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Three main reasons for Android popularity in the business world

PM30hc used by medical workers to manage patient data
Android is the operating system of choice in many industries thanks to its superior security features and easy management

For all mobile devices including consumer smartphones, Android has become the dominant operating system in the globe. Many attribute its success primarily to its open-source nature and the variety of budget devices, but Android has other definitive advantages over its competitors. The strength of Android is shown exceptionally well in business applications, which resulted in its dominance across many industries where mobile smart devices are deployed.

Bayton already posted an article that extensively explains why Android is a better choice for businesses. However, I’d like to pick the three most important enterprise features of Android in my opinion and give a more simplified explanation in this post.

1. The security

Contrary to the common association with iOS being the most secure mobile operating system, Gartner has ranked Android higher than iOS in terms of kernel security, exploit protection, network security, workspace isolation, and more, since 2016.

Source: Gartner, December 2017 

Businesses also find these two features below especially useful for keeping corporate data safe:

Corporate/personal data separation

Workers can use the corporate devices home privately without harming the work data since Android offers work profiles to be completely separated. Work data is securely isolated and separately encrypted on a disk.

Monthly security patches

Google supports monthly security patches for the device manufacturers and ensures the end-customers receive the benefits by operating the Android Enterprise Recommended program, which requires manufacturers to promptly respond to both regular and urgent security updates made by Google.

Get more information about Android Enterprise Recommended with this post ? 

Medical worker is using PM30hc to check the patient data.
Google supports monthly security patches that ensure data security.

2. The flexibility

However you want to deploy and manage the devices, Android allows you the most versatile management solutions. Any management scenario including BYOD, dedicated, or something in between is well-covered thanks to its unmatched flexibility – this means you can easily allow the employees to use personal devices for work by using a separately encrypted profile or choose to distribute company devices with limited access only.

Frombayton.org

3. Easy provisioning

Businesses purchase and use devices in bulk for all of their employees: sometimes all the devices are located in proximity and a master device can do all the provision with a bump. But sometimes devices are too far away and every time a new update comes out or the settings change, provisioning over the air is required. Android can accommodate these scenarios. Also, device manufacturers and system integrators offer one of the most convenient and easy-to-use solutions for Android provisioning.

These are the methods of provisioning available for Android devices:

  • NFC
  • QR code scan
  • DPC identifier
  • Zero-touch enrollment
  • Knox Mobile Enrollment
  • Other OEM-specific provisioning methods

Enabled by Android’s innate support for convenient device management, Point Mobile provides excellent provisioning and device management solution: Scan2Stage.

Scan2Stage offers convenient control of thousands of devices at once regarding update schedules, configurations, and more.

Scan2Stage is Point Mobile's convenient provisioning solution, free of charge.

Find more about Scan2Stage ? 

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Technology

Google’s guide for choosing enterprise devices

Although enterprise mobility devices have a relatively smaller market than consumer smartphones do, still there are thousands of devices with different specs and form factors to confuse you. To make it worse, while you can easily get reviews and comparisons of the latest smartphones through videos and blog posts created by well-renowned tech journalists or YouTubers, this is not the case for enterprise mobile devices. There is simply not much insightful public information you can get by just googling. When it comes to Android devices, however, there is one northern star that guides you through the rough terrain of scattered information: Android Enterprise Recommended.

What is Android Enterprise Recommended?

Android Enterprise Recommended (AER) is a program led by Google, designed to help businesses choose high-quality Android devices as well as software solutions. It is a list of validated devices against strict requirements, and through a public platform, it encourages manufacturers to match those requirements and register their devices to the program. The AER directory categorizes products by form factor, manufacturer, memories, etc., in which you can easily navigate it through to the product that you need. Currently, Point Mobile has five devices (PM30, PM451, PM90, PM45, and PM85) listed as Android Enterprise Recommended, and planning to register many more new products in the future, such as the PM67 or the upcoming PM75.

Point Mobile devices in Android Enterprise Recommended website
Point Mobile devices in Android Enterprise Recommended directory

What are the requirements that Google inspects?

Depending on the type of the device and the version of OS, Google sets a different standard. For a rugged device with Android 11.0, for example, it needs to be equipped with at least 2GB RAM / 16GB ROM, a processor faster than 1.1GHz, IP54 water/dust resistance, and MIL-STD-810G drop resistance. To keep the general user experience excellent, AER also requires manufacturers to include Google’s default system apps, additional device management apps and encourages them to follow the specific guidelines about how to design their interface, so that customers can enjoy standardized and intuitive experiences across different devices.

The security update standard requires manufacturers to publish update within 90 days with an announcement on their websites that has link to it from Google’s Security Bulletins. As most businesses buy devices in bulk and manage a fleet of mobile computers, AER states that manufacturers must offer at least two of the next three solutions: work profile management, full device management, dedicated device management.

Android Enterprise Recommended Badge.
Much sought after:
Android Enterprise Recommended Badge

Advantages of certified devices for businesses

So, why do manufacturers and software companies keep registering their products to AER? And why should buyers consider choosing a device or service from that list? Well, the answer is simple: AER guarantees that a product matches the minimum level of specs to be suitable for enterprise use, in terms of performance, security, and availability. The sheer amount of available products (of any kind really) can be confusing, and buyers don’t have time to check every single product on the market. So by recommending products that are safe to be used in a professional environment, Google is giving us a hand which makes it a lot easier to choose the right product.

Visit the Android Enterprise Recommended website
Find Point Mobile devices in the Enterprise Solutions Directory