good point there. but it will always be back to the end user. iphone and bb are for those who are chasing the 'popularity' . the rest of them are just regular user who doesn't know how to utilize even 50% of their hp. honestly how many user are using the 3G connectivity? most android user here are not looking to utilise 50% or 75% of their hp but 110% . im guessing most of android fan actually use a free-os before.

Yes, because that's what happened with Windows Mobile. Sure, underlying core is the same, but when the UI people decided that this or that does not work, or they disagree with the core system UI implementation, they started making their own changes.

Look an WinMo. At first, it was just small changes, extra shortcuts on the home screen. Then HTC came out with Touch. After that Touch 3D. Sony Ericsson came up with the Xperia panels. Not to mention SPB's own UI customization hat pretty well worked with all the phones.

If we were to be honest, should android wanted to do that, they could have just focused on making the best core for the OS as possible. From the first day, you should be able to store your programs on SD card, full bluetooth implementation, wifi support, true color support, multitouch support, OTA support. In short, make it on par with whatever else you have on the market. Instead, they played the UI game with a half-baked core, adding support as they coded it. Add the customization on the UI that the companies are doing? Bear in mind that this is open source. Nothing prevents the manufacturers from actually coming in and playing around with the core functionalities of the OS.

What you have are phones that cannot beat a Nokia in terms of basic core functionality of a smartphone. Hero don't support this, Legend does. What Legend don't got, Desire will have. Add Motorola and Sony Ericsson to the mix, then Samsung?

If you are a tech guy, you'd be buying all those sets. HTC laughs its way to the bank.

In short, I don't recommend the Android sets anymore, at least until they have all the core functionality a smartphone should have. (Biskut Z. This is one ore thing - Just give the version number lar. Copy ubuntu with all the animal names what for)

What is the point pointing fingers at other OS, thought we are talking about Android here, and how its going to take over the world?

Lets put it simple, ask any developers what OS you would like to develop and it'll be whatever that makes them lots of money. That crown is held by the Iphones. But here's the thing, what if the phone is good enough that you don't need extra apps because you are covered fully already? You don't need the functionality to be extended, because they are built in? That would be the Nokias. Or Sony Ericsson or Motorola or Samsung. Calendar, Alarm, Browser, Networking, Email all built in. Wonder why E71 is still selling?

Again, people are fond of saying, Iphone got millions of apps, but how many are quality? Android market really is nothing to shout about. Heck, some actually have the cheek to ask you to ROOT your phones first, (thereby voiding warranty) before they can use the app? Its like sure, your car can add radio one, but you gonna have to drill a hole in your dashboard, connect some wiring to the battery, and oh, void the warranty.

The problem with android is that you don't have the basics right. Try using a Hero, and try calling services that need dialing tones. I learned that the hard way when I was trying to call my HQ concerning a patient that needed immediate GL from the company. It simply refuses to co-operate. Tried to find the speakerphone, so I can dial without having to hear the instruction, can't find the speakerphone button. Its that intuitive.

Or hero don't have speakerphone. Too angry to find out.

Cannot set to just use 3G. No mac support. In fact, don't think it has linux support either. Putting the cable in only turns your phone into a very expensive thumb driver.

You see, I am an informed user. My customers are informed users. And we all have the same question. Why this? Why this incremental updates? Adding functionality as you go along? Forcing us to upgrade the phones just to get more functionalities?

That's when it hit me. Android is positioned as the free man's answer to the big bad iphone. In reality, its nothing more than an excuse for manufacturers to make more money. If they weren't, HTC Magic users are going to get Eclair upgrades, but they are not. We are talking about official updates here. Look at Xperia X10. Sony Ericsson finally had to publicly promise that buyers would bet 2.1 updates. Why? People were holding back from buying because they wanted to know, am I getting 2.1?

They had no initial intention to upgrade to 2.1. They wanted you to but Xperia Next. Why else would a snapdragon handset be missing Hardware Multitouch Support?

Get the basics right. Get the best core now, instead of adding on, because that could only mean CODE BLOAT! You know, the same accusation leveled on WinMo? Get some control over your app market, and make the coverage for it wider. Then maybe the novice and the normal will be better off buying Android phones.

Jumping into the fire again  .

Before I go any further, I saw some posts that thinks of me more of an Apple Fanboi, which is really far from the truth. I'm just a tech junkie, to say the least. My association with Linux also goes way back. Anyone remember Caldera's OpenLinux? I used version 2.3 by buying the Dummies box Set. At that time no one knows what Linux is, and internet connection was at the top speed of 56k shriekers.

