Technologies

What Google Needs to Do For Android to Overcome Apple and iPhone in 2023

Google’s Android has fallen to second place to Apple’s iPhone and iOS for the first time in over a decade. Here’s what the search giant needs to do to gain back the top spot.

Google has fallen second place to Apple in the Android vs. iPhone war for the first time in over a decade. The free and open-source operating system, which still powers the majority of the world’s phones, can be found on devices from Samsung, OnePlus and Motorola. Even when combined with budget brands such as Nokia, TCL and Blu, Android-loaded handsets can’t outsell the iPhone stateside.

From a global perspective, Apple’s dominance is an outlier. The US, Canada and Japan are the only countries where Apple has an edge over Android. Everywhere else Android leads, usually by a wide margin.

Android falling behind speaks to the cachet Apple has built up around the iPhone franchise. From celebrities photographed at cafes with iPhones to their ears to late-night hosts engaging in repartee with an Apple Watch cuffed to their wrist, Apple products are both function and fashion of America’s aristocratic class. And thanks to iMessage, Apple has created messaging partition, with the «haves» enjoying blue bubble gardens and the «have nots» being relegated to green squalor. Heck, even movie villains can’t be filmed using an iPhone.

But there’s reason to be optimistic about Android’s attempts to retake the crown in the US. Google is building out an ecosystem to surround the Pixel 7, including with the introduction of the Pixel Watch. A Pixel tablet is coming next year. And Android does have its own base of rabid fans — even if they’re not on a Hollywood set.

So what can Google do to make Android relevant in the US again? Here are a few ways.

Double down on ecosystem

Google took too long to release the Pixel Watch, letting the Apple Watch act as a Trojan Horse and keep people locked inside Apple’s garden.

«Apple has such a sticky ecosystem. Especially the Watch, once you buy that watch, you’re locked into an iPhone,» said Techsponential analyst Avi Greengart. Google hasn’t had that up until this year. «And even then, its first watch is really a 1.0 product.»

Google’s slow trudge bringing the Pixel Watch to market means that the Apple Watch remains far ahead. At least now there’s an option for Pixel owners to keep them from feeling left behind.

The US market differs from the rest of the world in that there’s far less competition in the Android space. Concerns about Chinese tech companies tracking American consumers have essentially made it impossible for brands like Huawei, Xiaomi and Oppo to operate in the US. That leaves a handful of brands that can sell alternatives outside of Samsung and Google.

«Having more devices in the market also gives the carriers more choices on devices they can give away for free or do more promotions on,» said Anshel Sag, an analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy.

The lack of manufacturer diversity is only one problem Google is facing. The iPad line continues to remain a popular second-screen device, acting as an internet gateway for both toddlers and the elderly. Only one high-quality Android tablet comes to mind with the Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Plus, but its software is nowhere near as refined as iPad OS, with it often feeling like a big screen version of Android. Google has already announced a «premium» Pixel tablet for 2023, but it really will need to impress to draw in the throngs of consumers trained to look at iPads as the tablet.

Unfortunately, one area Google might not be able to offer a viable competitor to Apple is in laptop and home computing. Google’s Chromebooks are excellent affordable laptops for basic tasks, but lack the horsepower and flexibility to offer the functionality found with MacOS and Windows. It’s a market that’s already been carved up by Apple and Microsoft, making it difficult for Google to create a viable alternative. Even if it did, the installed base would be so small that it wouldn’t attract top developers. Here, Google’s best option is to continue integrating its products better with Mac and Windows machines to offer a comparable experience to iPhone and Mac.

Matter matters

One area that Google has dominance over Apple is in smart home. Cupertino is seldom quick to jump into new product categories, which is evidenced by years of rumors surrounding Apple’s supposed VR/AR headset and the Apple car. Apple did try to make an effort at home devices with HomeKit, but it’s largely been left forgotten. Google, on the other hand, has a heavy presence in the smart home with its voice assistant-backed displays, such as the Nest Hub, and its Nest WiFi, Doorbell and camera products.

Unfortunately, the smart home industry has stagnated with a dizzying array of competing products confusing consumers. A person who owns an Amazon Alexa smart speaker might be unsure if it will cooperate with their Google Nest doorbell.

Enter Matter, a universal smart home standard that will allow new home devices, regardless of brand, to communicate with one another. Even Apple, the company that enjoys creating walled gardens, has joined the Connected Standards Alliance, along with Amazon, Google, Samsung, Ikea, Lutron, Signify and others.

