Is Eric Schmidt right? Will app developers prefer Android over iOS in 6 months?

Yesterday at LeWeb in Paris, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt made some typically inflammatory comments about the future of Android and ‘the iPhone’. Specifically he said “Android is ahead of the iPhone now,” to an audience packed with tech entrepreneurs. After a bit of silence, Schmidt elaborated, saying that Android was ahead due to several factors, including “unit volume, Ice Cream Sandwich, the price is lower, there are more vendors.” Right out of the gate, Schmidt makes a cardinal error that seems to plague many who insist on comparing Google to Apple. He equates Android, the OS, with the iPhone, a device. But lets let that slide for the moment and assume that he was comparing Android to iOS, the platform that all of the Apple mobile...

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OnLive now available for Android and iOS tablets and smartphones

The way OnLive actually works is it streams gaming content straight from their cloud to your PC – and now that their application is compatible with Android and iOS they’re about to completely change gaming expectations. Whenever we think about playing a video game on our smartphone or tablet, there are certain expectations and limitations we are aware of. For instance, installation of the typical Android game takes around 10 minutes or so over a 3G network connection. Though many games out there push our tablet’s to their limits, most still can’t even compare to many console titles currently out. With OnLive, you can stream any of their popular games straight to your device with no need to download software or a powerful graphics engine....

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Eric Schmidt Says 'Android will be bigger than iOS'

Eric Schmidt was addressing the crowd at Le Web in Paris and recounted a tale when an Android user asked why apps were often written for iOS first, and then ported over to Google's OS. His response? "My prediction is that six months from now, you'll say the opposite." After the uncomfortable silence had died down, he added that Android's "open" model meant the company had volume on its side -- and volume is what he feels will attract developers. He added that Ice Cream Sandwich would redress Android's device fragmentation and the sheer number of hardware makers would ensure that 2012 would be Google's year to lose. At which point, everyone in the audience probably went back to their iPads to read Twitter. ...

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Google engineer tells us why iOS will remain more fluid than Android OS

We may be die-hard Android fans here at Android Community, but we’ve all at least given iOS a chance to shine its light. One of its best features is handling UI actions perfectly, thus leaving the user willing to wait for longer page loads. Over on Google+, Google engineering intern Andrew Munn explained to us precisely why Android OS will never be as fluid as iOS or Windows Phone 7 devices. What it boils down to is that Android OS renders all graphics continuously – and on the same priority. What differs in iOS and WP7 is that graphics rendering is queued for when it’s needed. This is why when we open many applications at once within Android, we see the device start to slow down as it tries to keep up. In iOS, if an application isn’t...

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Android gets more IT developer interest than iOS and Windows Phone 7

Even the most ardent of iOS evangelists can’t argue with Android’s worldwide success, to the tune of a full 50% sales market share as of last quarter. It looks like developers, specifically in the IT area, are taking notice. When IBM gave a survey to IT pros on which platform they were more interested in, Android won by a landslide, beating out both Apple and Microsoft in their relevant areas. That’s very interesting, given that it’s also undeniable that there’s more money to be made in direct sales on iOS (at the moment, at least). Android is beating out iOS by a solid 20%, though responders were able to answer for more than one platform in the survey. 70% of responders said they were interested in developing for Android, while 49%...

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Android’s native browser beats Opera Mini, still lags behind iOS

Ready for a whole new set of browser wars? Not content to keep the web browser battle to the desktop space, Google’s native Android browser, uh, “Browser”, is now beating the long-standing Opera Mini for worldwide mobile browser market share. However, both are still far, far behind Safari, which commands over half of the market as of October 2011.And iOS Safari is still rising: it gained another six and a half percent to take 62.2 percent of all mobile device browsing in October. That includes all browsing from iPhones, iPods and iPads. Android’s browser now stands at 18.7 percent, while Opera Mini dropped almost a third of its total user share down to just 13.1 percent. And in case you’re wondering, no, that doesn’t include the more powerful...

