Phones Convert to android and loving it?

[Lindenhurst]

I buy something to meet my needs, not to impress someone. Who cares if there is something better after I buy mine, if what I bought does what I need it to do?

No arguing with him. He has that "herd mentality" and he is fine with getting the incremental upgrade once a year in exactly the same size and shape as everyone else is getting at the same time. But at least he has a choice between black and white!


Some play follow the leader, and some go their own way. Thats what makes us all different.

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How are you going to feel when your carrier or manufacturer decides to stop supporting your phone when you haven't even had it for a year? Its happened with many Android phone. How are you going to feel when there are great new apps in the market you can't download because it won't run on your phone or your older version of Android? How are you going to feel when there are phones running the new OS with great new features and improvements while your new phone is stuck on a nearly 2 year old version of the OS? Apple still supports the 3 year old 3Gs and it got the new OS update the same day the 4s did. That level of support is just not there when it comes to Android.

If and when my phone no longer does what I need it to do, I will get another phone. For now it works just fine.

 

[nickchallis92]

How are you going to feel when your carrier or manufacturer decides to stop supporting your phone when you haven't even had it for a year? Its happened with many Android phone. How are you going to feel when there are great new apps in the market you can't download because it won't run on your phone or your older version of Android? How are you going to feel when there are phones running the new OS with great new features and improvements while your new phone is stuck on a nearly 2 year old version of the OS? Apple still supports the 3 year old 3Gs and it got the new OS update the same day the 4s did. That level of support is just not there when it comes to Android.

You could actually argue that with the massive third-party developer scene out there on android phones, that they get supported for far longer than any iphone does. My old HTC HD2 is still getting OS upgrades all the time and it is ancient! It wasn't even android to start with

 

[Lindenhurst]

I think it is. Whats the point of buying a new Android phone when 3 months later they are going to put out one with more processors, more RAM, a new OS and a bigger and/or better screen? Your phone you just paid a bunch of money for and the version of Android its running is outdated within 6 months time and oh yea, you are stuck with it another year and a half. Great fun isn't it?

So...technology should be put on hold and things should only change once a year so that you don't feel like what you bought is out of date? Not in this world. Technology changes incrementally for the most part, and new things come out periodically.
My Note has Gingerbread now and it runs awesome for me. ICS is supposed to come out whenever, but I'm happy with what I have now, so if and when I get the ICS update, I guess that will be good too. I had the latest IOS on my IP4 and I don't feel as if I am missing anything at all. Just because a new update comes out, that does not mean that what I have doesn't work.
I don't get all that caught up in the spec wars, as I don't really care about all the dual processor/ram/resolution bragging rights that many here care about. If the phone works well for me, I use it. The user experience is more important to me than all the tech specs.
Now I sound like an Apple fan! Actually I am an Apple fan, for the most part . I pay the phone bill in my home and half of the phones on it are Apple devices, and the other half not.

 

[ChazUK]

One of the things to consider regarding Android and updates is that most features can be added to older versions thanks to the fact that most system applications are updated independently from the firmware.

Things like YouTube, Google Maps, Google (now Play) Music for instance are compatible across various versions of Android and are updated without firmware, unlike iOS.

Take the Voice actions in Android as an example. When I had my Nexus One, Google updated it to add voice search, dictation and commands into one of the froyo updates for the device. What about non-nexus owners? Google put the voice functions on Android Market for others to download meaning non-nexus owners got the same functionality without a firmware update.

When you compare this to Siri on iOS however the only way to add this functionality retroactively is to jailbreak and even with that workaround, it isn't supported fully.

 

[batting1000]

edit

 

[0m3ga]

The best thing about the Xoom is how it has or is getting the latest OS from Google. ICS was pushed to the wifi models a month or more ago. LTE owners are still waiting but they are working on it and like you mentioned if ICS was a must have you can always root it.

The Xoom (Nexus of tablets) with its unlockable boot loader is still my favorite Android tablet and the dev support is great. I'm keeping mine until the next Nexus tablet comes out.

