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Android moves into first place in market share
Engadget ^ | Mar 7th 2011 4:24PM | Chris Ziegler

Posted on 03/07/2011 7:56:59 PM PST by F1reEng1neRed

Last time we checked in with ComScore's report on smartphone platform market share among US subscribers three months ago, Android was doing a little happy dance as it overtook iOS for the number two spot overall. Well, the cuddly green bots have self-replicated yet again, enough to overtake RIM this time thanks in part to a 5.4 percent decline on BlackBerry's part (down to 30.4 percent in January) coupled with a 7.7 percent boost on the Android side, moving up to 31.2 percent. We imagine ComScore's next report -- covering the period through March -- will see a little boost on the iOS side thanks to Verizon's iPhone launch, but RIM's knight in shining armor might be further out; we still don't know when QNX-based phones are going to happen, after all, and devices like the Monaco don't really seem like cure-alls.

(Excerpt) Read more at engadget.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: android; cellphone; google
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To: tophat9000

Yep... first thing I did when I got mine was to get Eclipse and the ADK so I could write my own apps. Fun.


41 posted on 03/07/2011 11:18:49 PM PST by Cementjungle
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To: fireman15

I’m glad you’ve had success with you WinMo Phones. It basically comes down to personal preference and it appears that you’re pretty satisfied with what you have. I’m have a vague familiarity with WinMo. I’m a prior Iphone 3G and 3GS owner and decided to make the switch to Android. Since I switched, I haven’t looked back.


42 posted on 03/07/2011 11:42:21 PM PST by F1reEng1neRed
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To: tophat9000

XDA is awesome and highly recommended for anyone looking to expand their Android horizons.


43 posted on 03/07/2011 11:44:08 PM PST by F1reEng1neRed
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To: F1reEng1neRed

I beat my Blackberry with a hammer 2 weeks ago and threw it in the trash. I only owned one because my boss bought it for me. She doesn’t have any idea that I ‘lost’ it. I have no plans to get another phone. Landline is fine with answering machine. I get more work done without the damn thing distracting me all the time. Don’t worry, I work for family so no chance in getting fired because I don’t have the phone anymore. I’ve told her toadie that I lost the phone and that the service needs to be cancelled. Freedom has never felt so good.


44 posted on 03/08/2011 1:30:40 AM PST by lmr (God punishes Conservatives by making them argue with fools.)
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To: wendy1946

I have the HTC EVO & quite frankly can’t think of anything that the Iphone can do that my EVO can’t. I like the bigger screen, the kickstand, & the ability to actually change batteries, & the menu structures among other things.

No contest for me.


45 posted on 03/08/2011 1:37:03 AM PST by Confab
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To: F1reEng1neRed

The things that yu can do with the Android Smartphones is ridiculous. There is an entire underworld of developers creating new operating sytsems that allow the Android phones to do all sorts of great things. You can’t do that with the iPhone.


46 posted on 03/08/2011 1:54:10 AM PST by TennTuxedo
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To: Confab

An entire thread extoling the features of Android, but not a word about Google. Google has not opened on European markets yet. Could it be that Google has some new development that shoots its earnings up again. Which of course means it can be then deemed a total failure.


47 posted on 03/08/2011 2:34:09 AM PST by Waco (From Seward to Sara)
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To: TennTuxedo

The last thing in the world anybody is going to want to hear about is swapping operating systems in and out on a gadget.


48 posted on 03/08/2011 4:02:51 AM PST by wendy1946
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To: TennTuxedo
There is an entire underworld of developers creating new operating sytsems that allow the Android phones to do all sorts of great things. You can’t do that with the iPhone.

Sure you can; it's called jailbreaking. There are huge numbers of apps available for jailbroken iPhones. The problem is that, as soon as you do it, you've opened your iPhone to vulnerability to malware just like a Windows PC or the Android phones.

Why wouldn't a selection of more than 350,000 available apps for the iPhone be enough?

49 posted on 03/08/2011 4:08:49 AM PST by doc11355
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To: CapnJack

Until I got my Droid-X, I used a cell phone as a... cell phone.

Since then, I’m able to read my email on the go. This has resulted in more than one sale - I reacted instantly to a customer inquiry.

Additionally, with the unlimited data download (and it IS unlimited), I can listen to my local talk radio station anywhere in the U.S.

