If you think that the presence of an 8 megapixel camera and a 4 inch touchscreen makes any smartphone great, then you are wrong. Nowadays successful smartphones are determined firstly by their OS — better UI, more apps, easy to use and, of course, reliability built on latest hardware platforms.
Apple may be the game changer in the Smartphone industry, but it seems like Android will turn out to be the leader (our judgement is based on the following 5 points). The arrival of Apple and Google in the mobile industry was quite unexpected but their leadership has already made them the top competitors in the market. As a result, previous brands such as Symbian and Windows Mobile are already losing their market shares. Why is this happening?
The change in the trend is the result of consumers’ rising expectations from smartphones that were previously considered to be only devices for corporate professionals and now have turned into a fashion statement and a gadget of geeks. Android and iPhone became a cult similar to iPOD. In this competing environment, Microsoft is finding it hard to stand as a strong brand. Much of Microsoft’s failure comes from their reluctance to innovations and being the leader of the industry. Let’s leave the iPhone, which has already gained 30 percent of the market share, behind; it’s more reasonable to compare the Windows mobile with the new Android Phones.
So what are the advantages of Android over Windows Mobile? Here are the five key points that make Android a better choice than Windows Mobile. It doesn’t sound fair to compare devices with respect to technologies because they can be upgraded and improved with time. Hence, it might be better to look at them with respect to their business and consumer values.
1. Open Source Platform
The strongest point of Android is the fact that it’s an Open Source Platform. Open software community is one of the largest communities that have been leading the industry, and their mere presence makes the technology better. Android is based on Linux kernel whereas Windows mobile is based in Windows CE.
Open platform ensures continuous innovation and fairness in the product. Large support groups will always be present to help customers to figure out their problems and solving the issues. It also confirms large repository of knowledge, which will allow each individual to put some of his/her effort in making the technology better.
On the other hand, Windows Mobile is similar to Windows and has a lot of legal bindings. Windows may have led the industry due to their initial domination, but the current situation is quite different and changing. It’s a new field with new challenges and we have many great companies on the market which have potential to gain the highest place on the leadership. Unless Windows Mobile understands the importance of consumers’ demand, it has less opportunities to increase its market share.
The increasing awareness of consumers over an open platform will certainly promote Android. Hence its Android has a great PR value over Windows Mobile.
2. Android Apps Market
Smartphone is all about third party applications. The new way to lead the industry is by increasing the developer base of Operating System because an OS without applications is not of a big value to the consumers. In the forefront Apple, with its app store, is sheltering more than 80 thousand applications. Blackberry has only about 1 thousand applications and Windows Mobile has only around 800 applications. Despite their effort to increase their applications in their store they have failed to do so. On the other hand, Android which is only in its infancy has already gained around 2 thousands applications.
Despite Windows leadership for some years they failed to grasp the potential of application store and were reluctant to provide them to users. But Apple changed this bad tradition. Though Windows finally made its Windows MarketPlace live, they are too late in the game.
The developers are already starting to prefer Android, since it’s open and has potential. It can be inferred that due to their association with Open Software, Android is bound to be more popular among the hardcore developers. This provides a great opportunity for the consumer to take advantages of new applications and technology.
3. Google Power Products (Google Voice and Google Maps)
The most important part of Android is its association with Google. Google has a long history of innovation and dominance over the Internet. On the other hand, a smartphone has become more than just a communication device, it has become a portal to access Internet, and there is no better company than Google to lead the way. Within months of its launch, Google has already brought groundbreaking innovations in the field of mobile computing with its Google Maps and its integration over Internet.
Google Voice, an Internet based voice communication, is a revolutionary way through which people can communicate over the Internet. Though it was rejected by Apple, it has become a major application for the Android phones. On the other hand, Windows Mobile was unable to bring any similar applications that would be fresh and gain the interst of the customers. As Google is involved, it’s obvious that it will aggressively promote Android’s application to be highly compatible with web content. This makes a fair bet to choose Android over Windows Mobile.
4. More Hardware Platforms
When it comes to operating System, it’s all about its acceptance from the mobile device maker. As Apple controls its OS with its iPhone, you won’t to see any other device maker using the iPhone’s OS. This is one area where other Operating Systems players could find their places. Initially many device markers adopted Windows Mobile but slowly they are moving towards the usage of the Android.
Currently Windows Mobile has around 13 different mobile manufacturers including LG, HTC (it also has already launched top Android phones), Sony Ericsson etc, whereas Android has around 18 to 20 companies including some of the top PC makers Dell and Acer.
5. Increasing market Share
Lastly, it’s all about being in the trend. Would you choose a technology that is not performing well on the market?
After the arrival of iPhone and Android, Windows mobile and Symbian have seen major falls in their market share. Research shows that Windows Mobile lost 70 percent of their market share though its newer version of Windows Mobile 6.5 is still struggling in the market. Symbian — Nokia’s own mobile OS — saw 29 percent fall in the market Share.
Currently, the new Android powered Motorola smartphone, the Droid, has smashed the sales record by 250 thousand sales in the first week of its launch. This is a significant achievement for a new OS that establishes Android as a major player in the industry.
Conclusion
Besides all the advantages of Android over Windows Mobile, there are some users who are comfortable with Windows Mobile due to its stability and their enterprise solution. Further, Microsoft is going to release its Windows Mobile 7, which can be much better than the previous version.
Right now if you are looking for something that is at the tip of technology trend, Android is what you need. It has great future if they keep their innovation cycle running continuously.