I usually use it more then my wifi only iPad 2. Mostly because I prefer the browsers with flash (not a big flash fan but I prefer something that supports it until no web pages use it anymore).

I am seriously contemplating buying the Xoom in the next few days, specifically because of what you mentioned above (dev support and ICS). Everyone talks about the Transformer Prime as the best Android tablet, but from what I have been able to gleen, the Xoom is a better option... At least imo.

 

[onthecouchagain]

I've gone back and forth myself, and honestly, the iPhone 4S is near unusable. It's a thing of beauty, but ergonomics wise, it's quite possibly the worse designed phone. My fingers get cramped holding and typing on it for any prolonged period of time.

Also, it blows my mind how Apple can be so brilliant about so many things, yet so stupid over other things. For example, forcing users to watch the app download animation (where it pulls you out of the App Store and the app icon bounces onto your home screen) is... mind boggling. Does Apple seriously think that people download one app at a time all the time?? I cannot fathom why they would do this.

Anyway... the list is too long to go through. Android has problems. iOS has problems. I'd wager Windows has its share of problems too.

The bottom line is: most OSes are the same.

EDIT: Sorry, this came out more rant-y than I thought it was. I was really articulating why I may return to Android.

 

[tekno]

I'm not too sure why this thread exists on an Apple-based site - surely its only going to antagonise?

But I have moved over to Android. The plan was for it to be a temporary move due to frustration with the 4S, but I have found Andriod and the Galaxy S2 to be rather superb. I can't see myself moving back to the iPhone for some time as I suspect (as has been the case for the last five years) the new iPhone will be much the same as all the others.

The exciting thing is that Android is making serious ground. I suspect its just a matter of time before this begins to harm Apple's sales which will hopefully give Apple the impetus to spend some of their $100bn on fighting back with a truly new iPhone.

I never thought I'd move away from iOS, but I have and it was certainly the right decision. What worries me more is if OSX could go the same way.

 

[sracer]

I'm not too sure why this thread exists on an Apple-based site - surely its only going to antagonise?

But I have moved over to Android. The plan was for it to be a temporary move due to frustration with the 4S, but I have found Andriod and the Galaxy S2 to be rather superb. I can't see myself moving back to the iPhone for some time as I suspect (as has been the case for the last five years) the new iPhone will be much the same as all the others.

The exciting thing is that Android is making serious ground. I suspect its just a matter of time before this begins to harm Apple's sales which will hopefully give Apple the impetus to spend some of their $100bn on fighting back with a truly new iPhone.

I never thought I'd move away from iOS, but I have and it was certainly the right decision. What worries me more is if OSX could go the same way.

Interesting. I've been a long-time Android user since the original G1. I passed on the iPhones in the past because I couldn't justify to myself spending $100/month for cell service for it. But since I was able to get an inexpensive brand new iPhone 4 and use it with Straight-Talk prepaid ($45/month), I jumped in.

The first thing that I noticed was the insanely long battery life of the iPhone 4. With 3G and wifi enabled, I'm getting DAYS of standby and typical (for me) usage. With my Android handsets, keeping 3G and wifi enabled would drain the battery within a day and a half.

I've found the multitasking on iOS to be superior to Android.

As a software developer, it kills me that my iPhone experience is superior to my Android phone experience... my anti-iPhone feelings about this are in part because of Apple's "extortion" of requiring me to pay them $100 a year so that I can install apps that I've written on my own iOS device.

 

[ChrisTX]

Everyone I know IRL with an Android device has switched to the iPhone and has had nothing but positives to say about it. Most were Verizon users that had no choice but to go Android in the beginning until the iPhone hit that network. Even other people that I have talked to online have said that the user experience on iOS far outweighs the user experience on Android. I look at the Android landscape and notice that most devices don't even have ICS or are getting it by summer, but by then Jelly Bean will be released. I can't really get excited about a platform that takes so long to push out updates like they do. That, and the fact that there is no real uniformity across Android phones has me sticking with iOS.