The best feature, however, is the ability to listen to Pandora Radio in my car (where I spend much of my work day). No XM Satellite, no fumbling with the radio to find something worth hearing, etc.

My dashboard is a bit of a mess, however. I have the Droid, the GPS thingie, and my iPod, all with their attendant cabling.

Getting the Droid-X was an impulse purchase, but I’m very glad I gave in.


50 posted on 03/08/2011 4:12:04 AM PST by Peter W. Kessler (Dirt is for racing... asphalt is for getting there.)
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To: Lil Flower
What the heck does that box mean? Stated popping up on my HTC desire couple of days ago?

It can mean a great many things. There isn't any one thing that causes it. Sometimes it's installation of a faulty app. Other times, it can happen randomly without having installed anything new. If you have enough access to your phone to back up the contacts, back them up. The only cure is a hard reset that will completely erase the android device and restore it to factory settings. Eventually the process.acore error makes the device unusable.
51 posted on 03/08/2011 7:17:19 AM PST by Yet_Again
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To: St_Thomas_Aquinas

If you’ve had it for a while, that’s fine. But a person thinking of getting one now should know it’s relatively old and not likely to be supported for very long.

I might go for a larger screen if the device doesn’t get any larger. Some of these Android phones are just too big.


52 posted on 03/08/2011 7:28:31 AM PST by antiRepublicrat
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To: mamelukesabre
I think the problem with windows based phone OSs to date has been that phones don’t have enough computing horsepower. We are about to see phones on the market with EXCESS HORSEPOWER. But like you and BOR said, I could be wrong.

I think we're approaching the point where the advantage will go to whoever can make the most use of the least amount of bandwidth. The iThings are bandwidth hogs, and there are increasing reports of them straining the carrier's infrastructure. I think we'll be seeing throttling policies and higher data plan costs before too long.

53 posted on 03/08/2011 7:37:44 AM PST by tacticalogic
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To: Cementjungle
Yep... first thing I did when I got mine was to get Eclipse and the ADK so I could write my own apps. Fun.

Yea I really want to get up to speed on writing for Android... I been doing cisco router configs and networks for some time so it been a long time since I did any app writing... but then again I think Android could be great for other small low power network appliances ...need to get a sandbox up to play in ...may use my old touch pro 2 window phone..I see someone already did a home brew Android rom for it

54 posted on 03/08/2011 1:37:14 PM PST by tophat9000 (.............................. BP + BO = BS ...........................Formula for a disaster...)
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To: F1reEng1neRed
I’m glad you’ve had success with you WinMo Phones. It basically comes down to personal preference and it appears that you’re pretty satisfied with what you have. I’m have a vague familiarity with WinMo. I’m a prior Iphone 3G and 3GS owner and decided to make the switch to Android. Since I switched, I haven’t looked back.

Thank you for your kind response. The fact that you migrated to Android from an Iphone and are happy with the switch speaks volumes. The truth is if it were not for the coercive influence of Sprint policy of not allowing me to choose a newer phone without giving up my current plan I would have purchased an Android phone already.

A computer is only as good as the software you can run on it. The development of WinMo 6.5 and below software has basically came to a halt in the last year. My wife and I are fortunate that the OS is stable and there is a large selection of software that fits our needs at this time. It is however only a matter of time before we will be forced to upgrade. From the article you have linked to it seems that Android has become the current winner in computer phone operating systems.

Apple is what it is. They tend to produce devices with somewhat limited functionality to avoid consumer frustration when something doesn't work as it has been promised to. I believe that their corporate policies will tend to keep them in perpetual second place in most markets. I was a little baffled at the success of their media players, which now have evolved into phones... but it is a good example of the type of limited functionality devices that they produce and consumers reactions to them. At first everyone loves them, and then some end up wanting more quicker than Apple can provide with their talented but still mostly central planned mode of operation.

I believe that Microsoft will become a major player in computer phones again soon. They will be focusing their attention on this market to a greater degree than they have in the past. I have played with several Linux builds in the past on our computers. You can do just about anything with Linux, but somehow it is always a relief to get back to Windows because the system just feels more refined.

This will probably tend to happen over time with Microsoft's phone OS. To those of us who have used Linux in the past Android has a distinct Linux feel, because it is Linux. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, and knowing of Androids origins may have some influence over the experience. There do seem to be some parallels with the development of desktop / laptop software and operating systems.

