Is it a condom or is it an Android phone?

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fluffypony

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I'll just leave this here:

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Ockie

Ockie

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Just shows that Android got sex appeal baby! *wink wink*
 
Creag

Creag

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fluffypony said:
I know, right? The scary thing is recognising some of the phones I have that have ticks in both columns - I'll never be able to use them again:)
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Me thinks you're an Apple fanboi trolling o'er here :p
 
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adrianx

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@fluffypony

You should try sex someday. Just remember, responsible people use condoms. :p
 
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fluffypony

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Vulk said:
This should have been called "Is it an HTC or a condom brand?".

Seriously, all this proves is that HTC uses lame names for their phones. That's been true since long before they started using Android:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_HTC_phones
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No, there are quite a few that belong to Samsung.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Android_devices#Samsung

Admire, Vitality, Behold, Vibrant, Infuse, Acclaim, Replenish, Transform are all Samsung names.

Motorola isn't immune either: Charm, Devour, Backflip, Admiral.

So does that mean, by your assertion, that all this proves is that at least three dominant Android manufacturers use lame names for their phones?
 
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Vulk

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Well, if you want to be technical, those Samsung names are carrier-specific brands that are only used in the US, and which only exist because cellular networks in the US have this insane system where they refuse to carry phones with the same names as other networks, even if the actual hardware is the same. Therefore every variant of the Galaxy SII in the US, for example, has a different name. I'm not sure we could even classify those as Samsung brands per se, as opposed to AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile brands.

In the rest of the world, where Samsung gets to decide on their own branding, all their Android phones are sold as variations of the "Galaxy" brand, which is recognisable and consistent, and doesn't exactly scream "condom" to me.

As for Motorola, those are four minor handsets that make up a very small part of their range. The majority of their phones are either branded as Droids in the US (which is technically a Verizon Wireless brand), or Milestone/RAZR/Atrix in the rest of the world. Admittedly, most of those are still pretty stupid-sounding, and this branding is one of many things (along with Motoblur, encrypted bootloaders, and a poor history of updates) that I hope will change after Motorola is controlled by Google. But it also doesn't sound very condom-like to me.
 
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fluffypony

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Vulk said:
Well, if you want to be technical, those Samsung names are carrier-specific brands that are only used in the US, and which only exist because cellular networks in the US have this insane system where they refuse to carry phones with the same names as other networks, even if the actual hardware is the same. Therefore every variant of the Galaxy SII in the US, for example, has a different name. I'm not sure we could even classify those as Samsung brands per se, as opposed to AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile brands.

In the rest of the world, where Samsung gets to decide on their own branding, all their Android phones are sold as variations of the "Galaxy" brand, which is recognisable and consistent, and doesn't exactly scream "condom" to me.

As for Motorola, those are four minor handsets that make up a very small part of their range. The majority of their phones are either branded as Droids in the US (which is technically a Verizon Wireless brand), or Milestone/RAZR/Atrix in the rest of the world. Admittedly, most of those are still pretty stupid-sounding, and this branding is one of many things (along with Motoblur, encrypted bootloaders, and a poor history of updates) that I hope will change after Motorola is controlled by Google. But it also doesn't sound very condom-like to me.
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You're right - this is super consistent and really helps me understand what I'm getting: Galaxy Nexus, Galaxy Y Pro, Galaxy Y, Galaxy Pro, i7500 Galaxy, Galaxy Apollo, Galaxy A, Galaxy S, Galaxy S II, Galaxy Fit, Galaxy Nexus S, Galaxy Ace, Galaxy Mini.

You are also correct when it comes to Motorola. They are slightly more consistent (Droid, Droid 2, Droid 3, Droid 4).

