I still buy my musiv from iTunes so that integration is easier for me. However, is Google Music and native Windows app that can control your LOCALLY STORED music complete with modified tag data (lyrics, genres, etc) and playlists and sync to your Android phone (meaning song access by any 3rd party music player)? That a real question - If so, I didn't know it could do these things. Is this through the Google Play store web interface or a seperate Windows app?
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Other than screen size, why do you prefer Android over iPhone?
- Thread starter ChrisTX
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I still buy my musiv from iTunes so that integration is easier for me. However, is Google Music and native Windows app that can control your LOCALLY STORED music complete with modified tag data (lyrics, genres, etc) and playlists and sync to your Android phone (meaning song access by any 3rd party music player)? That a real question - If so, I didn't know it could do these things. Is this through the Google Play store web interface or a seperate Windows app?
Despite the fact I prefer iOS, as a whole, over Android - here are the things I think my GS4 (Android in general) does better and hope Apple implements in some way in the future:
-More keyboard options (swipe typing, specifically)
-Better email attachment options
-Actionable notifications (this isn't Android-wide, but being able to "reply" or "delete" gmails from the notification center is nice)
-Default app updates separate from OS updates
-Detailed battery usage stats (not a big deal as iOS doesn't let things run rampant, but I do like to see what's draining my battery)
-Data usage cap and warning options
And now some things I want implemented across the board that may not be in Android either:
-Quick Reply (specifically for the default messaging app - don't care much about 3rd party support initially)
That's all I've got off the top of my head - if/when I think of others, I'll edit.
-More keyboard options (swipe typing, specifically)
-Better email attachment options
-Actionable notifications (this isn't Android-wide, but being able to "reply" or "delete" gmails from the notification center is nice)
-Default app updates separate from OS updates
-Detailed battery usage stats (not a big deal as iOS doesn't let things run rampant, but I do like to see what's draining my battery)
-Data usage cap and warning options
And now some things I want implemented across the board that may not be in Android either:
-Quick Reply (specifically for the default messaging app - don't care much about 3rd party support initially)
That's all I've got off the top of my head - if/when I think of others, I'll edit.
Thanks! I have been trying Handcent for messaging and PopupFree but they are hit and miss.
Always looking for new stuff and will give this a whirl.
It would have to be a 3rd party app that you can log into your Google account. On a mobile and desktop OS. I see more and more 3rd party apps including Google Music logins. iOS even has a couple apps that do it.
For me personally, playing from a desktop browser or Google music app on phone is good enough for me.
When I used Android (still have my GNexus, just not my main phone), the best things (I thought) were as follows:
Google products integrate better and work better. Yes, I know that there are Google apps on almost every platform (except Windows Phone and Windows 8), but they just work better on an Android device.
An example of it working better is YouTube. I can preload videos on my GNexus to watch later. That might seem like something small, but it's there and I like it. I'm not always around WiFi and sometimes I want to watch a YouTube video anyway.
Default apps get updated, or at least most of them do, without needing to update the OS. Even the keyboard is an app now. So if my device doesn't get the next update, it means less. If two years passed and my iPhone (if I had one) stopped getting updates that would simply mean any default apps that have bugs are in a "get over it" state.
Google products integrate better and work better. Yes, I know that there are Google apps on almost every platform (except Windows Phone and Windows 8), but they just work better on an Android device.
An example of it working better is YouTube. I can preload videos on my GNexus to watch later. That might seem like something small, but it's there and I like it. I'm not always around WiFi and sometimes I want to watch a YouTube video anyway.
Default apps get updated, or at least most of them do, without needing to update the OS. Even the keyboard is an app now. So if my device doesn't get the next update, it means less. If two years passed and my iPhone (if I had one) stopped getting updates that would simply mean any default apps that have bugs are in a "get over it" state.
Don't get me wrong, the iPhone 5S is a great phone, in many things better than Android phones, but not very useful with its 4 inch screen. Plus I have relatively strong glasses, making it even smaller for me. No problem while making phone calls, but once you go online, use a lot of apps or games it becomes a pain over time. And that's basically the main reason why I said goodbye to the iPhone. Another great thing is the SD card and of course the better hardware. I also like a camera with more megapixels, I know megapixels don't necessarily make better pictures, but I like to see details while zooming... (especially text) Customization and widgets are not a big deal for me however since I don't like to customize my phone.
