Considering Switching To Android - Specific Questions

[robertpolson]

I have been using an iPhone since 3GS and currently have an iPhone seven that I bought when it first launched. In-between the iPhones I used Google Nexus 1 and OnePlus 3.

Even though I primarily use Apple devices (MacBook, iPad, Apple TV, AirPods), I am considering trying Android again. The main reasons are:

- 90% of the apps I use are available on both platforms.
- There are some good user features on Android that as I power user I can benefit from.
- The price for the new iPhoneX on thereon forward is just too much even for a big Apple enthusiast like myself.

Two years ago I tried OnePlus 3 and eventually returned to an iPhone. Here is the summary of why this happened:

https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...bout-one-month-of-android-experience.1992078/

With the upcoming release of OnePlus 6, I am considering giving Android and OnePlus another try.

Specific Questions:

Privacy

From what I have read, OnePlus removed user experience tracking and made it an opt-in option. Does anyone have more insight into this?

I understand that my data is not that important and that no one really cares about it other than advertisement agencies who want to sell more stuff. However, there is just an uncomfortable feeling of working with Google rather than Apple. Any comments on this matter?

Photos

I will have to switch to Google Photos to replace Apple Photos or use something like Plex for local storage. Plex is an option but not the most appealing one. What concerns me about Google Photos is that there is no desktop app and they will have to be managed and organized and edited online. for those of you who have used Google Photos, what is the experience like compared to Apple Photos.

Then there is the question of privacy and photos. All of my photos are family photos but nevertheless, how do you feel about Google vs Apple storing all of your photos?

Notes

With an iPhone, I have access to Bear Notes and Devonthink for notes. I need a desktop app.

With Google, my main options are Evernote (expensive subscription) or Simplenote (not as good as Bear app).

Did I miss anything?

Messages

I understand that I will simply have to suck it up and let go of iMessage. How is the android messenger for iOS nowadays? I hear that Google is planning to fix messaging in 2018 by releasing something similar to iMessage.

 

[ozaz]

Privacy - Don't know. I'm in the don't give this type of thing much thought brigade. But it seems like you're conflating a OnePlus issue with Google, unless I'm misunderstanding.

Photos - Google Photos is a godsend for those of us who can't be bothered to manage our photo collections. I'm very happy with it but I rarely do any editing beyond cropping and my organizing is limited to occasionally creating some Albums. If you do find manual organisation and editing important you may want to look into some other solution (e.g. use Dropbox or similar to back up your photos and sync to a folder on your Mac which then gets monitored by Apple Photos).

Notes - OneNote is another option to consider if you need a desktop app. I personally use Google Keep for minor, transient notes and OneNote for detailed notes that I want to preserve, particularly for work-related stuff.

Messages - Google is trying to get stakeholders (network operators, OEMS) in the mobile industry to agree on a set of standards to replace SMS that will enable interoperability of rich communications from within default messaging apps. It seems unlikely to me that Apple would get involved in this a consequence would be less value to imessage.

 

[convergent]

It cracks me up that people are worried about Google and trust Apple. Google's whole business is based on responsible use of data. If they abuse it, then they'll have the same backlash as Facebook is now dealing with. I don't trust Apple any more than Google personally, abut its not anything I spend a lot of time worrying about.

Photos - Google Photos works great and is just as capable as Apple Photos, if not more so. The rest of my iPhone using Family and I have a family share setup and its easy to add. That said, I would still suggest you backup your photos another way on any device. Two copies is a must.

Notes - I used DevonThink Pro Office for years and have successfully weaned myself from it. For scanned images, I am just scanning into folders on my Surface Pro, which are synced to OneDrive. Its easy enough to search and find files, and preview gives me the same visual. The only thing I really lose is the filing assistant. For everything else I use OneNote. With my Note 8, I can pop out my pen, capture ink notes, and then later open them on my Surface Pro. Syncing is all done through OneDrive.

Messages - Unless Apple plays well with others and updates their fall back from SMS to something more modern, the experience will still be awkward with mixed devices. It is what it is. My family uses GroupMe for family messages, and Google Photos to share things we want to be high quality.

 

[sunking101]

Note 8 user here. I would trust Apple more than Google when it comes to data security. I'm running a Samsung phone with a 'free' Google o/s. When anything is free then you are the product. Apple phones aren't loaded with a free data mining o/s.

Do both allow the NSA etc access? Probably. However I believe your data is more secure longterm with Apple who are hardware vendors.