 

[Fireblade]

Everyone I know IRL with an Android device has switched to the iPhone and has had nothing but positives to say about it. Most were Verizon users that had no choice but to go Android in the beginning until the iPhone hit that network. Even other people that I have talked to online have said that the user experience on iOS far outweighs the user experience on Android. I look at the Android landscape and notice that most devices don't even have ICS or are getting it by summer, but by then Jelly Bean will be released. I can't really get excited about a platform that takes so long to push out updates like they do. That, and the fact that there is no real uniformity across Android phones has me sticking with iOS.

Nice story!!

I know it the other way...

Many people I know (me included) moved from 3GS,4,4s to Sammy SGII, Note and different HTC devices.
I hear only good things about their new devices, complaining the will never go back.

And now?

 

[mbell1975]

I've found the multitasking on iOS to be superior to Android.

How so? This is one thing I prefer on Android. iOS pauses an app and then resumes, its not true multitasking. I can't go do something else while an app is downloading, it will pause that download till I come back to it. On Android, I can have 10 different apps downloading or updating while I do other things. Thats multitasking.

 

[Sunsean]

Interesting. I've been a long-time Android user since the original G1. I passed on the iPhones in the past because I couldn't justify to myself spending $100/month for cell service for it. But since I was able to get an inexpensive brand new iPhone 4 and use it with Straight-Talk prepaid ($45/month), I jumped in.

The first thing that I noticed was the insanely long battery life of the iPhone 4. With 3G and wifi enabled, I'm getting DAYS of standby and typical (for me) usage. With my Android handsets, keeping 3G and wifi enabled would drain the battery within a day and a half.

Same here, had an original mytouch 3g, then the 4g, then finally the galaxy s2. Each phone definitely improved over its predecessor, but ultimately even with the latest s2, battery was okay at best, and even though everything worked well for the most part, it still seemed kind of glitchy.

Anyway, with my iphone 4 so far (still new relationship) I have been amazed by the battery. On my android phones, I would have to recharge them every night to have them last me the next day. So far, I've gone 3 days on one iphone charge, which astounds me. Even on standby, none of my Android phones would make it that long.

How so? This is one thing I prefer on Android. iOS pauses an app and then resumes, its not true multitasking. I can't go do something else while an app is downloading, it will pause that download till I come back to it. On Android, I can have 10 different apps downloading or updating while I do other things. Thats multitasking.

This, and a couple other features are the things I will miss most about android. Namely, the superior gmail app, and the maps app with integrated google navigation. I can live with gmail - but the android maps app is the one major feature I can say that Android does better. Way more options and controls over the ios version - though I do have to say that the ios version seems to locate me a little faster.

 

[x986]

I took an Android for a month long test drive prior to getting a 4S. The "true" 4G (or LTE) is amazing!
The main thing that kept me in the Apple camp is the Android Marketplace. There are a lot of bugs and other dangerous creatures there. I felt like I was threading my way through a minefield. I was lucky enough to only get a couple of toes blown off, so, in the end, I opted for the safety of having Apple vet my apps.
fwiw: I have not read this thread. The above is my personal experience and opinion.

 

[Sunsean]

I took an Android for a month long test drive prior to getting a 4S. The "true" 4G (or LTE) is amazing!
The main thing that kept me in the Apple camp is the Android Marketplace. There are a lot of bugs and other dangerous creatures there. I felt like I was threading my way through a minefield. I was lucky enough to only get a couple of toes blown off, so, in the end, I opted for the safety of having Apple vet my apps.
fwiw: I have not read this thread. The above is my personal experience and opinion.

Yes, along with what I said above, the data speed is the other thing I will miss about my t-mobile android phone. In my limited tests so far, the iphone has been well below what I was getting on t-mobile 4g. But like you said, the overall apple experience, app store and much more, is better imo. Software makes a huge difference, and apple has got android beat in that department. Garageband on the iphone alone was enough reason for me to switch haha.

