The New Android World in 2015: Developing Apps for All Devices
In June, 2014 at their annual I/O conference, Google made the huge announcement that there are 1 billion Android devices that are in use across the planet.
As of Q3 2014 over 80% of the world’s mobile devices were running Android. This is thanks to the low cost of Android devices and the fact that there is more of a variety in comparison to those running iOS or Windows. And many analysts believe that their lead is set to increase in the future.
We must not forget that the 1 billion figure is made up of smartphones, tablets, smartwatches and other wearables. Sales of all of these types of Android devices are on the rise. As the mobile industry moves to accommodate them, it’s more important than ever that your app is created for phones, tablets and wearables rather than one or the other.
Android Smartphones Are On the Rise
Google’s Android and Chrome chief, Sundar Pichai, also announced that Android phones are checked 100 billion times a day. That gives users 100 billion chances to open their Android app or marketplace, see the listing for your app and become a valuable customer.
According to AppBrain, the most popular apps on Google Play Store are entertainment apps such as those for video streaming services Netflix or Twitch. There also other apps such as FaceQ (which lets users create cute avatars). FaceQ became popular because it fulfilled users’ needs to create well designed avatars. Few other apps had offered this at the time, which is why FaceQ was able to take off and hit the 10 million downloads mark.
You might not want to create an entertainment app but you should still be looking to solve user problems or offer them some sort of benefit. The key here is to offer a solution to a problem; something that’s easily accessible and understandable on the go.
You may want to consider localizing your app too, as sales of Android phones continue to increase in countries like China, Brazil and India. Over 350 million people use Android smartphones in China, 67 million in India and 90% of phones in Brazil run the operating system, making localization in these regions all the more important.
Don’t Forget About Android Tablets
Android tablets have a 62% share of the global tablet market. With figures up from 46% in 2013, you can see that the popularity of Android tablets is very much on the rise.
It’s also estimated that this totals 119 million Android tablets in homes, providing app developers a large active user base to market to. However, as we’ve stressed before in our previous articles about app ideas, you need to consider the market before you come up with an idea.
For example, tablet users are all about entertainment and productivity. The larger, high quality screens of Android tablets mean that users use them to watch videos and do work. The sort of apps that would do well on Android tablets would be video portals or word processors and other apps for business.
The Newest Platform: Android Wearables
They may be small but prepare for Android powered smartwatches and other wearables to really take over in 2015.
Between 2012 and 2013, smartwatch sales jumped from just 0.3 million to 3 million. This is huge considering that Samsung Gear (the market leader in smartwatches) didn’t even launch until September 2013.
So imagine the popularity of smartwatches as we come into 2015, with Google pushing Android Wear, a platform specifically designed for smartwatches and other wearables. Google has partnered up with Motorola, LG, HTC, Asus and Samsung to roll out even more Android Wear devices this year.
You’ll need to consider what the wearables market is looking for. Most wearables are being used as fitness companions and as gadgets that compliment what our smartphones already do. Could a game that offers specific fitness tasks do well on Android Wear devices? Or an app that keeps track of the last ten phone calls and text messages?
As the mobile market changes, it can be difficult to keep up with what’s hot, what’s not and which features will make your Android app a success. Our app development team at EL Passion can help you reach your audience and get noticed in the saturated world of apps.
