Phones iPhone X: An Apple User’s Crisis of Identity

[mikef07]

The car analogies fall apart fast. Apple is more like BMW, whereas Android spans all levels of models.

I think that is a good analogy. Android gives you the ability to customize your phone to be as efficient and as intricate as you would like. Using a car it could be like a Ferrari or Porsche. It is also sometimes like a Yugo depending on the model of the phone and little to no customization and bloatware. Apple is like a BMW. It is nice but if an Android is customized to perfection it likely can exceed what Apple can provide, but Apple is willing to bet what they offer is good enouhg.
[doublepost=1510149161][/doublepost]

iOS at times can be counterintuitive. I notice it mostly when I need to tweak camera settings. If I want to switch from 1080p to 4K video I have to exit the camera app and go into settings, scroll down and find the camera settings (and since this is the setting I mess with a lot, why can’t I put it toward the top of the list of settings?) and then go in and change. It takes time away from the action going on around me. In the Android phones I’m familiar with, I can make such a setting change within the camera app.

And do you know why they do this IMO? I had to deal with something like this during this past weekend. My MIL opened her camera up and hit a button accidentally. She had no clue what she did or what she hit. Apple realizes the great majority of people pick up their phone, hit a camera button, and shoot. In other words they have their son in law set up the settings and then it is done for the masses.

I am extremely thankful that most settings cannot be accessed from apps themselves or I would get a lot more calls to fix whatever was done

 

[AustinIllini]

I think that is a good analogy. Android gives you the ability to customize your phone to be as efficient and as intricate as you would like. Using a car it could be like a Ferrari or Porsche. It is also sometimes like a Yugo depending on the model of the phone and little to no customization and bloatware. Apple is like a BMW. It is nice but if an Android is customized to perfection it likely can exceed what Apple can provide, but Apple is willing to bet what they offer is good enouhg.

But then again, car analogies fall apart because there aren't really desirable super high end phones on the market. But yeah, iPhone is basically a 328i, Pixels are A4s, Samsungs are Lexus IS.

 

[FFR]

iOS at times can be counterintuitive. I notice it mostly when I need to tweak camera settings. If I want to switch from 1080p to 4K video I have to exit the camera app and go into settings, scroll down and find the camera settings (and since this is the setting I mess with a lot, why can’t I put it toward the top of the list of settings?) and then go in and change. It takes time away from the action going on around me. In the Android phones I’m familiar with, I can make such a setting change within the camera app.

Then we are at the mercy of some developer deciding certain display settings should be stuck under “accessibility” instead of under the display settings, even though it is the display that is being altered.

I understand Apple wants to tout how friendly they are to people with disabilities, but I think it would make more sense to have an accessibility feature be a subcategory under the setting category that describes the settings it actually changes, such as font, sound, display and so forth.

People who don’t have special needs might not otherwise be aware certain display and sound settings that they might want to change anyway, can be changed, because it would not naturally occur to them to look under General Settings, then look for the Accessibility sub category and then scroll through and see that certain elements of display and sound can be changed. They’re going to naturally and logically start off looking under Display or Sound or any other category that describes the characteristics they want to change.

I see there are certain settings that truly do meet special needs and don’t fall easily under any other category so I’m not saying I want Accessibility abolished. I just want to see it more logically utilized.

One nice thing I can think of to say about iOS 11 on the iPhone X: I envy how easy it is for my husband to get to the flashlight on his new iPhone.

True. But I don’t think that’s a use case for many iPhone owners.
Usually set it to 4K, if you want the best available resolution or 1080p to conserve storage.

Many iOS users set it up once and don’t really go back.

As for the Accessibility shortcut, it’s primary function are for those with needs, and for them having everything in one place is probably more important than having to go to multiple different places for the settings they might require.

There is an accessibility shortcut that you can access system wide, triple click home button.

What device have you finally settled on?

 

[dotnet]

1) List of icons in a grid. Pretty damn boring. And unintuitive. I mean, if I have just 4 icons on iPhone 7+, why can't I put them on the bottom of the display? Easier to reach, and looks better since there is already dock with app icons there.

And ditch this grid of icons already. As someone said here, I also use a plain black wallpaper, since it makes no sense to use wallpaper at all. It's hidden behind numerous icons.

