Ordered a 7T (non-pro) that’s due for delivery today. Anyone install one of the Gcam port apks that can recommend the best/most compatible version to use?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
OnePlus 7
- Thread starter tonybarnaby
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Found a good Gcam port and used it some. Takes vastly different photos than the stock camera app. Most of the time better; though sometimes worse.
As for the phone itself, it’s a very nice piece of hardware. The 90hz screen is as good as advertised, and Oxygen OS has a lot of useful features. But on the whole I found myself a bit underwhelmed with the experience.
I’ve always had a foot in both camps; Android and iOS. Though more recently I’ve been leaning on the foot in the iOS camp far more. My takeaway from using the OP7T is that, apart from the ability to do some visual customization on the home screen, I prefer iOS. There are a LOT more similarities between the two operating systems these days than difference, IMO.
Would I like to be able to assign some specific apps as defaults in iOS? Sure!
Would I like to be able to do some visual and workflow tweaks in iOS? Absolutely!
But on the whole, I found myself comparing and contrasting the cohesiveness found in iOS against the open-world sense of Android. And for this particular time in my life I’m gravitating more towards playing the game that has set levels to guide you to the finish over the open world game that lets you decide how and when to arrive at the conclusion.
To each their own!
As for the phone itself, it’s a very nice piece of hardware. The 90hz screen is as good as advertised, and Oxygen OS has a lot of useful features. But on the whole I found myself a bit underwhelmed with the experience.
I’ve always had a foot in both camps; Android and iOS. Though more recently I’ve been leaning on the foot in the iOS camp far more. My takeaway from using the OP7T is that, apart from the ability to do some visual customization on the home screen, I prefer iOS. There are a LOT more similarities between the two operating systems these days than difference, IMO.
Would I like to be able to assign some specific apps as defaults in iOS? Sure!
Would I like to be able to do some visual and workflow tweaks in iOS? Absolutely!
But on the whole, I found myself comparing and contrasting the cohesiveness found in iOS against the open-world sense of Android. And for this particular time in my life I’m gravitating more towards playing the game that has set levels to guide you to the finish over the open world game that lets you decide how and when to arrive at the conclusion.
To each their own!
I'm actually considering switching from iPhone to OnePlus. Maybe someone has done the same and could talk about their experience? Is it worth it?
Anyone interested in the 8?
Very hesitant to order another OnePlus with all the negatives against them, but seems like the devices are more open then pixels anymore.
Very hesitant to order another OnePlus with all the negatives against them, but seems like the devices are more open then pixels anymore.
Sorry it has taken me awhile to reply to this. I forgot about it honestly. I hope you got a few minutes because I am sure this will turn into a long rant, so here we go...
I have been an iPhone user since the 3GS. That device made me go all Apple for years. I always had a MBP and an iPhone. Before that I just knew Apple as the company that makes my trusty iPod video I'd always use in my car. I was sold on the smoothness of iOS and the clean minimalist software approach. That also led me to using Macs as daily drivers. I was enamored with Apple as a company and Steve Jobs being an innovator. During those years Apple truly was ahead of the curve in both hardware and software. We all knew their devices were overpriced, but those that paid that tax and actually used their devices quickly realized the higher price tag was worth it for the hassle free software, rock solid hardware, and sleek designs. I basically became an Apple fanboy and I had good reasons to back up my support of them. I got most of my friends and family onto Apple products. They were still seen as the underdog. That being said, I have always had custom built PC's for gaming. I would say from 2009 - 2018 my PC was strictly a Plex server and a big Xbox to play games on. That is changing now that I am using Android more and my PC more with Windows 10. I am even considering switching my laptop to a Dell or Thinkpad. I am still using a 2015 13" MBP right now.
Cut to todays world and things are not that black and white. The following bit is obviously largely my own opinion. I don't think Apple is the same anymore. It looks the same on the outside, but I think anyone who has closely followed the company for the past decade or longer and used their devices daily would admit it's not the same Apple. Things change. The underdog becomes the new top dog. The hero becomes the villain. You get the idea. The cracks have started to show for the past few years, and now we see it all rushing to a head. That Apple tax, which was once so easy to accept because of the best choice for hardware and software out there, is no longer a thing. Apple is NOT hands down the best anymore. Do they have products that they are killing the competition at? Absolutely. The iPad and Apple Watch are in a class of their own, despite me personally not finding a good use for either, even after trying many times to find them. I have just accepted the fact that for me, simply a smartphone and a laptop is all I need. Apple's hardware and software gets worse and worse every year. I can go on and on with a huge list of these examples, but that's for another day.
