Since the release of the T-Mobile G1 Phone it seems that it has been comparison after comparison of the new first Google Android phone with Apple’s iPhone. I’m not surprised by that at all, I think we have waited so long for the release of the first Android phone that we all couldn’t wait to compare it to the iPhone.

It’s amazing how much humans love to compare things, if we get a chance we jump at it. I don’t deny though it’s pretty interesting to see how the two devices match up.

In the red corner we have Apple with the trendy iPhone that has taken the mobile market by storm. The iPhone changed the mobile market forever and represents the beginning of a new age of mobile devices.

In the blue corner is Google, the internet giant whose Google Phone has been eagerly anticipated, but who changed the game by creating an open source mobile platform instead.

Stop Comparing

After the first round of initial comparisons we should move on and realize that the G1 Phone is just the first of many on the Android platform. It will be looked back on in a reminiscent way, kind of like how we look back on our first computers. We loved them at the time but now we look back on them and reminisce, but we wouldn’t give up the technology we have now for what we had back then.

Android phones will leap forward with new applications being introduced from small developers as well as large companies such as the payment processing application being developed by Visa. The iPhone took a big leap forward with the 3G version but I don’t see it becoming dramatically different in the near future, being a closed platform won’t pay off long term. Android at the moment does have to catch up with the iPhone but in the long term Android will over take it.

You also can’t keep comparing a phone, as in a physical product to a mobile platform. Something Apple has to it’s advantage is that they are selling a phone, Google are selling a platform, it’s much more difficult to market a platform to people. You could say that it is easier to sell now they have the G1 phone but like I’ve said, there will be much better phones coming soon with more capabilities.

Visa are developing an application for the Google Android mobile platform that will enable mobile users to pay for goods and services using their phone as well as receive information about activity on their bank accounts.

Visa is not only working with Google Android though. Plans are in place for Nokia’s new 6212 phone to have payment processing capabilities next year. The technology will allow mobile devices to be used like credit cards, effectively placing your wallet into your phone.

By working with Google on the Android platform Visa will be able to use existing location based technology that Google already have to determine where a mobile user is located and then direct them to retailers where they can use Visa and take up any Visa offers they might have.

This is lucrative for Visa because they will be able to target users with various offers based on previous purchases. Visa is looking to the long term. With over 3 billion mobile devices being used around the world at the moment and this number only set to increase, the payment processing giant is looking to make sure they are not only part of, but lead this technology shift that is already happening.

This is also good news for Google and Android as it is another selling point for the platform in such a competitive market. Android needs to keep up with Nokia, they already have a significant mobile market share and plenty of mobile infrastructure and expertise to hit the ground running with any new developments they introduce. Google does not yet have that yet in the mobile market and market share might be slow to build. The news that Visa is developing this application can only enhance Google Android’s standing.

It looks like sales of the T-Mobile G1 phone are going well. T-Mobile has had to increase production of the handsets to keep up with the pre-sale demand. The phone won’t be available until October 22^nd but it seems that people can’t wait to get their orders in.

T-Mobile have predicted that they will sell 500,000 handsets by the end of 2008 and there are other predictions from HTC that they will have sold 2 million by the end of 2009.

These numbers are always going to be compared with the astonishing sales rate the iPhone sold at when it was first released. The iPhone 3G sold 1 million handsets in July 2008. No-one expects anything like that from the G1 phone, but there has been a lot of hype and it will sell well.

I think that word of mouth and usability will really help the G1 phone’s sales take off. If the first people to buy it really like it, they will spread the word. If others see it looks good and start hearing a lot about it there will be a ripple effect that is sometimes seen when a new exciting product is released.

Apple has been very successful at targeting the main stream mobile user market for the iPhone. At the moment I’m sure that the G1 phone doesn’t have the reach to target a mass market. People who buy the G1 phone now will have done their research, they may have been waiting a long time for the release and they probably know a fair amount about mobile technology. They might even be reading this!

The iPhone reached into the consciousness of a lot of people. Word spread that it was the new phone to have. I can’t help thinking though that Google are also experts at this. Think how the Google search engine became the search engine mainly through non-traditional marketing. People started talking about it and Google became synonymous with search. Google will be hoping something similar can happen with Android. They want Android to become synonymous with the mobile internet.

I’m not predicting that this will happen with Android. The kind of success Google has already seen is almost a one off. But I do think that in time Android will become dominant in the mobile market and Google will have carved itself out another leading position in terms of market share.

Google obviously wants to dominate online markets in Asia, they surely want to become especially dominant in the Chinese market as they already are in the US and Europe. China is a huge market that is growing so incredibly fast it’s hard to keep up. There are 601 million mobile phone users in China at the moment, and between January and June 2008 there were 53.3 million more mobile users.

You don’t need me to tell you, that is phenomenal. The other scary thing is that the Chinese mobile operator China Mobile dominates the market, with 414 million customers. Not bad, I can think of some mobile companies in the US and Europe who would be happy with that!

The facts keep coming. Whilst mobile internet usage is growing in the west, big growth hasn’t really started in China. Only 12% of all those 601 million users have mobile internet. The main reason for this is that there is not really a 3G network, not a single 3G licence has been issued to the big mobile operators in China. Plans are however afoot to issue licenses in the next six months.

So what does this all mean for Android in China. China Mobile are members of the Open Handset Alliance and there were plans for an Android based phone to be released in China by the end of the year. But because of delays this hasn’t materialized. The rumours are that the phone will be released about half way into 2009, but we will have to wait and see.

