Year 2010 has been the year of Smartphone platforms; we saw Cupertino based giant Apple launching its latest version of Smartphone called as iPhone4 that triggered a global sale spree of the phone, and then we saw the ever increasing market share of Google’s Android Platform coming at par with the likes of Apple and other Blackberry OS. Last but not the least is the recent launch of Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 marking the software giant’s come back into the cellphone market.

So with all these multitude of Smartphones software and hardware variants available, the consumers are bound to get confused that to choose what among these ever increasing number of phone platforms. We can see blogosphere full with different kind of reviews about phones and their software reviews. One specific platform that is slowly and steadily making its mark across the worldwide Smartphone Market is the search giant Google’s Android platform.

Android platform is basically an open source mobile operating system that is developed and designed by the search engine giant Google for the Smartphones. Exactly the same as what Linux is for the PC world developers can pour in their share to enhance the performance of the OS and designing applications for it. So a lot of industry people and tech savvy consumers ask these questions; what’s the deal with the Android? Why should I go for the Android? These questions can only be answered if you have a good hindsight about a feature rich mobile operating system and you are very clear, what should be your Smartphones curtailing features.

A lot of mobile phone users specially the Smartphone customers do not possess a thorough grasp over the Android platform and they are hazy in their decision that why should they choose Android over the other popular platforms like Blackberry and Apple iOS. So here are some of the reasons that will help you decide to choose an Android Phone or not.

1. Numerous Phone Choices Available

I think this is the best advantage that Android has over the other cellphone giants that it is available on multitude of cell phone variants. HTC, Samsung, Motorola, Google Phone (Nexus One) and lot others are powered by Google’s Android mobile OS, unlike its adversaries Apple and Blackberry that are solely manufactured and integrated with the OS by their makers.

This diversity in the phone manufacturers that Android enjoys over the other makers makes it a potential get-go from the beginning. This variety offered in the phone platforms make it easy for the customers to choose from different kind of phones offering different features and the biggest advantage that I perceive is the ability of Android powered phones to be available at different price points.

Although, Redmond’s Software giant Microsoft’s Windows Mobile Phone 7 is also available by different manufacturers but it has some limitations (and we are still in a fix that whether it will be a running success or not).

2. Easy Integration to Google’s App and Services

Well, one more substantial thing that the consumers often overlook while opting for Android is that Android powered devices work seamlessly with the majority of Google Applications available out there in the Application Marketplace. It is a very obvious fact that since it is developed by Google so all the integral applications and Google services work awesome on the Phones. For example, T-Mobile G1 which is a Google Android powered handset enables the users to tap into their Google’s email service Gmail whenever they turn on their device and they can quickly skim through their email messages. Moreover, all the Android devices also works very well with lot of other Google Applications like Google Maps Service, Picassa, Google search and even the Google’s Browser.

The easy integration is also available for the contacts transferring as well; the users can now transfer all of their phone contacts to the email service Gmail and in the event that the users switch over to a different Android phone they can retrieve those contacts back onto their handset (seamlessly easy process). Users can upload their Photos Library easily to Picassa. Although, these kinds of services are all also available with the other platforms, but the users do not have to download the apps using Android platform.

3. Loads of Apps Available on the Android Market

It is very much evident that the Android Market is the only Application Market present out there that can be a competitor to its adversary and rival Apple App Store. Apple has almost three times the number of Apps as compared to the Android, but this Google’s platform is catching up slowly and steadily. Android last week announced that it has crossed the 10k mark in the Android market. The application store of Android has an app selection that is almost as much varied as the Apple’s one. The application store contains some of the best Twitter clients that you aren’t gonna find on any other platform, it even contain apps that employ built-in GPS capability for the location finding.

The app store contains categories like social networking, utility apps and productivity apps. One particular category where developers need to work on is the gaming category where Apple’s App store is an undisputed King.

4. Widgets Option

One lacking feature in the Apple’s hottest selling iPhone is the presence of Widgets. Widgets are basically customizable graphical panels that the users can attach on their homescreens. These widgets include Facebook, Calendar, Weather, Toggle Power settings and many more; the users can view all these without having to open a particular application.

5. Open Source Option

The search giant Google is very much committed to the concept of Openness and they have reflected this thing in their Android Platform. Google has made the development tools to be more accessible to developers all over the world, so that they can help in enhancing the platform. Moreover, with the open platform available to the developers, large developing companies like Gameloft or even one person entity can write algorithms and codes for creating interesting applications.

Well rounding it off, I must say that although Android is not a perfect Smartphone platform but it is surely becoming a power house in the field of Smartphones and let’s see whether it will be at par with Apple’s iOS or not.