It may be hard to believe, but Android is starting to get the upper hand on Apple products.
Samsung is the world’s largest phone maker. The company has been living up to that by providing its users with phones that are easy to use and technologically superior. The company was the first to introduce a phone that will be the cutting edge of the new “foldable phone” technology: the Galaxy Fold. When folded, this phone will have a 4.6-inch screen which can be expanded into a 7.3-inch, tablet-like display. Another prominent feature of the phone is its six cameras: a cover camera, three rear cameras and two front-facing cameras.
While Samsung is rolling out new phones faster than some customers can handle, the phones also get more expensive with each new upgrade. The Fold is estimated to cost $1,980, twice the starting price of the Galaxy Note 9. This price is better than its foldable phone competitor, Huawei, whose starting price is $2,600, but still not a reasonable price that most people are willing to pay. Some customers might buy it just to be on the cutting edge of new technology, but others will need to experience firsthand why these phones will be superior.
Apple has been talking about the possibility of foldable phones since 2014, but it hasn’t acted as quickly on the idea as Samsung. The Fold also provides a plastic screen in order to achieve its versatility, while Apple has been dead-set on keeping its phone screens glass. That’s how Samsung was able to release a foldable phone so quickly.
Apple’s Gorilla Glass manufacturer, Corning, is working on a bendable version of glass that could arrive by 2020. By then, other phone competitors may already be ahead of the curve with a cheaper, plastic-like version of the same concept, leaving Apple in the dust.
The comparison between the two companies’ current products still shows Samsung winning out in many of the layout categories. Android phones win out in most of the general provided apps, including the contacts and email apps. Samsung has made both of these more user-friendly by providing large pictures of contacts and allowing easy access to multiple email accounts quickly. Typing is also easier on Androids because of the access to swipe gestures to change between letters and having punctuation on the same screen as the letters.
Consumers are starting to see the benefits of switching to Samsung, as is apparent in the stock market for both companies. Apple’s shares have changed very little, with the stock only up 9 percent this year. Samsung’s stock is up more than 20 percent. Unless Apple’s foldable phones garner enough attention to beat Samsung with something that no other phone manufacturer has done before, many may just switch to Samsung for good.
Charlotte Caldwell is a freshman studying journalism at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to talk to Charlotte? Email her at cc670717@ohio.edu.
