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Android and DROID

Categories: Android, Ideas and rants
By: , IntoMobile
Thursday, December 1st, 2011 at 2:48 AM
Android and DROID

I was thinking about this for quite some time now and decided to share my thoughts with you, our dear readers.

You see I never quite understood Verizon’s decision to call (some of) its Android-based smartphones DROID phones. Sure, it’s shorter but it does add a bit of confusion among the consumers. What’s wrong with the “default” phone names? Milestone aka the original DROID phone used to sell in Europe just as well it did in the U.S. The idea may’ve been to emphasize it’s not just a single device but a whole family of smartphones. In that sense, we’ve seen a number of DROID phones released in the last few years, including DROID 2, DROID 3, DROID X, DROID Charge, DROID Eris, DROID Incredible, DROID Bionic, DROID RAZR and finally DROID Galaxy Nexus.

But then there’s HTC Rezound and HTC Rhyme – why they’re not branded DROID, too? Just when I thought I figured out the pattern — all Android phones are called DROID — Verizon unveiled the two HTC phones (and maybe some others I can’t think of right now). Why these two are not DROID phones as well? Because they’re not (pure) black? Really don’t get it – hence I’m writing this in hope some of you could help me out figure out what the marketing folks of Verizon are smoking thinking. What do you say?

About The Author

Dusan Belic

Dusan has been using smartphones since their introduction and is now following the latest trends in the industry. The "convergence" is what he's most excited about, and writing about it is the next logical thing to do. He thinks that using a smartphone is what everyone who cares about their time should do. In addition to his interests in mobile phones, Dusan also loves to experiment with the latest web and mobile 2.0 services. The idea of accessing and managing your information from any device no matter where you are simply amazes him. Whether it's an online to-do list, note taking service or a video sharing social network, he's there to try it out. He admits though, he's still searching for the ultimate web-based organizational tool, which "sings" perfectly with the mobile PIM application. Dusan used to run SymbianWatch.com which later became part of IntoMobile. He lives in Serbia, South-East Europe, from where he edits the site on a daily basis.

  • Branding

    Because it’s cool. Verizon has found a way to separate their Android phones from the rest of the US carriers. You know droid marketing is effective when average consumers think it’s the same as Android in general. Like with many consumer electronics, that means when they buy a phone, they’re going to want one that says Droid because it’s a well-known brand name.

  • Anonymous

    Agree with Branding. Verizon pumped about $100 million behind the Droid branding when it kicked off and it did help those stand out. To this day, regular people I know refer to Android phones on all carriers as a “Droid phone.” As for why the Rezound isn’t part of it, I have no idea