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Liting Tao Kristen Foster CO 150.403 27 October, 2013

iPhone vs. Android Smartphone, Which is the Better Choice for Smartphone Users? When you walk into a public space, it is not strange to see many people use their smartphones to browse news and chat with friends. Nowadays, as the technology and network has reached a higher level, smartphones has increasingly occupied the cellphone market. The two main smartphone operation systems (OS), iOS and Android, puzzled consumers in the process of deciding which better meets their demands. Just a month ago, Apple released its latest smartphones. I was most impressed with a news reported that before Apples launch event, hundreds of Apple fans were queuing for the new devices outside an Apple store, many of them even brought tents and had slept there for a few nights. As a college student, I am interested in new technology on smartphones. I own an Android smartphone as well as an ipad, personally I prefer Android system for its easy operation. Seeing so many Apple rabid fans, I always wonder how could Apple have the magic to attract so many followers? I decided to pursue the question, iPhone and Android smartphone, which is the better choice for smartphone users? This question is worthy to explore because many consumers are eager to figure out which smartphone system works better, I suspect that android is better for its easy operation, open sources and higher costeffective. In the first place, I needed to learn the main differences between the two systems. I selected this article to begin my research, Android vs. iOS: The Race has Never been Closer, from NBC

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News.com (Coldewey). The author states that as Apple released the new product, iOS 7, the choice between Apple and Android has been harder than ever because now they have more in common. I learned that some of features that once were considered as Androids strength such as quick settings app switching and notifications, now has been refined on iOS 7 in a more attractive way. For instance, the Today part on iOS 7 contains more categories and details, which is considered a great way to start a day. Moreover, iPhones camera and the music and video functions are more powerful than Android. As to phones security, Apples extremely helpful service Find My iPhone was a major part of iOSs favor. On the other hand, Android is pretty handy for someone who uses local media. Coldewey concludes the main difference as Android's user experience is very customizable, where iOS 7 is not. I love Androids customizable design, but it seems that iOS has more strength in their variable services. Device test is a professional way to determine which system runs more effectively. I next turn to this article Apple iPhone, iPad, Smoke Android Devices in Speed and Responsiveness Tests, from the authors blog on ComeputerWorld.com (Evans). The author makes explanation and suggestion on the basis of Agawis speed and responsiveness tests on key mobile devices. Agawis test turns out to be even Apples two-year-old device, iPhone 4 respondeded to apps faster than the latest Android phones. According to Evans, the results reveal that one device would run software more efficiently when both hardware and software are developed by the same developer, and currently it is one of apples great advantages, which Android manufacturers are unable to emulate because they do not design their own OS. He also points out that Android devices depend on a complex Java hybrid to run apps, which is considered has an impact on app performance.

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I was surprised to see the test results. Previously I was quite sure that Androids latest phones would run faster than Apples year-old devices. Then I realized I was wrong. I remembered that some of my friends who had been using iPhone 4 for over 2 years said their devices kept running efficiently. However, those who used Android phones complained that their devices became slower and there were no more rooms for the new apps. It seems that being developed entirely by the same manufacturer is vital for the performance of a device. Since my research is intended to find out which OS is better for most of the consumers, I want to listen to different voices from smartphone users. Typed Android vs. iOS into Google, luckily to find this, iOS vs. Android: Your Best Arguments, it summarizes users comments on lifehacker.com (Dachis). One reason why many people tend to choose Android is that they prefer to create an experience molded to their own taste. Some Android users complained about their random lag while iOS feels faster and more fluid to most consumers. Whats more, Apple devices contain great design all the time, while some Android phones, as some users complained, use cheaper materials and lower standards, and the consumers would have to face with low hardware quality. Although many users stated that iOS works better than Android devices, I was impressed with a user confessed that he hated iTunes because it was hard to use, however, many Apple devices have to be synced by iTunes to download files. On the contrary, with android devices you can easily drag and drop to put files into phones. I have the same annoyance when I first used iTunes, but right now I have better softwares to manage files on Apple devices such as iTools. After exploring the strengths and weaknesses of the two systems, I had a rough understand of their features. I also noticed that some of my sources mentioned Android had security shortcomings. Why it happens? Is it due to the different manufacturers or the design of the system? I am interested on that topic so I turned to my research to learn something about Androids

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security problem. I found this academic essay in our library database, Android: A secure future at last? It appeared on Engineering & Technology magazine in 2012 (Gold). Most of the security problems are caused by malwares. Google provides apps store with the Android Market, unlike iTunes, the Market is not actively policed for errant apps, explains Gold, developers can upload their apps to Android Market after paying a $25 registration fee and waiting for several cursory checks. And Google would remove offenders only when they are reported by users. Besides, Android uses SQLite to allow multiple applications to run at the same time, which means a malware app can operate in the background of Android and, if the coder knows his onions, there is little or no trace of the app actually running once it has been installed. To avoid being attracted by Cyber criminals, one research team suggests users to use 3G cellular instead of public Wi-Fi services. Now I know that Google formally attached less importance to Androids security, after experiencing some malware attack, Google may find way to improve their service. Then I wanted to address the question that first guided my research: How could Apple be such a success as well as has so many followers? I choose this peer-reviewed article to find the answer, "Browsing as the Killer App: Explaining the Rapid Success of Apple's iPhone," published on Telecommunications Policy (West and Mace). This is a long scholarly essay with detailed explanation of mobile Internets history, yet some parts are valuable. The authors state that the succeed of iPhone is based on Apples conception of mobile Internet. When iPhone was introduced in 2007, iPhone users quickly showed interest in using the mobile Internet, thus Apple rapidly shared smartphone market. On the second part, it leveraged its systems capability to establish a permanent position of value capture in mobile phone industry.(14) From this article, I felt that Apple is a large powerful company, it really provides delicate design and perfect service for its users.

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Nowadays the competition in smartphone market is intense, I recalled the words in my first source the race has never been closer, I wonder what the mobile devices would be like in the near future. My next article, "Bored by the iPhone 5," written by Navneet Alang and published on Canadian Business in 2012, discusses that in mobile phone market, content and services are the future. As the market mature, smartphones tend to have the same large screen and fast and fluid operation, the next focus would be locking consumers by providing better content and services. According to Apples CEO Tim Cook, "What sets them apart and what places us way ahead of the competition is how well they work together" (qtd.in Alang), indicates that focus on how products interact would become more prominent in the future. During my research, I find that it is hard to say which iOS is better because every consumer has own preference. Now I admit that iPhone is an outstanding production for its elegant appearance and perfect services. But I still need more information about consumers shopping preference to decide which OS is better for most of the smartphone users.

Works Cited Alang, Navneet. "Bored by the iPhone 5." Canadian Business 85.16 (2012): 21. Academic Search Premier. Web. 22 Oct. 2013. Coldewey, Devin. Android vs. iOS: The Race has Never been Closer. NBC News.com.18 September 2013. Web. 20 October 2013. Dachis, Adam. iOS vs. Android: Your Best Arguments. Lifehacker.com. 17 September 2013. Web. 20 October 2013.

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Evans, Jonny. Apple iPhone, iPad, Smoke Android Devices in Speed and Responsiveness Tests.ComeputerWorld.com. 10 October 2013. Web. 20 October 2013. Gold, Steve. "Android: A Secure Future at Last?" Engineering & Technology (17509637) 7.2 (2012): 50-54. Academic Search Premier. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. West, Joel, and Michael Mace."Browsing as the Killer App: Explaining the Rapid Success of Apple's iPhone."Telecommunications Policy 34.5/6 (2010): 270-286. Academic Search Premier.Web. 20 Oct. 2013