While Cupertino and Mountain View are battling for market share, a chilling wind has already blown out of Shenzhen.
How do you like the final episode of the sixth season of Game of Thrones? Class, isn't it? Okay, let's not spoil the impression. In my opinion, the plot of the series has a lot in common with the smartphone industry. In fact, many of the opinions you come across on the Internet about the high-tech industry are similar to the speculations of the show's fans, who put forward various theories about upcoming events, who will disappear next, which players will take the lead, etc.
Speaking of the mobile electronics industry, many theories about the victory of one manufacturer over another and how to achieve this result are as far-fetched as the idea of an army of half-naked Valyrian warriors flying on dragons at the ready with giant swords, who came from the past through a time portal with the goal of destroying the Lannister before how they would take over the Iron Throne and thereby rewrite the history of the future.
Will not work. But let me be hired to write scripts for HBO.
I realize it's fun to watch Google's endless war on Apple and scrutinize every product and OS update and predict how any minor innovation or technical breakthrough will benefit one side or the other. For geeks, this is akin to a popular sport. We pour streams with pleasure blood letters, publicly discussing incestuous litigation. We are happy to watch our favorite / hated devices from the best / worst manufacturers in our opinion succeed or fail miserably in the market.
So much effort is wasted aimlessly by dramatic actors, who are only waiting for lightning-fast collapse of hopes and instant death. We observe the balance of power, which alternately passes from one family to another. But the heroes do not know that a giant army of ice zombies is approaching from behind the Wall, which is about to kill all living things. I also remember that a beautiful blonde with three adult dragons, a huge army of Dothraki savages and Impeccable Ones sailing through the Narrow Sea in the impressive fleet of the Iron Islands. But let us briefly dwell on the analogy under consideration. The huge army ice zombies are led by the White Walkers, who (as the show says) were created millennia ago by the Children of the Forest during the war with the first humans. As they conquered, the White Walkers created more and more zombies for their army. They had at their disposal an almost inexhaustible supply of soldiers. The latter have become a renewable resource. An analogy, remember?
Akin to the Children of the Forest who created the White Walkers, Google created Android a third-party device manufacturing business. The OS got open source. It is freely available. Despite possible malicious actions by some developers, Google is unlikely to 'close' future versions of its operating system. Be that as it may, the genie is out of the bottle, and AOSP can be recompiled into a fork based on the original. Infinite Android – Third-party devices may be released without Google's knowledge and influence. Of course, the latter can release their super-Nexus and enter the market with it in an attempt to distract us from fragmentation Android, conjure and try to steal market share from Apple. This is more than likely.
Rejected by everyone some time ago Apple, thanks to its ease of use iPhone and iPad, it was quietly snagged and liked by specialists of various professions and the management of large companies. As we watch the flow of the company's devices change the technological landscape of the business world, this battle is certainly interesting to watch, but it will not stop the army of ice ghouls. And by that I mean very skilled and powerful Chinese giants like Huawei, Xiaomi and ZTE. They do not come from the north, but from Shenzhen. And they look, by the way, damn impressive.
I submit to my ice masters. Join me in your ranks, some medical benefits are worth what.
What about Apple? I am sure that the company is aware of the planned offensive of this army, they see stagnation in business with iPhone and know that for some time they will be able to earn on a loyal user base. But they have no way to defeat the invading hordes. If they go to this war, they will lose to smithereens. They understand that not all people can afford to pay $ 600 for a smartphone. With a perfectly adequate $ 200 alternative, most consumers will vote with their wallet. Apple knows they are making premium devices and that they have gained the most market share for themselves for the most part. The company is now in preventive mode.
A lot of people can't buy a top-end device, and this fact won't change any amount of fan fiction about new fantastic devices from Apple or Google from a bunch of goofy millennial tech reviewers who don't understand anything about mass production or implementation of a global supply chain. . Chinese companies will revolutionize the modern mobile electronics industry. There is no doubt about it. Apple and Google have come close to the end of the unknown period. The enemy will completely ruin the current smartphone industry and no one will stop him, not even the one who took over the Iron Throne in Washington.
The only defense (I bet that Apple will use it first) is to innovate and move towards the next technology boom and create a new market from scratch until it is overwhelmed by the mentioned undead. What will happen in this market? Possibly wearable electronics. Perhaps augmented or virtual reality. Maybe the next wave of the 'Internet of Things'. Certainly not smartphones. Ice zombies will not go anywhere. They have always been here. Now they are mobilized and stronger than ever. Who is ready for the invasion? I'm starting to learn Ghoul Chinese.
Original material by Jason Perlow
The author of the material is rather enthusiastic about talking about Chinese manufacturers, the topic can be traced in a series of articles. In them, one can trace the idea that the 'ice zombies' from Shenzhen in the future may claim to be one of the main players in the industry. Perhaps the matter is in the author's personal preferences, but the current level of development of the devices of the mentioned manufacturers is gradually approaching that of the flagships of the already recognized favorites of the market.
I was amused by the parallel drawn, nevertheless, there is a rational kernel in it and moments that resonate with the series. The invasion of Chinese smartphones threatens to radically change the current balance of power and looks like it will go to everyone, especially those manufacturers who do not find a niche for themselves for innovative development in time. The development of such areas can help companies differentiate in the market and withstand ruthless competitors. Skeptics argue that Chinese manufacturers have yet to gain a proper user base, but that movement is well under way. What position do you take, dear readers, what feelings prevail in the context of the described 'invasion' – positive or rather negative?