
Nielsen: Android passes iPhone as most desired smartphone in U.S.  - EricssonLabs
http://www.fiercemobilecontent.com/story/nielsen-android-passes-iphone-most-desired-smartphone-us/2011-04-26
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apl
Inaccurate headline and interpretation, if you ask me. One cannot simply
equate "desired" and "targeted for next purchase." Simple reductio: The car I
desire most is rarely the one I plan on purchasing, unfortunately.

There may be other factors at play (such as price and availability) that have
little to do with Android being more attractive than iOS. Just to clarify, I'm
not saying that iOS is in fact more desired, let alone more _desirable_. But
the data as presented in the article doesn't support the conclusion as stated.

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grovulent
Depends on what you mean by desire. If you count a desire as being the thing
you want after all variables (including price) are factored in, then you don't
really desire it if you don't purchase it.

Yes, one has desires when considered in abstraction from certain variables -
and often people report desire based upon these abstractions. But it goes back
to the old adage - believe not in what they say, but what they do.

~~~
apl

      > believe not in what they say, but what they do.
    
      > you don't really desire it if you don't purchase it.
    

Good point, yes. But I still think the headline gives it a slightly misguided
spin -- i.e., "now people don't just _buy_ more Android devices, they also
desire them more."

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AndrewDucker
The question, then, is how many mobile Operating Systems the market will
support.

Apple aren't going anywhere, but they seem likely to maintain the same niche
they have on the desktop - premium phones.

Android will be in the Windows slot - mass market.

Blackberry are unlikely to go anywhere soon, but once businesses make their
email available on Android or iPhone, then I'm not sure if there's a unique
selling point for them.

And Windows Mobile? I'm not sure that there's a space for them at all.
Certainly, if MS weren't pushing it I don't think it would have survived even
this long.

~~~
jsz0
I don't think the difference will be quite as dramatic though. Apple has been
outgrowing PC sales with their premium products for many quarters now I
believe. They even managed this during a deep recession in most of the world.
That suggests to me there's a pretty big market for premium devices. Bigger
than the current 90/10 Windows/Mac market share would suggest on the surface.
Historically Apple did as much, if not more, damage to themselves than
Microsoft did to get themselves into a marketshare hole. With a fresh start in
SmartPhones I would expect to see them maintain a much larger niche this time
around.

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Tibbes
Given the growth reported recently, it's not that surprising that Android is
now more popular than iOS, but what a ridiculous headline: Android is an OS
not _a smartphone_, let alone the "most desired smartphone in the U.S."

What is the most popular Android smartphone? How many units has it sold in
comparison to the iPhone? Is it a mid-range or a high-end phone? Now those are
interesting questions.

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wowamit
Exactly my thoughts! How is Android compared to iPhone as a single smartphone?

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gloob
My first guess: because that's how every single person who gives a shit -
ranging from pundits to corporations to fanboys of every conviction - has
framed it ever since Android first came onto the scene.

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ljf
This thread is titled slightly better:
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2487421> \- but really the news channels
should be referring to this as: Android now the most desired operating system
for smart phones.

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elvirs
Every other week an article pops up saying that one is somehow better than
other and mostly they claim opposing ideas. Obviously the two platforms are
competing head to head so can we just move on away from this issue until a
real gap between the two is formed?