«That is an area where Google could take some advantage, building more of those controls or just exposing them more in Android,» Greengart said. This includes building out a person’s homepage, widgets and making connections between multiple devices. Greengart said it’ll be up to Google to let people know that smart home interoperability can be done best on Android.

Beat Apple to innovation

Google’s product events continue to get better, bringing greater production value and fanfare, but still can’t capture the same magic as Apple. The Cupertino, California-based company still has that ability to drum up excitement over its family of products and services. Enthusiastic rhetoric from executives mixed with high production value can make a person believe that Apple is bringing the latest in tech and innovation, even if that isn’t always the case.

High refresh screens to optical image stabilization and laser autofocus, all features Apple breathlessly crows about, came to Android first.

There are, however, consumers who see past the fancy macro shots and do want to be the first to new tech. This is an area Google should double-down on to entice enthusiasts.

Already, rumors are surfacing of a Pixel foldable device, one that could compete with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4.

«I think [Samsung’s] really starting to gain momentum there. And I think it’s showing, but the problem is the price, right?,» Sag said. If Samsung can continue pushing the price of foldables down, it’ll help increase the category’s popularity, bringing more competition. «As a result, competition will probably equal more sales and more competitive pricing.»

Google has also been heavily advertising Pixel features, such as live translate in its 2022 World Cup commercial. The Pixel 7 is also the official «fan phone» of the NBA this season, with a commercial featuring player Giannis Antetokounmpo and actor Simu Liu. Google has also reportedly placed the largest order of Pixel 7 devices, more than any prior iteration. Regardless of sales and celebrity endorsement, Google needs to make Pixel feel premium and exclusive, almost anathema to Android’s core vision as a free and open-source operating system. Because, if Apple’s success is any indication, people like feeling as if they’re in the «in crowd.»

Technologies

Pluto TV to Stream 49 ‘Survivor’ Seasons for Free

The 50th season of the competition series is set to air on CBS in February.

Pluto TV might help you plan your next reality TV binge. All 49 seasons of the competition series Survivor will stream on demand on the service later this month.

The Survivor catalog will arrive ahead of the landmark 50th season of Survivor, which airs on CBS on Feb. 25. You can currently watch the previous 49 seasons with a Paramount Plus subscription, which starts at $8 per month (or $9 after a price hike on Jan. 15). Pluto’s route is free, but it comes with ads.

There will be two ways to watch: Pluto’s dedicated 24/7 Survivor channel, which will stream episodes in chronological order, or you can stream episodes on demand.

The channel marathon and on-demand availability begin on Jan. 24 at 5:15 p.m. ET.

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For more information on Pluto and other free, ad-supported streaming services, check out our roundup of the best options.

Technologies

Apple Picks Google Gemini to Power Siri

Sorry OpenAI, Apple went back to its old lover.

Apple has chosen Google’s Gemini to power its next iteration of Siri, coming later this year, both companies said in a joint statement on Monday.

Apple and Google’s Siri deal follows months of rumors saying that the iPhone maker had chosen Gemini to advance Siri over OpenAI’s ChatGPT. A report in November said that Apple would pay Google $1 billion per year for Google’s AI prowess. It helps that last November’s release of Gemini 3 made a huge impact and reportedly put OpenAI in a «code red» position.

«After careful evaluation, Apple determined that Google’s Al technology provides the most capable foundation for Apple Foundation Models and is excited about the innovative new experiences it will unlock for Apple users,» according to the statement on Monday. «Apple Intelligence will continue to run on Apple devices and Private Cloud Compute, while maintaining Apple’s industry-leading privacy standards.»

Google referred to the joint statement when asked for comment. Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

Despite Apple being one of the most valuable companies in the world, it’s behind in the AI race. Instead of developing its own foundational models, which reports suggested hadn’t been going well, Apple instead worked with OpenAI to power Apple Intelligence. Even with the Siri refresh under Apple Intelligence, Apple’s AI assistant fell short of expectations, although subsequently it’s proving to be more useful.

Apple’s deal with Google further marries two American tech giants who had already been exchanging billions of dollars. During the Department of Justice antitrust trial against Google, court documents showed that Google paid Apple $20 billion in 2022 to ensure that Google Search would remain the default search engine across Apple devices. Now, some of that money will be flowing back to Google so that Siri can get a much-needed leveling up.