My Note 2 functions great as a stand-alone computer for intensive productivity tasks, like document creation, editing, file sharing, etc. I don't need to sync it every day. I've probably synced it twice to my computer in a year for music. The iPhone is too dependent on syncing, and owning a computer in my opinion, it isn't good enough to be a stand alone computer or tablet replacement for my business, and it doesn't have a user accessible file system which Android has. The fact that quick settings still aren't available today in 2013 on the iPhone is really really lame. I get it they're releasing iOS 7 but I'm not a fan of the look. Not to mention the far greater (and I mean far far greater) home screen customization and widget support.
BATTERY!!! The iPhone 5 at 1,440mAh, really? That is weak, and everyone knows it. My Note 2 has 4,200mAh and can last several days, plus I have 2 extra batteries I can switch into the phone at any point. And no, I don't have a bulgy back to accomodate the larger battery, it is the same size as the stock one.
LED Notification. Useful
SD card. Enough said. iPhone 5S up to 64GB? How about expansion?
Google OS foundation. Google Now is fast, accurate, and does what I want it to. I can say commands and it will call, text, navigate, search, etc.
Google Maps. Satellite imagery (which I use probably every day) is so much better than Apple's it is a joke in terms of overall (US and worldwide) image quality and city, street data. Plus they actually like update it once or twice a year. Having Google be the map tiles used in all my 3rd party apps is so much better too!
Price. Better options for consumers...
Speaker quality. The dinky iPhone speaker was never good to begin with... admittedly not all Android phones are either but my Note 2 has a bad ass speaker that is actually useful for things like, speaker phone when there is background noise... listening to YouTube videos without having to move the phone closer to my face, and hearing music at a decent volume.
No Lightning port. Thank you, the reason why people aren't raving about Lightning is because there is nothing to rave about, only inconvenience.
Web browsing. I can have flash if I want, and the screens are wide enough to do web browsing without getting frustrated like iPhone users without glasses, you'll will have to until Apple releases a bigger screen than 4" to feel comfortable web browsing, trust me. If you think it's good now, that's only because you've adjusted to how restrictedly narrow it is.
Innovation: Since the launch of the iPhone, Android has grown faster and become a much more in depth device and software ecosystem than the iPhone, which isn't all that different than when it launched. iOS 7 has a different flat look, but that doesn't change how similar it is to the first iPhone OS. 64 bit, cool, but the user experience hasn't changed hardly at all. We're still waiting for iOS 7 too.
BATTERY!!! The iPhone 5 at 1,440mAh, really? That is weak, and everyone knows it. My Note 2 has 4,200mAh and can last several days, plus I have 2 extra batteries I can switch into the phone at any point. And no, I don't have a bulgy back to accomodate the larger battery, it is the same size as the stock one.
LED Notification. Useful
SD card. Enough said. iPhone 5S up to 64GB? How about expansion?
Google OS foundation. Google Now is fast, accurate, and does what I want it to. I can say commands and it will call, text, navigate, search, etc.
Google Maps. Satellite imagery (which I use probably every day) is so much better than Apple's it is a joke in terms of overall (US and worldwide) image quality and city, street data. Plus they actually like update it once or twice a year. Having Google be the map tiles used in all my 3rd party apps is so much better too!
Price. Better options for consumers...
Speaker quality. The dinky iPhone speaker was never good to begin with... admittedly not all Android phones are either but my Note 2 has a bad ass speaker that is actually useful for things like, speaker phone when there is background noise... listening to YouTube videos without having to move the phone closer to my face, and hearing music at a decent volume.
No Lightning port. Thank you, the reason why people aren't raving about Lightning is because there is nothing to rave about, only inconvenience.
Web browsing. I can have flash if I want, and the screens are wide enough to do web browsing without getting frustrated like iPhone users without glasses, you'll will have to until Apple releases a bigger screen than 4" to feel comfortable web browsing, trust me. If you think it's good now, that's only because you've adjusted to how restrictedly narrow it is.
Innovation: Since the launch of the iPhone, Android has grown faster and become a much more in depth device and software ecosystem than the iPhone, which isn't all that different than when it launched. iOS 7 has a different flat look, but that doesn't change how similar it is to the first iPhone OS. 64 bit, cool, but the user experience hasn't changed hardly at all. We're still waiting for iOS 7 too.
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Agreed. For the life of me, I can't seem to get weather notifications regards of the app I use.
If you are into custom ROMs, Cyanogenmod does this well.
Once you install it, the default SMS app always shows a popup quick reply. This is annoying, but the best part is that if you turn this off, you can do a swipe down on the messaging notification inside the notification pull down and hit reply and the popup will appear.
So it is never obtrusive until you tell it to be.
one simple reason
POWERAMP!!!
It's that good? I personally love Rocket Player. They let you customize the themes and there's one that makes it look like Google cards.