 

[iRobajob]

I have just recently switched back to android after leaving one other time. Made me love my iPhone even more. iOS fits my life better. That's why we have choice. Choose what fits you and your needs. The only thing I liked better on android is the navigation that I will never use.

 

[mbell1975]

So...technology should be put on hold and things should only change once a year so that you don't feel like what you bought is out of date? Not in this world. Technology changes incrementally for the most part, and new things come out periodically.
My Note has Gingerbread now and it runs awesome for me. ICS is supposed to come out whenever, but I'm happy with what I have now, so if and when I get the ICS update, I guess that will be good too. I had the latest IOS on my IP4 and I don't feel as if I am missing anything at all. Just because a new update comes out, that does not mean that what I have doesn't work.
I don't get all that caught up in the spec wars, as I don't really care about all the dual processor/ram/resolution bragging rights that many here care about. If the phone works well for me, I use it. The user experience is more important to me than all the tech specs.
Now I sound like an Apple fan! Actually I am an Apple fan, for the most part . I pay the phone bill in my home and half of the phones on it are Apple devices, and the other half not.

Here is a great article that sums up the mess Android has become

http://www.theverge.com/2011/12/23/2651347/a-good-smartphone-comes-but-once-a-year

 

[Euphonius]

Long time lurker just registered, thought I'd add my 2 cents.

I used to have a 3G until my contract was renewed and I plumped for the Galaxy S (cheaper than the iphone 4 at the time).

I too was a rom addict for a while, trying every kind of rom available, last one I had was a custom ICS rom.
The thing for me that caused me to switch back to the iPhone was stability.

People in this thread have been laughed at for suggesting the same, but before you ridicule me, I'd just like to explain my experiences.

The Galaxy S has an amazing screen, is fully customisable and at first I was so happy I'd switched. But after a while it started to grate that I wasn't receiving updates to the system (gingerbread most notably). GB offered some stuff that my vanilla operating system lacked at the time, stability, better multitasking etc. so I headed over to XDA developers and my quest for the perfect ROM began.
Now I've always been a tinkerer so there were no issues with flashing roms, kernels and the like.
After a while I settled on Darky's Rom, which, according to me and many others was fast and less of a battery hog than the vanilla rom I had.
Then the problems started. As someone said earlier in the thread, my phone would regularly lock up, reboot when in a call, forget to wake me. I'd have gallery issues, internet browser issues, connection issues, gps issues... you name it, I had it.
So back to vanilla I went. My phone was slow again. Android OS would take up 75% battery (google it) and my phone would overheat.

Seeing I was still on contract and ICS had released I started tinkering again.

Am I glad I did!
ICS was a breath of fresh air. Looked great, seemed less power hungry and was a lot faster than before.
And then, as if by magic, I'd have random reboots again. Android OS STILL caused a problem and I'd have to take my charger to work just to get through the day.

In the meantime I'd bought an iPad2 and yearned for iOS again, so as soon as my contract was up I went back to the iPhone (4s). And I'm loving it!

YMMV of course, but the thing that makes iOS stand out for me is the stability, the Appstore (Google play is absolutely awful), the seemless way it integrates with my iMac and iPad (I have a windows machine too just in case you were wondering ), and above all, the timely updates.

If android can sort out the update situation and they can get Android stable over various devices, then maybe I'll think about switching back.
As it is though, the iPhone just oozes quality I find lacking in Android at the moment.

 

[Lindenhurst]

Long time lurker just registered, thought I'd add my 2 cents.

I used to have a 3G until my contract was renewed and I plumped for the Galaxy S (cheaper than the iphone 4 at the time).

I too was a rom addict for a while, trying every kind of rom available, last one I had was a custom ICS rom.
The thing for me that caused me to switch back to the iPhone was stability.

People in this thread have been laughed at for suggesting the same, but before you ridicule me, I'd just like to explain my experiences.

