iPhones for women, Android for men?

[reuthermonkey]

Not like there are small Android devices out there. No sir, every Android phone is a giant battery-hogging monster.

But you're right, the iOS is simpler all right. The full-service OS... apps cost more because they work, that's all there is to it. People whose time is extremely valuable cannot afford to fiddle with a device that is open and highly extensible. They do the same thing; iOS just does it... easy.

End Of Line.

End of line?
The apps are the same. Urbanspoon on the iPhone is the same as Android. Vevo on Android is same quality as iPhone.
Kindle. Facebook. Pandora. Skype. Scorecenter. Twitter. Youtube.
Which of those apps "don't work"?

It's clear that perception is a mighty influential tool. Because as others have pointed out - if your time is valuable, a blackberry is probably your best choice. A device that's designed and capable for one-handed use. For the highly productive, a hardware keyboard is almost uniformly requested also, as software keyboards lack the requisite tactile feedback for quick operation.

But yeah, sure, the Android apps don't work, and they take 10x more time to do. Especially those desktop widgets like Touchdown's which provide one touch access to exchange email composition, and 0 touch access to calendar, tasks, and emails (they show up right there on the home screen).

[Aurelian]

Funny. Nokia and Blackberry people always says the same things about their phones --- get things done --- and still consider the iPhone a gimmick. (count the number of presses accessing emails and messages).

The Nokia people get things done... after the fifth time they've been prompted to connect to the Internet and after figuring out which obtuse menu it was had the mail setting they needed to change. And after the phone has had its every-other-day OS crash.

BlackBerry users can get it done, for e-mail and BBM. But definitely not the web. Or apps. Or media.

They can tell me the iPhone's a gimmick when their market share stops sliding. Nokia's has been dropping almost constantly since about... oh, June 2007.

My daughter --- a professional model by the way --- just loves her new Samsung Galaxy Tab. Obviously size isn't a factor.

I have seen a lot of stylish Japanese and Korean girls that love to flick out their phones and show how big their displays are. I gather you haven't seen how big some of these keitais are.

The Galaxy Tab is a tablet, so she actually went for the small option unless she's trying to put it up to her ear for calls! We're talking phones here.

As for keitais, a lot of them are big because they're flip phones with ~3.5-inch screens. Plus, you can't really go for the masculine angle there -- these are the same ones who'll attach Hello Kitty ornaments to their phones, too. In North America and most notably the US, smartphone size is very much tied to this overcompensating male push. I have a 4.3-inch screen on my phone! It's massive! Rrrraaagh!

[silverwolf0]

Women not into tech? Do we really need studies and charts to confirm the obvious? (Most) women have better things to do than to wheel around in Android forums and complain about updates. They actually use their phone as an actual piece of equipment, not some lego playset, and get on with their lives once the deed is done. Android phones are numerous and fragmented and require an extra barrier or two for entry, poorly marketed to casual users in comparison to the ONE iPhone, and most if not all are really butt-ugly (HTC, I'm looking at you!) and women are more into being hip than men, with their brand recognition and designer outfits, and everyone know who Apple is.

[Drillbit]

The Nokia people get things done... after the fifth time they've been prompted to connect to the Internet and after figuring out which obtuse menu it was had the mail setting they needed to change. And after the phone has had its every-other-day OS crash.

Somehow, all the country bumpkin I see from the rural countries in the Philippines and India (and their children) somehow are able to fully exploit a Symbian smartphone, and yet all these wise cracking iPhone boys from North America cannot?

BlackBerry users can get it done, for e-mail and BBM. But definitely not the web. Or apps. Or media.

Really. I got a Blackberry Tour once. Never had problems with apps. Or media.

They can tell me the iPhone's a gimmick when their market share stops sliding. Nokia's has been dropping almost constantly since about... oh, June 2007.

They will still sell close to 30 million devices for the quarter.

The Galaxy Tab is a tablet, so she actually went for the small option unless she's trying to put it up to her ear for calls! We're talking phones here.

Nope. She uses a Nokia bluetooth headset with the Galaxy Tab. It beats an iPad with an iPhone combination. Not to mention the Tab can become a mobile hotspot for her Macbook. The SIM for the Tab she got it off her Blackberry too. Look, she didn't need to trim it, or add a new contract.

As for keitais, a lot of them are big because they're flip phones with ~3.5-inch screens. Plus, you can't really go for the masculine angle there -- these are the same ones who'll attach Hello Kitty ornaments to their phones, too. In North America and most notably the US, smartphone size is very much tied to this overcompensating male push. I have a 4.3-inch screen on my phone! It's massive! Rrrraaagh!

