Im in the same position, so hear them bang on all the time about how great android is. Mostly S5 users who, funnily enough now though, are saying they won't upgrade again until Samsung let them use SD cards and removable battery's again.
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Considering moving to android!
- Thread starter matt869
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See I don't have a Mac, as much as I want one they're just out of my price range for now. I have an iPad mini which just about does everything I would need a laptop to do anyway.
This sounds promising. I think certain apple apps could be much further along / advanced if they didn't have to wait for yearly updates. Apple music is one that stands out the most with all its issues and bugs. Updating that on a weekly basis to weed all the problems out would of meant happier customers. Although I can understand why they put it on there in the first place to make sure it was right I front of people. Wouldn't surprise me if it becomes decoupled sometime in the near future.
Ah I see. I don't know how useful id find that myself though. Do you spend a lot of time in the today screen? I would find the wifi toggles etc easier accessed from the control centre.
Just quicker having that option really. Wether you want to do something in lock screen or even you're in an app..certainly quicker when wanting to search Google
I picked up a Galaxy S6 Edge+ and I can echo what MRU said. The hardware on this phone is phenomenal, the best screen I've ever seen, but there's no escaping the feeling that the software is cobbled together, and so much less cohesive or pleasant to use than iOS. Do not buy a non-Nexus, because Touch wiz is a dealbreaker. I disabled all of the gimmicky stuff, changed launcher, applied a theme, and still I have about 3gb of RAM used on average. Three ****ing gigs. Things scroll laboriously and jittery on Android, random bugs and battery drain happens, non-Google apps are much less polished and look/feel like an afterthought, and there's way too much maintenance. Yes, it's customizable, but I don't think anybody is talking about the merits of Android as a whole. IOS has more or less closed the feature gap; I'm returning to get my iPhone back today. Do you want a files folder or a phone that isn't a headache to use? I'll take the walled garden.
comparison - real quick toggles in android. the problem with ios is that you never know which apps/settings you can use in so called launcher apps.
exactly! i actually never use "today" screen or my "launcher" on that page because i can launch apps much easier just by clicking the icon on the homescreen (or folder on the screen). i tried to use the "today page" and a launcher but the apps im using, all of them cant be added there, so some are on the launcher and some arent. i never remember which one. and i never find me pulling the "today screen" down...
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These are my exact worries and findings in general. I don't think I've seen a non-messy looking android screen and that bothers me. I wouldn't say I have ocd but I could definitely see myself playing around with it too much and, by the looks of other people's phones, I may never be happy.
Thanks for the comparison. In my opinion, none of those screens look appealing. They are both very cluttered. I use control centre often but I wish I could change the top 4 controls that are in there.comparison - real quick toggles in android. the problem with ios is that you never know which apps/settings you can use in so called launcher apps.
exactly! i actually never use "today" screen or my "launcher" on that page because i can launch apps much easier just by clicking the icon on the homescreen (or folder on the screen). i tried to use the "today page" and a launcher but the apps im using, all of them cant be added there, so some are on the launcher and some arent. i never remember which one. and i never find me pulling the "today screen" down...
I downloaded ilauncher but have not used it once since, as I very rarely pull that screen down. I would say it's more to do with the fact it's at the top of the screen. I only have a 5c but think that it's too awkward to reach up with one hand. I couldn't imagine how bad it jus be on a 6 never mind a 6+.
I don't understand. Are you referring to home screens? You can remove every single app from Android home screens and that makes it far easier to avoid clutter than iOS home screens.
comparison - real quick toggles in android. the problem with ios is that you never know which apps/settings you can use in so called launcher apps.
exactly! i actually never use "today" screen or my "launcher" on that page because i can launch apps much easier just by clicking the icon on the homescreen (or folder on the screen). i tried to use the "today page" and a launcher but the apps im using, all of them cant be added there, so some are on the launcher and some arent. i never remember which one. and i never find me pulling the "today screen" down...
It's mainly useful when in the lock screen or in an app. I ,say not use it all the time but it's just as quick when use the same thing on android. I don't need quick settings for apps but just general ideas like what I have listed
comparison - real quick toggles in android. the problem with ios is that you never know which apps/settings you can use in so called launcher apps.
exactly! i actually never use "today" screen or my "launcher" on that page because i can launch apps much easier just by clicking the icon on the homescreen (or folder on the screen). i tried to use the "today page" and a launcher but the apps im using, all of them cant be added there, so some are on the launcher and some arent. i never remember which one. and i never find me pulling the "today screen" down...
That looks ridiculous. Stock Android is a lot better:
If moving from iOS to Android, pick a stock vanilla Android phone, do NOT go with Samsuck.
I'd get the upcoming budget friendly LG Nexus 5 ( 2015 ) or the upcoming high end luxury Hauwei Nexus, or the OnePlus Two, or better yet the Moto Pure.
Next would be a Sense UI device made by HTC, their older One M8 is still a great phone, that can be found for a bargain price.
I'd get the upcoming budget friendly LG Nexus 5 ( 2015 ) or the upcoming high end luxury Hauwei Nexus, or the OnePlus Two, or better yet the Moto Pure.
