Does this really surprise anyone? The cheapest you can buy an iPhone (4 outright) is $450AUD and contracted plans with newer iPhones start at around $50-60AUD per month. Android are outright starting at $49 and available at all spend levels on plans.
To be honest what's surprising is it took this long...
> To be honest what's surprising is it took this long...
I agree. I think this goes to show just how much Australians are willing to pay for technology in general. It's a shame that we get shafted on a lot of technology/electronics but the fact is that people are willing to pay.
For those who missed it, this is the most important paragraph in the article:
"It's a tablet Christmas there's no doubt about that," said Ben Mcintosh, general manager of technology and entertainment at Harvey Norman. "There is no doubt in my mind that we will sell out of just about every tablet we have in stock by the end of the month."
I'd better go out and get mine before they run out!
Australians have always been big Apple users, in my experience. Despite seeing statistics showing increasing share of Android, I always only ever saw Apple devices on the bus/train. Not very scientific, I know, but I have noticed more and more Android devices whenever I'm on the train in recent months.
I see a lot about Android having a high market share. I've seen numbers like 70-75%. But I think Apple buyers are more affluent and buy more apps even though their market share is only 20%. A lot of people who used to have feature phones or buy the cheapest pre paid phones they can get, now get android phones. Virgin Mobile has one for like $60 my in-laws have. So my point is, while the high android market share is there, as an app developer, the market share in relation to app usage and spend is still skewed towards Apple for now.
While I think you're right about average app expenditure, when we're talking about a 70-75% market share, I think the sheer numbers outweigh that.
I know that some time back there were complains that the Android Market wasn't making anyone money, but I think that's changed these days. And Samsung appear to be doing a great job of marketing a premium Android phone that will attract big spenders.
At the same time, I don't see very many iPhone 5s around - I only know one person who has one (though they can be difficult to differentiate from the 4/4S), whereas it seems like everyone has a Galaxy S2 or S3.
The S2 really caught on in Australia due to some very agressive pricing. I'd say I see as many S2/S3s around as iPhones (and probably more than iPhone amongst younger people). They're everywhere.
That being said, there is an additional layer of difficulty when it comes to purchasing apps on Android that iPhone doesn't have - most people had an iPod and one point and have an iTunes store account set up already, possibly with some credit already on it (ITMS gift cards were popular presents for a while). Play store requires you to enter your credit card on a new account, which I suspect is a significant barrier to app purchases for many people, out of caution or laziness.
Also, due to the more technical nature of the Android developer crowd, with the exception of games, there is almost always a free equivalent to paid apps which are as good or almost as good.
True, not every Android phone is positioning itself as a powerhouse smart device.
As such, buying a cheap Android device today may not tell us much about OS loyalty?
May be a mute point.
Windows saturated the world for decades and people just used it because it swamped them of choice..... that still worked very much in Microsofts favour, and may ultimately mean Android/Adsense wins.
But the key point is for now. Given current market trends, in the not too distant future there will be more money in Android. (Particularly since you don't need to give Apple a 30% cut.)
I wonder if this has something to do with the economy? Apple devices are expensive while on the contrary, you can get a prepaid Android phone starting at $49 in Australia with a camera and ability to download apps. I'm surprised it's taken this long, we always pay twice sometimes three times more than our American counterparts for shiny Apple gadgets (let alone everything else), I guess the appeal of Apple products are starting to become lost on us Aussies.
I think it's more to do with, like you said, Android phones covering such a huge spectrum of the market. Also that flagship models are often hugely discounted. Australian's love bargains.
Apple's pricing in Australia is generally very competitive. I know for laptops you pay significantly more in Australia for brands like Lenovo (in comparison with their USA pricing).
I am not sure why exactly is this a big deal and even surprising. Apple's iOS sells on limited hardware and they do a release annually or lately semi-annually. On the other hand, there is a new worthy Android device coming out every two weeks from big shots like Samsung, HTC, LG, Motorola, Sony Ericsson to name a few. So it was only a matter of time before Android caught up with iOS and captured the market.
[+] [-] freakyterrorist|13 years ago|reply
To be honest what's surprising is it took this long...
[+] [-] codeka|13 years ago|reply
I agree. I think this goes to show just how much Australians are willing to pay for technology in general. It's a shame that we get shafted on a lot of technology/electronics but the fact is that people are willing to pay.
[+] [-] jwhite|13 years ago|reply
"It's a tablet Christmas there's no doubt about that," said Ben Mcintosh, general manager of technology and entertainment at Harvey Norman. "There is no doubt in my mind that we will sell out of just about every tablet we have in stock by the end of the month."
I'd better go out and get mine before they run out!
See: http://www.paulgraham.com/submarine.html
[+] [-] codeka|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] kaliblack|13 years ago|reply
The jaws are closing, but slowly.
[+] [-] spo81rty|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] untog|13 years ago|reply
I know that some time back there were complains that the Android Market wasn't making anyone money, but I think that's changed these days. And Samsung appear to be doing a great job of marketing a premium Android phone that will attract big spenders.
[+] [-] batiudrami|13 years ago|reply
The S2 really caught on in Australia due to some very agressive pricing. I'd say I see as many S2/S3s around as iPhones (and probably more than iPhone amongst younger people). They're everywhere.
That being said, there is an additional layer of difficulty when it comes to purchasing apps on Android that iPhone doesn't have - most people had an iPod and one point and have an iTunes store account set up already, possibly with some credit already on it (ITMS gift cards were popular presents for a while). Play store requires you to enter your credit card on a new account, which I suspect is a significant barrier to app purchases for many people, out of caution or laziness.
Also, due to the more technical nature of the Android developer crowd, with the exception of games, there is almost always a free equivalent to paid apps which are as good or almost as good.
[+] [-] JuDue|13 years ago|reply
As such, buying a cheap Android device today may not tell us much about OS loyalty?
May be a mute point.
Windows saturated the world for decades and people just used it because it swamped them of choice..... that still worked very much in Microsofts favour, and may ultimately mean Android/Adsense wins.
[+] [-] btilly|13 years ago|reply
But the key point is for now. Given current market trends, in the not too distant future there will be more money in Android. (Particularly since you don't need to give Apple a 30% cut.)
[+] [-] DigitalSea|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] inflatablenerd|13 years ago|reply
I think it's more to do with, like you said, Android phones covering such a huge spectrum of the market. Also that flagship models are often hugely discounted. Australian's love bargains.
[+] [-] beamso|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] gshahlot|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] JuDue|13 years ago|reply
Google always intended saturation to prop up their Ad model.
Interesting to hear stirrings of Apple iterating faster.
Apple already pwn the market profit-wise. But do they need to fend of a competitive OS which aims to saturate?
Or can they live side by side? And nudge out Windows phone together?
[+] [-] JimmaDaRustla|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] JuDue|13 years ago|reply