T-Mobile’s G1, made by HTC and powered by Google’s Android OS, is on pace to hit half a million sales in Q4, according to CENS.com, a Taiwanese news site. While nowhere near the explosive sales of Apple’s iPhone, which topped a million sales in its first quarter of availability, the expected numbers are more than respectable. And unlike the iPhone, the G1 is just the beginning. Users can expect a series of Android-based phone offerings from various hardware makers and network providers, further upping Android’s presence in the mobile marketplace.
For example, TechCrunch reports that Motorola has expanded its Android development team from 50 to 350, underscoring the vendor’s commitment to the new platform. The same report also cited increased interest in Android from Nokia (which recently acquired Symbian) and Verizon, with representatives from those vendors attending a recent Android developer conference.
Due to the increased choices available for Android, many industry-watchers expect it to at least meet (and perhaps exceed) iPhone’s market share. And in a post explaining that enterprise users of Google Apps can indeed receive push Gmail on the G1, Mobile Computer had this to say about Android’s chances in the enterprise market:
One of the most often-cited reasons for the Mac’s failure to make a dent in the enterprise market was that there was only one supplier for the hardware: Apple. This meant a lack of competition for hardware contracts, something which procurement people in big companies always frown upon. And this is a key advantage of Android: there be multiple suppliers for Android-based phones (unlike both Apple and RIM), making the platform potentially more attractive for corporate customers.
While the G1 hits the market on Oct. 22, and should quickly start racking up holiday sales, Android’s real test will begin once some of these other players hit the market with their own devices.