Next would be a Sense UI device made by HTC, their older One M8 is still a great phone, that can be found for a bargain price.
Yup. I have to use a Galaxy Tab 4 (Quad core @ 1.2 GHz) at work and man is that thing sluggish compared to my memory constrained iPhone 6 Plus. The difference is ridiculous. Definitely doesn't make me want any Samsung devices.
Plus, the iPhone 4S, released in 2011, is getting iOS 9 on day 1 of its release. The S5, released in 2014, is already abandoned by Samsung. Think about that.
Go with stock Android if you want to play around with a smartphone.
I am yes. I don't mean cluttered I mean untidy. There would be zero point to a home screen with nothing on it. Whenever I've seen a home screen they just look messy, the icons are poor and the fonts at times unreadable. The background more often than not clashes with the icons and everything looks janky. If this is almost all the androids I see I just worry I wouldn't be happy with the customisation and therefore android would not be for me.
I know all of this is personal preference and people may like this look, however it doesn't suit me.
I think I'm getting the picture. Stock Android or nothing. That previous image of the settings toggles looks drastically better.
The full quick settings panel is a bit over the top on Touchwiz (screen on the right, accessed by two finger pull down). But I hardly ever go in there.
I generally access all the quick settings I need from the notification pull down (the screen on the left, accessed by single finger pull down).
I think I can add something useful to this discussion. I was in the same boat as you, Matt. I was a longtime iPhone user who always found myself curious about the developments in the Android world. I followed the progress as each new major release became more appealing. With Lollipop last year, I thought finally they had reached the tipping point. I was really taken with everything about Lollipop. The look, the functionality - it all seemed so streamlined and refreshing compared to iOS. I couldn't resist trying it.
I picked up a Nexus 6 and split my usage between it and my iPhone 6. I can't deny that there is a lot to like about Android. After using it a while, the one feature I value more than any other is the true multitasking. I didn't know what this meant until I used the Nexus for myself on a daily basis. What it means in practice is that I can have music playing from one app, then open another app with audio capability, and my music doesn't get cut off. Then, if I choose to play something in the second app, the audio output will switch accordingly. In my notification drop-down I will then have audio controls for both apps, and I can switch between them at will by pressing their respective play buttons. Of course this also works with more than two audio apps at once; basically any recently used audio stream will show playback controls in the notifications, for easy access and switching.
To contrast this with iOS, if I'm playing something in the Music app on my iPhone, and then switch to the Podcasts app, only to look at available podcasts or see what the latest episodes are, my music stops playing. And I've found this to be the case whenever I switch from one audio app of any kind to another; the playing audio stream stops immediately when another app with audio capability is opened. It doesn't matter that I didn't actually want to play anything from the second app. This is the one-thing-at-a-time limitation of iOS, I guess.
Another instance where I've noticed the value of the multitasking capability is when running multiplayer Minecraft. If I'm running it on my iPhone, and the other players have joined my world, everyone gets kicked out of the game if my phone needs to do something else, like answer a call or reply to a text. This can get rather irritating very quickly with multiple interruptions. With the Nexus, on the other hand, I can start the game and then use my phone for anything else at all without interrupting the game for the other players. It's quite nice.
For me, Android's multitasking has turned out to be its greatest strength, and its greatest advantage over iOS. And it's not something that I thought about until I actually used an Android phone on a daily basis for myself. It wasn't on my list of reasons for wanting to try Lollipop, but now it is at the top of my list.
I will repeat what others have said. Don't even consider anything but stock Android. That means, basically, a Nexus or a Motorola, at this point. Google's current system of leaving it up to device manufacturers and wireless carriers to update non-Nexus phones with essential security updates, etc., is a sad, sorry joke. The fact is, they don't get updated, unless you're one of the lucky few.
Now, with all the positive things I've said about my experience with the Nexus 6, I still find myself using my iPhone 6 more often, and for longer periods. With all its limitations, it is still the one that least irritates me. I thought Lollipop would finally be the fully baked Android we were waiting for, but the fact is that I've found it to be rather buggy, even on a fully stock, non-rooted Nexus 6. Google's own apps crash regularly for no apparent reason. I often find the display hot to the touch when I'm doing nothing with the phone except browsing the web with Chrome. And I mean it's so hot that it is unpleasant to place my finger on it to scroll the page. I have no explanation for it, and it comes and goes randomly. At times, it runs nice and cool, and other times it's a hot plate. In both cases, nothing besides Chrome is running.
For all the aesthetic advances Google made with Lollipop, it is still rather unattractive in many aspects of the OS, and in Google's own apps. I don't like the use of one dominant color to identify one app from another. For example, Google Play Music is a sea of orange. It's an orange dream for anyone who is crazy about the color, but what about the rest of us? And they don't use tasteful little accent colors here and there; they just splash the color over the whole app in buckets. The YouTube app hurts my eyes because of the intense, huge blocks of red everywhere. If you want to use Hangouts, you better like the color green, and I mean you better REALLY like it.
