Think for a moment: how many years have you owned an Android handest? According to new research, many of us may not have been with Android very long. There is a good chance many have moved away from the platform altogether. Why? Something called “weak gravity”.
Interesting turn of a phrase. The research is pretty intensive, and highlights some interesting points. First, UK research firm Foolproof studied retention. Their numbers showed that while 65% of first-time smartphone buyers went with Android, about three devices later those numbers dropped off. Around that point, those user statistics were at 49% for Android, and 37% for the iPhone.
This all started by studying what Foolproof calls the “Android engagement paradox”. That centers around those statistics we come across that states iOS users are found to buy more, browse the web more, etc. Essentially, it’s saying that while we have Android devices, we don’t use them as much as our iOS counterparts. That can be understood as Android being inadequate, or just an interesting statistic.
Their findings seem to coincide with CIRP results, though. The US based firm found that while Android had a better adoption rate, the retention rate paled in comparison to iOS users. About 78% of those queried stuck with iOS, while 67% were happy with Android. Conversely, those who intended to get another Android device dropped slightly year-over-year, while the iOS first-timers’ loyalty only grew. Those who intended to get another Android device fell from 59% when the first device was purchased to 54% by the time the third was in-hand. For iOS, it went from 47% to 54%.
Are these numbers hard and fast? Nope. Only 500 people were sampled in each study. We also don’t have statistics like age group or income level, which can sometime make a difference. We also don’t know if these folks went with unsubsidized devices, or postpaid plans. We think they’re interesting numbers, but we’re not going to concern ourselves with them too much. Everyone should use what works for them, regardless of OS or OEM.
Source: The Guardian
Sound more like “weak levity” to me. Coming from an iOS device(s) there is no way I would go back. Android simply accomplishes more with less interaction than iOS. I am convinced my wife to switch away from her iPad 2 (supplied by her work, but utterly useless in enterprise) and her new iPad Air in favor of the forthcoming Samsung Note Pro 12.2. She is already sporting a Note 3 in lieu of an iPhone and loves it.
This is something I love about Android:you can customize your device according to your liking.
I work for a company that rhymes with frapple and I was given an iphone 5 for work. I can’t stand the thing. You can’t customize the thing worth a damn and I prefer a home screen with active widgets over the apps list. If you want a phone that everyone else has and a homogenized environment that’s made how someone else thinks you want it to be, get an iphone.
Balderdash
I’ve historically gone back and forth between Android and iOS (very 3-6 months), but I have pretty much given up on iOS at this point because too much flexibility is lost on when using it. Windows Phone has attracted my interest in recent months, however.
3 or 4 years ago, I went directly from a feature phone + iPod to an Android phone and no iPod. The reason for which I didn’t choose an iPhone ? two of them : 1- Apple censors apps, and people aren’t free to make interesting apps, which restricts iOS to a “smart, but still feature phone”, whereas Android lets people make any kind of apps they want. And 2- Apple has begun to display incredible arrogance by suing competitor using “patended” bullshit like rectangle with round edges and other completely obvious stuff. I decided that they had lost my business from then on.
Currently, my terminal is a Galaxy Note 3. Wow, just wow. It really kicks butt. There are many occasions I didn’t need to bring my laptop with me, as all the basic functionalities could be implemented as apps. Even an IDE to program new apps ! We are now beginning a new phase : even notebooks are about to be taken over by what smart phones are becoming.
Here comes the onslaught of completely anecdotal, non-scientific counter-arguments.
Correction: Cheap Android phones have weak gravity, top end Android phones have strong gravity.
The difference between some Android models is so vast they shouldn’t even be in the same category.
Most Android phones are commodity phones, which is also why Androids mobile internet usage is so low, compared to Apple.
im using Android since 2009 and now im using note 3. i wil keep on buying new flagships of best company. and i develop roms for my device which i use. can an ios user do this??? only kids / many girls / busy people use apple. developers never need closed source. haha. stay away kids. FANS OF OPEN SOURCE. u never know the feel , when the source code of some gadget u own gets released out. get tat feel if u can.
Too funny – “only kids / many girls / busy people use apple” – I assume you are not a kid, not a girl and not a busy person. Are you an old guy with nothing to do?
Im an Android Geek.
Im doing my Engineering in SRM University.
I develops Roms and Mods.
And i mean : people who r not busy can njoy Android.
Youth – say.
hahaha great (y)
The author of this article is an idiot for even posting this on an Android blog, he obviously is new to Android, otherwise he would know that LOW END Android smartphones have weak gravity, high end smartphones have strong gravity. Something these dumb idiots failed to mention in their “intensive” research. I’ve never met a person who has a high end Android smartphones, then switched to a different OS. Where i live, the majority of people have Android phones, cheap and expensive alike
I would have to say it is probably carriers and update times.
Too many weak gravitational bodies, is more precise. There are a dozen or maybe even dozens of Android vendors now, and more will inevitably enter the market. Android is open source, so there is little or no software barrier (protective moat), so any and every electronics manufacture can enter the market. The Android market is rapidly evolving into a commodity market, where low cost wins. The limiting factor may be licensing fees, when all the dust settles, from the dozens of patent infringement litigation proceeding now. Each losing lawsuit results in not only an award, but also future licensing fees (royalties). Those fines and license fees can then be used as reference or in court, against all other and future violators, as a fair value fee and a past award reference, if they violate, without paying the fees.
android vs ios = linux vs windows, most users need someone to blame when there’s a problem no matter if anyone’s willing to fix it.
i once had a iphone, did not like it moved to android, Samsung Galaxy ,2, 3,note2,not sure if i will stay with Samsung ,last two very annoying screen freezing, but Android yes ,its not perfect but at the moment its the best, plus Donkys like apples