900 million Androids activated - Google
How the number stacks up against Apple. PLUS: Search giant also previews voice-activated search for PCs, new Maps features, and a streaming music service.
Google says more than 900 million devices running on its Android mobile operating system had been activated worldwide.
While the number will include people who have bought more than one Android-based smartphone, or tablet, the numbers are clearly escalating. The number of Android activation was 400 million a year ago, and 100 million two years ago.
In January, Apple said it had sold 500 million iOS (iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch) devices, and had 250 million iCloud accounts.
The Commerce Commission's Telecommunications Monitoring Report 2012, released April, quoted research saying 48% of New Zealanders now own a smartphone, 66% own a laptop and 29% a tablet. More expensive Android-based smartphones are giving Apple's iPhone a run for its money, but it's budget Androids that have fuelled mass smartphone adoption, and seen Android-based phones (made by Samsung, Sony, HTC, Huawei, Google-owned Motorola, LG and others) collectively eclipse iPhone in market share. The tablet market is more 50:50, but with often lower-priced Androids rapidly gaining ground.
The Android boast was made at the Google's annual I/O developer conference in San Francisco.
The event also saw the company announce voice-activated search will be extended from mobile phones to the PC version of its search engine. Searches will be activated by saying "OK, Google."
And Google Maps will be boosted to display Google Offers (a location and time-specific daily deal style service not available in New Zealand); the location of contacts on Google+ (Google's version of Facebook) and Google+ ratings for local businesses.
Google also demonstrated a streaming version of its Play music service.
NBR staff
Thu, 16 May 2013
Thu, 16 May 2013
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900 million Androids activated - Google
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