They got this video ad you can play. How it describes OpenLinux as the cure for all your problem, how it makes your computer run better, how you can get your boss to kiss you on the mouth with gratitude (I'm not kidding).

The frustration was getting it to work. One of the hallmarks of Windows is it is pretty much guaranteed that it will work with any and all hardware you throw at it - Not linux, and still there is no real and easy way to install needed drivers unless its baked into the distro. I go back from time to time just to see if things have changed - When broadband downloads become possible, I tested any and all that I could get my hands on to. Vectorlinux, DSL, PC-BSD, Ubuntu.

My experience is this. What's the worse fanboi on the planet? I would say Apple. Running a close second? Open source, especially Linux.

Why? Because it is populated by the snobbiest IT know it all one the planet. People ask Windows dumb questions every day. In the forums, telephone support, same question over and over again, and rarely do they scold, or call the person an idiot.

Try doing that on a linux forum. I did, to my detriment. I was called a bloody noob, lazypants, google it, etc etc. It would seem that the linux people wants only the smarter ones to use it. The rest of us sheep could go and use Windoze, become mactards and all that. And still people wonder why no one wants to use linux?

Feature bloat is another thing to consider with linux. DSL proved that linux is not that big, problem is because you want to offer functionality, you needed all that bloat in there. Add feature = Adding bloat. Case in point, Firefox - A split from Mozilla that wanted a lean, fast and responsive browser. The first iteration was 4mb of download. Now? How's 3.6 working out for you?

Android is going that way very fast now. Announcement after announcement about whats in 1.5 that will be improved on 1.6 and what 2.1 will be improved by 2.2. Put yourself in the developers shoe. Okay, now have to figure out what works in 2.1 and what won't in 2.2. 2.3? 2.4? What version should I develop for?

Go figure it out yourself, because you don't have a stable platform. You have a platform evolving so fast that softwares for the phones I sold today cannot work on the Hero I sold 4 months ago. And then you have all the promises - Buy my phones, we'll upgrade to 2.1. Honest. Before they even put out the 2.1 upgrade, Google announced 2.2.

The software engineers must have a fit - Remember, they have to push out an update that is stable and will work with all the phones that they put out. Therefore, they would only work with stable codes, not one that is new to them.

That is what puzzles me about Android and Chrome. Google have a big war chest - Yes, creating an OS from scratch does not really make senses with all the patents floating around, but at least they could put out the best OS, and timeline the thing. How hard is it to list down all the features you need to support, all API's that you can put in the SDK and make the code stable enough for at least 1 year?

In the end, users become like my brother, wondering why Bluetooth DUN suddenly don't work.

Try telling the fanboi's that, see what responses you'd get.

Platform stability has never been, and I don't think will ever be a hallmark of Linux. Simply because as I have said the ego of the people involved. Android wasn't the first Linux based OS, its the first to be backed by big money released to the general public via manufacturers. Look at what happens, the wanted to put in in everything from phones to mobile computers, disregarding that the OS was design to function as a touchscreen phone operating system.

Guess what? To make it work on MID's with keyboard, you change the input system. To make it recognize USB ports, you add more code. Make it work with touchpads? USB pendrive? Yet that was what is being talked about when Android first came on the scene, it was picked up by OSS evangelist and used by computer manufacturers as a hammer against Microsoft (You no discount, I put out netbook using Android).

All the while nobody seemed interested in addressing fundamental flaws in the OS. Not flaws from a technical point of view, but usability? When netbook first came out, it had Linux it it. 2 years down the road you couldn't find one with that option if you turn Lowyat Plaza upside down. The reason was the need for the general public to use something that is familiar and just works without much complaints. The reason was there was too many fragmented application of Linux, one from Acer is not the same as one from Asus, and it offered no better or less performance anyway. Imagine, with some management you could actually ran the worst Microsoft OS, Vista on netbook with more or less the same performance, tested this on a HP Mini 1001tu. Because of bad rep, they didn't go to Linux, no, they went and used Windows XP. What does that say about Linux in general?

To a certain extent, we are now seeing that with Android. HTC basically saying my SenseUI is better than the default screen of 2.1. Will Android succeed? It will, just because now manufacturers have something they can sell to you, which is the OS. It's the flavor of the month. But honestly, what would happen if Apple let loose the iPhone? No restriction, no contract, sell to anybody.

Some op-eds I read on the internet put down one interesting fact - In the US, people want the iPhone. They don't want AT&T, which comes with the iPhone.