After one week with the 6S+... Decided to go back to Android

[Sensamic]

As many of you here may know, I'm a big Android fan. I like it way more than iOS, mainly because on Android I can do stuff that iOS never allowed me to do (downloading torrents, youtube videos, playing emulators, theming, etc). But I got tired of having to adjust everything on my phone to get good battery life or performance. Sometimes you can install an app and you might get wakelocks which destroy your battery life, and then you get crazy searching for what app it is and other annoyances.

I've been wanting to try iOS again for a while now. Last thursday I saw a nice deal on a second hand shop I usually check to see nice deals on latest phones. There was a new 6S+ 64GB in like new condition for 735 euros, 148 euros cheaper than brand new here. I decided to buy it and try it to see if I could adjust. My previous phone was an S6. First few days I was happy.

Positives:

- Performance is excellent (way faster web page loading times and haven't seen any lag). The A9 is seriously an awesome chip.
- Battery life has been unbelievable!! I can get like 6 hours screen on time with brightness at 50%. It's difficult to measure screen on time on iOS, but the battery like is just the best I've ever seen. This was one of the main reasons to switch back to iOS.
- The screen is the best I've ever seen. I love loooooove IPS technology. Makes my S6 AMOLED panel look terrible next to it! The brightness level is almost double! And the colors are way nicer for me. This was another key point to make the switch. It's impossible for me to find such a good screen on Android. Almost no manufacturer uses IPS, except LG and Huawei, but their aren't this good.
- Build quality is also the best in the industry. I love the slight curve in the edges of the screen.
- TouchID is just awesome. Never misses. So so comfortable to use. On the S6 it could be a pain because it failed a lot, so I never had it enabled.
- Siri is way more useful than S Voice.
- I love the looks of iOS 9 overall. Very clean and pleasent to look at.
- I really like 3D Touch. It's a great new feature and very useful on iOS, like when you force touch on the phone app to dial one of your favorites. It's like widget functionality. Very cool and easy to use, but not so much the multitasking gesture from the side of the screen. It's a pain to do. Really, really terrible.

Problem is iOS does so so many things worst than Android, and I mean little things. Here's a brief list:

- Notifications are a mess here. Sometimes I get a notification from Gmail of a new email before the stock Mail app, because it still has push notifications (I have it set up to check every 15 minutes for new emails). It's redundant needing two separate email apps, and both work terrible, just terrible compared to the Gmail app in Android, where I can easily swipe to delete messages, whereas in iOS I need to swipe and select "move to trash" in the stock Mail app and in the Gmail app I have to select the email and the click the delete button. With whatsapp I get every single message in a sort of list view, instead of showing them in less space like Android does.
- I miss a lot the back button. It makes everything so much easier. Some apps allow to go back with a gesture, but others don't (like Keep), and you still need to reach to the top of the screen to click the back button. There's no consistency. It's annoying not knowing how to go back in every app.
- Most apps don't allow to swipe through tabs or menus, like on Android. Take the Tapatalk app or Facebook app. On iOS you have to click the tabs to move to them, but on Android you just swipe left or right to access them. Some apps on iOS allow this, but very very few.
- On Android, when I get a facebook messenger message or whatsapp message on the lockscreen or anywhere on the phone, the notification shows me the picture of that contact in said apps. On iOS it shows you the app icon. It's a small thing, but these small things add up and make everything worst.
- Multitasking seems improved, but not much. Google photos can upload photos in the background it seems, but it takes ageeeeeesssss. It even tells you to keep the app open to upload the photos faster. On Android I can forget about this. Every time I make a new photo it is automatically uploaded in the background, so when I open the app it's already uploaded. This may consume more battery, but it's more convenient.
- Third party keyboards are TERRIBLE on iOS. This might be the biggest reason for switching back. I've installed Swype (my favorite), Swiftkey, Go keyboard, etc. They just don't work well at all. Swype even freezed the other day and I had to restart the phone. Switching keyboards is a pain compared with Android (which you do through the notification panel). There are certain features that are not present compared to their Android counterparts. For example, none of them allow to use dictation. Just the apple stock keyboard. Also, deleting text is slower than on Android. Also, the way to move the cursor over the screen is terrible. On Android it's much easier and faster. Overall, having to type on iOS is a pain. I take 3 times more time to write the same amount of text on iOS than I normally do on Android, which is just wicked fast.
- Widgets in the notification center are just useless. I have over 100 apps installed and there's not one single widget useful there.
- Extensions are a big jump forward for iOS, but still there aren't many. I hoped to see much more.
- The vibration on the iPhone is really, really weak. Can't even feel it on my pocket. I tried making a vibration pattern that would keep the vibration on as long as possible, but still makes no effect. I never notice my iPhone vibrating on the table when sleeping or in my pocket, and I'm not using any case. The S6 vibration is like 4 times stronger.
- More small things. Whatsapp on iOS doesn't allow you to send messages if it's not connected to wifi or 3G/4G. Sometimes I'm out of cellular coverage but I send the messages anyway on Android and when the phone get's coverage again the messages send themselves automatically. Also, you can't hear whatsapp audio messages on the background like on Android. If you hit play on the audio message and leave the app to do something else while your listening it will stop. On Android I can play the audio message and keep doing other stuff, and then go back and answer it with another audio message.
- Some apps look weird on the 6S+. My college app, for example, which I use to check classes and more, looks really weird. It's not optimized, clearly, but on Android it looks great on every phone and tablet I've used.
- On Twitter you can't download an image from inside the app. On Android you can.
- Facebook messenger doesn't have the heads up feature on iOS. At first I hated it when it was released, but it's great because that way I don't forget about it.
- I missed a lot looking up the screen and seeing if I had any new notification shown with the icon, like on Android. It allowed me to know always if there was something new.
- There's no control panel toggle for enabling 3G/4G. There's also no option to select 2G, just 3G or 2G/3G/4G automatically like on Android. Where I live, I need to select 2G to have good enough coverage to receive calls.