The primary purpose of the home screen is to give you quick and direct access to your apps, not to entertain you. If you want an empty home screen (so you can enjoy your wallpaper), where would you keep the app icons? Do you want to do away with them altogether? Launch apps by typing their name? Through Siri? You can do both of those, of course, already.

If you like to be greeted by your awesome wallpaper just put a single app on the first screen, the rest on the other screens. Not sure how this would make the phone faster or easier to use, let alone more intuitive, but there you go. My Samsung Galaxy using work mates use similar grids of app icons on their screens as I, and don't seem to find it boring.

2) Phone app is simply outdated. It was outdated when first iPhone came out, but now it's simply a joke. Why can't Apple implement smart dial like even prehistoric phones had? Much easier to call someone. On iOS I have to scroll and scroll... Or use full keyboard to search. Again, unintuitive.

Scroll and scroll? It sounds like you haven't discovered the scrubber bar in the contacts list? Not sure what you mean by smart dial, starting to type a name and then hit dial when it comes up (via auto-complete)? You can do that without even launching the Phone app.

Or you could just use Siri for calling people. That's what I mostly do (if I'm not calling a contact straight from Messages, Mail and the like). My closest family members are the top favourites and therefore just a force press on the Phone icon away.

3) I don't need much of customizations. All I want is simple ways to set some ringtones, and simple stuff like that. I don't need widgets on homescreen (but would love them), but I simply hate when all I can see is app icon after app icon.

Setting sounds for alarm, phone calls, media, etc. -> pretty unintuitive as well when compared to Android.

Again, I'm at a loss. If you want to assign a specific ringtone to a contact what is wrong with tapping Edit > Ringtone > select the ringtone you want?

I could go on and on, but these are some really basic stuff. I'm not asking for a full revamp of iOS. Quite the opposite. Just some small tweaks.

You're not making your grievances very clear, I'm afraid. If the above is your case for iOS being unintuitive then it seems pretty weak.

 

[everythingapplerainbow]

I have no idea why they removed the ability to group them by app (iOS 9 maybe?) but it’s the biggest problem I have with their implementation.

well, I didn't group them, and I didn't see any people around me doing that. I think that's the reason they removed it.

 

[dotnet]

iOS at times can be counterintuitive. I notice it mostly when I need to tweak camera settings. If I want to switch from 1080p to 4K video I have to exit the camera app and go into settings, scroll down and find the camera settings (and since this is the setting I mess with a lot, why can’t I put it toward the top of the list of settings?) and then go in and change. It takes time away from the action going on around me. In the Android phones I’m familiar with, I can make such a setting change within the camera app.

I agree that the Camera app is pretty basic. I mean, it is very high-tech under the hood but the presentation is decidedly point&shoot. I guess they're doing this on purpose, considering the wide target audience. Thankfully, there are tons of camera apps for the enthusiast to choose from.

 

[FFR]

well, I didn't group them, and I didn't see any people around me doing that. I think that's the reason they removed it.

It wasn’t very intuitive if you grouped your notifications by app instead of date.
I tried it but switched back, kept having to swipe through the list for a notification I just missed.

 

[dotnet]

Then we are at the mercy of some developer deciding certain display settings should be stuck under “accessibility” instead of under the display settings, even though it is the display that is being altered.

I'm pretty sure it's never just some developer, and that all these decisions are the result of endless discussions and deliberations, but I agree that the Settings app as a whole is a mess. There are just too many settings in iOS these days, which makes finding them hard – before we even get into the curious location of some of them. If I had to change anything about iOS I'd start with the Settings app.

 

[everythingapplerainbow]

- Redo Notifications
- Allow default app settings change
- Ditch the need for iTunes
- Allow some basic form of customization: Dark Mode, Icon packs, more options to move stuff around the screen, like put apps on the bottom of the screen right above the Dock.
- Allow Widgets on the Home screen, allow user to decide where to put them.

What do I need iTunes for? except backup, which Android phones do not even have that option (well, maybe Samsung Kies)
other reasons you had are things I hate a lot about Android.
Default app? I'm sicked of Android asking me to set an app as default (and make me dig through its messy Settings app to find away setting it back)
Notification bar on Android is the one that needs to be removed, you're not tired of clearing them all the time or seeing some stupid progress bar popping up there?
Widgets on home screen, move stuff around the screen: you love wasting time with home screen, don't you? Widgets on home screen = you have to leave the app to see that widget

 

[5105973]

I’m not talking about setting anything too complex in on the camera. I’m no photographer myself. I like it simple, too, otherwise I’d own an LG V30 and would use my DSLR more than I do. But sometimes I want to downgrade the video resolution for various reasons and it’s currently a hunt and I know from using an Android that it doesn’t have to be this inefficient.

