[ph03n!x]

Does anyone have a Nokia N810 Tablet? Android is available for it as of now! Android on your Nokia N810 Internet Tablet - Made easy with Android Installer

[saurabh159]

Hey Guys,
Anyone using Android based phones ?
Can we have a user review of the same ?
I love google and really want to purchase g1 or g2 but need your guidance !

[Elito11]

Hi Deralte

What would be your opinion on Android now? I am looking to buy Samsung i5700, would that be a good bet if i am buyig a phone just for basic functionality and "Android"?

Elito

[zaks]

The Android phones are coming out in droves now and there is a whole series from HTC. But that apart the phones though not a match to iPhones in user experience are slowly gaining ground and I wouldn't be surprised if it catches on. The open platform concept is good for both users and developers alike so it is not a bad idea at all. The software costs and in turn total hand held costs should come down using this methodology. Moreover it is still in its infancy and has lot of potential going by the looks of it.
My colleague recently got a Samsung Galaxy Android phone, it looks cool and works quite well. The inetgration of gmail, google maps, etc is in a way convenient and games and trinkets - there are loads of them available for free!

[ampere]

Originally Posted by zaks

The Android phones are coming out in droves now and there is a whole series from HTC. But that apart the phones though not a match to iPhones in user experience are slowly gaining ground and I wouldn't be surprised if it catches on. The open platform concept is good for both users and developers alike so it is not a bad idea at all. The software costs and in turn total hand held costs should come down using this methodology. Moreover it is still in its infancy and has lot of potential going by the looks of it.
My colleague recently got a Samsung Galaxy Android phone, it looks cool and works quite well. The inetgration of gmail, google maps, etc is in a way convenient and games and trinkets - there are loads of them available for free!

Android is great. Only concern was for battery life. Though its not an Android thing. Considering that most Android phones today are HTC based (with others gaining ground in this segment), it would be interesting to watch how this landscape changes.

I do agree these phones may not match iPhone on the user experience, but the lower cost will definitely make them a worthy replacement.

One comment about Android in general. This was made in the Gadget Guru program in NDTV. The point is that what iPhone took to reach where it is today (~3-4 years), Android has achieved in much less time (1 year).

Comments welcome.

[DerAlte]

Originally Posted by ampere

... This was made in the Gadget Guru program in NDTV. The point is that what iPhone took to reach where it is today (~3-4 years), Android has achieved in much less time (1 year). ...

That comment is a generally loose 'apples v/s oranges' statement without considering many factors. First and foremost, in 3-4 years Apple released 3 phones - each significantly better than the previous one. In 1 year (whichever of the 3-4 years Android has been talked about), Google hasn't done anything directly about going that route - it has relied on phone makers and carriers to get the phones made. T-Mobile got one model made, didn't popularize Android as such, and only HTC has made devices that run Android and popularized them.

Not taking sides in any way:

1. iPhone and it's UI found acceptance in users much faster than Android UI. The data for this is in numbers sold in the first year, and the number of applications that were sold from iStore in the first year. Android Market is not even known to most Android phone owners

2. Android UI paradigm was familiar for anyone used to any other phone (all characteristics shared with Series 60, WiMo, Linux and BB), whereas iPhone's UI paradigm was totally new when it was introduced. That way iPhone / Apple have done a far better job in far lesser a time (Android has still not reached such acceptance levels)

3. iPhone integration with desktops / laptops was always seamless via the iTunes interface. Android doesn't have any so far - it either appears as a disk drive, or can exchange only some PIM information

4. Android was primarily designed for Internet usage from phone, all other functionality was added on to be able to make it comparable to other phones. iPhone, on the other hand, was created as an 'entertainment device' with phone functionality added. Both have met their primary design goals quite admirably. However, compared 1-on-1, iPhone Internet working is quite comparable with Android (in fact, better in some areas), whereas in 'entertainment' functionality it is far far better than Android

5. Apple's marketing strategy for iPhone was and is completely different from Google's strategy. So far, Google has only relied on carriers offering and popularizing their phones. They leveraged their brand, but assumed that brand can be associated with phones without problems. Apple, on the other hand, had an established brand name in 'entertainment devices'. Does one find Android-based phone advertised on Google website? Or has one seen such phones advertised anywhere but HTC and the carriers who carry these phones?

On the whole, in the first 1 year of it's existence, Apple achieved far more with iPhone, than Google, HTC and the carriers together achieved with Android. IMHO, Google is not bothered at the moment with the main part of the comment: Android achieving something significant in a short time.

[vjoy3]

In my official capacity, am driving android phone design efforts and most of the android phones in market - the HTCs, Samsungs, LGs and now google's are all mostly using our hardware and software. In this capacity, I get to look in depth of the software and hardware performances of all these and compare with other products and can clearly see a value in going for Linux based android phones.