There are other small annoyances I've experienced this week with the 6S+. I want to keep the phone, because the screen, battery and performance are awesome, but using the phone is more annoying than my S6, where I could do everything 3 times faster, like answering a message with the better swype keyboard and going back with the back button in less than 10 seconds, whereas on iOS I take a lot more time because Swype doesn't work as good and there's no easily accesible back button which works across all apps and across all the system.

I'm waiting to sell the iPhone and will go back for now to the S6. Next phone might be the S7, M10 or next Nexus. All I need is more battery life and an IPS screen and I would be happy. Android has some very, very cool features. The S6, for example, has the KICK football app preinstalled which I love. It brings up a widget whenever a football match is about to start of your favorite teams, but is hided on the side of the screen like the edge software of the S7 edge, so it doesn't bother you. And whenever a goal is scored a crowd screaming sound sounds, making it easily recognizable. Vibration is also stronger and as a phone it works better for me in almost all aspects. Shame the fingerprint reader doesn't work as good and battery life is terrible. Everything else is almost perfect. I like the screen, but I prefer IPS and more brightness.

Also, the 6S+ is too big. It's my second phablet (after the note 4), and it's just too much. I wanted the better battery life and the 1080P screen over the 6S, which was too small with a 4.7 screen. 5.5 screen is too big also to swype comfortably with the swype keyboard.

Well, this has been my experienced after one week with the 6S+. I guess I won't be coming back to iOS in a while again. My previous iPhone was the 4. There are many, many little things iOS needs to work to catch up to Android.

 

[tbayrgs]

As many of you here may know, I'm a big Android fan. I like it way more than iOS, mainly because on Android I can do stuff that iOS never allowed me to do (downloading torrents, youtube videos, playing emulators, theming, etc). But I got tired of having to adjust everything on my phone to get good battery life or performance. Sometimes you can install an app and you might get wakelocks which destroy your battery life, and then you get crazy searching for what app it is and other annoyances.

I've been wanting to try iOS again for a while now. Last thursday I saw a nice deal on a second hand shop I usually check to see nice deals on latest phones. There was a new 6S+ 64GB in like new condition for 735 euros, 148 euros cheaper than brand new here. I decided to buy it and try it to see if I could adjust. My previous phone was an S6. First few days I was happy.

Positives:

- Performance is excellent (way faster web page loading times and haven't seen any lag). The A9 is seriously an awesome chip.
- Battery life has been unbelievable!! I can get like 6 hours screen on time with brightness at 50%. It's difficult to measure screen on time on iOS, but the battery like is just the best I've ever seen. This was one of the main reasons to switch back to iOS.
- The screen is the best I've ever seen. I love loooooove IPS technology. Makes my S6 AMOLED panel look terrible next to it! The brightness level is almost double! And the colors are way nicer for me. This was another key point to make the switch. It's impossible for me to find such a good screen on Android. Almost no manufacturer uses IPS, except LG and Huawei, but their aren't this good.
- Build quality is also the best in the industry. I love the slight curve in the edges of the screen.
- TouchID is just awesome. Never misses. So so comfortable to use. On the S6 it could be a pain because it failed a lot, so I never had it enabled.
- Siri is way more useful than S Voice.
- I love the looks of iOS 9 overall. Very clean and pleasent to look at.
- I really like 3D Touch. It's a great new feature and very useful on iOS, like when you force touch on the phone app to dial one of your favorites. It's like widget functionality. Very cool and easy to use, but not so much the multitasking gesture from the side of the screen. It's a pain to do. Really, really terrible.

