As has long been predicted, Google and its Android mobile operating system have finally overtaken Apple and its iPhone for second place in the smartphone race.

According to research firm NPD Group, devices running on Android accounted for 28 percent of smartphones sold in the first quarter, compared with 21 percent for the iPhone, marking the first time that Google's Android platform has beaten out its competitor in Cupertino.

A couple of things should probably be mentioned here. One, obviously it's not a fair fight: Apple makes both the hardware and software and offers just one phone, while Google's OS fuels a whole fleet of phones manufactured by others. That's one against many, and there's simply no way Apple can continue to prevail in that contest -- nor does it have to.

And with a new iPhone model coming out this summer, there are no doubt many customers waiting to make their purchase. The fact that Apple still notched up 21 percent of smartphone sales isn't too shabby in that light.

NPD also pointed out that Verizon Wireless, "to compete with the iPhone," expanded its buy-one-get-one-free offer beyond its BlackBerry phones, encompassing the Droid and Droid Eris, and driving up the Android numbers.

One thing that shouldn't get lost in the discussion is that Research In Motion, despite all of the criticism it's faced, isn't exactly ready to give up its leadership position anytime soon. People can talk about Google versus Apple all they want -- and they will -- but RIM still accounted for 36 percent of the smartphone market.

That's before the release of RIM's updated, more consumer-oriented operating system, which is expected to show up on phones later this summer. If the excitement about OS 6 is partly an indication that RIM hasn't generated much buzz lately, it's still a new and improved operating system for the smartphone leader and is likely to ensure that it keeps at least one-third of the market for the foreseeable future.

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed