Popular models like Samsung galaxy S3 and others have toggles in the notification shade so it negates the need for the widget.
Some IOS users want as well: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1400019/
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Phones iPhone 4S vs Galaxy S3
- Thread starter AppleTB
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Popular models like Samsung galaxy S3 and others have toggles in the notification shade so it negates the need for the widget.
Some IOS users want as well: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1400019/
Sure. But like I said before, any multi-step process is getting closer to just opening an app.
We will have to agree to disagree over the value of widgets.
I don't see them on many home screen screenshots. But maybe. I don't think most people toggle settings such as wifi, 3G, and bluetooth often enough that saving one or two taps makes a huge difference. Heck, there was a recent report that 70% of Android users don't use wifi at all!
I'm not sure what you are referring to here. Facebook/Twitter notifications are available in notification center.
And a bigger battery means more weight. Trade offs. But I was referring to more than that. Performance, security, and stability are all trade offs for unlimited background processes.
Except it involves you and your recipient downloading, configuring and logging into Skype (which is also available on iOS for cross-platform use.) Like iMessage, Facetime is simply ready to go for anyone using a recent iPhone. It's the same advantage iMessage has over the Android solutions.
Except popularity was my whole point.Obviously, Android has more options! My claim was that iOS has reasonable alternatives for the most popular uses of widgets.
Except I showed that there were choices on iOS to access the same information easily.
Again, you are overstating the difference here. Per your screenshot, your widget shows the next three appointments, not the next week. I have a full screen view of my calendar with one tap. And my next 24 hours in one swipe.
The functionality is not the same, but the information is! You prefer the widget method. I don't.
Again, it does sound overwhelming when you list all of those things separately. And then you claim your setup is "accessible all at once." When it's not.
The reality is that all of that information isn't needed every time I unlock my phone. Most frequently, I need my upcoming appointments, not the ones a few days from now. And accessing the future appointments is a tap away!
You have news widgets that take up a third of your screen for two lines of information! I get the same information through notifications immediately and then through the notification center later with the information displayed much more efficiently. I don't subscribe to types of notifications that I'm not interested in.
Again, my point isn't that the iOS way is universally better. I just think widgets are overrated for most popular use cases. There is a reason that Microsoft stopped submissions to its gadget gallery years ago, despite widgets being supported on Windows 8!
That's exactly it. Every time an Android user tries to show me the value of widgets, I duplicate whatever he's showing me on my iPhone and it's always either equal, or faster and more efficient on my phone to get to the information. For example, many people have a mail widget taking up a full homepage that they have to swipe a few times to get to, I don't get how that's more efficient than me hitting the "mail" button from my homepage. I won the speed test there every time.
Since the widgets take up so much space, it also means he needs to swipe multiple times to find his apps. I have over 60 apps on my main page, neatly organized into folders, that I can open within 1 second.
I get that it's a choice, and Android users can make folders on their home screen as well, I just don't get why widgets are valued so highly.
If someone had mail on their home screen they'd have it faster. Let's not forget about lock screen widgets too.
Half of the benefit of widgets is providing at a glance information.
Personally, the only reason I got iTunes Match is for the Siri integration, otherwise iSub Music Streamer is better than any cloud service. It works with the opensource Subsonic server, so it's a multi-platform solution, and also let's you play from a web browser.
Even better, there's no uploading involved
Check out their page for more info:
http://isubapp.com/
I have at a glance info with the notification, and mail/gmail is on my home screen.
Personally, the only reason I got iTunes Match is for the Siri integration, otherwise iSub Music Streamer is better than any cloud service. It works with the opensource Subsonic server, so it's a multi-platform solution, and also let's you play from a web browser.
Even better, there's no uploading involved
Check out their page for more info:
http://isubapp.com/
Why is this better than any cloud service? It seems like you are exagerrating. Personally, I might run subsonic one day on one of my servers but right now I get the benefit of being able to click on an album and have a digital copy immediately available for streaming/download and also immediately backed up within the provider. I go through so many devices I don't have to worry about restoring my data or anything..It is there when I need it and it just works.
The at at a glance info is only for the email that triggered the notification, not the others in your inbox.
I see ten items in my notification center for recent mail, not one. By the time you scroll past that in the widget I will already have the app open and have seen more email or started the reply...
Subsonic literally IS a cloud service, you're just hosting the "cloud" at home, so no uploading is required. You get to control the bitrate, browse your music in folders or by artist/song...etc. I also prefer iSub to any of the cloud specific music players.
Yeah I have no interest in running a server off my local computer. I'd set up a server off-site in a data center if I was going that route. My way right now I don't have to manage my music files on my local computer, I don't have to worry about leaving ports open on my network for someone to exploit, I don't have to worry about my ip address changing, I don't have to worry about disk space or disk crashes, I don't have to worry about leaving my computer on to access my music and I don't have the hassle of moving my data when I switch computer, etc..
Valid points. In that case I'd go with the cloud service that's aligned with where you like to purchase music. That way you won't have to manually sync your new music.
Hey no more circular debating! How nice.
