- Photo: Google
We’ve been talking up a lot of the latest Android mobile phones to debut this year, including the HTC Desire, Motorola Droid, or Sony Ericsson Xperia X10, and now it seems the latest sales stats, from the UK and beyond, are starting to reflect the hype.
Sales way up
The percentage of phones running Android in the UK contract market has grown from a miniscule 3% in the Q1 of 2010, to a whopping 13.2% in Q2. Obviously that is an outstanding 350% increase in a very short time. Now the fast growth aside, many might still feel 13.2% really isn’t that large a percentage. However, if we consider that overall UK mobile contract sales only grew by a tiny 1% margin during the same period, then it seems clear that Android is gobbling up marketshare at the expense of competitors and making inroads in a competitive market. Then add the fact that out of all the UK mobile phone contract sales, many are simple cheap and budget mobiles, with only 66.7% classified as smartphones. So in actuality, nearly one in five smartphones sold with acontract in Britain over the second quarter are running Google’s Android system.
- Photo: HTC
Worldwide success
It’s not just Brits who are flocking to Android either, as the worldwide sales statistics are proving. Motorola alone was said to have shipped 3 million Android handsets last quarter, most of them Droid models, whilst HTC reported stellar profits on account of its Android line-up. Meanwhile, a new advert for the Droid X is poking fun of the iPhone 4′s signal difficulties and so-called death grip; a clear sign Android isn’t afraid of the competition.
160,000 devices daily
Clearly, Android is on a roll worldwide. In fact, Google is evidently activating 160,000 Android devices per day, and Google CEO Eric Schimdt doesn’t think its unreasonable that someday up to 1 billion people might be running the free mobile OS. Of course, we think Mr. Schmidt is getting a little carried away with this 1 billion figure, but nevertheless Android is definitely moving in the right direction.
OS Advantages
So why all the fuss about Android, what’s the big deal you might wonder? Not to rehash the age-old Android vs. iPhone discussion, but here’s a brief recap of some of the key features attracting users to Android, as opposed to rivals like Apple’s iPhone. For starters, it’s an open source OS with multi-tasking, Flash support, less restrictions on the kinds of available apps, and other largely personal taste differences regarding the UI.
- Photo: Android
Many mobile phone options
Perhaps Android’s biggest attraction, however, is its openness and the amount of different handsets it’s available on; as opposed to Apple’s iPhone, users get far more choice in design, style and price. For instance, the LG Optimus GT540, or the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro, are both very affordable Android mobiles for those on a budget, whilst the high-end HTC Desire is perfect for anyone who wants only the best. Android also receives updated OS versions more frequently than the iPhone, although lately some manufacturers have been awfully slow in releasing the new Android 2.2 Froyo OS to their mobile models (we’re looking at you HTC).
Trend to continue
With ultra impressive Android handsets like the HTC Ace, aka HTC Gold, on the horizon, it seems we can only expect this trend to continue in the UK. Not that the iPhone 4 isn’t a spectacular phone, it is, or that the Android OS is flawless (it clearly isn’t), but one thing’s for sure: if your name isn’t Google or Apple in the mobile OS business, then you have serious cause for concern.
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