The Little Green Robot.

Way back when in 2008 a company called Google, you may have heard of it, launched the G1. At around the same time, another company called Apple – again you’ve probably heard of it – launched a phone called the 3G and with it the app revolution. While us consumers went mad for the 3G, Google’s G1 failed to set the world alight.

Fast forward four years and Google’s G1 has spawned hundreds of handsets thanks to the free license and smarts of an advanced OS called Android. The wider impact of Android has seen certain manufacturers lose market share (sad face), but also open up the smartphone market to the masses (happy face). It has also given people an Apple alternative (or Apple substitute).

Android is hugely successful. No-one could argue it – well actually they can and they do, but thats not important here. It has driven smartphones into the hands of more consumers than anything else. It hasn’t come without its problems and challenges though. As an open platform it is prone to a few issues, all of which you’ve heard before:

- Fragmentation. Android is victim of its own success, there are so many different versions out there now across so many different devices, with so many different screen sizes, keyboard layouts and hardware buttons that you won’t get the same experience across devices. For the development community this has meant that they often have to pick the top few handsets and optimise for them.

- Security. By making the Marketplace a free-for-all, those nasty people who lurk in the shadows have realised that they can make money from exploiting the will of consumers to want apps. Android has more security issues than the other mobile platforms, and in a world where we store more personal data on our phones than ever before, this is not a good thing. There are obviously ways around this, but for uneducated consumers who don’t read technology sites, they are prone to fall into the honey trap.

- Fragmentation. It really is a bit of an issue. The new Kindle Fire has only gone to add to the fragmentation. It’s Android, but it’s not Android – it’s a little confusing really.

So where do I stand on the Android front? Anyone who has read previous posts will know that I like Apple and want Windows Phone 7 (as a secondary device). Why not Android though?

Well, I once spent two weeks with Android. It was a nice experience and there was plenty to like about it. I’ve even considered getting certain phones, such as the HTC Sensation, but when it comes down to it, there isn’t enough about it to pull me away from Apple (especially with iOS5 notifications coming today). The openness of the platform is both appealing but also worrying. I like knowing that my phone, and the data stored on my phone is safe and secure. I like having a huge ecosystem of games, videos, music, books and accessories to buy.

The recently launched Google Wallet, while tempting isn’t going to be long till the other players catch up and even if they did right away, it will take a few years for NFC to be accepted in enough places that it makes sense to use. Don’t get me wrong, I love the thought of NFC, but it’s not mature yet. It will take time to take off.

When recommending phones to other people, I will always recommend Android as it is a genuinely nice experience. There are friends I’ve persuaded into Android who are genuinely happy with it. The problem I have is that I’m locked into the Apple ecosystem. I could break free, but if I were to, it would have to be for something totally different which Android just doesn’t quite offer.

Robert Haslam, a lifelong fan of technology, cars and design, grew up with the BBC Micro and actually remembers floppy disks when they were floppy. Now all grown up, he works in PR for a mix of technology and marketing firms.