There are a lot of Android devices out there. I know that probably sounds like a negative thing, and there are a lot of people out there who probably mean that as a negative thing, but I don't. Not right now. I think it's great that Android has become the "standard operating system," in so much that it's the go-to platform for most everyone. So, yes, there are a lot of Android handsets out there, and that's a good thing!
It honestly is kind of comical that the majority of them do come from one company, though.
At first, when Samsung just flooded the whole market with new devices, everyone pointed it out as a bad thing. Kind of like "Android is everywhere" was a bad thing. While other manufacturers were busy launching a ton of smartphones, like HTC back in the day, Samsung was busy launching a ton of devices over a wide range of markets. This is a company that releases refrigerators, after all, so there's a real possibility that a house out there, somewhere, is all Samsung.
Of course, it shouldn't come as a surprise that I want to focus more on the mobile side of things. To be honest, I think this is where it gets really interesting. Sure, you could have a Samsung-branded refrigerator, maybe even a phone or tablet, too, but I don't really count that as having a "Samsung home." Close, but no cigar. I thought about including TVs in there, too, but until Samsung announces some Android TV support, I don't think we can count that.
So, let's keep it mobile. I've asked about investing in an ecosystem in the past, and there's probably no doubt that if you do find yourself buying the majority of Samsung-branded products, it's because you're a fan of Android, but let's just look at the hardware options. (But if you've attached yourself to Samsung due to their Windows/Windows Phone options, feel free to include those, too!) Keep in mind that doing this, even just focusing on hardware and just focusing on mobile, it still gives us plenty of devices to look at for outfitting our selection.
I'm actually curious about this because of Samsung's efforts to release a ton of devices every single year. They've obviously made this their status quo. They want to make it so that there are a ton of options for you to choose from, from phones to tablets, all in varying sizes and feature lists, so you can find the right device. But, at the same time, they want to make it so that if you want a small tablet for reading in bed, a bigger tablet for your couch or traveling, and a smartphone to fill the ranks, you don't have to look anywhere else but Samsung.
This strategy is working for them, clearly. Samsung has been the leader of Android for quite some time now, and dethroning them from that position seems pretty impossible at this point. So it's working globally, but instead of looking at the macro, let's look at the micro. At individual households. Is Samsung's effort to fill the market with their devices, from wearables to tablets, actually working to make them the single manufacturer in someone's home? And if it isn't for you, do you know someone who's adopted Samsung as their one-and-only manufacturer? Let me know!