As a general rule, all the major Google apps (Maps, YouTube, Gmail, Hangouts, Drive, etc.) look worlds better on iOS; they have far more tasteful designs. And I've even found them to work more smoothly and with less hiccups. That's true of just about everything on iOS when compared to Android. In my experience, Google still has a long way to go to match the buttery smooth experience of using an iPhone.
Yes, there are limitations with multitasking, and you have to put up with Apple's way of doing things, but the overall experience on iPhone is the one I keep coming back to.
I picked up a Nexus 6 and split my usage between it and my iPhone 6. I can't deny that there is a lot to like about Android. After using it a while, the one feature I value more than any other is the true multitasking. I didn't know what this meant until I used the Nexus for myself on a daily basis. What it means in practice is that I can have music playing from one app, then open another app with audio capability, and my music doesn't get cut off. Then, if I choose to play something in the second app, the audio output will switch accordingly. In my notification drop-down I will then have audio controls for both apps, and I can switch between them at will by pressing their respective play buttons. Of course this also works with more than two audio apps at once; basically any recently used audio stream will show playback controls in the notifications, for easy access and switching.
To contrast this with iOS, if I'm playing something in the Music app on my iPhone, and then switch to the Podcasts app, only to look at available podcasts or see what the latest episodes are, my music stops playing. And I've found this to be the case whenever I switch from one audio app of any kind to another; the playing audio stream stops immediately when another app with audio capability is opened. It doesn't matter that I didn't actually want to play anything from the second app. This is the one-thing-at-a-time limitation of iOS, I guess.
Another instance where I've noticed the value of the multitasking capability is when running multiplayer Minecraft. If I'm running it on my iPhone, and the other players have joined my world, everyone gets kicked out of the game if my phone needs to do something else, like answer a call or reply to a text. This can get rather irritating very quickly with multiple interruptions. With the Nexus, on the other hand, I can start the game and then use my phone for anything else at all without interrupting the game for the other players. It's quite nice.
For me, Android's multitasking has turned out to be its greatest strength, and its greatest advantage over iOS. And it's not something that I thought about until I actually used an Android phone on a daily basis for myself. It wasn't on my list of reasons for wanting to try Lollipop, but now it is at the top of my list.
I will repeat what others have said. Don't even consider anything but stock Android. That means, basically, a Nexus or a Motorola, at this point. Google's current system of leaving it up to device manufacturers and wireless carriers to update non-Nexus phones with essential security updates, etc., is a sad, sorry joke. The fact is, they don't get updated, unless you're one of the lucky few.
Now, with all the positive things I've said about my experience with the Nexus 6, I still find myself using my iPhone 6 more often, and for longer periods. With all its limitations, it is still the one that least irritates me. I thought Lollipop would finally be the fully baked Android we were waiting for, but the fact is that I've found it to be rather buggy, even on a fully stock, non-rooted Nexus 6. Google's own apps crash regularly for no apparent reason. I often find the display hot to the touch when I'm doing nothing with the phone except browsing the web with Chrome. And I mean it's so hot that it is unpleasant to place my finger on it to scroll the page. I have no explanation for it, and it comes and goes randomly. At times, it runs nice and cool, and other times it's a hot plate. In both cases, nothing besides Chrome is running.
For all the aesthetic advances Google made with Lollipop, it is still rather unattractive in many aspects of the OS, and in Google's own apps. I don't like the use of one dominant color to identify one app from another. For example, Google Play Music is a sea of orange. It's an orange dream for anyone who is crazy about the color, but what about the rest of us? And they don't use tasteful little accent colors here and there; they just splash the color over the whole app in buckets. The YouTube app hurts my eyes because of the intense, huge blocks of red everywhere. If you want to use Hangouts, you better like the color green, and I mean you better REALLY like it.
As a general rule, all the major Google apps (Maps, YouTube, Gmail, Hangouts, Drive, etc.) look worlds better on iOS; they have far more tasteful designs. And I've even found them to work more smoothly and with less hiccups. That's true of just about everything on iOS when compared to Android. In my experience, Google still has a long way to go to match the buttery smooth experience of using an iPhone.
Yes, there are limitations with multitasking, and you have to put up with Apple's way of doing things, but the overall experience on iPhone is the one I keep coming back to.
Nice post
For one I love the options you get with android but at the same time there are drawbacks and certainly things as simply as podcasts, magazines, and syncing across devices is bigger than I thought and are things I have really missed and glad I've got back.
Now I have a macbook pro i can still imessage even though i don't have an iphone yet. Just a great feature along with facetime which i have used abit too.
Notification center widgets are loads better than i thought..widgets is what was keeping me with android but now i have every widget i need in my pull down menu from news, to quick toggles to sports news, calendar details.
Well that's down to bad taste on the part of those people customising for the sake of it.
I prefer a more stock appearance with a background that doesn't make the icon text illegible and the addition of the DashClock widget on my home screen, something you will never get on iOS without a jailbreak (and even then I am not sure).
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.nurik.roman.dashclock&hl=en_GB