The Verizon deal is going to make or break them.

If they create an arrangement that allows Android to show off it's strongpoints without Verizon bloating the thing down with crapware... Then I think they'll do well.

Trouble is... If Verizon's new Android phone is bloated, bogged, and otherwise buggered with VZW ridiculum, it's going to send a bad signal to a lot of folks. VZW is planning to flagship this new Android phone, from the look of things. If they work this hard to make the phone big, but do a bad job on the phone, folks are going to look at Android as a failure.

Sure, the G1 has been out for more than a year, but it's not exactly a common device. Verizon looks to be going for a more mainstream product here, that means a larger consumer exposure, and more of a penalty if folks dislike it.

I've got my fingers crossed for Android on this one, because I like seeing the open source group do well. ^_^

i like android, and i know they have huge potential to take over the smartphone industry, but they do have a lot of work to do. I own a g1 and loved it, still think its a decent phone but it is soooo slow. The hardware is very lacking. Right now there is nothing out there worth upgrading to, not even this holiday season imo. I am rooted with cyaogens 1.6 donut

the moment by samsung looks decent, and the sholes is ok, but both will still be laggy im assuming. Ill wait for the archos phone, and maybe the sony xperia. Hopefully they will have more flagship models in the near future. I dont want to upgrade this year to just have to upgrade again in 6 months.

Android might even surpass symbian in near future... at least i hate symbian os (i own a nokia with symbian) and im looking my next phone. With my next phone im going with android phone that isn´t nokia made.
Nokia phones are just too fragile and they wont admit they are, so warranty is voided if phone is broken and software upgrade is 20€/$ (at least for symbian phones).

i also thought about iphone, but as long as apple wants to control MY phone,i think i will pass. I want to be able to run my own software in MY phone with out begging approval from apple or any other hw manufacturer.

Android just seems only good choice if you want to run software that wont come with the phone.

im frothing at the bit for the verizon android phones. my iphone envy use to be strong but after seeing a thousand iphones with cracked screens and living in new york city where you cant even stream pandora over the iphone without it lagging out my envy has all but vanished.

and another thing, my phone = my rules, not apples rules. give the consumer what they want apple, come on!

@georgeluv

What exactly do you thing Apple is holding back on? If you follow things, Apple has actually had to threaten AT&T with legal action on a couple occasions now for not holding up their end of the contract by supporting all the phone's features.

If anyone's to blame for the iPhone being locked down, it's AT&T, not Apple.