As for the elderly, well we don’t like to think of not being inclusive in today’s society, but the facts are that a smartphone isn’t the smartest choice past a certain point of motor and cognitive decline.

I have four elders in the family 80 and older who also kept calling my husband and I for tech support, so I’m sympathetic to the need for simplicity for these devices. However, I have seen enough technology misadventures among my in laws to know it’s not possible to elderproof any smartphone. It is kinder to offer alternatives.

For example, in the wake of my mother-in-law’s stroke recovery, we moved the inlaws off of iPhones back to simple cell and landline based phones and Amazon Echo for voice control calls, so that they have a choice between more easily manipulated manual or voice control depending on how they feel that day. They find full sized iPad pros round out anything they miss from an iPhone. And my mother-in-law has returned to using her simple basic point and shoot camera vs her iPhone for snaps. We do have to help her get her pictures onto her iPad a few times a month. Not all elderly people are alike, but we find that the ones we take care of need tactile controls or large virtual interfaces and so small slabs of glass with virtual buttons don’t meet their needs well.

My dad is the only one who seems like he is still in his 40’s and he manages a fully updated Windows PC. He can use either Android or iOS. He is only 80. But even he is growing impatient with using smart phones with his bifocals and uses a smart phone only when he’s at the store and needs to ask my mom something.

I’m not suggesting accessibility be removed entirely or even changed in any way from what it is now, so long as some of the settings currently grouped within it can also be accessed from within the categories or apps that are directly affected or directly described by these settings.

@FFR I’m on an iPhone 7 Plus and a Samsung S8+. I am in the process of returning a defective Pixel 2. We are heading into the holidays so I’m not looking to buying anything in the immediate future.

 

[tbayrgs]

well, I didn't group them, and I didn't see any people around me doing that. I think that's the reason they removed it.

Yup, your limited anecdotal evidence is absolute.

Well, I grouped by app and know lots of other folks that did the same. See how that works?

What would be the impact of giving users a choice? Have it grouped by date by default but give the option to switch it if one chooses.

 

[dotnet]

The best way to deal with notifications is to disable them. I only want notifications about things I have to act upon right away. For checking on the status of things when they become of interest to me I use the widget screen.

I also don't need notifications piling up about emails and messages I've received, or calls I've missed. I can see the counter badges on the app icons quite well, thanks very much.

 

[c0ppo]

The primary purpose of the home screen is to give you quick and direct access to your apps, not to entertain you. If you want an empty home screen (so you can enjoy your wallpaper), where would you keep the app icons? Do you want to do away with them altogether? Launch apps by typing their name? Through Siri? You can do both of those, of course, already.

Yes, the primary purpose of the home screen is to give me quick and direct access to my apps. So here is a simple question for you. Where is it easier to reach apps with one hand on iPhone 7+, on the bottom of the screen, or on the top of the screen?

After you aswer that... If I have only 4 apps on one screen, why do they have to be on top? Why can't I put them on the bottom?

Answer honestly.

As for app placements. I just use tiny fraction of apps. Actually, just 8 of them. So I would really love that those 8 are all at the bottom, and rest are on other screens. That is quicker, and gives more direct access then having a lot of apps/folders on home screen.

Or you have a problem with that as well?

If you like to be greeted by your awesome wallpaper just put a single app on the first screen, the rest on the other screens. Not sure how this would make the phone faster or easier to use, let alone more intuitive, but there you go. My Samsung Galaxy using work mates use similar grids of app icons on their screens as I, and don't seem to find it boring.

Nice little hack. But not good enough. That single app remains on top. Putting it on bottom should be possible, and it's a simple 'feature'. You keep defending Apple on this, but this can't be defended. At all. Since 'my' solution would still allow you to use your phone like you do now, but it would also allow people like me to use our phone like we want.

What is so bad about that?

Scroll and scroll? It sounds like you haven't discovered the scrubber bar in the contacts list? Not sure what you mean by smart dial, starting to type a name and then hit dial when it comes up (via auto-complete)? You can do that without even launching the Phone app.

