The new Skype for Android is out, but...and it's a very big, BUT. The BUT is the big problem with Android that developers face. Device fragmentation.
The problem here is that not all Android devices are created equal, and that means that some apps only work on some devices, making adoption, espeically virally driven adoption very, very hard. This is the same issue that Symbian developers faced before, even for Nokia devices, but that was usually a serial release issue, not a simultaneous release problem as often.
This further supports the Apple model of "no licensees." If you notice though, all the Google apps work fine on Android devices, so the ability to keep things standard is there. That said, it will be interesting to see how long it takes for Google Talk with voice and video to become ubiquitous on all Android devices, so I guess the problem even hits home.
Andy - I enjoy your comments but that is not very deep analysis. Facetime doesn't run real well on a Iphone 2g or 3g or 3gs or Ipad 1 either. Not even Apple with its closed system can make everything run on everything.
The incredible diversity of the Android platform means you can buy a $49 Android phone off contract on MetroPCS and run tons of great software, if not all software. You can also buy an $800 phone on an expensive plan. Which is why Android outsells Iphone 2 to 1.
Apple's model of "no licensees" is great but necessarily or intentionally restricts its market to only the high end. For the rest of the world who can't afford an expensive phone coupled to a very expensive plan, Apple is not even an option.
Posted by: James Torres | June 30, 2011 at 12:30 PM
According to the market entry, it runs on 2.1 and above so it should run on most phones. It's only for two way video calling that you need 2.3 (and a front facing camera, which might be a bigger hurdle compared to running gingerbread - a Desire HD can get a 2.3 upgrade but a Nexus One can not get a front facing camera).
Posted by: Typepad | June 30, 2011 at 08:14 AM