Apple Inc. is on the defensive. 苹果(Apple Inc.)正在采取防御姿态。

In a rare interview a day before Samsung Electronics Co.'s launch of a new flagship smartphone, Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller on Wednesday played down the expected competition from the device. He also discussed how he believes products that run Google Inc.'s Android software, such as Samsung's phone, are inferior to Apple's iPhone. 周三，在三星电子(Samsung Electronics Co.)发布新款旗舰手机的前一天，苹果市场营销负责人席勒(Phil Schiller)罕见地接受了采访。他弱化了预计将来自这款设备的竞争。他还谈论了为什么他认为三星等搭载谷歌公司(Google Inc.)安卓(Android)软件的产品比不上苹果的iPhone。

Mr. Schiller shared data on the iPhone's popularity and said Apple's own research shows that four times as many iPhone users switched from an Android phone than to an Android phone in the fourth quarter. 席勒分享了有关iPhone受欢迎程度的数据，并表示，苹果自己的研究显示，去年第四季度，把安卓手机换成iPhone的用户数量是把iPhone换成安卓手机的用户数量的四倍。

His remarks come as Apple has been gently suggesting similar messages in recent months as competitors such as Samsung have been gaining buzz─and market share. 席勒发表上述言论的同时，苹果最近几个月也逐渐发出了类似的信息。最近几个月，三星等竞争者一直在赢得关注度和市场份额。

Mr. Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of world-wide marketing, also said that Android users are often running old operating systems and that the fragmentation in the Android world was 'plain and simple.' 苹果全球营销的高级副总裁席勒还说，安卓用户经常使用老的操作系统，安卓世界的碎片化现象显而易见。

He added that 'Android is often given as a free replacement for a feature phone and the experience isn't as good as an iPhone.' 他补充说，功能型手机通常可以免费安装安卓系统，用户体验则不像iPhone那么好。

The executive said the Android devices suffer in part because different elements come from multiple companies, whereas Apple is responsible for all its mobile hardware and as well as its iOS operating system. 席勒说，安卓设备的缺陷在于，不同的公司开发了不同的组成部分，而苹果负责所有的手机硬件和iOS操作系统。

'When you take an Android device out of the box, you have to sign up to nine accounts with different vendors to get the experience iOS comes with,' he said. 'They don't work seamlessly together.' 他说，当你开始使用一台安卓设备时，你需要在九个不同的销售商那里注册九个账户才能获得与iOS相同的体验；它们无法无缝合作。

Apple's iPhone represented 19.1% of global smartphone sales in 2012, compared with 66.4% for all Android phones, according to research firm Gartner. Meanwhile, market researcher IDC this week said it expects tablets powered by Android to eclipse Apple's iPad next year, too. Apple still beats Samsung in U.S. smartphone subscribers, according to comScore. 研究公司Gartner的数据显示，2012年，苹果的iPhone在全球智能手机销售中占据了19.1%的市场份额，相比之下，安卓手机的市场份额为66.4%。与此同时，市场研究机构IDC本周表示，该公司预计明年安卓平板设备的市场份额将超过苹果的iPad。根据comScore，苹果在美国智能手机市场的份额仍然高于三星。

A Google spokeswoman declined to comment. A spokesman for Samsung didn't respond to a request for comment. 谷歌的一名发言人不予置评。三星的一名发言人没有回复置评请求。

Mr. Schiller disputed the importance of market-share figures. 'I'm not sure that the estimates and the modeling accurately gives an accurate picture of it all,' he said. 席勒否定了市场份额数据的重要性。他说，我不确定这些估计数据和模型准确地反映了整体情况。

Among his own statistics, Mr. Schiller cited a survey from research firm ChangeWave that found that around three-quarters of iPhone users say they are 'very satisfied' with their device compared with around half of Android users. 在席勒自己提出的数据中，有一项是调查公司ChangeWave Research的调查。调查发现，大约四分之三的iPhone用户表示他们对设备非常满意，而安卓用户的这一比例大约为一半。

Apple, long seen as the innovator in smartphones, has been wrestling with an image problem lately. Growth has slowed. In its most recent earnings report, the company said its revenue grew about 18%, but profit rose 0.1%. 苹果长期以来一直被认为是智能手机行业的创新者。该公司最近一直在努力解决一个形象问题。苹果的增长已经放缓。苹果最近的财报显示，苹果的营收增长了大约18%，而利润仅增长了0.1%。

And customers and investors are anxiously awaiting the next big thing. Apple's shares have fallen from a high-close of $702.10 in September to $428.35 Wednesday. Analysts have been reducing their forecasts, some of which once approached $1,000 a share. 苹果的客户和投资者正焦急地等待其下一个重磅产品。苹果的股价去年9月收于702.10美元的高点，本周三下降到了428.35美元。分析师已经下调了预期，一些人的预期曾经接近每股1,000美元。

Samsung, meanwhile, is trying to sustain its momentum with the announcement of a new phone Thursday. Its next Galaxy phone is expected to have a faster microchip, an improved camera and better battery life, analysts and industry watchers say. The device also will have a slightly bigger and sharper screen, continuing a trend of offering larger displays. 同时，三星正在努力保持现有的势头，该公司周四发布一款新手机。分析人士和产业观察人士说，这款Galaxy手机预计将拥有更快的微芯片、更完善的摄像头和更长的待机时间。这款设备的屏幕大小和清晰度也将有小幅提升，延续了显示屏尺寸不断增大的趋势。