Scrubber bar? Spotlight? Read my post again. And again. But I highly doubt you will realise what I'm talking about since you haven't used Android phone. And it's obvious. I have more then 900 contacts. By the time you scrubb your way thru there, or use spotlight, I'm already on a phone call on android. And it's more direct. And much quicker. Your words

Or you could just use Siri for calling people. That's what I mostly do (if I'm not calling a contact straight from Messages, Mail and the like). My closest family members are the top favourites and therefore just a force press on the Phone icon away.

Siri doesn't even work in my country. Siri works for just a few languages. And as I read about Siri, even native english speaking people are making fun of Siri. So you're suggestion is to use Siri? Well, I would. If I could. And if Siri actually worked

Again, I'm at a loss. If you want to assign a specific ringtone to a contact what is wrong with tapping Edit > Ringtone > select the ringtone you want?

Custom ringtone on Android: Download it. Use it. Or connect via usb/wi-fi to your pc/mac, transfer ringtone, use it. Or use any mp3 file.

Now you write the procedure for custom ringtones on iPhone. And say which one is easier, more direct, and quicker

You're not making your grievances very clear, I'm afraid. If the above is your case for iOS being unintuitive then it seems pretty weak.

Actually, my 'grievances' are very clear. But you obviously don't use any other OS besides iOS. Try them out. They might surprise you. And then my 'grievances' will be very clear to you

 

[FFR]

I’m not talking about setting anything too complex in on the camera. I’m no photographer myself. I like it simple, too, otherwise I’d own an LG V30 and would use my DSLR more than I do. But sometimes I want to downgrade the video resolution for various reasons and it’s currently a hunt and I know from using an Android that it doesn’t have to be this inefficient.

As for the elderly, well we don’t like to think of not being inclusive in today’s society, but the facts are that a smartphone isn’t the smartest choice past a certain point of motor and cognitive decline.

I have four elders in the family 80 and older who also kept calling my husband and I for tech support, so I’m sympathetic to the need for simplicity for these devices. However, I have seen enough technology misadventures among my in laws to know it’s not possible to elderproof any smartphone. It is kinder to offer alternatives.

For example, in the wake of my mother-in-law’s stroke recovery, we moved the inlaws off of iPhones back to simple cell and landline based phones and Amazon Echo for voice control calls, so that they have a choice between more easily manipulated manual or voice control depending on how they feel that day. They find full sized iPad pros round out anything they miss from an iPhone. And my mother-in-law has returned to using her simple basic point and shoot camera vs her iPhone for snaps. We do have to help her get her pictures onto her iPad a few times a month. Not all elderly people are alike, but we find that the ones we take care of need tactile controls or large virtual interfaces and so small slabs of glass with virtual buttons don’t meet their needs well.

My dad is the only one who seems like he is still in his 40’s and he manages a fully updated Windows PC. He can use either Android or iOS. He is only 80. But even he is growing impatient with using smart phones with his bifocals and uses a smart phone only when he’s at the store and needs to ask my mom something.

I’m not suggesting accessibility be removed entirely or even changed in any way from what it is now, so long as some of the settings currently grouped within it can also be accessed from within the categories or apps that are directly affected or directly described by these settings.

@FFR I’m on an iPhone 7 Plus and a Samsung S8+. I am in the process of returning a defective Pixel 2. We are heading into the holidays so I’m not looking to buying anything in the immediate future.

That’s a shame I was looking forward to your review of the pixel xl 2. Happy holidays

 

[eyeseeyou]

That is incorrect. Most Honda owners do not mod their rides. Most Honda owners buy one of a few different models and do nothing to it.

I spend a lot of time commuting and based off of an eye test I’d say that you are incorrect but my point was that people who buy luxury cars aren’t the type to mod their rides vs the Honda customer that also includes the “rice rocket” / fast and the furious customer.

Knowledgeable iPhone customers or people who stick with iPhones already know customization for the most Isn’t why they’re using an iPhone or a selling point.
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The car analogies fall apart fast.

True but I was just responding to someone else’s analogy.

 

[lowendlinux]

Since one of the main features android has over iOS is customization wouldn’t the Honda comparison be more for android? Honda owners loooooove to mod their rides.

People who buy luxury cars don’t buy with the mind set of all mods they can do to it similar to people who understand how iOS works when they buy an Apple device.