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Chillingo Bringing A Handful of Mega-Hit iOS Games To Android

Chillingo has been publishing some of the iPhone’s and iPad’s biggest, mega-hit applications and they’re finally looking to bring some of that good ‘ol fun to the Android Market. Chillingo Co-General Manager Chris Byatte said in a statement, “Android’s install base is steadily rising and we are working with our talented indie developers to bring fun, entertaining titles to this expanding platform,”With new Android devices popping up every other day, you’re darn right we’re expanding. Chillingo currently has a few Android titles in the Market like Spider Jack, Office Gamebox and plans to bring another 5 in the coming weeks. You can look forward to future Chillingo titles like My Vampire Boyfriend with more games that include: Roll...

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Android passes iOS for most mobile app downloads

Apple’s leads in the individual mobile sectors are dropping one by one – it’s no wonder the lawyers are working double overtime. The latest hurdle that Android has passed is the number of app downloads. In the second quarter of this year, Android accounted for 44% of all mobile app downloads, whereas Apple had only 31%. The numbers aren’t exactly shocking. Android has been leading Apple in total device sales for months, and is now beating the Cupertino giant in every world market. Though Android users still download fewer apps per capita than iPhone, iPod or iPad users, the sheer number of them has led to a greater piece of the overall pie. The total number of global downloads across all devices expected by the end of the year is...

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Nokia outs offline maps for Android and iOS

We have talked about the Nokia HTML5 maps that were coming before. At first, the Nokia Maps were only offered on Nokia smartphones, but that has now changed. The HTML5 version of the maps are intended to be used on both the Android and iOS platforms as well. With the roll out of the HTML 5 maps also come some new and cool features. The maps were in beta previously and could be downloaded. They offer satellite view, public transport view, and Live traffic views. They also support pinch to zoom, routing for walking or driving, and saving of favorite locations. A pair of new features has surfaced today that are very nice and will make using the Nokia Maps more interesting for the user. The best of the features is the new offline mode....

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iOS 5 Functionality has Already Existed on Android

We’ve seen what a strong developer following has done for both Apple iOS and Google Android; it both promotes/protects the future of its existence and it makes the operating systems resilient to our fast paced technological society. Most importantly, it helps us realize that one company does not make a product great – and that it’s only as great as the innovative pioneers that join their bandwagon. Though iOS 5 incorporates a wide variety of features, can we really consider them all new? The one feature in iOS 5 I’ve found most amazing thus far has been Siri Voice Integration. And frankly at this point in time, any other voice interpretation service is left in the dust. With Siri, there is no “pre-defined” way of requesting a task,...

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Android continues to gain market share in U.S. while Blackberry OS continues to dwindle

comScore released their latest U.S. smartphone market share report, and as expected, Android continues to dominate. During the 3-month period ending in August, 2011, 84.5 million people owned smartphones in the U.S., a 10% increase from the previous 3-month period. During the 3-month period ending in August, Android’s OS market share increased by 5 percentage points to control 43.7 percent of the smartphone market in the U.S. Apple came in second with 27.3 percent of U.S. smartphone market, an increase of 0.7 percent from the previous period. While Apple and Google gained market share, RIM on the other hand didn’t do so good. Overall, Blackberry OS saw a decline in market share by dropping to 19.7 percent, a 5 percent decrease from...

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iPhone 4S, Siri and today’s Apple event – EVERYTHING you need to know in a handy list.

It’s been months in the making, and today we finally have confirmation from Apple, as well as a few squashed rumors. Apple has released the iPhone 4S today, as well as iOS 5 and the addition of Sprint in the company’s lineup of US carriers. Funny enough, we got confirmation of the 4S name via Apple’s own Japanese store site, less than an hour before launch. Most of these rumors were nailed down prior to today’s event, but it’s good to finally get completely confirmation. That said, here’s a rundown of everything that happened today, plus links to our coverage for the specifics. The Business of AppleCEO Tim Cook opened, taking the stage with the obvious statement of “this is my first prouct launch since being named CEO”. The event is...

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Android adoption doubled iOS over past three months, Nielsen finds

Twice as many consumers in the U.S. purchased Android smartphones compared to Apple’s iPhone over the past three months, according to new data just released by The Nielsen Company. The market research firm found that of those consumers who purchased a new smartphone during the three-month period ending in August, 58% purchased an Android device while 28% purchased either the iPhone 4 or the iPhone 3GS. Only 9% purchased a new BlackBerry smartphone, though the time period covered by Nielsen’s survey ended prior to the release of RIM’s new BlackBerry 7 handsets. Read on for more. In terms of smartphone platform market share as of the month of August, Nielsen shows that 43% of smartphone owners had an Android device, 28% had an iOS smartphone...