In my opinion (and it is only an opinion), this is the most convoluted, horrible branding mess I've seen in a long time. Users want to be able to easily identify a product and its subsequent iterations, and there should be no carrier rebranding. If Samsung had a phone, a tablet, and maybe a weird inbetween tabletphonething, they could easily create three strong brand names and lock that down with numbers on the end to show the generation of product. Users will even create their own generational conventions where none exists (eg. 1st and 2nd gen Intel Core i3/i5/i7 processors, late-2010 MacBook Air, etc.) But the lack of consistent, strong branding is working in Samsung/HTC/Motorola's disfavour in the mass market.

Let me clarify what I mean by that. Android is achieving market dominance through raw sales. So what is happening is that manufacturers are putting their regional sales staff in BestBuy and other retailers, and non-techies are walking in and buying a phone from the sales girl with the shortest skirt. This is great for Android, as all the people that don't know or don't care about what they're buying will likely end up with an Android handset. It isn't great for manufacturers, as they're needing to invest more money in regional marketing to compete with each other. Oddly enough, some laptop manufacturers have been doing this since forever. Before Lenovo even bought the Thinkpad brand up, and after they dumped the numbered series types, IBM had the X series (ultra portable) and the T series (premium, high-end). More recently they have introduced the SL series (more affordable for the SME market) and the W series (big, widescreen, desktop replacements). That is consistency, because even if I don't know which model I need, I can easily identify with a series.
 
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Vulk

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fluffypony said:
You're right - this is super consistent and really helps me understand what I'm getting: Galaxy Nexus, Galaxy Y Pro, Galaxy Y, Galaxy Pro, i7500 Galaxy, Galaxy Apollo, Galaxy A, Galaxy S, Galaxy S II, Galaxy Fit, Galaxy Nexus S, Galaxy Ace, Galaxy Mini.
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I don't disagree with you. When I say "consistent", I mean in the sense that all Samsung Android products are branded as "Galaxy"-something. But they could certainly a much better job of simplifying and differentiating their products.

I think if I were in charge of a major Android handset company, I would use a four-handset strategy: a big & expensive flagship, a small & cheap budget phone, and offer both with the option of a hardware keyboard. Maybe keep last year's flagship around as an intermediate model, thereby saving on design and production costs.
 
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fluffypony

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Vulk said:
I don't disagree with you. When I say "consistent", I mean in the sense that all Samsung Android products are branded as "Galaxy"-something. But they could certainly a much better job of simplifying and differentiating their products.

I think if I were in charge of a major Android handset company, I would use a four-handset strategy: a big & expensive flagship, a small & cheap budget phone, and offer both with the option of a hardware keyboard. Maybe keep last year's flagship around as an intermediate model, thereby saving on design and production costs.
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I full agree - and give them all different names, even if you don't number the generation at the end. You could build your entire marketing strategy around what device X can do that the others in your range can't, and disregard what all the other manufacturers are doing. Samsung spend too much time creating adverts to mock Apple without explaining to their fanbase which Samsung device they should be choosing.
 
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Vulk

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By the way, from my perspective as a consumer rather than a manufacturer of Android phones, I consider my Galaxy Nexus to be the best smartphone I've ever used. For my needs, it works better than either the iPhone 4S or the Lumia 800. (Which is not to say those are not excellent products in their own, right of course.)

I assume you think this means I am suffering from some form of Marxian false consciousness brought on by the hegemonic mind control power of Google. Good luck with that...
 
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fluffypony

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Vulk said:
By the way, from my perspective as a consumer rather than a manufacturer of Android phones, I consider my Galaxy Nexus to be the best smartphone I've ever used. For my needs, it works better than either the iPhone 4S or the Lumia 800. (Which is not to say those are not excellent products in their own, right of course.)

I assume you think this means I am suffering from some form of Marxian false consciousness brought on by the hegemonic mind control power of Google. Good luck with that...
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Not at all - I think it's important to understand that your needs are and choose the best device based on that. But you're technically inclined and you know what your needs are - you don't need branding. They could call it the Samsung s913749230A and you'd know what you're looking for:)
 
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