Android Is Beating iOS in the Smartphone Wars

In the public estimation, the iPhone in all its iterations was widely considered to be the epitome of a modern smartphone. This just goes to show you what a good job of work the Cupertino-based tech giant did in brainwashing the masses. It is said that if you are going to tell a lie you should make it a big one. This is exactly what Steve Jobs did when he marketed his iPhone on the basis that it was technologically more advanced than the opposition. In actual fact, this is not true, and it never was in the first place.

For all its slimline casing and glittering screen, the iPhone has always trailed behind Android-equipped handsets. This is because the Android operating system is an evolving, open source platform, whereas iOS is not only closed off but is based around placing limitations and restrictions on the user at every turn.

It is fair to say that Jobs got off to a good start with the iPhone and iPad. The Apple chief understood the importance of attractive design, which is what did the trick in getting the public sold on his products in the early days. Soon enough, the snowball effect was in evidence as the stampede to grab the latest and greatest gadgets saw Apple jump to the top of the sales charts.

Now that the dust is settling, people are gradually realizing that each new version of the iPhone brings with it very few innovations. In addition, there is little room to manoeuver on the style front - if the design team made the handsets any more wafer-thin, they would likely be in danger of snapping in users' hands! The slowing down of the iPhone bandwagon, just as Android gets up to speed, is almost certainly the reason for the fact that sales of Android handsets are now surging, whereas Apple is heading into the doldrums.

As compared to iOS and the iPhone, Android is based around technical innovation and usability. For sure, Android handsets are quite stylish in some cases, but it is not a case of style over substance, unlike fashion-oriented iOS devices.

Where Android scores every time is in the wide variety of apps available for users to download onto their phones. The vast majority of these apps are free of charge, which is to be welcomed in these severely cash-strapped times. By contrast, Apple's philosophy is to lock everything down and punish users with fees and charges (not to mention deliberately changing hardware specifications so that users can no longer use the same leads, chargers, and other accessories).

When it comes to apps, Apple restricts what developers can do. Unless officially approved by Apple, developers are not allowed to produce apps for the iPhone. This is quite different with Android, which is an open source operating system, so anyone can produce an app if they want to. While this may result in a few dead duck apps, in the long term it means the Android OS keeps the upper hand in technological terms.