(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

Technologies

Samsung’s Galaxy Z TriFold Is a Phone-Tablet Hybrid With a Clear Purpose

I got my hands on the new foldable at CES. It feels like a wildly practical two-in-one device, thanks to the massive display and overall sleek build.

I’ve tested my fair share of thin and foldable phones over the years, but something about Samsung’s Galaxy Z TriFold struck me as particularly unique when I held it for the first time at CES 2026 in Las Vegas.

At last, it seems foldables are approaching their long-desired goal: a two-in-one device that fits neatly in your pocket.

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The Galaxy Z TriFold — which technically folds twice but has three panels — is like a true phone-tablet hybrid that stands apart from its bar-style counterparts. Its value lies less in flashy specs about its thinness and more in its utility and practicality.

Yes, the Galaxy Z TriFold feels impressively sleek when open: It’s just 3.9mm at its thinnest point and 4.2mm at its thickest, not accounting for the camera bump. It also feels wonderfully normal in my hands, to the degree that I didn’t really think about its weight of 309 grams as I used it.

Still, the foldable doesn’t inspire the same ergonomic awe as Samsung’s book-style Galaxy Z Fold 7 or the bar-style Galaxy S25 Edge, which primarily lean on an ultrathin, lightweight design.

The Galaxy Z TriFold is all about getting things done on a portable scale. Need to shoot off a quick text or check an email? The 6.5-inch cover display is similar to using a nonfolding phone — minus the slightly chunky 12.9mm thickness when the trifold is closed. And when it’s time to watch a movie, multitask or type up a paper, the expansive 10-inch internal display offers plenty of real estate.

Read more: The Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold was selected as a winner in the Best Mobile Tech category for the Official Best of CES 2026 Awards.

That duality makes the Galaxy Z TriFold work like a true hybrid device, filling a niche that book-style foldables have yet to satisfy, despite their numerous efforts.

Comparing the Z TriFold and the Z Fold 7 at a glance

Placing Samsung’s Z TriFold and its two-panel Galaxy Z Fold 7 side by side underscored just how different each phone is.

Yes, you can watch videos at a larger scale on the Z Fold 7’s inside display, but that experience pales in comparison to the true tablet-like feel of the unfurled Z TriFold. You can open up to three apps simultaneously on both phones, but doing so on the trifold feels like a less significant compromise thanks to its larger screen. And with Samsung DeX, turning your phone into a mini computer of sorts has never felt more practical, since there’s more room to work with.

One of the biggest indicators of how far foldables have come is the fact that both the Z TriFold and the Z Fold 7 pack pretty impressive cameras: a 200-megapixel wide, 12-megapixel ultrawide and 10-megapixel telephoto camera on the back, along with two 10-megapixel selfie cameras. So if you’re choosing between the larger and smaller Samsung foldables, that’s one key factor they have in common.

Two hinges on the trifold means double the screen creases, but they’re thankfully less visible than the Z Fold 7’s, which is already pretty subdued. Learning how to close the trifold correctly can be a bit of a learning curve, especially if you’re right-handed like me; you’ll need to close the left panel first. But each time you (I) mess up, the phone gives haptic feedback and an alert that you (we) are doing it wrong, which is helpful.

What’s perhaps most assuring is the trifold’s 5,600-mAh battery, which can hopefully allow the phone to power through a full day’s use, and then some. The Z Fold 7 has a 4,400-mAh battery, which lasted all day in my initial testing, but without much juice to spare. Hopefully, the Z TriFold remedies that. The trifold’s 45-watt super-fast charging is a nice perk, too.

Speaking of charging: Samsung told me the Z TriFold will come with not just a charging cable in the box, but also a charging brick. Nature is healing.

US release and price

The Z TriFold is already available in Korea, China, Taiwan, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates. In fact, my colleague Prakhar Khanna beat me to the punch and got his hands on the phone in Dubai last month.

Samsung has said the Z TriFold will launch in the US in the first quarter of this year. It’ll be interesting to see if people in the US respond similarly to those in other countries like Korea, where the phone reportedly sold out in minutes.

Another looming question remains: the price. Samsung didn’t share the US price at CES, but we’ll likely learn more as we approach the (also unknown) release date. Given the Z Fold 7’s $2,000 price tag, though, you might want to start saving up now.