In 2010, I think the Apple iPhone will face some serious competition against Google's Android smartphones. HTC and Motorola have come out with some really nice Android smartphones. Google has the Nexus One. HTC has some nice new models launching in 2010. As a result, you have many hardware options if you choose Android. If you want a thin touch-screen phone, you've got that in the HTC Droid Eris, the T-Mobile myTouch, or the HTC Hero. If you want a hardware QWERTY keyboard, you can get that with the Motorola Droid or some of the newer HTC smartphones.
Apple will always have a loyal base of users, but many non-Mac users will easily make the switch from iPhone to Android if they don't need to switch wireless carriers and if they have Windows-based PCs at home and at work. I know that many physicians love their Macs, but they're stuck with Windows-based PCs at work to run their Electronic Health Records (EHRs) or Electronic Medical Records (EMRs). Right now, several EHR vendors have developed iPhone apps for their system, but it's only a matter of time before we see some Android solutions as well.
Android will be used on mobile devices beyond the smartphone, so it will quickly become a ubiquitous mobile operating system. Apple may come out with a tablet running the iPhone OS, but that won't compete against all the laptops and mini computers that may be running Android as a complimentary OS. 2010 should be a very interesting year for Android and iPhone.
It's going to be a very interesting year in mobile. The news that ePocrates will launch an Android version of their app will start to open this platform to physicians.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I think it will be a hard slog for Android. iPhone market share with these users is already higher than in the general US population.
It takes guts to choose Android for two years over iPhone knowing that medical apps will definitely come out on iPhone and only possibly on Google's platform.
While there is a lot of 'buzz' about Android, I think it is a long shot. The only "disadvantage" of the iPhone is that it is not on Verizon (which really has the worse network for smartphones due to slow speed and non-simultaneous voice and data).
ReplyDeleteAndroid is not even close to the iPhone in terms of the user interface. The Droid touts multi-tasking but you can't talk on the phone and use data at the same time (like you can with the iPhone.)
David Carr of the NY Times made this astute comment: "One thing you have to understand about this gadget (iPhone) is that the gadget disappears pretty quickly. You're looking into pure software.""
The iPad is going to rock. As David Carr said, the Kindle looks "like something the Mennonites made 150 years ago."
While Android is playing catch up with the third generation iPhone, we'll be getting the 4th generation in June. Apple has learned a lot since losing the battle with Windows.
http://brainstormtech.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2010/02/06/charlie-rose-loves-apples-ipad/