Modding is a mindset and sometime the product being modded doesn't make it home before the mods start.

 

[mikef07]

I spend a lot of time commuting and based off of an eye test I’d say that you are incorrect but my point was that people who buy luxury cars aren’t the type to mod their rides vs the Honda customer that also includes the “rice rocket” / fast and the furious customer.

Knowledgeable iPhone customers or people who stick with iPhones already know customization for the most Isn’t why they’re using an iPhone or a selling point.
[doublepost=1510157194][/doublepost]

True but I was just responding to someone else’s analogy.

You are completely wrong. Almost every person that buys luxury cars mods their ride. They just do it prior to picking their car up. Most people decide what options they want from about 50 choices and mod accordingly. Honda releases 3 or 4 different models of a car with minimal choices on options. The people that "rice rocket" their cars are so minimal they have no impact.

For example I went to cars direct and selected a Honda Accord EX. No options to choose from other than color. BMW 330? Over 40 things to choose or modify, My buddy just bought a Porsche 911. More mods to choose from than almost anything I have seen. Go to Honda and tell them you want an Accord with A,B, and C, but not D, E, and, F and they will tell you they don't do that. DO that with a BMW and they will gladly order it for you.

 

[FFR]

You are completely wrong. Almost every person that buys luxury cars mods their ride. They just do it prior to picking their car up. Most people decide what options they want from about 50 choices and mod accordingly. Honda releases 3 or 4 different models of a car with minimal choices on options. The people that "rice rocket" their cars are so minimal they have no impact.

For example I went to cars direct and selected a Honda Accord EX. No options to choose from other than color. BMW 330? Over 40 things to choose or modify, My buddy just bought a Porsche 911. More mods to choose from than almost anything I have seen. Go to Honda and tell them you want an Accord with A,B, and C, but not D, E, and, F and they will tell you they don't do that. DO that with a BMW and they will gladly order it for you.

Don’t get me started on Porsche’s you need a degree in engineering to spec it out.

Lambos and Ferrari’s are much easier.

 

[eyeseeyou]

You are completely wrong. Almost every person that buys luxury cars mods their ride. They just do it prior to picking their car up. Most people decide what options they want from about 50 choices and mod accordingly. Honda releases 3 or 4 different models of a car with minimal choices on options. The people that "rice rocket" their cars are so minimal they have no impact.

For example I went to cars direct and selected a Honda Accord EX. No options to choose from other than color. BMW 330? Over 40 things to choose or modify, My buddy just bought a Porsche 911. More mods to choose from than almost anything I have seen. Go to Honda and tell them you want an Accord with A,B, and C, but not D, E, and, F and they will tell you they don't do that. DO that with a BMW and they will gladly order it for you.

Ok to clarify “mods, and in terms of android mods, I’m talking about 3rd party/aftermarket mods not oem options.

Android skins/default 3rd party app launchers = aftermarket mufflers/spoilers

People aren’t looking at luxury cars with mods as a selling point, not that they can’t, they’re buying because of the brand.

You are completely wrong. Almost every person that buys luxury cars mods their ride. They just do it prior to picking their car up. Most people decide what options they want from about 50 choices and mod accordingly. Honda releases 3 or 4 different models of a car with minimal choices on options. The people that "rice rocket" their cars are so minimal they have no impact.

For example I went to cars direct and selected a Honda Accord EX. No options to choose from other than color. BMW 330? Over 40 things to choose or modify, My buddy just bought a Porsche 911. More mods to choose from than almost anything I have seen. Go to Honda and tell them you want an Accord with A,B, and C, but not D, E, and, F and they will tell you they don't do that. DO that with a BMW and they will gladly order it for you.

I’m talking about modding through aftermarket or 3rd parties not oem options.

And I’m going off the eye test of commuting about 3 hours a day.

I see more riced up Honda’s than I do any luxury brand car.

Honda’s are cheaper to afford and cheaper to mod than luxury cars which means you’ll see more of them than modded luxury cars which is a closer reflection to androids market share and its selling points.

On a side note why does every font modded android screenshot I see use comic sans?

 

[sracer]

iOS 11 suffers from what many operating systems and apps suffer from... lack of time spent tweaking things along the way to morph it into a cohesive entity rather than a bunch of bolted-on additions.