Problem is iOS does so so many things worst than Android, and I mean little things. Here's a brief list:

- Notifications are a mess here. Sometimes I get a notification from Gmail of a new email before the stock Mail app, because it still has push notifications (I have it set up to check every 15 minutes for new emails). It's redundant needing two separate email apps, and both work terrible, just terrible compared to the Gmail app in Android, where I can easily swipe to delete messages, whereas in iOS I need to swipe and select "move to trash" in the stock Mail app and in the Gmail app I have to select the email and the click the delete button. With whatsapp I get every single message in a sort of list view, instead of showing them in less space like Android does.
- I miss a lot the back button. It makes everything so much easier. Some apps allow to go back with a gesture, but others don't (like Keep), and you still need to reach to the top of the screen to click the back button. There's no consistency. It's annoying not knowing how to go back in every app.
- Most apps don't allow to swipe through tabs or menus, like on Android. Take the Tapatalk app or Facebook app. On iOS you have to click the tabs to move to them, but on Android you just swipe left or right to access them. Some apps on iOS allow this, but very very few.
- On Android, when I get a facebook messenger message or whatsapp message on the lockscreen or anywhere on the phone, the notification shows me the picture of that contact in said apps. On iOS it shows you the app icon. It's a small thing, but these small things add up and make everything worst.
- Multitasking seems improved, but not much. Google photos can upload photos in the background it seems, but it takes ageeeeeesssss. It even tells you to keep the app open to upload the photos faster. On Android I can forget about this. Every time I make a new photo it is automatically uploaded in the background, so when I open the app it's already uploaded. This may consume more battery, but it's more convenient.
- Third party keyboards are TERRIBLE on iOS. This might be the biggest reason for switching back. I've installed Swype (my favorite), Swiftkey, Go keyboard, etc. They just don't work well at all. Swype even freezed the other day and I had to restart the phone. Switching keyboards is a pain compared with Android (which you do through the notification panel). There are certain features that are not present compared to their Android counterparts. For example, none of them allow to use dictation. Just the apple stock keyboard. Also, deleting text is slower than on Android. Also, the way to move the cursor over the screen is terrible. On Android it's much easier and faster. Overall, having to type on iOS is a pain. I take 3 times more time to write the same amount of text on iOS than I normally do on Android, which is just wicked fast.
- Widgets in the notification center are just useless. I have over 100 apps installed and there's not one single widget useful there.
- Extensions are a big jump forward for iOS, but still there aren't many. I hoped to see much more.
- The vibration on the iPhone is really, really weak. Can't even feel it on my pocket. I tried making a vibration pattern that would keep the vibration on as long as possible, but still makes no effect. I never notice my iPhone vibrating on the table when sleeping or in my pocket, and I'm not using any case. The S6 vibration is like 4 times stronger.
- More small things. Whatsapp on iOS doesn't allow you to send messages if it's not connected to wifi or 3G/4G. Sometimes I'm out of cellular coverage but I send the messages anyway on Android and when the phone get's coverage again the messages send themselves automatically. Also, you can't hear whatsapp audio messages on the background like on Android. If you hit play on the audio message and leave the app to do something else while your listening it will stop. On Android I can play the audio message and keep doing other stuff, and then go back and answer it with another audio message.
- Some apps look weird on the 6S+. My college app, for example, which I use to check classes and more, looks really weird. It's not optimized, clearly, but on Android it looks great on every phone and tablet I've used.
- On Twitter you can't download an image from inside the app. On Android you can.
- Facebook messenger doesn't have the heads up feature on iOS. At first I hated it when it was released, but it's great because that way I don't forget about it.
- I missed a lot looking up the screen and seeing if I had any new notification shown with the icon, like on Android. It allowed me to know always if there was something new.
- There's no control panel toggle for enabling 3G/4G. There's also no option to select 2G, just 3G or 2G/3G/4G automatically like on Android. Where I live, I need to select 2G to have good enough coverage to receive calls.

