Some of them I discussed in the post you quoted. Functionality is in the eye of the beholder though, I don't need any of the features you mentioned, but maybe you don't need any of the features I mentioned either.
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So I have an iPhone 5 and a GS4, comparison time!
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Some of them I discussed in the post you quoted. Functionality is in the eye of the beholder though, I don't need any of the features you mentioned, but maybe you don't need any of the features I mentioned either.
agreed, why'd someone compare the latest and the most powerful device to a year old device
Why wouldn't they? They are each the latest flagship of their respective company.
Yes, but he is making a board statement about android. He has only tried one phone, but he says android as a whole is still not as smooth. What if I said I tried the iPhone 5, but it was jailbroken. I then said iOS is not as smooth as my nexus 4, and can have some lag. Would that be fair to iOS? I am using a modified version of iOS, but that is the only experience I have with iOS. There would be posters trashing me for saying this. Everyone one would be saying "you used a jailbroken iPhone. That is not pure iOS." How is this any different?
And may I ask which 3G video calling is missing from the iPhone?
Only AT$T plays games with FaceTime limits over 3G/4g. The other carriers do not limit cellular over FaceTime. It's the carrier and not the iOS.
But Android does not have any universal FaceTime like video calling. It's a patch work. Like Tango. But Tango is also available on iOS also and over cellular as well.
I am refering to your "basic features are more polished on iphone" statement. So,
-How can not having thumbnail contact pictures in log/contact list more polished than one that has?
-How can a dialpad that does not do predictive contact matching more polished than one that does?
-How can exiting an app to go to Settings and then re-opening the app more polished than having Settings in the app?
-How can a keyboard that shows you one predicted word more polished than one that shows you all possible words?
-How is that only few type of file that can be attached to email more polished than one that supports any file type?
etc etc.
Maybe "bare and dumb basic features" is a better description of iphone basic features.
I am refering to cellular-based 3G video call (not IP-based video chat) which you can make to any 3G-enabled handsets.
If you read my posts I state that this not intended to be a broad android review. It's my comparison between a flagship android phone and the current iPhone. IMHO nobody in today's world should ship an expensive 'flagship' phone that lags. If its Samsungs fault (which everyone agrees it is) they should be ashamed. However I do put some blame on Google for not throwing around a little of their weight and making sure their software isn't bogged down by these carriers.
Btw, my iPhone 5 is jailbroken and it is still smoother than my GS4.
What is Google going to do? They made there OS open, and give companies like Samsung the right to do what they want. I know you said you did not want to make this a board statement of android, but your comments suggested otherwise. I am just trying to make it clear that while the S4 may have lag. My note 2 and nexus 4 are just as smooth as my iPhone 5. I experienced more lag when I had my iPhone 5 jail broken then I ever have with my note 2 and nexus 4.
Have you received the update for the S4 yet? If you are experiencing lag issues, it should fix it. Mine is just as smooth as my iPhone now.
I do agree that Apple needs to increase their screen size. Had that been something in the works for the next release and a camera as good as the S4, I would not have jumped ship. Though I have to give lots of credit to Samsung as they are innovating beyond what Apple is currently offering. A new UI in the next release isn't going to do it for Apple, they need to bring new innovation to the table.
troutspinner
I do agree that Apple needs to increase their screen size. Had that been something in the works for the next release and a camera as good as the S4, I would not have jumped ship. Though I have to give lots of credit to Samsung as they are innovating beyond what Apple is currently offering. A new UI in the next release isn't going to do it for Apple, they need to bring new innovation to the table.
troutspinner
They could insist that manufacturers give users the ability to choose from standard AOKP or manufacturers version of the os. Most android phones are open only to the manufacturer - not the consumer. They need to reverse this in order for that 'openess' to have any real world merit.
Allowing manufacturers and carriers to decide whether a device is bootloader locked or s-off restricted is counter to any openness they tout.
-How can a phone not have viable group messaging?
-How useful is a voice search that gives you internet search results instead of calling a contact or navigating to a contact?
-How can a phone not shut off the navigation voice while you are in a phone call?
I can add to that list, but all it would prove is that MY needs are different than your needs, not that either phone was superior or inferior. It's when we try to prove superiority is when we look the most ignorant, when in reality it's just different folks have different needs. I needed group messaging to work perfectly, it does in iOS. I needed navigation to work perfectly, it does in iOS. I needed my voice assistant to work perfectly, it does in iOS. None of those items work very well FOR MY NEEDS on Android.
As for your list, my main point was I don't need many of those things:
-contact pictures don't do me any good as I recognize contacts by their name and don't sit there and pick them out by face.