Wrong. You are so outdated here. Many Keitais got screens bigger than the iPhone. We are talking 3.7 to 4.3". That's only for the screen part. Point remains a lot of Japanese women got large keitais.

I can't see how an iPhone be the instrument of "getting things done" with the worst voice quality, the most dropped calls, and the most easiest to break hitting the ground.

[Aurelian]

Somehow, all the country bumpkin I see from the rural countries in the Philippines and India (and their children) somehow are able to fully exploit a Symbian smartphone, and yet all these wise cracking iPhone boys from North America cannot?

They use those phones because they're cheap and because Apple, HTC and the like often don't have good (or any) distribution where they live. A Nokia C3, for example, is $132 off-contract in India. If you're living on a typical Indian middle-class salary, of course you're going to buy that instead of a device that's priced a few times more. Most North American and European iPhone pricing is actually discounted compared to that.

Really. I got a Blackberry Tour once. Never had problems with apps. Or media.

I'm sorry, but compared to an iPhone, or even an Android phone, BlackBerry app and media support is unquestionably inferior. There are many apps that can't be ported because of poor performance, and the sheer quantity of apps on Android or iOS means there's invariably at least a few apps that are genuinely useful which BlackBerry App World doesn't have.

For media, well... no contest. iOS has many more media playback features, better media performance, and an accessory ecosystem that RIM can't touch. Android's built-in media tools are basic, but it can still play HD and has an app culture that fills in the gaps much more effectively.

I'm actually enthusiastic about the PlayBook (I tried it at CES) because it's the first sign that RIM is starting to get it. It can actually play media, play games and support much easier development.

They will still sell close to 30 million devices for the quarter.

Every company will reassure itself with this until it's too late to change. Asymco's Horace Dediu (a very knowledgeable if not financial analyst) warned that you can't simply look at how many you're selling; you have to look at who you're selling to and where the trend is going. Nokia is rapidly losing its smartphone base and increasingly selling the $50 off-contract basic phone to that family in Kenya. RIM is having this problem, too: it's now not only focusing most on the Curve but getting a far larger number of devices that aren't on BlackBerry Internet Service, i.e. prepaid customers who could have bought a messaging phone.

Nope. She uses a Nokia bluetooth headset with the Galaxy Tab. It beats an iPad with an iPhone combination. Not to mention the Tab can become a mobile hotspot for her Macbook. The SIM for the Tab she got it off her Blackberry too. Look, she didn't need to trim it, or add a new contract.

If you're consolidating, I agree - that's not bad at all. Good news for iPad owners is that iOS 4.3 should bring the mobile hotspot option, by the way. But most of the women I know tend not to lug both a tablet and a phone at the same time.

Wrong. You are so outdated here. Many Keitais got screens bigger than the iPhone. We are talking 3.7 to 4.3". That's only for the screen part. Point remains a lot of Japanese women got large keitais.

Egads. Still, there's a definitely different marketing angle in North American than in Japan. Every Verizon Droid ad is meant to make you feel like, after you've used your Droid X, you should eat a steak and punch a bear just to prove how manly you are.

I can't see how an iPhone be the instrument of "getting things done" with the worst voice quality, the most dropped calls, and the most easiest to break hitting the ground.

I've had great voice quality, and you're confusing AT&T with some inherent phone feature. Here in Canada, iPhones are much better to use... and of course, the Verizon iPhone should settle that debate once and for all in the US. Fragility doesn't have much to do with the argument here; it's an issue, but I'm talking about apps, browser quality, the interface and just easing it into your life. When I hear people talk about using their iPhones, they talk about the cool new app they found, the video they took or what they saw while browsing the web. Android users tend to be much more self-referential and talk about what they're doing to the OS, not what they're doing with it.

[fritez]

what about blackberries, why aren't they mentioned? TBH i know more girls who have blackberries than iphones... (i only know one girl who has an iphone and she's ONLY had iphones, and the only other person i know who's ever used an iphone is my ex, unsurprisingly he switched to android).

but i think i know why girls like blackberries, as i myself seriously considered getting one (the battle was between the 9780 and the htc g2) despite its flaws next to the G2 for one reason - BBM. all my friends are using bbm and i feel out of the loop. i can understand why the less tech-savvy think of the blackberry as a super social device - they tend to think because of BBM, facebook and twitter apps and a great email system that blackberries are the best, even though other phones might run certain browsers or apps better

and of course, women, above all things, are social beings!

what do you guys think?

