Android

I find it interesting that most people who like Android like it in the future tense.

Android is always great, but in that next version, that is just around the corner. That upcoming tablet, that upcoming phone, that upcoming software.

I don't know what people you talk to, but the current article clearly talks in present tense.

e.g. I asked him if he'd pay $199 for an Android tablet. He said "where can I get one"?

The punchline is "Nowhere."

This is the year of the Linux tablet!

Sub-$200 Android tablets:

http://www.kmart.com/shc/s/p_10151_10104_020W023705190001P?v...

http://www.amazon.com/Archos-Home-Tablet-Android-Black/dp/B0...

You can get it from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Archos-Home-Tablet-Android-Black/dp/B0...

isn't the nook an android tablet? (albeit a very specialized one.)

Oh man I can't up vote this enough. +1000 times yes.

There is a huge difference between "iPad/iPhone are good now" and "android is as good in a few areas now, lacks the polish and we hope it will be as good in the future".

The eternal optimism and buying into the hype never ceases to amaze me. In fact I don't understand it other than the possibility that those most keen are too young to remember the past (and no, I'm not referring to Fred here, obviously).

One key thing people forget is that they're chasing a moving target. The iOS ecosystem isn't static. Also google are still in their honeymoon period as far as fragmentation goes. That will get worse before it gets better.

I can best sum it up this way: people who buy an iPhone are buying an iPhone. The vast majority of pop,e who are buying android phones are buying... A phone.

There is a huge difference.

That being said, not ignoring android is prudent and I'm certainly not writing it off but taking the iPad as one example, I believe that credible competition is still a year or even two off.

yes it is :)

(I have one)

Neither of those even works out of the box with the Android Market. Even with wishing and hoping and squinting, it's not credible to put them in the same product category as the iPad. A some-assembly-required golf cart can't substitute for a two-seater sedan.

And the new Apple TV is an iOS device. Who cares? The OS in both cases is an implementation detail. Neither the ATV or the Nook remotely exemplify the features people associate with "iOS device" or "Android tablet".

Amen.

Honestly, I don't see Google EVER making a product like iPad/iPhone. Come on, they're an advertising company after all - one that can't just stick their software on some phone from a Taiwanese company, it'll work but you know...

Apple's products operate completely on another level.

Android 2.2 is excellent. It easily competes with iOS on many metrics, beating it in some areas.

Phones like the Samsung Galaxy S (esp. the Pro), the Droid 2, the Droid X -- excellent devices that are hyper-competitive. Few with such a device would look jealously on an iPhone.

So no...on the phone front Android is top tier. Yeah, subjectively someone will say that the iPhone is all roses for them, but that's the value of a competitive market -- you pick the one that fits you best. On the tablet market it is future tense because, I suspect, Google really didn't want Android to be the tablet OS. They wanted ChromeOS to take that crown. I don't talk tablets when the conversation is about Android.

I guess the point is the reviews. Not great.

http://www.amazon.com/Archos-Home-Tablet-Android-Black/produ...

Roughly the same number of reviews for each star. 5 has the fewest. Reading the positive reviews is possibly more informative than the negative ones:

I'm now satisfied with my Archo's 7 Home tablet. After many hours reading helps and hints on the Archo's 7 Home Tablet Forum and installing some of the programs they advise downloading to beef up the weak and clumsy operating system, I got my android tablet just where I want it.. ..new firmare that makes the touch keypad a little easier to work with, but you still need a stylus to get best result..

Not sure what this means about the future and it's certainly not an apples to apples comparison, but it doesn't sound like a cheap android tablet exists that an average VC'c dad would be happy with.

It isn't worth calling it Android.. I think when people think Android they think of the default interface, the ability to install applications from the App Market, and so on. I have a nook and it's basically stripped down to just a few customized apps (besides the reader function a couple games, a basic media player, and a web browser).

However, I do think it's important in that it shows the versatility of Android as a platform..

Indeed,

Android is great in the next version and good enough in the present version to have a strong market share. Never as polished but generally having the features you need...

For people, this show how tasteless and low class the thing is. For others, it's something to believe in...

Android is "good enough" now for lots of people, which shows in its sales. That Android owners can point at future products and get excited for upcoming features is just icing on the cake.

You should check out nookDevs

This is very true. Apple products are luxury products which, IMO, are worth the money. UX, design and the "it just works" factor are worth the premium. But for most people, cost/availability is the gating factor so Android phones are totally fine for them.