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Earlier this week it was reported by Fortune that the growth of Android devices had stalled in the 200,000 per day range. In the “Hey, we can’t be perceived as growing at just ridiculous speed but rather at ludicrous speed” (gotta love Spaceballs) world we live in, Andy Rubin, Google’s Android leader, tweeted yesterday.
Fortune then did an about face by saying the following
That passes Apple’s iOS, that passes Blackberry . That even matches any figures that Symbian has ever put up. Google is closing in on an astounding 10 million phones per month. Recall that Apple just had its biggest quarter ever with 14.1 million iPhones sold.
Needless to say, if sheer volume is enough to make Android a threat to the iPhone market position then it’s a threat for sure. With a run rate of between 20-30 million activations in a quarter (This is a guess but who knows when the 300,000 number first occurred etc) the Android world is running hard and fast.
One can only wonder if this would have happened in the same way if iPhone hadn’t limited itself to the AT&T network from the start. Also, once they eventually move away from the exclusive network model (whenever that is) will those who have already committed to an Android device make the switch to iPhone. For me personally, I doubt it very much but I have learned to “never say never”.
This battle is an important one for marketers to keep their eyes on because it could shape what they build and who they build for as they try to get their messages out to the mobile world.
We’ve asked before but will ask again: Android or iPhone? Which do you use? Do you ever intend to switch platforms? What would sway you to make such a move?
