android is finally here...just to see now if my predictions are going to come true

i've been pretty excited about this since i first heard of android and what they were trying to do with it. now it's finally here and it actually looks like it won't be a major disappointment. actually, if my logic works out it should be a direct competitor to the iphone. how can anything compete with the iphone and it's already huge lead in the consumer smart-phone market? let me explain.

when it comes to technology i have two main theories about future areas:
1. it's all about being open.
- the more freedom you give developers, the better a product you will have
2. if you can make money by giving it away for free you force your competitors to do the same

some will say, "look at symbian, they tried this and aren't anywhere near the iphone." except this is a different time than the old market. just last month my sister, a poor college student, got a blackberry pearl with internet. you couldn't say that about any average consumer 5 years ago. the new internet phone market is taking over.

but "how can android ever compete with the iphone?" well android has a few, very key, advantages that the iphone doesn't:
1. android isn't a phone, it's a platform
- yes, the G1 may not have the same features that the iphone does, but another phone will
- android can be run on cheaper phones, so almost anyone who can purchase a phone should be able to eventuall afford a phone that runs android. this would let anyone buy marketplace apps(i.e. app store) that their phone can utilize

2. android isn't locked down to one carrier.
- soon everyone will have access to an android phone, maybe even At&t folk

3. android is an open java platform
- android developers have millions of java applications to choose from they can almost copy over to make new android apps
- android gives developers much more access to their architecture giving them the ability to make better applications

i could go on, but i think those alone will give android enough juice to be a major competitor. don't get me wrong, the iphone is great for people who want everything simple and to 'just work' where android phones may not be so simple. but if you want to truely 'own' your phone, have a ton of options for produtivity apps android is the way to go.

either way, both of these phones are making carriers FINALLY change the way they allow access on their networks. it's a change we as consumers have been deserved for a long time and are finally starting to see being realized.