There are other small annoyances I've experienced this week with the 6S+. I want to keep the phone, because the screen, battery and performance are awesome, but using the phone is more annoying than my S6, where I could do everything 3 times faster, like answering a message with the better swype keyboard and going back with the back button in less than 10 seconds, whereas on iOS I take a lot more time because Swype doesn't work as good and there's no easily accesible back button which works across all apps and across all the system.

I'm waiting to sell the iPhone and will go back for now to the S6. Next phone might be the S7, M10 or next Nexus. All I need is more battery life and an IPS screen and I would be happy. Android has some very, very cool features. The S6, for example, has the KICK football app preinstalled which I love. It brings up a widget whenever a football match is about to start of your favorite teams, but is hided on the side of the screen like the edge software of the S7 edge, so it doesn't bother you. And whenever a goal is scored a crowd screaming sound sounds, making it easily recognizable. Vibration is also stronger and as a phone it works better for me in almost all aspects. Shame the fingerprint reader doesn't work as good and battery life is terrible. Everything else is almost perfect. I like the screen, but I prefer IPS and more brightness.

Also, the 6S+ is too big. It's my second phablet (after the note 4), and it's just too much. I wanted the better battery life and the 1080P screen over the 6S, which was too small with a 4.7 screen. 5.5 screen is too big also to swype comfortably with the swype keyboard.

Well, this has been my experienced after one week with the 6S+. I guess I won't be coming back to iOS in a while again. My previous iPhone was the 4. There are many, many little things iOS needs to work to catch up to Android.

Hey, you tried. Can't disagree with most of your comments, either because they're true or based on personal preference. Individual use case plays a huge role in one's choice of OS. I'm about to go in the opposite direction (coming from a 6s+ to a Nexus 6P) and will probably make a post similar to yours of my experience. I'm already noticing a few things on Android that are less than ideal for my personal preferences/usage, as well as some things that are better.

FWIW, a couple points of clarification in regards to your observations. I realize these are minor and won't really have an impact on your decision but figured I'd clarify for other readers who may not know.

- You can swipe messages to delete in the iOS Mail app--swipe partway to get a few options, swipe all the way across to delete. And you should check out Outlook if it's available to you (very good on Android, awesome on iOS). I use it on both platforms to manage my gmail account--by far my favorite mail app.

- You can download photos in the Twitter app...just tap and hold on the photo and you get the extensions popup with many options, including 'Save photo'

 

[mclld]

"The screen is the best I've ever seen. I love loooooove IPS technology. Makes my S6 AMOLED panel look terrible next to it!"

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

Agree with you on most, except the screen. But to each their own.

If you move to the S7 edge, the battery life will be a major upgrade compared to your S6. Standby life on the S7 edge is comparable to the 6S, with both lasting over a week. On screen time is also comparable.

 

[mildocjr]

Both devices have their pros, I'm glad you took the time to write them out. Honestly I feel the same way about typing on Android as you do about an iPhone, it took me forever to figure out the layout on Android, Especially trying to find the "\" key. I used to be one of those iPhone is better people, but anymore I'm just "if it works for you, stick with it".

As you had mentioned the App screen size, a number of apps (in comparison to the large App Store) still need to be updated to accept the larger displays, Apple did a shortcut and just blew everything up to make it still usable until the developers updated their App, but those tend to be lazy or don't want to spend the money updating their app to look good on a larger screen. I do have to give Android developers credit, having to make the same app many different times just to cover all of the models takes a lot of dedication and hard work. Those apps are optimized from day one, whereas older iPhone apps don't have the resource files for the larger screens. A lot of the magic of iPhone and the App Store that I've seen comes from the amount of automation that comes from Xcode and the App Store itself, in slimming the code at publishing time and splitting it into many different apps so users download the optimized application for their device. (i.e. 4" iPhone users get the 4" optimized files, 6s users get the 6s optimized files, and so on...) This cuts down on the size of the App and can help limit bandwidth usage. Then bundles within the app download only when they are needed instead of all at once. So level 11-20 don't download until you play or beat level 10. I'm not sure if Android does this or not, but it's a nice thing to have.

Like I always tell people, if you care about customization get an Android.
If you just want something easy and don't care about customization get an iPhone.

 

[nj-morris]

In my opinion Apple makes the best LCDs hands down. Still doesn't beat AMOLED though.

Still, I'd gladly take that screen. Just waiting for them to add the True Tone display that they have on the iPad Pro 9.7.

 

[Jess13]

- Third party keyboards are TERRIBLE on iOS. Also, the way to move the cursor over the screen is terrible. Overall, having to type on iOS is a pain.