When we talk about switching away from iOS to Android, the first thing we have to discuss is just how DEEP the person is in the Apple ecosystem. I was one who was. Believe me, it's nice, warm, and comfy inside that walled garden. Apple does the best job of keeping people feeling warm and fuzzy when they use multiple Apple devices and invest in the ecosystem. However, as soon as you want to do something that Apple doesn't like, or want to do something cross platform, then you feel the real pain of the ecosystem concept. I used to be one of those people who advocated using all Apple products, embracing the ecosystem, and just forgetting the alternatives because in my mind Apple had to be the best, right? It turns out, there are plenty of third party or cross platform alternatives to Apple programs and services that are miles ahead of Apple's implementation. There exists a world of choice and openness outside that cozy walled garden. And guess what? The world doesn't end when you decide to leave the walled garden. You can keep doing all the things you were doing, except now with more choice and compatibility. It is liberating, freeing, and exciting.
Over the years I have always tested out various Android flagships alongside my iPhones. I remember the Verizon Droid phones, the HTC phones, the Samsung phones, the Nexus phones, and earlier OnePlus phones. Every time I would try one out, it was fun and exciting at first, and then I would get homesick for my iPhone and iOS. In the early days the winner was clear. Android was janky, laggy, UGLY, had bad cameras, and had worse specs. That is not the case nowadays, and hasn't been for a few years.
The NUMBER ONE thing you need to do if you are going to seriously try switching is immediately turn off your iPhone and put it away. If that iPhone is still around you and within reach, you will quickly pick it back up and miss it because you are familiar with it. Familiarity is comforting, and muscle memory is powerful. If you are someone who doesn't want to take the short time to familiarize yourself with a different operating system then you will go rushing back to iOS simply because it is familiar. That doesn't mean it is better. This go around with my OnePlus 7T I have done what I mentioned above and I am pretty much set on sticking with it and not going back to iOS. I have adapted to Android on this phone and its ways of doing things, and I find a lot of my day to day usage is faster and easier because of the openness of Android and OnePlus. Let me get into some concrete examples. Since I can actually have default apps on Android, I can now use Firefox on my phone with the full blown uBlock Origin extension, which is without a doubt the best ad blocker. I can set Spark as my default email app, and not be forced to deal with the stock iOS mail app every time I want to handle email (which is chock full of bugs in iOS 13; just check the iOS forum to see what I mean). I can install any app I want, so I can use NewPipe (free open source YouTube app) and set it to be the default handler for YouTube links. Background playback, no ads, picture in picture, downloading videos, etc is all available to me now. No YouTube Red subscription required and no having to deal with Google always changing the YouTube app. I can plug my phone into my PC and easily transfer files. Back to the default app thing, I can have reddit links open right in my reddit app, of which there are many excellent ones on Android. They are also all very customizable to however you want reddit to look and behave. I can have different file managers. I can have different SMS/MMS apps as default. I can torrent right on my phone. Notifications on Android are easily way better than iOS. Easy to view, expand, collapse, respond to, and take action on. On a side note, I like on my 7T that notifications show up when the phone is locked and the rest of the screen is completely off. That being said, I also like how my iPhone notifications don't expand unless FaceID detects my face, so I guess that is neither a win or a loss. Speaking of FaceID, my 7T unlocks incredibly fast by my face. Now, obviously that is not as secure as FaceID, but ever since FaceID has come out I still have moments of frustration with it (laying in bed on my side, having to crane my head over my phone laying on my desk just to unlock my phone or check a notification, etc). It doesn't really matter though because the 7T has an in-display fingerprint reader which is super fast. I prefer fingerprint readers on the front instead of the back because it is easier to use when the phone is laying down or in a car holder. If you are into tweaking your phone or using power user features, OnePlus is a great phone. Their launcher is minimal, but still full of quality of life features. I can swipe down from anywhere on the home screen to get to notifications and quick toggles (forget reaching all the way to the top right of the iPhone screen and pulling down for control center), I can do gestures on the screen when the phone is locked to do things like turn on the flashlight, open the camera, play/pause music, etc. You can have certain apps in a hidden space that no one else can get into. You can quick launch apps by holding down on the fingerprint reader and swiping left or right. Their shelf they put on the screen left of the home screen is very similar to iOS (weather, recently used apps, frequent contacts, quick note, dashboard, etc). You can have any app locked behind your fingerprint or passcode (something people have been begging Apple for for years for the Photos app). There are quite a few other nice features that OnePlus has built in. Another great thing about Android is I can emulate tons of games. Anything from NES up to GameCube. While I don't do it all the time, it is nice to be able to put my phone in a holder on my controller and play some older games once and awhile. The keyboard is much better on my 7T. I use GBoard and it is insanely good at swiping and prediction. I was ecstatic when iOS got a swipe keyboard but to this day I still think it is pretty bad. Plus auto correction is always giving me the wrong words. GBoard nearly always gets what I am going for (and doesn't block naughty words!). I am not really a personal assistant person, but Google Assistant is much more powerful than Siri.