The Galaxy S has an amazing screen, is fully customisable and at first I was so happy I'd switched. But after a while it started to grate that I wasn't receiving updates to the system (gingerbread most notably). GB offered some stuff that my vanilla operating system lacked at the time, stability, better multitasking etc. so I headed over to XDA developers and my quest for the perfect ROM began.
Now I've always been a tinkerer so there were no issues with flashing roms, kernels and the like.
After a while I settled on Darky's Rom, which, according to me and many others was fast and less of a battery hog than the vanilla rom I had.
Then the problems started. As someone said earlier in the thread, my phone would regularly lock up, reboot when in a call, forget to wake me. I'd have gallery issues, internet browser issues, connection issues, gps issues... you name it, I had it.
So back to vanilla I went. My phone was slow again. Android OS would take up 75% battery (google it) and my phone would overheat.

Seeing I was still on contract and ICS had released I started tinkering again.

Am I glad I did!
ICS was a breath of fresh air. Looked great, seemed less power hungry and was a lot faster than before.
And then, as if by magic, I'd have random reboots again. Android OS STILL caused a problem and I'd have to take my charger to work just to get through the day.

In the meantime I'd bought an iPad2 and yearned for iOS again, so as soon as my contract was up I went back to the iPhone (4s). And I'm loving it!

YMMV of course, but the thing that makes iOS stand out for me is the stability, the Appstore (Google play is absolutely awful), the seemless way it integrates with my iMac and iPad (I have a windows machine too just in case you were wondering ), and above all, the timely updates.

If android can sort out the update situation and they can get Android stable over various devices, then maybe I'll think about switching back.
As it is though, the iPhone just oozes quality I find lacking in Android at the moment.

Thanks for the honest post. Its nice to read some genuine honesty on here for a change.
I'm new to Android, and only changed because I just couldn't handle the small screen. I love the note and so far have no complaints, but I realize that 45 days doesn't make me an expert on it by no means. Most of what I use the phone for is calls, and web browsing, along with some stock related stuff. Not much of a gamer, so I haven't done much of that. Never been the type to download hundreds of various apps, so I wouldn't know about may of the problems others have. This Galaxy Note is my first Android, as well as my first Samsung phone. So far so good. Loving the large screen, but always carry a spare battery with me when I'm out.
If Apple had a larger screen, I would still be with iPhone. If they surprise everyone with something larger than 4" this Fall, I'd consider changing back.

 

[Euphonius]

Thanks for the honest post. Its nice to read some genuine honesty on here for a change.
I'm new to Android, and only changed because I just couldn't handle the small screen. I love the note and so far have no complaints, but I realize that 45 days doesn't make me an expert on it by no means. Most of what I use the phone for is calls, and web browsing, along with some stock related stuff. Not much of a gamer, so I haven't done much of that. Never been the type to download hundreds of various apps, so I wouldn't know about may of the problems others have. This Galaxy Note is my first Android, as well as my first Samsung phone. So far so good. Loving the large screen, but always carry a spare battery with me when I'm out.
If Apple had a larger screen, I would still be with iPhone. If they surprise everyone with something larger than 4" this Fall, I'd consider changing back.

I've played with a mate's Note for a while, even helped him get some roms on it, it's a nice device, though a bit too big for me.

I say immerse yourself in the ecosystem, it's great for playing around with. I just got fed up after a while, though I did have a lot of fun trying out the roms. I think XDA developers are just starting to get some ICS roms stable for the Note, I'd recommend trying some out, but only if you're prepared to, as I say, tinker around a bit.
ICS is a step in the right direction, I just don't think Google are quite there yet.

 

[kdarling]

I think it is. Whats the point of buying a new Android phone when 3 months later they are going to put out one with more processors, more RAM, a new OS and a bigger and/or better screen?

Likewise, what's the point of always having to wait a year (or more) before we can buy a newer iOS device?

Your phone you just paid a bunch of money for and the version of Android its running is outdated within 6 months time and oh yea, you are stuck with it another year and a half. Great fun isn't it?