For better or worse, I literally have no music stored on my computer anymore. I lost all my music once and that was enough for me. Like you said, my biggest issue really is what cloud provider I purchase music from..
I just use the pull down window. I dont have the widget on another page. Dont need to. I use wi-fi all the time when i can.
Nope. Wifi in general.
http://www.comscore.com/Press_Event...gnificantly_Higher_Rates_of_Wi-Fi_Utilization
According to their report, only 32% of Android users in the US ever connect to a wifi network.
I wasn't really discussing that. We were talking about tradeoffs around widgets on the home screen.
So you're saying that having the OPTION to add widgets is bad? I said Android is ahead because it at least has the option.. even if you don't use them yourself, it can't be a disadvantage
Nope. Not saying that at all. I just think the value of widgets are overstated for most popular use cases.
Right. I'd prefer not to have to manage my phone. I think most people agree.
iPhone weighs 7 grams more than the Galaxy S3. Probably because of the lightweight "cheap" build materials.
Sure, but it's not all about the iPhone.
The S3 would weigh less with a smaller battery.Performance, security and stability are non-issues in practice.
Okay?Sure, but among the half that have Android (theoretically), only a certain percentage have the same video chat client as you configured to communicate with you. And all the iPhone users can configure Skype to communicate with the Android users if they want to. Android is far more limited in who you can use it with. Again, not because it can't be configured to support almost anyone, but because most people don't.
Wow. That certainly suggests that plenty of Android owners in the U.S may not be using their "smart phones" in a very smart way.
Thanks for the link, all other articles I'd seen were focusing on public WiFi hotspots prior to reading that.
The problem with widgets is the screen size necessary for them to be useful and not "in the way" making navigation clumsy and inefficient.
I often wonder what kind of pockets these fAndroids wear, because all of these 5" (or thereabout) and beyond devices DO NOT fit comfortably in a regular sized shirt of pants pocket. Maybe they tend to carry man bags, I don't know.
I often wonder what kind of pockets these fAndroids wear, because all of these 5" (or thereabout) and beyond devices DO NOT fit comfortably in a regular sized shirt of pants pocket. Maybe they tend to carry man bags, I don't know.
4.8" screen fits perfectly in a normal pair of jeans.
Maybe not skinny jeans but I don't wear them.HTC Desire supported widgets perfectly and that had a screen .2" bigger than the iPhone - nothing really.
My SGS3 fits great in my skinny jeans, so that's out too :/4.8" screen fits perfectly in a normal pair of jeans.
HTC Desire supported widgets perfectly and that had a screen .2" bigger than the iPhone - nothing really.
I wasn't really discussing that. We were talking about tradeoffs around widgets on the home screen.
Right - what I was saying was that if your apps are pushed onto further pages because of the space taken up by widgets, you can still quickly get to your apps.
Fair enough - they're not for everyone.
Yeah, but the battery life on the iPhone still suffers somewhat by leaving those settings on. It's clearly going to better when it's not actively hunting for Bluetooth devices and WiFi networks.
Sure, but it's not all about the iPhone.
Yeah.. it's light enough as it is though
I doubt anyone picks up a Galaxy S3 and thinks it's too heavy.
Just saying that you can say they're hypothetically problems that might be caused by allowing unlimited background access, but in reality.. they're not problems at all.
You can't call something limited just because people don't install those apps. That's not the same thing. There's nothing stopping someone from downloading Skype so that you can video chat with them, but I couldn't download iMessage to chat with someone on my Android phone.
Absolutely. I've been very clear that Android is the best option for many people.
I disagree based on the trouble-shooting that I've had to do with Android phones. Maybe it's not a problem if you know what you are doing and/or you have the most powerful phones.
But that's exactly my argument! It is limited specifically because people don't install and configure those apps. Skype isn't an Android advantage. It's on both platforms. The advantage of FaceTime is that it is available for use among almost all recent iPhone owners based on their phone number.
Absolutely. I've been very clear that Android is the best option for many people.
I disagree based on the trouble-shooting that I've had to do with Android phones. Maybe it's not a problem if you know what you are doing and/or you have the most powerful phones.
But that's exactly my argument! It is limited specifically because people don't install and configure those apps. Skype isn't an Android advantage. It's on both platforms. The advantage of FaceTime is that it is available for use among almost all recent iPhone owners based on their phone number.
I would hope anyone making a comparison between Android and the iPhone is comparing a flagship Android device otherwise it's an unfair comparison
I'm still not sure I'd call it an advantage, as like I said it's only ios to ios or ios to mac or mac to mac. It's definitely an advantage for people who have a lot of family and friends with iPhones or other iDevices but not for those of us who have a varied selection.
I still prefer iPhone over Androids in terms of apps, efficiency and my iPhone being an Apple product just gives me a sense of confidence. I do respect though the 7 inch size of typical android tabs nowadays, its more convenient,bigger screen and more numerous apps, yes, but again Id still choose my iPhone over them. 
FrankHahn is right, it does depend on the user's preferences, lifestyle and demands!
FrankHahn is right, it does depend on the user's preferences, lifestyle and demands!