The iOS 11 UX is jarringly inconsistent and by extension unpredictable. It seems as if Apple added features to iOS in REACTION to the competition rather than as an interative step in a long-term plan for iOS.

As for the myth that iOS remains consistent over the years because change will cause people to leave... how many times has Apple changed the way the user interacts with currently running apps? Or notifications? Or widgets? Or control center? It seems like these have changed with every major version of iOS since iOS 9.

What iOS desperately needs is a thorough analysis of the functions and features it currently offers, what Apple has in their plan to implement in the future, and then design a UI that can accommodate the "now" and the "future".

Sadly, Apple has no incentive to invest the resources to do that.

 

[convergent]

Open the Phone app, there's 4 tabs per say. First tab or panel is on the left with the Favorites or starred contacts. Second tab / panel is that days calls or missed calls, etc... Third panel is the Contacts list. And the fourth panel, all the way on the right side is the Visual Voicemail. All of these 4 tabs / panels can be easily swiped to back and forth very quickly, and there's a big search bar across the top always there, to easily look up a contact or phone number.

I just find stock Android Phone app to be faster, and easier, and less clicks to do something than the iOS Phone app.

On the Note 8 at least, there is no 4th tab. You open the Phone app and voicemail is in the bottom left corner. Other than having a separate app for voicemail, I can't imagine it being any easier to find.

Moral of the story is, if you're an iPhone user, modern android on the major flagships is as good if not better than the current iteration of iOS. It's not just the "OS you can customize" anymore.

Agree... just made the switch and found Android to be much more polished and refined than it was a few years back when I gave it a go. (This is based on Samsung's version of it)

Here is my own opinion. Subjective. Just some random thoughts...

iOS has became boring. Pretty boring. And somewhat non intuitive.

I totally agree with you. If I bought an 8+ or X to replace my 6s+, I would have thought it was a nice bump in some specs, but largely exactly the same as what I had. And the notch would have annoyed me... every day. Instead, I took a step out and went to a Note 8 (and a Gear S3 to replace AW). I love them both and other than a few annoyances trying to coexist with my all iPhone family, I've had more fun with tech than I've had in years. So many more useful things to use, configure, etc.. Compare that to staring at everything in iOS largely being the same and playing with animojis for a few days. I don't rule out going back to iOS in the future, but nothing there really is calling me unless I get burned by some bad Android problem I've not seen yet.

The primary purpose of the home screen is to give you quick and direct access to your apps, not to entertain you. If you want an empty home screen (so you can enjoy your wallpaper), where would you keep the app icons? Do you want to do away with them altogether? Launch apps by typing their name? Through Siri? You can do both of those, of course, already.

If you like to be greeted by your awesome wallpaper just put a single app on the first screen, the rest on the other screens. Not sure how this would make the phone faster or easier to use, let alone more intuitive, but there you go. My Samsung Galaxy using work mates use similar grids of app icons on their screens as I, and don't seem to find it boring.

So by your logic, users should have no control over their Mac or PC desktops either? Of course people like to personalize their home screen. You look at it a lot, and its the launching point for everything you do on the phone.

On my Note 8 home screen, I have frequent app icons down both sides, and at the top I have a search bar and below it weather, date/time, and my step count. This leaves the middle of the screen primarily empty so I can see my "awesome wallpaper". On the bottom I can drag up a few more icons or hit a button to see the App Tray, which gives me all of them. I can also scroll down where I have folders down both sides of apps. If I scroll left or right, I get to much more content available on the Microsoft Launcher I am using. My awesome wallpaper is changed daily from Bing by that Launcher.

On the iPhone, your choice is to put one icon on the first page. Hmm... I'm sure that someone must believe that is better but I'm not quite getting it.

 

[FFR]

On the Note 8 at least, there is no 4th tab. You open the Phone app and voicemail is in the bottom left corner. Other than having a separate app for voicemail, I can't imagine it being any easier to find.



Agree... just made the switch and found Android to be much more polished and refined than it was a few years back when I gave it a go. (This is based on Samsung's version of it)



I totally agree with you. If I bought an 8+ or X to replace my 6s+, I would have thought it was a nice bump in some specs, but largely exactly the same as what I had. And the notch would have annoyed me... every day. Instead, I took a step out and went to a Note 8 (and a Gear S3 to replace AW). I love them both and other than a few annoyances trying to coexist with my all iPhone family, I've had more fun with tech than I've had in years. So many more useful things to use, configure, etc.. Compare that to staring at everything in iOS largely being the same and playing with animojis for a few days. I don't rule out going back to iOS in the future, but nothing there really is calling me unless I get burned by some bad Android problem I've not seen yet.