So the previous wall of text was mainly discussing software advantages. While Android has mostly always had more software advantages, it was always let down by worse hardware. Again, this is not the case anymore. The 7T hardware is just as good, and better in some ways, than my 11 Pro (AT HALF THE COST). The screen is bigger, the refresh rate is higher (my iPhone seriously looks jerky now when scrolling on it), the battery is just as good if not better, the thing charges insanely fast due to warp charging (always hated how slow iPhones charged), it uses a standard USB-C plug, it has a wide angle lens just like my iPhone, it has smaller bezels, it has a smaller notch, and the display is beautiful. Obviously, there are some advantages to the iPhone. The screen seems brighter, the gestures are slightly smoother, the apps can be a bit more polished but that depends on the apps you use, it has wireless charging (SLOOOWWW), and the camera is better for both photos and videos. The 7T even has the infamous mute switch like an iPhone, except it's three ways instead of two.
The BIGGEST thing about Apple are a few key software lock-ins. iMessage is the biggest elephant in the room. If you are someone who mainly messages with other iPhone users who also use iMessage, this will without a doubt be the biggest hangup to fully switching away from iOS. Remember earlier when I said familiarity is very comforting and hard to change? Most people are VERY HARD to get to switch to other messaging services, and if they mostly use iMessage be prepared for the "why are your bubbles green" outrage and "I don't want to use a second messaging app" protests. iMessage was, for me, always the one thing that pushed me over the edge and brought me back to iOS. That along with mainly using a Mac and missing the continuity features between Apple devices. That being said, this time I forced myself to push my immediate contacts to a different service. I have found Telegram to be FAR superior to iMessage, and everyone I have gotten to actually give it a fair shot, loves it. It's cross platform, it's fast on all platforms, it syncs perfectly, it can look exactly like iMessage if you want, it is customizable, it has voice calls, it has incredibly fast search, it has group chats that work really well, you can see who is typing in a group chat, you can see who is online, you can easily view all media in a chat, it has fun features like polls, it has really cool stickers that auto pop up when you enter an emoji, it has animated stickers, you can reply to specific messages in a thread, you can share your location, you can share files up to 1.5GB, you can share voice or video messages, it has link previews, most news articles have instant view, the list goes on and on. Along with all of that, it is just as secure as iMessage, despite what any person with a tinfoil hat will tell you. If you want the most secure chat program, it is Signal. Telegram supports truly end-to-end encryption on 1 on 1 chats but you have to turn it into a private chat and then it doesn't sync between devices. Every other chat is encrypted and they have quite a powerful encryption system, but it is not 100% open source so security advocates poo poo it. This is an important point because that also means iMessage is not 100% secure. Lest we forget, most people have iCloud turned on, which means Messages in the Cloud is turned on, which means Apple ultimately holds the keys to iMessage chats. Also, Apple being Apple, nothing can be looked into or peer reviewed. It is all closed source, which means it will never be completely secure, regardless of Apple's security marketing. We simply have to take Apple's word for it that their software is super secure, which is never a good sign of security.
If you can get over the hurdle of iMessage, switching becomes much easier. FaceTime can be replaced with Duo. I don't do any video chatting though so I can't speak much to the stickiness of FaceTime. Every other software can be had with a similar or better alternative. For instance, Google Photos can replace the stock Photos app. Spotify can replace Apple Music (or you can use the Apple Music android app). Email can be replaced with Outlook, Gmail, Spark, or various other email clients. You get the idea.
I am just going to end this right now before I type out another multitude of paragraphs. This topic, of which OS is better than the other, Apple vs Android, etc. has been something I have been exploring and researching for pretty much the past decade, so I like to think I know what I am talking about compared to most people on these forums because I have tried it all. Like I said, I can go on and on and on about this stuff, but I think this gives you a quick good first rundown on what you should expect if you do decide to switch and give it a shot.
I don't think Apple is bad by any means. I just think that as I get older and see the direction they are heading, I am starting to prefer to keep things more open and cross platform. I used to put all my eggs in the Apple basket. Now I diversify. When one company starts to control everything, things can get ugly very quickly. Just look at what is happening with Dark Sky now that Apple bought them.