[fritez]

They use those phones because they're cheap and because Apple, HTC and the like often don't have good (or any) distribution where they live. A Nokia C3, for example, is $132 off-contract in India. If you're living on a typical Indian middle-class salary, of course you're going to buy that instead of a device that's priced a few times more. Most North American and European iPhone pricing is actually discounted compared to that.

they don't use nokia phones in the east because they're cheap, nokia is a huge company in the east known for innovation and great quality, a rep it's definitely lived up to... i lived in kuwait, where 99% of the citizens (you have to be kuwaiti-born to be a citizen) are filthy rich from oil money and i remember my kuwaiti classmates had a new phone every 6 months, always the newest nokia (despite the variety of phones there - even post-iphone people chose nokia)

nokia is big there because of reputation

[primetechv2]

End of line?
The apps are the same. Urbanspoon on the iPhone is the same as Android. Vevo on Android is same quality as iPhone.
Kindle. Facebook. Pandora. Skype. Scorecenter. Twitter. Youtube.
Which of those apps "don't work"?

But yeah, sure, the Android apps don't work, and they take 10x more time to do. Especially those desktop widgets like Touchdown's which provide one touch access to exchange email composition, and 0 touch access to calendar, tasks, and emails (they show up right there on the home screen).

Well, the iPhone is shinier. At least you feel like you're getting more done with it, even though Android affords you many, many options for physical or virtual keyboards.

And who needs widgets anyway? It's just one of those Android things that nobody really needs, just a passing fad. Sayeth Steve Jobs.

If that wasn't a quote, at least were his ideas that one device owned by everybody, is a better idea than choice/democracy.

End Of Line. (Yes, this post is sarcasm, humor, and related to Tron.)

[Drillbit]

They use those phones because they're cheap and because Apple, HTC and the like often don't have good (or any) distribution where they live. A Nokia C3, for example, is $132 off-contract in India. If you're living on a typical Indian middle-class salary, of course you're going to buy that instead of a device that's priced a few times more. Most North American and European iPhone pricing is actually discounted compared to that.

That doesn't change the fact that I see people in the third world handle Symbian S60 smartphones with great deft and agility.

In emerging countries, you can buy used iPhones pretty cheap.

I'm sorry, but compared to an iPhone, or even an Android phone, BlackBerry app and media support is unquestionably inferior. There are many apps that can't be ported because of poor performance, and the sheer quantity of apps on Android or iOS means there's invariably at least a few apps that are genuinely useful which BlackBerry App World doesn't have.

LOL. Talking like someone who have not tried a Blackberry before. With Blackberry, there are more than enough apps to get things done.

This is not to mention, that like Android, Blackberry does notifications a lot better than iPhone. You get the notifications on top of the screen, not red dots across the entire home screen in a thoroughly disorganized fashion.

For media, well... no contest. iOS has many more media playback features, better media performance, and an accessory ecosystem that RIM can't touch. Android's built-in media tools are basic, but it can still play HD and has an app culture that fills in the gaps much more effectively.

Like I said, obviously you never used a Blackberry. iPhone fans like to judge platforms they have no experience in using. Like a priest condemning the culture and religion of another.

In my experience with the Blackberry Tour, the sound quality from the phone was remarkable and it does play videos like YouTube surprisingly well. And yes, there are media players in the App World, which has far less garbage than App Store. The built in video player handles a surprising number of formats. Blackberry 6 is even better.

Every company will reassure itself with this until it's too late to change. Asymco's Horace Dediu (a very knowledgeable if not financial analyst) warned that you can't simply look at how many you're selling; you have to look at who you're selling to and where the trend is going. Nokia is rapidly losing its smartphone base and increasingly selling the $50 off-contract basic phone to that family in Kenya. RIM is having this problem, too: it's now not only focusing most on the Curve but getting a far larger number of devices that aren't on BlackBerry Internet Service, i.e. prepaid customers who could have bought a messaging phone.

Asymco is one bad analyst. His calculations always have major failings to be taken seriously.

Sorry, I would rather take Tomi Ahonen's numbers,which by the way, you can take numbers from corporate statements. You have no idea what reality is. Close to 28 million smartphones for Q3 for Nokia, is that what you call dying? Or the fact that they moved nearly 4 million Nokia N8s in three months? They sold nearly 120 million handsets in Q3 and they can be looking for 130 million in Q4 alone.

If you're consolidating, I agree - that's not bad at all. Good news for iPad owners is that iOS 4.3 should bring the mobile hotspot option, by the way. But most of the women I know tend not to lug both a tablet and a phone at the same time.

