Analysts Discuss Value Proposition of the Droid X

 

Still, Gartner Research analyst Ken Dulaney said Motorola needed to make the Droid X for competitive reasons versus Apple, particularly the vaunted new iPhone 4, which is currently troubled by antenna issues.

"It's what Motorola needed to do," Dulaney said. "They were sorely missing a slate form factor to compete more directly with Apple. It looks pretty good. I like the buttons on the EVO better ... not narrow and skinny like the Droid X."

Dulaney ventures that the Droid X may be what consumers who purchased the original Droid probably really wanted had it been available, adding that it "may stop some of the bleed to AT&T for the iPhone." Ouch for Android.

Industry analyst Jack Gold noted that the Verizon launch even this week is a poke in the eye to Apple, which launched the iPhone 4 a day later on June 24.

"It basically says, 'See, we can get some really popular phones to compete with you. You'd better get the iPhone on our network pretty quick.' Of course, Verizon wins either way."

So now it seems the hot smartphones for the summer range from the 3.5-inch iPhone 4 to the 4.3-inch Droid X. That's some serious diversity, which is great for consumer choice.

"One sign that the smartphone market is maturing is that vendors are further segmenting the market," Greengart said. "There was always a split between the high-end, halo products and lower-priced smartphones, and now we are seeing multiple options in each category."

Gleacher and Company analyst Mark McKecknie said the new Droid X and Verizon's corresponding Droid ad campaign will help Motorola's new Droid X sell 1.2 million units in the third quarter.

Not too shabby, but a drop in the bucket compared with the reported 1.5 million iPhone 4 devices shipped in one day.

Stay tuned for the Motorola Droid 2, the heavily anticipated sequel to the original Droid from last November.