Why does Google Think My Lumia is an Android?

[coip]

Back in the day I used to have a Gmail account and wisely switched to Outlook a few years ago. Every now and then, though, I log into the dormant Gmail account just to be sure nothing important showed up. Today, I did this via IE on my Lumia 928. I immediately got an email from Google notifying me of a log-on from a Android device at the exact time and location of when I logged in via my Lumia. I've had other sites also think I'm on an Android. Why is this so? It makes me wonder if one reason for the lack of apps on Windows Phone is because, even when Windows Phone users do access websites on their devices, those websites think the traffic is Android!

 

[Usama Jawad96]

Back in the day I used to have a Gmail account and wisely switched to Outlook a few years ago. Every now and then, though, I log into the dormant Gmail account just to be sure nothing important showed up. Today, I did this via IE on my Lumia 928. I immediately got an email from Google notifying me of a log-on from a Android device at the exact time and location of when I logged in via my Lumia. I've had other sites also think I'm on an Android. Why is this so? It makes me wonder if one reason for the lack of apps on Windows Phone is because, even when Windows Phone users do access websites on their devices, those websites think the traffic is Android!

Not sure about the last part (it's possible however) but yeah, I get the same mail too.

 

[heickelrrx]

Just did and eecive the email.

This just speculation. Because most of mobile marketshare were dominated by android devices IE mobile may use the simmilar user agent string with android browser in order to make webpage displayed correctly on IE. Some sites who track you such as google won't identify your devices in particular but just in general.

Or

Google uses the same protocol for non iOS user who request mobile webpage that opened by modern browser considered as android

 

[xandros9]

In 8.1 Update 1, MS tweaked IE to make itself appear as an Android or iOS browser so that more websites would give it a better mobile website. Sometimes before, sites would see the browser, see that it isn't either of those big two, and give the user a site reminiscent of WAP.

Most noticeably for me, it made Google Drive less bad, although still poor online.

 

[coip]

In 8.1 Update 1, MS tweaked IE to make itself appear as an Android or iOS browser so that more websites would give it a better mobile website. Sometimes before, sites would see the browser, see that it isn't either of those big two, and give the user a site reminiscent of WAP. Most noticeably for me, it made Google Drive less bad, although still poor online.

So then website administrators will think Windows Phone market share is 0%. That doesn't help the platform gain traction.

It's also quite astonishing that even Google cannot tell it's not an Android device.

 

[heickelrrx]

So then website administrators will think Windows Phone market share is 0%. That doesn't help the platform gain traction.

It's also quite astonishing that even Google cannot tell it's not an Android device.

Nope

Here is the IE User agent String

Mozilla/5.0 (Mobile; Windows Phone 8.1; Android 4.0; ARM; Trident/7.0; Touch; rv:11.0; IEMobile/11.0; NOKIA; Nokia 625H) like iPhone OS 7_0_3 Mac OS X AppleWebKit/537 (KHTML, like Gecko) Mobile Safari/537

 

[coip]

Nope

Here is the IE User agent String

Mozilla/5.0 (Mobile; Windows Phone 8.1; Android 4.0; ARM; Trident/7.0; Touch; rv:11.0; IEMobile/11.0; NOKIA; Nokia 625H) like iPhone OS 7_0_3 Mac OS X AppleWebKit/537 (KHTML, like Gecko) Mobile Safari/537

So you're saying they can't tell who it is?

 

[pdaneophyte]

I think it's subtle advertizing. Change to android please. Or a deliberate misunderstanding to inflate android precense.

 

[amolbaikar]

What will be happen if i installed Android Browser on my WP ? Then login through it ?

 

[amolbaikar]

Same things happens on Windows PC too. I logging through the IE but shows as Linux machine. Lol

 

[Usama Jawad96]

Nokia must come back with Android

I have absolutely no idea how your comment relates to the topic at hand.