You have no idea what I said. I said she was using her Galaxy Tab with a Nokia Bluetooth earset

In other words, both tablet and phone is the same device.

iOS doing hotspot is responding to Android getting hotspots first. It shows that Apple is now reacting defensively to Android, playing follower instead of leader.

Egads. Still, there's a definitely different marketing angle in North American than in Japan. Every Verizon Droid ad is meant to make you feel like, after you've used your Droid X, you should eat a steak and punch a bear just to prove how manly you are.

Nope. It seems like iPhone users are following this Steve Jobs trait of deciding what is good for other people.

Sorry, that won't work. People are more individualistic. You cannot make assumptions that women don't like big screen superphones. In South Korea for example, women actually outpace men in buying smartphones---and the big Samsung Galaxy S is the biggest seller there.

I've had great voice quality, and you're confusing AT&T with some inherent phone feature. Here in Canada, iPhones are much better to use... and of course, the Verizon iPhone should settle that debate once and for all in the US. Fragility doesn't have much to do with the argument here; it's an issue, but I'm talking about apps, browser quality, the interface and just easing it into your life. When I hear people talk about using their iPhones, they talk about the cool new app they found, the video they took or what they saw while browsing the web. Android users tend to be much more self-referential and talk about what they're doing to the OS, not what they're doing with it.

I've heard from different iPhones, and voice quality just simply blows.

Connectivity also blows because even in the exemplary networks in Asia, iPhones do drop calls. While on AT&T, Nokias, Blackberry, Samsungs and HTCs handle voice calls with good quality and connection. I hardly hear Blackbery Torch users or Samsung Captivate users complain about dropping connections or the lack of voice quality in AT&T, yet remarkably I hear a lot about that with the iPhone.

I'm sorry but I do enjoy a lot of the apps I have on Android. Like the Dolphin browser which allows for custom hand gestures and can share pages directly to any social site. If you have Safari, you can't pass any webpage to Facebook, can't you?

When I see iPhone users, I see them with the same and same boring games apps --- Bejeweled, some platform jumper and scroller, some racing game, Angry Birds, blah blah blah. Hardly innovative.

[revelated]

Females go for iPhones because (A) Cosmo tells them to (READ: it's cool), (B) it's fashionable and (C) it lets them mass text people pointless messages. In my experience, you can actually read the overall personality of some females by the phone they choose to own and enjoy, or the phone they are considering buying.

iPhone: All across the board. Not too bright. Maybe even ditzy at times. But not the sharpest tack. At times, standoffish and unapproachable. Not always. But often.

BlackBerry: Shows glimmers of intelligence, actually enjoys stability and reliability in not just their phone but their relationships. Somewhat organized and may appreciate femininity, but not too "girly".

Android: Total geek chick, awesome personality, pleasure to talk to and hang out with. The kind of girl you can kick back with and not have her nagging you all the time.

Palm: Snooty (I don't understand this one). They stick with their phone because they don't know what else to get. They like the Palm OS but don't like anything else out there - or at least think they don't, and aren't willing to try something new.

Windows Mobile: As I have yet to encounter a female who owns a Windows Mobile phone, I'll have to get back to you on this one.

Non-smartphone: Knows NOTHING about tech nor cares to. The kind of girl who would yell at you for getting an LED LCD TV even though she can clearly see it's superior.

[fritez]

Windows Mobile: As I have yet to encounter a female who owns a Windows Mobile phone, I'll have to get back to you on this one.

butch women

[Drillbit]

My wife uses an iPhone. My daughter, despite being offered one and already owning an iPod Touch, refused and chose a Blackberry instead. Back when Android hasn't even taken off the way it did, it was a fashion designer that told her enthusiastically there is this new Google smartphone that is better than Apple's. I mean, she gets all that from _non geeks_.

I have seen many women with Windows Mobile by the way.

My sister who runs a high end furniture shop and constantly organizes art exhibits, went from iPhone then back to Nokia, then to Blackberry.

Just because people are in the fashion or art circles doesn't mean they will choose an iPhone. In my experience, they constantly go for Blackberry. In fact, the most common smartphone you will see with Hollywood celebrities are Blackberry.

[helloweko]

It is a funny survey, Iphone is more lovely than android, I think. and what about Ipad? haha.

[detective j]

i have both Android phone and iPhone, but i like Android phone much better.

[BetterOfDead]

I just Think that android devices are not pretty. The majority of the phones they run on have cheap housings. They are powerful though. Also the OS should be more polished.
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