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Android devices have nearly 2x the market share of iOS says Millennial Media

Millennial Media has released its monthly MobileMix report on ad impressions on its network, and, for the ninth month in a row, Android has been the top when it comes to operating system dominance. For August's report, Millennial has combined smartphones and connected devices (read: tablets) to see how all of iOS stacks up against all of what Android has to offer. In the month of August, devices running the Android operating system comprised 54 percent of the ad impressions on Millennial's network. This was nearly double what Apple's iOS held, with its 28 percent. Prior months showed Android with 61 percent of the market and iOS with 21 percent. Due to the inclusion of connected devices, drawing conclusions from historical data...

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Over a million combined iOS and Android apps have been released

Any way you look at it, there are tons of apps on the Android Market and the iTunes App Store. Granted many of them are different copies of the same app or junk that none of us want anyway. Still, there are a million apps now released for Android and iOS combined. That is a very big number and it comes from Appsfire. Appsfire is a new app tracking company. Appsfire does note that while a million apps have been released for both platforms, only about 80% of that number of apps is still available for download by users. The apps are split at a surprisingly close percentage between Android and iOS. Android has 48% of that million number and iOS has 52%. The other thing with the numbers here is that apparently apps that are on both platforms...

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Microsoft Windows 8: 10 Reasons It Threatens iOS, Android

It’s not often that industry observers will look at the mobile market and think that iOS and Android have anything to worry about. Both platforms are finding that a growing number of people want to use them, and the companies behind them--Apple and Google--have enough cash on hand to solidify their positions in the marketplace for an inordinately long time. Simply put, Apple and Google are currently making the barriers to entry in the mobile space even higher. But with Windows 8, Microsoft might just have what it takes to at least threaten iOS and Android. Microsoft’s operating system, which is slated to launch sometime next year, won’t hurt Android or iOS in the smartphone space. The software giant still hopes its Windows Phone 7 makes a dent...

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iPhone 5 manufacturing kicks off without iOS 5, report claims

Apple’s manufacturing partners have reportedly begun assembling the iPhone 5 according to a new report from Macotakara, which has a mixed track record. The report follows news from this morning that German Apple carrier partner Deutsche Telekom has already begun pre-sales of the next-generation Apple smartphone. Foxconn, which will supposedly handle roughly 85% of iPhone 5 production, and Pegatron, which has picked up a contract for the remaining 15%, are said to have ramped up assembly ahead of Apple’s official announcement of the device, which is expected as soon as next week. Citing information from an anonymous source, the report also notes that finished devices are not yet being packaged, as the release build of iOS 5 has not...

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Nielsen: Android takes 40% of U.S. smartphone market in July; iOS flat, RIM down a point

Google’s Android platform gained once again during the three-month period ending in July, increasing it’s share by 1% over second-quarter totals to grab 40% of the U.S. smartphone market. Apple’s iOS stayed flat at 28% and RIM’s BlackBerry OS lost one point from June-quarter figures to fall to 19%. Windows Mobile and Windows Phone combined to take 8% of the market — with Windows Phone responsible for just 1% on its own — and the ghost of smartphone operating systems past is now buried somewhere in the “Other” category. Nielsen also notes that 40% of mobile phone users between May and July of this year owned smartphones, and Android topped iOS in the firm’s survey of which smartphone platform users intend to buy next. From “innovators”...

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Apple releases iOS 5 beta 7, here’s the change log

Apple has just seeded iOS 5 beta 7 to developers for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch testing. Apple is expected to release iOS 5 for consumers in the coming weeks. The full change log is after the break. AccountsWhen creating an iCloud account, you can use any Apple ID as long as it is a full email address and not a MobileMe account. If you have a MobileMe account, you can move that account to iCloud. You can find more information on iCloud at: http://developer.apple.com/icloud AirPlayStarting in iOS 5, video content in applications and websites are AirPlay-enabled by default.iOS 5 supports AirPlay of video via AV Foundation. API ValidationNEW: Starting in iOS 5.0 development tools beta 7, it is possible to extract APIs used by an...

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