The third-party keyboard implementation definitely is ridiculous. I use Swype, because the stock keyboard sucks. One of the things I despise about iOS is the stupid magnifying glass move the cursor. It’s so dumb. And I only use iOS! But really, the magnifying glass is just ****ing pathetic. So annoying. Seriously, Apple.

 

[journeyy]

I agree with many points, even if i still prefer the iPhone. I just don't understand why the text selection is still so awful in iOS

 

[The Game 161]

As somebody who now has the 6S plus and the S7 edge one thing that is amazing to me is how easier it is to hold the S7 edge. You wouldn’t think both phones had the same screen size. There is so much wasted space on the iphone compared to the edge it really is amazing. The display quality is incredible and so far I’m enjoying the on screen widget experience again.


There are certainly positives to both as I love imessage,podcasts and how my music is set up but in terms of the features I’m glad I got this edge. Having the on display on with the calendar and time is a great touch. Wireless charging as well is an added bonus.

 

[Savor]

I have many of the same reasons as the OP on why I couldn't back to iPhone exclusively.

+ Back button
+ Double tap to turn on or off
+ SwiftKey is so much better on Android
+ Nova Launcher Prime shortcuts
+ iTunes-free
+ Drawer and ability to hide icons
+ Ability to disable apps
+ MXPlayer which is awesome (background play)
+ MoboPlayer's mini player is also quite excellent
+ Ability to play different video formats (ie mkv, avi)
+ TubeMate
+ Torrent apps
+ Bluetooth data transfer
+ File explorers
+ Notifications is leagues better
+ App sharing between apps
+ I prefer Android's version of Viber and Pocket
+ More accurate SCREEN ON TIME battery usage

And all the other hardware features depending on the OEM like waterproofing, sd slot, removable battery, offer better value for what you need, etc.

It is why I decided to back off on the iPhone SE since I wouldn't have much use for it and got a $30 AT&T branded Moto E (2015) instead as a 4th stringer since "4.5 is as small as I would go and it is also splash resistant where the $400-$500 "budget" iPhone SE isn't. I already have an iPad for better multimedia experience, so I couldn't find any use for an iPhone SE. I don't hate the iPhone hardware. I admire it actually. I just can't stand the restrictions with iOS and it has been going like this for nearly a decade now, jailbroken or not.
I think depending solely on ONE smartphone bores me and isn't quite as productive with a multiple phones across all platforms. Even sticking to only one ecosystem I find quite limiting and restricted. Be a multi-phone, cross platform user to have the best and worst of all worlds. The only problem is I find iOS works well with other iOS devices while Android and Windows Phone can work quite well together. Before, iOS was my fav. Now I find that Android and WP to be more productive than it. I find Apple to be acting like the lonewolf and odd man out because it can't Bluetooth transfer and ShareIt isn't that dependable for me.

The only area where iOS destroys Android is much longer software updates. Everything from camera, display, battery life, design, etc is no longer areas topped by an iPhone. Unless you truly are invested into this Apple ecosystem, it no longer feels special to own an iPhone since a $30 Lumia 640 or Moto E 4G can do 90% of what an iPhone can do at 10% or less of their price. It blows my mind that a 2015-2016 budget sub-$50 phone can surpass iPhone 4/4s in overall quality. The phones I used from 2008-2012 are quite laughable now in comparison to any budget phone released from 2014 to now.

Like looking at PS1 graphics now after playing with a PS2, PS3, or PS4. Between 2007-2012 were still experimental, beta stages for software and hardware. Phones released within the last two years kick so much more *** than the pre-late-2013/2014 phones. Pre-Snapdragon 400 & 800 era Android phones feel so dated now.

 

[Sensamic]

Hey, you tried. Can't disagree with most of your comments, either because they're true or based on personal preference. Individual use case plays a huge role in one's choice of OS. I'm about to go in the opposite direction (coming from a 6s+ to a Nexus 6P) and will probably make a post similar to yours of my experience. I'm already noticing a few things on Android that are less than ideal for my personal preferences/usage, as well as some things that are better.

FWIW, a couple points of clarification in regards to your observations. I realize these are minor and won't really have an impact on your decision but figured I'd clarify for other readers who may not know.

- You can swipe messages to delete in the iOS Mail app--swipe partway to get a few options, swipe all the way across to delete. And you should check out Outlook if it's available to you (very good on Android, awesome on iOS). I use it on both platforms to manage my gmail account--by far my favorite mail app.