All this is obviously very important for Google. If Android can become the favored open source mobile platform in China, Google will have one foot in the door of a huge market that is growing spectacularly. Mobile really is a very large part of the future of the internet and if Google can dominate an emerging technology in a rapidly emerging market the sky is the limit.

Multiple Applications at the Same Time

Maps can also be run at the same time as other applications so you don’t have to stop running one application just to start another which has the potential to be annoying, and something you have to do with the iPhone.

Don’t Mention the iPhone

I find it hard to think about the G1 phone without comparing it to the iPhone.  It was funny at the launch of the device how all the execs managed not to mention the word iPhone at all.  It must have been a strategy by T-Mobile because it is a natural comparison to make.

Qwerty Keyboard

The Qwerty keyboard on the G1 mobile is an interesting selling point.  The fact that is flips out and back so it’s hidden makes it something many people will like.  Blackberry’s have always had the problem of incorporating a full keyboard on their phones without making them big and bulky.  It’s all part of the Android purpose of making the internet easier to use on mobile devices and the dual task of the phones being easy to carry around.

Just the Beginning

This is only the start of what Android will bring to mobile devices.  The platform, phones, and applications will improve all the time.

Google is looking to the long term with Android, the G1 phone has incorporated search into the phone so it’s so easy to search the internet whatever you are doing without starting a search application.  There is also a search button on the keyboard.  Google is obviously looking to consolidate their lead in internet search in the fast growing mobile internet world.

By doing this, Google is positioning itself to be a step ahead of it’s rivals and reap the rewards from the monetization of mobile.

October 22nd is the date when the phone will be shipped and it will have a price of $179 for a 2 year contract.  $179 is cheaper than originally thought, I was expecting it to be $199.  There’s no surprise at the 2 year contract which I’m sure will put some people off.

The most exciting news in my opinion is the announcement of the deal with Amazon.  T-Mobile have a deal in which Amazon will have a G1 customized version of their online music store on the mobile.  Apple should be worried about this serious competition.

Songs that you download from Amazon are not locked by digital rights management but iTunes are.  The Amazon songs are also cheaper than iTunes.  This is a significant deal because it will take the increasingly popular Amazon music store to a bigger market, helping them to increase their market share.

Will Android or mobile devices in general ever replace a Laptop? It’s far too early to say, but Android might just end up leading the way in the business world in the longer term.

Target the Consumer First then Business

Most of the applications that have been created and will continue to be made are focused on the consumer, but all it takes is a shift and for some keen developers to start pushing Android applications that are focused on business.

Once that gets going, Android may be taken up by more and more business users.  I don’t know what Google’s strategy is but they may be thinking about carving out a dominant market share in the enterprise market.  There is not one mobile device that is completely dominant here and the market is huge.

I do think that Google wants to gain traction amongst consumers right from the beginning though.  This is a chance they won’t want to miss.

The fact is that Google is looking to cement it’s position as the dominant force online and then take that domination further into the raidly expanding online mobile market.

Google Chrome is a browser that is ready to go into Android devices.  It’s all set up nicely for great compatability with Android to make the mobile internet experience better for users.  Mobile internet usage is increasing considerably.  The UK now has the largest number of mobile users accessing search along with an apetite for Google Android, with the US close behind.  Google want to keep those users with Google and what better way to do that that to own the technology they use to go online (Android), the browser (Chrome) and the search site (google.com).

Forget competing with the iPhone in the short term.  Google loves it’s dominant position in search (who can blame them) and it want to consolidate it.  If search and internet use is becoming increasingly mobile Google needs to be there.  It is positioning itself very well.

It looks like the new HTC phones from T-Mobile will have the Google logo on them. This is unusual and it kind of blurs the line in terms of is this a G Phone? or is it not really a G Phone because it’s just powered by something that Google backs and the phone isn’t made by Google?

People who know anything about this know the answer, it’s not a G Phone of course because there will be lots of other different phones using the Android platform made by different manufacturers all with different designs.

Don’t understand Android, do Understand the iPhone

I’m thinking about the rest of the population who haven’t been following news about Android and don’t know what the hell it is. There are lots of these people out there and they are potential customers of Android phones.

Android mobiles are competing with the iPhone, everyone knows the iPhone, it’s an identifiable brand, it’s had great publicity, it’s just simple.

People have bought into the feeling of having an iPhone, it’s a great product to sell to mass markets, it has visual appeal and usability, plus it’s generally cool to have one.

No Product to Identify With

Where Android is going to find it hard is that there is no identifiable product, there’s an operating system and that’s not so cool to many people.

Without a G Phone Android will find it hard to compete with the iPhone, in fact it shouldn’t try to compete at all, it needs to be marketed as something different.  It needs to be branded as taking mobile development in a new exciting direction.  Luckily Google has the brand to do that and that is what will be the difference in making this a success.

A Mix of Many Things

The HTC Dream Phone seems to be a bit of a mix, it has some of the features of the iPhone (the touchscreen), and some of the features of a Blackberry, (the keyboard being the feature I’m thinking about here).  There are two ways of thinking about that.  You could think critically and moan about the fact that the phone is neither one thing or the other and isn’t that innovative.

Or you could think another way and go with the theory that the phone has taken the best bits from other popular phones and added a great operating system to go with it.  I personally go with that way of thinking.

The mobile phone operators definitely have a problem selling Android based phones but time will tell.

Google had a developer day event in London on September 16th and showcased their new Android technology.  They kept it quite secret but it was pretty obvious that it was probably the HTC Dream from T-Mobile.  It was a great preview so I’ve added a video of it here.