The reason I love it, though, is cause it's so feature-rich.
Ooh, good tip! Giving the paid version a spin on my Note 2 now. Man this is why I love Android - I had wanted this since seeing it on the Moto X and now I can just download it and go.
It's that good? I personally love Rocket Player. They let you customize the themes and there's one that makes it look like Google cards.
The reason I love it, though, is cause it's so feature-rich.
What's the name of that Google cards-like theme, and is it free?
onthecouchagain said:
Interesting. I find Android integration with corporate Exchange email/tasks/calendar/meeting invites to be beta-ware level functionality at best. I still use mostly iOS products in business settings for this reason alone. It's one of two things that keep me from considering my Galaxy and Note devices as anything more than personal gadgets.
Yes.
It's called "Light - Blue"
Rocket Player: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jrtstudio.AnotherMusicPlayer&hl=en
Light Blue theme: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.free.android.music.player.light&hl=en
I'm torn between the 2 mobile OS's because I actually like the new iPhone 5S. However the one thing that keeps me with Android, is Android Now. It's so good, I'm afraid Siri might not be on par. I'm trying to weigh my options, and always like seeing feedback from others. Great thread so far, thanks!
I'm torn between the 2 mobile OS's because I actually like the new iPhone 5S. However the one thing that keeps me with Android, is Android Now. It's so good, I'm afraid Siri might not be on par. I'm trying to weigh my options, and always like seeing feedback from others. Great thread so far, thanks!
I think Google Now is certainly more robust and seems to be more accurate understanding spoken commands (though also far from perfect--cannot understand my wife's name no matter how hard I try), it still suffers from always requiring some touch interaction. At least with Siri after summoning her with the home button, the rest can be done with voice commands, including confirming your request. I really hope Google can implement similar functionality to Google Now sooner than later.
Oh my gosh yes. This is the biggest reason I hardly ever use Google Now.
When I had my iPhone 4S, I would use Siri quite regularly to send texts, call people, or set reminders. I would typically use Siri a couple times a week. All of this I could do without ever looking at my phone thanks to invoking Siri via a physical button. On my Nexus 4, I have to tap the little tiny mic icon to start talking, and then use touch input to confirm those actions. And if I set a reminder, it is a pain to go back and look through all my reminders. iOS has an awesome reminders app.
I know in this dark corner of MacRumors I am in the minority, but Siri was way more useful and practical than Google Now has even been for my usage.
I'm loving all these gesture-based apps popping up becoming more popular and more useful.
Here's another one I discovered that looks pretty rad that I might start using for my N7: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.appsimobile.appsi
Not to mention my unofficial app of the year: Swipe Home.This app has really changed the entire way I interact with my HTC One. I can swipe up to go home from anywhere, anytime, I can swipe up-down to put my device to sleep. It's an awesome feeling. Like I'm doing magic tricks with my phone. I should really make a video.
Trial version for 7 days, 99 cents after that. Worth every penny.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.matthewma.swipehomebuttonfree
And there are many other apps out there that offer the same sort of gesture-based features.
Here's another one I discovered that looks pretty rad that I might start using for my N7: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.appsimobile.appsi
Not to mention my unofficial app of the year: Swipe Home.This app has really changed the entire way I interact with my HTC One. I can swipe up to go home from anywhere, anytime, I can swipe up-down to put my device to sleep. It's an awesome feeling. Like I'm doing magic tricks with my phone. I should really make a video.
Trial version for 7 days, 99 cents after that. Worth every penny.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.matthewma.swipehomebuttonfree
And there are many other apps out there that offer the same sort of gesture-based features.
What I like about my GS4 specifically.
Not all inclusive, just off the top of my head.
App launching capabilities from lock screen
Weather widgets
Calendar Widgets
Easy SD memory expansion
Swype
Status bar information
Split Screen mode
I really really wish Google now was a Siri alternative, but from my perspective it isnt for the reasons you stated. S-Voice is just a turd too.
Not all inclusive, just off the top of my head.
App launching capabilities from lock screen
Weather widgets
Calendar Widgets
Easy SD memory expansion
Swype
Status bar information
Split Screen mode
I really really wish Google now was a Siri alternative, but from my perspective it isnt for the reasons you stated. S-Voice is just a turd too.
Love this, too. I have Phone, Camera, Whatsapp, and Chrome on my lock screen. Love going directly to what I want.
Does the paid version offer more shortcut options? I was using the trial version and didn't see an option to put the device to sleep. Being able to lock the device with a swipe is worth the $0.99 alone, imo.