How is that any different from buying an iPhone one to six months before the next model comes out, and "being stuck with it for a year or more"? How many times have you heard the advice given to people that they should not buy an iPhone right then, "because a later model will be out in a few months more"?

I'd love it if Apple had new models more often. That way, we wouldn't have just the choice of an older device nine months after it came out... or feel like we have to "wait for the next model".

See, it works both ways.

... my anti-iPhone feelings about this are in part because of Apple's "extortion" of requiring me to pay them $100 a year so that I can install apps that I've written on my own iOS device.

A lot of developers upload their personal apps to the App Store as free apps to avoid that.

That's partly why I prefer using Android for apps for my family and myself. I also enjoy being able to create my own apps for my Android watch, the WIMM One.

 

[BiggAW]

Everyone I know IRL with an Android device has switched to the iPhone and has had nothing but positives to say about it. Most were Verizon users that had no choice but to go Android in the beginning until the iPhone hit that network. Even other people that I have talked to online have said that the user experience on iOS far outweighs the user experience on Android. I look at the Android landscape and notice that most devices don't even have ICS or are getting it by summer, but by then Jelly Bean will be released. I can't really get excited about a platform that takes so long to push out updates like they do. That, and the fact that there is no real uniformity across Android phones has me sticking with iOS.

Yeah, I've seen a lot of that too, which really shocks me, given that they are Verizon subs and could have had Verizon 4G LTE instead.

 

[lilcosco08]

I'm not a huge fan of android. However, if there was ever to be a viable WebOS powered handset to come out, I'd buy it.

I loves me some WebOS

 

[batting1000]

Here is a great article that sums up the mess Android has become

http://www.theverge.com/2011/12/23/2651347/a-good-smartphone-comes-but-once-a-year

Disagree. With iOS, if there's something you don't like about the new device, you gotta wait till next year to get new hardware and features. If you have an older model iPhone, you get left out when that new iPhone comes out and you're not eligible for it (although you can do Craigslist). Meanwhile that new iPhone gets bombarded by Android devices which are actually better spec-wise and software-wise until a new one is released which is still based on the standards set by those Android devices.

With Android, you get choice. You've got several different manufacturers producing different sized devices with different features, hardware, cameras, screen sizes, and more. It's evident that users are more happy with choice and the iOS software is just one example. Users of iOS don't find what they want the OS to do out of the box so they're "forced" to jailbreak, in a sense, mainly for customization. You don't need to do that to do what you want with Android. Want a themed launcher? No problem, just download an alternative launcher and a theme you like; there are tons to choose from. I could go on for hours.

Sure, there's fragmentation. It's inevitable when many manufacturers are producing devices for the same platform. But, for example, if you were to eliminate every manufacturer out except one which has a flagship device (most do), you'll see they typically update that model yearly. Take Samsung for example. They released announced the Galaxy S in 2010. They announced the S2 in 2011, improving on the previous model by leaps and bounds. They'll probably be releasing the S3 this year, improving on the S2 by a bunch.

Of course, there are tons of Android devices. But you can pick the one you like and not worry about the rest. Fragmentation really isn't a big deal. Do you really use all the Android devices at once? No, you only use one, the one you like.

Just my opinion.

 

[ChrisTX]

Nice story!!

I know it the other way...

Many people I know (me included) moved from 3GS,4,4s to Sammy SGII, Note and different HTC devices.
I hear only good things about their new devices, complaining the will never go back.

And now?

For sure and you will always find people on both sides of the fence.

Yeah, I've seen a lot of that too, which really shocks me, given that they are Verizon subs and could have had Verizon 4G LTE instead.

Didn't the iPhone 4 get released before the HTC thunderbolt Verizon's first LTE device? Secondly the polls already showed that most iPhone 4 owners mistakenly thought they had 4G on their handsets anyway. I don't think most people even know what 4G is. LTE is only good when coupled with good hardware and software IE: iOS, and the iPhone.