In the past 2 years, I have tried most types of smart phones.

I’ve tried Windows Mobile 6.1, iphone, Symbian S60, and just recently, android 2.2 (on a HTC desire).

I must say I’ve been keen to try android since I first heard about it a few years ago… and was frustrated at how long it took to be adopted by phone makers.

But now, its finally a mainstream product, and very successful as well.

Its great to see such a wide range of devices (first phones, but now tablets as well), and I cannot see any reason for android to progress onto mainstream PCs as well.

After having used an Android phone for about 2 months now, the only negative part I have encountered, is that there is no application that is capable of showing most media files… In order to view a MKS video of a downloaded documentary, I needed to use “Any Video Converter” to convert the video into an mp4 file that the phone could use.

This shows that the Android platform is still developing, and that some areas are still “unpolished”.

Compared to the propriety platforms like IOS (iphone) and Windows Mobile 7 (microsoft), it now has enough developer backing, that it will continue to gather momentum faster than the Apple and Microsoft offerings.

What about Nokia?

I recently heard that Nokia has effectively dumped Symbian for Windows Mobile 7. In my mind, Symbian was never going to be able to make the transition to smart phones, but WM7 is also unlikely to gather much support… not because it is inferior, but because past versions were very inadequate, and the latest WM7 is probably 4 years too late to change peoples mind about Microsoft smart phones (even I thought: oh no, not another weak attempt by Microsoft).

So, it looks like the great might of Nokia (and I was a big fan of Nokia phones before moving to smart phones) is now going to gradually fade, unless they can make a good decision on which smart phone OS to support (my opinion is that Android would have been the best bet, as it would have strengthened both Nokia and the Android movement).

Anyway, I’m finding Android great to use (I just wish the battery life on my phone was better), with lots of great apps, and a simple, yet powerful interface. You can just use it as it stands (eg for the technophobes), or you can customise it in so many ways.

Keep an eye out for my list of great app for android… coming soon!