Vijay

[oss]

Originally Posted by vjoy3

In my official capacity, am driving android phone design efforts and most of the android phones in market - the HTCs, Samsungs, LGs and now google's are all mostly using our hardware and software. In this capacity, I get to look in depth of the software and hardware performances of all these and compare with other products and can clearly see a value in going for Linux based android phones.

Vijay

@Vijay: Can you elaborate on this? Where exactly do you see value in android platform and how is it superior to iPhone?

[ampere]

I knew when I was re-iterating that comment, I was asking for trouble . That is because I also believe in what you mention.

The only reason I found that view provoking was in context of Indian market, where apple products are still viewed as luxury products (although that view is changing). MACS/PODs/Touches have started becoming order of the day.

But iPhone is still something which I don't think has made that big a dent in the Indian market, basically due to extremely high pricing. (Correct me if I am wrong)

From that point of view Android has filled this gap very nicely by providing good value added smart phones at very reasonable prices. In no way we can compare the western carrier subsidized tariff rates against Indian pricing strategy for high end hand sets. In US it may cost 199$ but an Apple 3G ends up for more than 35K in the Indian market. I feel from that point of view, Android can very easily fill up that lacunae of entry and mid-range smart phones.

I leave the battle of best phones for a different debate !

[neoonwheels]

I second that. iPhone has a small market in India, thanks to the pricing. Whereas HTC and Samsung have come up with mid range mobiles with andriod. For a common man, it really does not matter but the current tech savvy generation is highly going towards mid range multimedia phones.

I was contemplating to go for Samsung galaxy which has andriod but then the low support for Java apps made me choose Nokia 5800 over this. May be 2-3 years down the line, Andriod will have many takers.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by neoonwheels

I second that. iPhone has a small market in India, thanks to the pricing. Whereas HTC and Samsung have come up with mid range mobiles with andriod. For a common man, it really does not matter but the current tech savvy generation is highly going towards mid range multimedia phones.

I was contemplating to go for Samsung galaxy which has andriod but then the low support for Java apps made me choose Nokia 5800 over this. May be 2-3 years down the line, Andriod will have many takers.

My only grudge is that Non-Nokia phones have pretty poor battery life. Can folks throw up some data?

[gupta_chd]

Originally Posted by DerAlte

Acquired / increased stake: Yes. But that was for a different reason: most projects scheduled for delivery (Nokia is also their biggest client) are said to be badly delayed, and nor was Symbian making significant money in the 'independent' mode.

Open source? No, not likely. Google Android and Open Source are no threat for them. No one will gain anything by Symbian opening out, neither the device makers nor application developers. Most apps are anyhow J2ME based, so why open out Symbian?

Any commercial app maker can get the Symbian or Series XX API virtually for free and work with it. For those that are THAT serious about needing the OS or App set tweaked, Symbian / Nokia does it for a consideration. The ones expecting opening of the source are not the ones driving the devices and application market. The reasons for opening the source will have to be very big and ambitious for a company to think of doing it - TANSTAFL!

It is a reality now. Nokia has made the Symbian platform open source.

[arin_12]

Some info you can get here
Global Android News Hub | AndroidOS.in

I think companies are waiting for some Subh Mahurat to launch these mobile in India. India is suppose to be a great mobile market but still the gadget is not available. The few model which are available are too costly...
Why ??? Any particular reason ?

[amitk26]

Originally Posted by Elito11

Hi Deralte

What would be your opinion on Android now? I am looking to buy Samsung i5700, would that be a good bet if i am buyig a phone just for basic functionality and "Android"?

Elito

I chanced upon this thread and saw your post. Though you did not asked me I would say you should. In April you will get Android 2.1 upgrade for Galaxy Spica that is i5700 phone. It is in final stages and you are hearing from horses mouth as I am an insider.

Spica offers you much more then basic functionality it has HSDPA, 3G , Wifi , A-GPS , AMOLED and capacitive touch with 800 Mhz processor
and best part is there is no UI customization like Motoblur or HTCsense or Samsung Touchwiz and it may be your last chance to buy a fully non-customized UI wink wink :-P

PS : Many sites belive that LCD is not AMOLED but TFT LCD but don't believe what is printed on box it is indeed an AMOLED probably it is biggest marketing goof up.


PS : If you discount 8GB of internal memory and more megapixel i5700 galaxy Spica is better then i7500 galaxy because you will not get Android 2.0 upgrade for galaxy.

[SilentEngine]

I think Android is the way to go as far as smartphones are concerned. Already android has more than doubled it's US market share in a year.
Importantly, with android you get more options across different segments in the mobile phone market, which is not the case with iPhone.

Recently one of my colleagues got a Nexus One from US. Haven't had much chance to explore it, but i am a fan already. I am planning to get an android for myself in a month or two.