So by your logic, users should have no control over their Mac or PC desktops either? Of course people like to personalize their home screen. You look at it a lot, and its the launching point for everything you do on the phone.

On my Note 8 home screen, I have frequent app icons down both sides, and at the top I have a search bar and below it weather, date/time, and my step count. This leaves the middle of the screen primarily empty so I can see my "awesome wallpaper". On the bottom I can drag up a few more icons or hit a button to see the App Tray, which gives me all of them. I can also scroll down where I have folders down both sides of apps. If I scroll left or right, I get to much more content available on the Microsoft Launcher I am using. My awesome wallpaper is changed daily from Bing by that Launcher.

On the iPhone, your choice is to put one icon on the first page. Hmm... I'm sure that someone must believe that is better but I'm not quite getting it.

You so realize that the voicemail button is on the bottom left corner of the iphones phone app as well, there is no separate app, never was.

I’m starting to doubt you ever had an iPhone.

 

[nfl46]

People still use iTunes? I honestly haven't used iTunes in YEARS. And my primarily devices have been iPhones.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

I see some are speaking on voicemail. I personally use Google Voice for my voicemail on both Android and iPhone. It's just better than anything out there.

 

[dotnet]

After you aswer that... If I have only 4 apps on one screen, why do they have to be on top? Why can't I put them on the bottom?

Answer honestly.

Because they gravitate towards the top left corner?

I grant you, there could be some kind of transparent placeholder or something, for you to insert, but I doubt it's a high priority. If you do away with the gravity thing altogether the whole icon arrangement process becomes less elegant and requires more interaction. Think about it.

As for app placements. I just use tiny fraction of apps. Actually, just 8 of them. So I would really love that those 8 are all at the bottom, and rest are on other screens. That is quicker, and gives more direct access then having a lot of apps/folders on home screen.

Again, you're not thinking this through. Putting a few icons at the bottom of each screen and using more screens instead will not make things quicker or give you more direct access, the opposite is true.

Scrubber bar? Spotlight? Read my post again. And again. But I highly doubt you will realise what I'm talking about since you haven't used Android phone. And it's obvious. I have more then 900 contacts. By the time you scrubb your way thru there, or use spotlight, I'm already on a phone call on android. And it's more direct. And much quicker.

I doubt that, but why don't you just describe the quicker and more direct way of calling contacts, instead of huffing and puffing about it?

Custom ringtone on Android: Download it. Use it. Or connect via usb/wi-fi to your pc/mac, transfer ringtone, use it. Or use any mp3 file.

That's the process of getting ringtones onto the phone. You said "all I want is simple ways to set some ringtones, and simple stuff like that." So, how do you do that? How do you set a ringtone for a contact? Are you going to tell me that, or is going to be more huffing and puffing?

Now you write the procedure for custom ringtones on iPhone. And say which one is easier, more direct, and quicker

I've already described how to set custom custom ringtones. As for obtaining them – I've never downloaded (let alone bought) a ringtone, but I've made plenty of my own. I used GarageBand for that, which allows me to get the volume, dynamic range and looping right. It saves the result straight as a ringtone to iTunes. Now, I haven't made ringtones in years, so I'm not sure what people use these days. My phone doesn't ring anymore, ever since getting the Apple Watch in April '15 it has been on silent

Actually, my 'grievances' are very clear. But you obviously don't use any other OS besides iOS. Try them out. They might surprise you. And then my 'grievances' will be very clear to you

As it stands, in this thread, they're not clear, and you're making no effort to enlighten me. All I see is a lot of hand-waving about nothing.
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Of course people like to personalize their home screen. You look at it a lot, and its the launching point for everything you do on the phone.

I disagree, and would humbly suggest that if you look at your home screen a lot you're not using your devices right (or at least not the way they were intended). I spend very little time looking at the home screen of my Mac, I look at apps. Most of them are in full-screen, just like in iOS

And yes, I agree that the home screen in iOS is the launching point for everything you do on the phone. That's why you want it full of apps, and not an empty wallpaper!