The Android vs. iPhone battle got more entertaining as the Android underdog phone outsold the Apple iPhone in first quarter 2010. Apple is winning the war, even if the Android did win one small battle. In total smartphone sales, and Apple definitely has the lead over Android. Blackberry, of course, dominates the field. While Apple iPhone and Blackberry sales are down, the Android market is trending upward. The Android may tighten the iPhone vs. Android margin as some analysts believe the trends will continue.
iPhone vs. Android milestone
The Android vs. iPhone matchup hit a milestone when the Android phone captured 28 percent of smartphone sales last quarter as outlined by the NPD Group. NPD reports that Apple’s iPhone won 21 percent of all the smartphone sales, while Research in Motion’s Blackberry took 36 percent. According to ComScore, a digital market research firm, a key stat in Android vs. iPhone is that Google’s Android operating system had only nine percent of the market as of February 2010, compared with the 25.4 percent of the iPhone.
Others falter with Android phone gains
In winning the latest round of iPhone vs. Droid, PC World reports that Google’s OS is the only smartphone OS whose share of sales grew over the previous quarter. The iPhone, in the mean time, is flat, while Windows Mobile, BlackBerry and WebOS quarterly sales shares are falling like a mortgage loan modification. If this trend continues on like this, PC World’s J.R. Raphael said Android will catch up to its competitors for total market share in a hurry.
How was the iPhone beat by the Android?
Android phone sales may have beaten Apple’s iPhone, as outlined by the Los Angeles Times, because of Google’s freewheeling partnering tactics that have gotten the Android operating system onto as numerous phones, served by as many wireless carriers, as possible. From 12 manufacturers, you will find a lot more than 30 Android powered devices now. These devices consist of Sprint, AT and T, T-mobile, and Verizon.
Will iPhone be sold by Verizon soon?
As Google wins the latest round of the iPhone vs. Droid scuffle, the iPhone Verizon offering looms larger. Apple is tied to AT and T in an exclusive partnership in what may be a saturated market. Ezra Gottheil, an analyst with Technology Business Research, explained to Computerworld, “That’s your classic technology acquisition curve. Of those within the U.S. who are interested in an iPhone and willing to put up with AT and T, pretty much all have already bought one. What’s left for Apple — as long as it is tied to AT and T in its exclusive partnership — is largely the iPhone replacement market”.
Worldwide iPhone soars
Apple won't say when but it is expected that the iPhone Verizon deal will happen. Meantime, Apple is forging ahead within the iPhone vs. droid matchup everywhere else. Apple announced last month Worldwide iPhone sales were up 131 percent in the first quarter compared to the exact same three-month stretch in 2009.
Sources for the article
NPD reports
http://www.npd.com/press/releases/press_100510.html
PC World
http://www.pcworld.com/article/195958/android_outsells_apple_iphone_at_last_says_npd.html
Los Angeles Times
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2010/05/google-android-overtakes-iphone-npd-research.html
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