- You can download photos in the Twitter app...just tap and hold on the photo and you get the extensions popup with many options, including 'Save photo'

Thanks! Will try those suggestions

And yeah, I tried. First few days I though I would keep the phone. I could live with some of the annoyances, but the biggest reason for coming back to Android is third party keyboards and the way iOS handles text selection. It takes me way, way longer to write notes or chat with whatsapp. It's frustrating. On Android I do everything lightning fast. This is the main reason for leaving iOS. To some degree I could have accepted all the other small things.

Agree with you on most, except the screen. But to each their own.

If you move to the S7 edge, the battery life will be a major upgrade compared to your S6. Standby life on the S7 edge is comparable to the 6S, with both lasting over a week. On screen time is also comparable.

I know AMOLED are considered the best screens right now, but I never kind of liked them. I like IPS much more. The brightness outdoors in the 6S+ is like 2.5x higher than on my S6, plus I like the more natural colors. It's just a beautiful display. Whites are nicer also.

After owning a Note 4 and now the 6S+ I think I'm done with phablets. Tried two and couldn't adjust. For example, swiping over the Swype keyboard is easier on a smaller screen, like on the S6, whereas on the 6S+ bigger screen swiping is more difficult and therefore I end up taking more time to write. I like phablets, but I just can't adapt to the size.

The third-party keyboard implementation definitely is ridiculous. I use Swype, because the stock keyboard sucks. One of the things I despise about iOS is the stupid magnifying glass move the cursor. It’s so dumb. And I only use iOS! But really, the magnifying glass is just ****ing pathetic. So annoying. Seriously, Apple.

I'm sure Apple will add swipe capabilities to the stock iOS keyboard in iOS 10, but still Swype on Android is so, so, so good. It has really useful features, like tapping the Swype icon to select the last word typed to delete it faster. Also, you can see in each key the numbers or symbols behind it, so I can hold the "j" key and get to the ":" directly, whereas on the Swype iOS keyboard only the letters appear on each key, so I never know where each symbol is and such. Also, you can select the amount of time for a key press to show the characters behind it. I have it set lower so they appear faster. On iOS I can't do that, so in the end I take longer to write everything. I'm sure they will add these features over time, but third party keyboards where introduced in iOS 8, so they've had time already to make the keyboard more decent and include this simple features. Don't know if maybe iOS doesn't allow it or what.

I have many of the same reasons as the OP on why I couldn't back to iPhone exclusively.

+ Back button
+ Double tap to turn on or off
+ SwiftKey is so much better on Android
+ Nova Launcher Prime shortcuts
+ iTunes-free
+ Drawer and ability to hide icons
+ Ability to disable apps
+ MXPlayer which is awesome (background play)
+ MoboPlayer's mini player is also quite excellent
+ Ability to play different video formats (ie mkv, avi)
+ TubeMate
+ Torrent apps
+ Bluetooth data transfer
+ File explorers
+ Notifications is leagues better
+ App sharing between apps
+ I prefer Android's version of Viber and Pocket
+ More accurate SCREEN ON TIME battery usage

And all the other hardware features depending on the OEM like waterproofing, sd slot, removable battery, offer better value for what you need, etc.

It is why I decided to back off on the iPhone SE since I wouldn't have much use for it and got a $30 AT&T branded Moto E (2015) instead as a 4th stringer since "4.5 is as small as I would go and it is also splash resistant where the $400-$500 "budget" iPhone SE isn't. I already have an iPad for better multimedia experience, so I couldn't find any use for an iPhone SE. I don't hate the iPhone hardware. I admire it actually. I just can't stand the restrictions with iOS and it has been going like this for nearly a decade now, jailbroken or not.
I think depending solely on ONE smartphone bores me and isn't quite as productive with a multiple phones across all platforms. Even sticking to only one ecosystem I find quite limiting and restricted. Be a multi-phone, cross platform user to have the best and worst of all worlds. The only problem is I find iOS works well with other iOS devices while Android and Windows Phone can work quite well together. Before, iOS was my fav. Now I find that Android and WP to be more productive than it. I find Apple to be acting like the lonewolf and odd man out because it can't Bluetooth transfer and ShareIt isn't that dependable for me.

The only area where iOS destroys Android is much longer software updates. Everything from camera, display, battery life, design, etc is no longer areas topped by an iPhone. Unless you truly are invested into this Apple ecosystem, it no longer feels special to own an iPhone since a $30 Lumia 640 or Moto E 4G can do 90% of what an iPhone can do at 10% or less of their price. It blows my mind that a 2015-2016 budget sub-$50 phone can surpass iPhone 4/4s in overall quality. The phones I used from 2008-2012 are quite laughable now in comparison to any budget phone released from 2014 to now.

