Google Trends ranks Android lowest

February 18th, 2008, 10:12 am · Post a Comment · posted by Kevin Sablan

The Google Trends tool shows people were less likely to use Google to search for “android” than other major smartphone platforms.

The chart shows”search volume” data through Feb. 14. The last “news reference volume” point falls on Jan. 24, when Network World wrote about Japan’s NTT DoCoMo backing Android.

The tool only allows five phrases to be compared in one chart, so we excluded Palm because of the number of results that could be related to the inside of a hand. Linux was excluded because of the interest in the desktop version of that OS.

This does not mean that people are just interested in Android. As Google points,that “instead of measuring overall interest in a topic, Google Trends shows users’ propensity to search for that topic on Google on a relative basis.”

Also, keep in mind:

A person searching for “android” might have been looking for a sci-fi robot.
The iPhones and Blackberry brands are recognized as devices, so searches for those terms don’t necessarily reflect an interest in systems that power those gadgets.
Trends is still in the Google Labs “technology playground.” The company says that Trends is “in its early stages of development” and its results “may contain inaccuracies.”

Reader comments: We want this to be a place where people discuss and debate ideas that foster stronger communities. We expect people to differ -- judgment and opinion are subjective -- and we encourage free speech and the exchange of ideas. But you are participating in a community that is intended for all of our users and we prohibit profanity, vulgarity, racial, sexual and homophobic remarks, threats, harassment and personal attacks. Here's the full User Agreement. Thank you for making this a safe place worth preserving and sharing.