Although the Apple iPhone is still king when it comes to smartphones, a new survey of developers of mobile computing applications shows that the Google Android platform is gaining ground rapidly.
According to a survey of 1,028 developers conducted by Appcelerator, a provider of application development tools that allow developers to create applications that will run on multiple smartphone devices, the Google Android platform is now running almost even with the Apple iPhone in terms of the number of developers that intend to create applications for the platform. In fact, survey results suggest that most developers intend to create applications for both platforms.
However, while Apple and Google are getting the lion’s share of the attention, the study shows that the BlackBerry platform from Research in Motion and the Microsoft Windows Mobile platform are also seeing a resurgence of interest. That resurgence, said Scott Schwarzhoff, vice president of marketing for Appcelerator, is probably attributable to the fact that as the hype cycle wears off on the Apple and Google platforms, developers are rediscovering the value of the installed base of BlackBerry and Microsoft Windows Mobile users.
Perhaps most surprising is how well Apple’s new iPad platform is doing among developers. The iPad still benefits from being a new platform, so it may not sustain its current level of popularity, given its lack of ability to run multiple applications simultaneously, he added.
Although it’s hard to say exactly what kinds of applications developers will create for various mobile computing platforms, Schwarzhoff said the survey indicates a very strong showing for the creation of business applications on all the leading platforms, which he says is a leading indicator of how strategic mobile computing devices will soon be in the enterprise.
Click through to learn more about mobile developers’ thoughts and enthusiasms about competing mobile OS options.
Apple iPhone still leads the pack.
Google Android narrowing the gap rapidly.
A lot of developers still think these platforms are very viable.
Symbian, Palm and others bring up the rear.
Apple’s new iPad tablet platform garners a lot of early support.
