According to those who are in-the-know in the electronics and software world, there are Four Horsemen of Tech – just like in the apocalypse. These four are seen to be the heralds of new and landscape-changing technologies, the yardsticks by which other brands and manufacturers are measured. They would be very familiar to anyone who has ever owned electronics (or who has at least been online): Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google. These brands are seen as the creators of technologies; they have power over the online world that could shape how things progress in the web in the coming years.
It may come as a surprise to many people that Microsoft is not on the list. Microsoft, after all, produced Windows, which a vast majority of the educated world still uses as their operating system of choice. But according to a recent analysis of Kleiner Partners’ view of what could be happening to the technology world as of this year, Microsoft doesn’t seem to be featuring strongly, especially with the falls it had following the launch of the Windows 8 RT and the Surface. It doesn’t even rank as a "fifth" horseman. Samsung, however, does.
Samsung’s Strength
When consumers hear this particular brand name, it immediately brings to mind household electronics such as LCD screens, televisions, and of course smartphones. As of today, it’s a commonly known brand especially after its struggle against Apple’s dominance in the smartphone market. This not just includes the infamous lawsuit; Samsung also dared to face Apple head-on in the smartphone field with its Galaxy series (which remain as a highly-regarded business phone series).
Samsung has proven over the past few years that it is not only a contender – but it is a worthy enough rival to the other big names that rule the online and electronics world today. It is the only non-American company among the "horsemen" (Samsung is South Korean in its origins), and it isn’t even a technology company (notwithstanding successes from Samsung Electronics).
However, there is no doubt Samsung is the one to look out for. Some have even gone as far as suggesting that Samsung is the most important tech company of this year.
Samsung and Android
Samsung currently stands as the biggest name in Android’s list of partners (surprisingly surpassing even Google, which is responsible for creating Android in the first place). Android currently stands as the most widely used mobile OS in the planet, dominating more than 50% of the market. And, as Samsung has the biggest chunk of the Android pie in terms of consumer usage (which goes from 40-50%), the company’s partnership with Android makes both sides extremely formidable.
Samsung’s version of the Android is the most familiar to users, and the company is clearly investing in a lot more innovation with regards to the flexibility of Android when compared to other brands of mobile electronics phone services that also use Android. Even Amazon’s tweaked version of Android set for the Kindle Fire cannot compare to what Samsung has done with it.