Like looking at PS1 graphics now after playing with a PS2, PS3, or PS4. Between 2007-2012 were still experimental, beta stages for software and hardware. Phones released within the last two years kick so much more *** than the pre-late-2013/2014 phones. Pre-Snapdragon 400 & 800 era Android phones feel so dated now.

There are many other reasons I miss Android, most of them you list there, things I do very often: torrent downloading, YouTube downloading, downloading files from the web and then uploading them to my NAS, playing emulators, the multitasking button is also an awesome and easier and faster way to multitask rather than double tapping the hardware home button on iOS or the very hard to do 3D Touch gesture, fast charging (although the longer battery life of the 6S+ is obviously better), etc.

Almost everything can be done faster on Android one way or the other. In the end, it's been a series of small details plus the keyboard issue that made me decide to come back. Those small things made my daily tasks take longer time to accomplish.

 

[gotluck]

Give Microsoft word flow a chance as keyboard. I find it more snappy. It is great for swiping. Something feels a bit off with standard typing though

Make sure you disable all extra keyboards in settings,general,keyboard aside from the one you use and emoji. Seems to solve some issues

 

[Sensamic]

Oh, and MxPlayer is indeed another reason. It's just an awesome video player thanks to the gestures to rewind and fast forward. On iOS some video players allow this, like VLC, but only moves 6 seconds backwards or forwards. On Android I can move the playback all the way to the beginning or the end with just the swipe gesture. Awesome.

Android has also some other nice stuff not available on the S6, like multiuser accounts. I want a Nexus phone to get that feature.

 

[gotluck]

I've found nplayer to be pretty decent replacement to MX player. I think infuse is another one.

Can download videos from the web to view offline later

Not as elegant as Android because of the sandbox but it's something

 

[tbayrgs]

Give Microsoft word flow a chance as keyboard. I find it more snappy. It is great for swiping. Something feels a bit off with standard typing though

And I thought it was just me. The swiping on word flow is the best I've used on iOS but the tap typing isn't great. The biggest problem I'm having is a problem that used to exist on the iOS keyboard in iOS 8 (I believe)... The space bar is too short on the right. I keep hitting the period instead. I also don't like how I can't just hold down the shift key to type a few uppercase characters and then release to have it go back to lowercase... It locks it and then needs to be pressed again to release the caps lock.

But swiping is terrific. I am finding though that the new Google keyboard is my overall favorite on both platforms (a first for me as previously the iOS keyboard was my favorite for tap typing.)

 

[mildocjr]

Yeah that's something else, when you have money spent in the App ecosystem of a specific platform, you're stuck with it unless you want to burn that money. It's not really Apple's fault in this, although they made it specific towards Apple made devices, because Microsoft, Ubuntu, Android, and Amazon, to name a few, all do this too.

As a Server and network engineer and a novice developer, it is insanity for me when people switch platforms and ask where do I get all my apps from this other platform.

I just want to tell those people to go stand on a chair and bite themselves on the neck, see how long it takes them to figure it out.
[doublepost=1462457723][/doublepost]

Almost everything can be done faster on Android one way or the other. In the end, it's been a series of small details plus the keyboard issue that made me decide to come back. Those small things made my daily tasks take longer time to accomplish.

I have to disagree, it would take me (an iPhone user since the beginning) longer to do anything on Android, I personally have no wish to learn Android, not that it doesn't work for others, but making a claim that generalizes that everyone can do anything faster on an Android is false, you might be able to do everything faster on Android, just as I might be able to do everything faster on an iPhone, eye of the beholder kind of stuff.

 

[Cnasty]

I am contemplating the switch to Android for a while. I do this consistently between iOS and Android and my last device was a Nexus 6 before the 6s+.

I have always said, Android phones make the best hardware hands down as they are beautiful devices and are continually improving while Apple is stagnant in that area BUT I love the seamless continuation from my Mac to my Watch and other Apple devices and 99% of my friends and family are on iPhone for iMessage and FaceTime.

My biggest thing would be my Apple Watch and Apple Music at this point I think as I rely so much on both throughout my work day and when working out, etc.

 

[aneftp]

I just carry a high end android and lastest iPhone all the time.

I get the best of both worlds. Problem solved!

Currently own the S7 and iPhone 6S plus. I have multiple lines to myself. On both att and Verizon.

It does get a little weird at work when I gotta use sprint blackberry issued work phone in the hospital (sprint has its own cell towers inside the hospital)

So I have 3 phones hanging from my scrub pockets during work.

At least I don't have to worry about coverage either carrying 3 different phones on 3 different networks.

