Comscore -- Android gains market by 5.1%. Microsoft continues to lose market share..

[poofyhairguy]

Verizon's single biggest phone launch was the iPhone 4, which when it came out was already half a year old with a new model in the semi near future. And even with it being Verizon's best launch, it was still considered a pretty big failure overall. What does that say about Android phones?

Actually after reading your paragraph I thought "What does that say about the expectations of Apple products?"

Is Apple going to be in a tight spot with the media when they DO release that dud product? It does happen (AppleTV), it just hasn't happened with one of its major product lines since most people started paying attention (so about 2008-ish).

I am starting to wonder if the iPhone 5 might be that letdown. So many people are hyped up about a 4 inch model when Apple just released a new superscreen in the last model. If its just a souped-up iPhone 4 it seems like some people might go postal because the "mock ups" and blogs have set expectations so high.

 

[mammador]

The iPhone 5 IMO is by the by, what if the Android makers (HTC and co.) release a new handset? HTC could potentially usurp Apple as the leading smartphone maker (their phones are of virtually equal quality, it's just that Apple has brand and marketing strength).

Apple needs to release a low end phone to increase its market share. It's not so simple as platform vs. platform, since many makers obviously produce Android phones.

 

[RaistlinZ]

If they go to 4" I wonder what the resolution will be.

 

[QueBert]

The iPhone 5 IMO is by the by, what if the Android makers (HTC and co.) release a new handset? HTC could potentially usurp Apple as the leading smartphone maker (their phones are of virtually equal quality, it's just that Apple has brand and marketing strength).

Apple needs to release a low end phone to increase its market share. It's not so simple as platform vs. platform, since many makers obviously produce Android phones.

HTC phones are uneven quality wise though. Some of theirs are top notch but others like my EVO are nothing more than passable. HTC also needs to do something about their battery life. I went from an iPhone to an EVO and even knowing what to expect battery wise, I was still stunned.

 

[Mopetar]

I am starting to wonder if the iPhone 5 might be that letdown. So many people are hyped up about a 4 inch model when Apple just released a new superscreen in the last model. If its just a souped-up iPhone 4 it seems like some people might go postal because the "mock ups" and blogs have set expectations so high.

This happens with every Apple product. No one has any solid information so everyone starts buying into the flurry of rumors swirling around the tech news sites. Pretty soon the common expectation is that the next Apple product will have a screen so dense you need a magnifying glass to read it, will do your taxes for you, and has a negative weight.

The device that actually comes out is a minor, but steady improvement over the previous one. Tech pundits (read idiots) pan the new device for not including a holographic display and being unable to cure cancer. No one really pays much attention to that drivel as the device breaks sales records and Apple posts their best quarter ever.

Shortly thereafter the cycle begins anew.

If they go to 4" I wonder what the resolution will be.

960 x 640. What else would it be?

Edit: fixed formatting.

 

[WelshBloke]

HTC phones are uneven quality wise though. Some of theirs are top notch but others like my EVO are nothing more than passable. HTC also needs to do something about their battery life. I went from an iPhone to an EVO and even knowing what to expect battery wise, I was still stunned.

Why would you buy an EVO if you're worried about battery life though?


Its like buying a huge thirsty truck and complaining about fuel economy.


[I felt compelled to throw in the car analogy but I'm way to tired to put any effort into it. Sleep new baby, sleep damn you!!]

 

[mammador]

HTC phones are uneven quality wise though. Some of theirs are top notch but others like my EVO are nothing more than passable. HTC also needs to do something about their battery life. I went from an iPhone to an EVO and even knowing what to expect battery wise, I was still stunned.

Maybe, but Jobs has to do something about his platform's market share. in terms of handsets sold, there is no problem, but this is by the by. the easiest way of doing this is to compete with HTC, Samsung, Motorola, etc. and produce a mid-range handset.

 

[railer]

I'd say it's more there are so many handsets out there of course it's going to do better. The iPhone 4 vastly outsell any single Android phone, which means people actually want iPhones more right?

That doesn't really make a lot of sense.
If I somehow convinced a bunch of different lollipop manufacturers to make and sell my great new idea of a poop-flavored lollipop....it's not going to be a big seller just because I've got all of the worlds lollipop manufactuers lined up to sell it. That would be a terrible product that no one would buy.
People aren't going to be inclined to buy some inferior product that they don't want, just because there are a lot of different varieties of that poor product. That's not even logical.

On the other hand, since there's only one single iphone....Apple could pretty much put some shiney new plastic around the existing iphone 4, call it the iphone 5, and it would fly off of the shelves, and outsell any single model HTC, LG, Samsung, or Motorola android phone. Because for those people who only want an iphone, there's only one choice to be had.
It's kind of like when people compare the ratings of Fox news to any other single cable news outfit. Fox always wins...but that's because they're the only cable news source in existance for bible thumping loons. Not that I'm comparing iphone buyers to bible thumping loons mind you.....

 

[Mopetar]

Maybe, but Jobs has to do something about his platform's market share. in terms of handsets sold, there is no problem, but this is by the by. the easiest way of doing this is to compete with HTC, Samsung, Motorola, etc. and produce a mid-range handset.

No he doesn't. Notice the obscene amounts of money that Apple is making from the iPhone? It's a lot like the mac. They don't have the biggest market share (although from a manufacturer perspective they're definitely up there) but they're taking home the lion's share of the profit.

Any other company would love to trade places with Apple. As long as Apple continues to have half of the profit, they don't have to do anything.

 

[Pliablemoose]

Apple will likely come up with a cheaper phone to sell to overseas markets and prepaid plans.

There's also a rumor floating around about a 3G enabled iPod Touch.

 

[Mopetar]

Apple will likely come up with a cheaper phone to sell to overseas markets and prepaid plans.

Just like they made a cheap mac and a netbook to capitalize on those slim profit market segments.

There's also a rumor floating around about a 3G enabled iPod Touch.

An iPhone?

 

[Pliablemoose]

Just like they made a cheap mac and a netbook to capitalize on those slim profit market segments.



An iPhone?

BIC (Brazil, India, China) require a less expensive iPhone, Tim Cook has said Apple will address the prepaid markets in those countries, soon.

Think of a mini iPad, not an iPhone, $15 data plan...

 

[Deeko]

Why not just sell refurbished or left-over iPhones from a previous generation? They're decent devices and, like I said, probably better than anything that anyone could build for $200.

There's a reason that RIM and Nokia did so well in these areas. It's because you could make a half-decent BlackBerry or Symbian phone for that price. It'll be a while before Android, iOS, WP7, etc. will be able to make a good device in that price range.

They already do this. I believe AT&T still sells the 3GS for cheap, but I don't think many people buy it.

 

[shortylickens]

Surprised RIM still has that kind of market share.

Well, remember that for a while they were pretty much the only smartphone maker so their share was more like 99%. Everyone else just had PDA's you had to manually sync to the computer every day. God what a pain that was. As much as I hate apple I have to admit they're the reason we have a smartphone market now. They brought it main stream and made competition worthwhile.
Hell, they even pushed basic phones to improve exponentially. Nowadays even the minimum is email and some sort of facebook app and media player.

I think its also interesting to note that Symbian doesnt even have one whole percent for itself. Thats kinda sad considering how good the platform is. Shame they let it slip so far downhill compared to everyone else.