At one point in Steve Jobs's life, after the successful introduction of the iPhone, Android hit the scene, (later) upstaged Apple, and thrust a rusty dagger into iOS's little heart. Jobs was livid, betrayed, ready to throw whatever resource he could at taking Android down. And so it began.
Android is now the biggest kid on campus by a wide margin, and Google's Larry Page, who recently sat down for an interview with Wired, is well aware of this fact. When asked how he felt about Jobs's infamous comment, Page merely replied, "How well is that working?" He didn't expand on his question-with-a-question response, because he doesn't have to. The popularity of Android, which is on countless devices around the world, is answer enough. What else is there to say?
Android wasn't the best OS when it hit all those years ago, but it's arguably the best around today. What's ironic, however, is that some of Google's apps (Maps, Gmail) are actually better on iOS than they are on Android. Go figure.
Perhaps the presence of Maps on Apple's platform best epitomizes the plight between the two companies. Apple went "thermonuclear" by expunging Google Maps from the core of iOS, followed by the release of its own tepid offering. Months later, Google unleashed a standalone Maps app for iOS, complete with turn-by-turn directions, flaunting its prowess in the midst of a heavyweight fight.
So how well is Steve Jobs's thermonuclear fight against Android working out? Depends on how you look at it. Tim Cook, for one, hates litigation. So perhaps those thermonuclear war threats were largely put to rest with Jobs's passing.
