instead.

 

[Peace]

What about writing a blog and uploading lots of photos. I guess you don't want to wait 2 hours before you can do anything else.

I know a guy who is broadcasting live mountain bike tours. He's using a Loox with WM and constantly uploads his GPS tracks when he drives around. He also uploads the photos he made and that takes lots of time because often there is only GPRS speed available in the mountains.

Of course he needs to have a GPS program open all the time so he can view his topographical map and direction.

That's just not possible with a phone that can't multitask.

That's not correct. The iPhone can be uploading an image while you do something else. I've done it many times.

This whole concept of "instant-tasking" is way overblown. It's overkill.

 

[fender7083]

There is never going to be a real iphone killer!

The iphone has to two major things going for it 1) Apple built. They have complete control over hardware and and software. 2) The apple followers. No other company has such a following. Some people live and breathe apple (like me...). They don't care what it is or how much it cost. Just like the tablet/islate thing. People are going to camp out for this thing, no matter how pointless it is. Long live apple!

 

[crift2012]

haha

I fully agree that that is a pain in the arse. Does it have a trackball? d-pad? trackpad? No external button input at all (like my archos)?

Writing an app for the iPhone and iPod Touch must be easier in that respect!

you actually brought up an Archos....those things are the crappiest devices ever....

my sister tried to go the cheap route and bought an Archos Jukebox... nothing but problems, finally she bought an ipod, after much pain....

no wonder Archos went to Android...they could hardly handle the manufacturing of hardware, but the UI/software was utterly useless. You were better off toting an external enclosure and lugging around a hacked mini-lcd screen attached. The thing was an ugly brick that played music very poorly...it was cheap alright...all the way through..

and yet you say archos proudly....