I am glad that Android has gotten off to a good start. Competition is what really forces improvement in any area. I think we will be seeing exciting the developments over the next few years.

55 posted on 03/08/2011 2:13:09 PM PST by fireman15 (Check your facts before making ignorant statements.)
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To: tophat9000
need to get a sandbox up to play in ...may use my old touch pro 2 window phone..I see someone already did a home brew Android rom for it. There are actually a number of Android builds for the Touch Pro 2 available from several sources. The TP2 has less computing power than most of the Android phones now being released.
56 posted on 03/08/2011 2:18:12 PM PST by fireman15 (Check your facts before making ignorant statements.)
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To: tophat9000

The SDK has an emulator which you can use as a sandbox. I test there first, then eventually download the app to my phone to do final testing. Pretty straightforward.


57 posted on 03/08/2011 2:28:10 PM PST by Cementjungle
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To: fireman15
Sound like your on a Sprint SERO plan ...I am too ...

I had the 500 min plus unlimited text and data for $30 month... so to go to an Android had to upgrade to Sprint SERO premiums plan

This bump my plan up an extra $10 but added the unlimited mobile to mobile and navigation

Then to go to a 4G phone it goes up another $10

But I will tell you the usability of the EVO is so far superior to the old phone... ..it real is a small table pc in your pocket...

So yea I went from $30 a month to $50

But 500 min land line, plus navigation, plus unlimited mobile to mobile, text and data all in a device with this power to do so much with all the free apps the phone is almost secondary to what it can do...(but it is great as a phone call quality wise far better then my old touch pro 2) .....

It is very very much worth the extra $20 a month

(FYI I also have an unlimited google voice voip line for business... Android integrates that in to the phone so I now receive and can call out on that voip business number on my cell phone with no problem..dial and it pops up "what line?" to call out from... it also integrates both numbers in to visual voice mail so any voice mail on either line is translated and sent as a text with an audio attachment you can play if needed...so no calling for voice mail ... and all free... also used "Oovoo" for free video calls ..mobile to mobile or mobile to PC over the cell net or wifi not like the Iphone wifi only video app ...again for free... Skype video calls apps should be out soon )

58 posted on 03/08/2011 3:33:39 PM PST by tophat9000 (.............................. BP + BO = BS ...........................Formula for a disaster...)
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To: tophat9000

Actually we have an old Fair and Flexible family plan with a 22% discount and free unlimited data on all three lines from the retention department. If we go over our 800 shared minutes then we are charged $5 and a 100 minutes are added. Once we get past 1100 minutes $5 is charged and we get 200 additional minutes. The plan for all three plans comes to $90 a month including all taxes and surcharges.

We were offered the same discount on the Everything Data Family Plan with 1500 shared minutes which would have come to approximately $170 a month with 2 EVOs and keeping our PPC-6700 on a third line for a back-up. The 22% discount just about cancels out the surcharges and taxes. So we were looking at an ext $80 a month. If we dumped the third line we were looking at an extra $60 a month. At some point in the future we will probably make the upgrade.

I have been very pleased with the call quality of our Touch Pro 2s. They have the best call quality of any phones that we have owned. We live in an outlying area and they get better reception than our other phones as well.

I don’t actually know how to get a SERO plan. It sounds like SERO would save some money over what we were offered. When you say that you are paying $50 a month, I assume that you are not including taxes and surcharges. So I am guessing that we would still be looking at $120 a month for two phones as compared to $90 for three currently, however that is approximately the price point that we would consider making a change at, to get the newer phones. How do you sign up for SERO?


59 posted on 03/08/2011 10:00:13 PM PST by fireman15 (Check your facts before making ignorant statements.)
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To: fireman15
SERO is an old grandfathered in plan no longer available

However you can some time take over someones else

However I think the old Fair and Flexible was part of the SERO program at one time... I know Sprint really wants to kill off some these old plans with the heavy discounts ...check out http://www.howardforums.com/ and http://www.ppcgeeks.com/ look at theirs Sprint forms ... there a lot of people in the same boat and sometime their are ways to upgrade and keep what you have

60 posted on 03/08/2011 10:26:20 PM PST by tophat9000 (.............................. BP + BO = BS ...........................Formula for a disaster...)
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