 

[The Game 161]

yeah loving my 6s plus/S7 edge combo...still in two minds which will be my daily driver for calls/texts. likely get a sim for my S7 edge as i depend alot on my apple watch

 

[Sensamic]

Give Microsoft word flow a chance as keyboard. I find it more snappy. It is great for swiping. Something feels a bit off with standard typing though

Make sure you disable all extra keyboards in settings,general,keyboard aside from the one you use and emoji. Seems to solve some issues

Tried searching for word flow and Google keyboard on the App Store but they don't appear, probably because I'm in Spain and those apps are only available in the US. I could try changing the system language, but then those keyboards don't come with spanish language, or do they?

 

[nj-morris]

Also, the way to move the cursor over the screen is terrible.

One of the things I despise about iOS is the stupid magnifying glass move the cursor. It’s so dumb. And I only use iOS! But really, the magnifying glass is just ****ing pathetic. So annoying. Seriously, Apple.

I disagree. In my opinion text selection on iOS absolutely trumps text selection on android. On iPads and the iPhone 6S, using the screen as a trackpad to move the cursor is incredibly neat. Even without it, I much prefer the magnifying glass system than having to select the cursor (which is very difficult by the way) and moving it around.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

After owning a Note 4 and now the 6S+ I think I'm done with phablets. Tried two and couldn't adjust. For example, swiping over the Swype keyboard is easier on a smaller screen, like on the S6, whereas on the 6S+ bigger screen swiping is more difficult and therefore I end up taking more time to write. I like phablets, but I just can't adapt to the size.

I don't know how big or small your hands are, but for myself I can barely palm a basketball. Being that said, I'm able to use the S7 edge one handed. It doesn't feel much like a phablet for me. Swyping is easier for me vs a smaller screen cause I don't have to bend my thumb that too much.
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I disagree. In my opinion text selection on iOS absolutely trumps text selection on android. On iPads and the iPhone 6S, using the screen as a trackpad to move the cursor is incredibly neat. Even without it, I much prefer the magnifying glass system than having to select the cursor (which is very difficult by the way) and moving it around.

Text selection on iOS can get annoying. Too many times I find myself opening a blank Safari tab just to get rid of the text selection on another tab. Don't know why it likes to stick.

 

[dennysanders]

I just carry a high end android and lastest iPhone all the time.

I get the best of both worlds. Problem solved!

Currently own the S7 and iPhone 6S plus. I have multiple lines to myself. On both att and Verizon.

It does get a little weird at work when I gotta use sprint blackberry issued work phone in the hospital (sprint has its own cell towers inside the hospital)

So I have 3 phones hanging from my scrub pockets during work.

At least I don't have to worry about coverage either carrying 3 different phones on 3 different networks.

Damn! THREE phones!?!? you are so cool!!!!!

 

[gotluck]

Tried searching for word flow and Google keyboard on the App Store but they don't appear, probably because I'm in Spain and those apps are only available in the US. I could try changing the system language, but then those keyboards don't come with spanish language, or do they?

gah - yeah you are right word flow is us only english only at the moment i believe

dont think google keyboard is on ios, think tbayrgs meant google keyboard is his overall favorite - I hope they do bring it to ios!

And I thought it was just me. The swiping on word flow is the best I've used on iOS but the tap typing isn't great. This biggest problem I'm having is a problem that used to exist on the iOS keyboard in iOS 8 (I believe)... The space bar is to short on the right. I keep hitting the period instead. I also don't like how I can't just hold down the shift key to type a few uppercase characters and then release to have it go back to lowercase... It locks it and then needs to be pressed again to release the caps lock.

But swiping is terrific. I am finding though that the new Google keyboard is my overall favorite on both platforms (a first for me as previously the iOS keyboard was my favorite for tap typing.)

The tip tap typing on word flow has been driving me a bit bonkers but the swipe is sooo smooth!

the text prediction seems more robust on swiftkey

Google keyboard would be my pick too!

 

[M5RahuL]

The Note 5 is a big, ergonomically, upgrade from the Note 4.

The device feels exceptionally well, at least in my experience, in the hand over the iPhone 6S+ ...and that too with a slightly larger screen.

Outdoor visibility on the Note 5 ( which is about 20% brighter compared to the Note 4) is better than the iPhone.
If you're still considering a phablet sized Android device..the Note 5 deserves a detailed look!

Although, if rumors are to be believed, the Note 6 should be coming out sometime in July..so might wanna wait on that... I also have the S7, which is a beast...albeit a tad small for my tastes..but if the Note 6 is like the S7 ( which it should best imo) it'll be one heck of a phablet!!