-Predictive matching on the dialpad is something I never had a use for, but I do agree that iOS should have it, no argument there.
-Settings on iOS is a pain to use, no argument there, but I'm so rarely in settings that it's not an issue, still it's not an excuse, settings on android are very nice.
-Keyboard: I find iOS far better except for the exclusion of swype, iOS is much more accurate with my fat fingers. As for showing all the predicted words that would slow me down a ton, sitting there picking the right word when I could just type it out as fast, especially with how powerful iOS mistake recognition is, but maybe this is needed for how inaccurate the android keyboard is.
Once again our needs are different. There is a lot in Android I highly prefer over iOS as well, live widgets for example. I am not firmly in Apple's camp, far from it, but for just having a basic no nonsense phone which makes calls, texts messages, and gives me navigation iOS works far far better for me and I'd rather have that.
Well Google is about giving people choices. Make Samsung, and HTC give us a choice whether we wanted stock or a skinned version would go against that. Also look at the HTC First. It has pretty much stock android on it, but it will not get updated like the nexus lime of phones. You would have stock, but it would not be up to date. Then everyone would start to complain about that too.
If Google wants a phone on a carrier they have to put carrier apps on it. The only reason Apple gets away with this is because they can guarantee huge sales. Nexus devices or any other android for that matter can't do that, so against it is the same old game. I know people want pure google, but going through a carrier just want let it happen.
but that is how the devices are sold...so it's a fair comparison. How can u compare modified versions of Android with stock iOS...why not compare to jailbroken etc? Most people just want to buy a phone and start using it...not having to modify everything bc it's not smooth in the first place.
Yea most people do. But when you are buying an android phone that is not a nexus you are not getting a stock android you are getting a modified version. You can claim that is what they sell, but Google also sells the nexus phones that are every easy to get. I understand that these are easy to get your hands on, but you can not compare them to iphones unless you are talking about a modified version of the iPhone too.
Not open, open source.
To be honest though, i would take "open" over "open source" as android could be much more robust AND flexible as it is now at the same time. Open source stuff means you just have to pray that whoever takes that stuff to accompany their products, they can do a great to integrate the two. And android OEMs aren't really great at that IMO.
Hence why i would love a future where moto would become an exclusive nexus manufacturer and google will finally start making highend, robust android phones which are integrated tightly making it an amazing experience compared to the rest. They will probably fix all those kinks and add missing functionality faster too than leaving it to the OEMs to implement solutions in their skins.
Yep again this is why I say you can compare and iPhone in smoothness to a skinned android. It is not Apples to Apples. No pun intended.
The manufacturer skinned version is what consumers get, so it's a valid comparison, I don't think it's akin to having a jailbroken iphone at all. The manufacturer skin is tested, supported and released by the manufacturer, while a jailbreak is basically a security hack by people who have nothing to do with the manufacturer. Even with that consideration there are still people who say that vanilla Android lags a little bit, myself included.
Well you can say whatever you want. You guys can keep making the comparisons that fit your argument that iOS is smoother. A skinned version while being what most people will go into a carrier and buy is not the same as someone going and buying an iPhone. Yes they are both sold by the carrier, and they both come with the contract. The difference is the iPhone is just iOS. The S4 is android plus touchwiz. The HTC one is android plus sense. How are those equal? The nexus 4 is just android, and is just as smooth as my iPhone 5. You claim vanilla android is still not as smooth. Where did you get that from? Have you used a nexus phone?
While skinned android is completely OK with google. That does not mean it is not a modified version of android. Android is open sourced so Samsung and who ever else wants to make an android can do so. Apple on the other hand is closed sourced, so the only way to modify it is jailbreaking. If you are going to compare an iPhone to a skinned android you have to even playing field. The only way to do that is going with a jailbroken iPhone. I don't agree with doing that, but also don't agree that you can compare iOS to skinned android.
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Been an iphone user for years but after two days of the galaxy s4 and I'm loving it.. Don't see myself ever going back
I don't get it, so Touchwiz and Sense are not actually Android, so they cannot be judged against iOS? And if we're talking about pure Android, do you know how many devices in the Android universe run pure 4.2.2? Not many.
At the end of the day, Touchwiz is Android. Sense is Android. Maybe Google doesn't deserve most of the blame if either interface shows any lag, but let's not pretend that Samsung and HTC don't develop their own software based on the AOSP. Because you can't just switch off either's interface, makes them valid comparisons to iOS.
So those phone have to run a custom skin on top of the OS that is running and that make it equal to an iPhone just running android? How is that? Yes both sense and touchwiz are a part of android in terms of running on the phone, but Google has nothing to do with either. How can we compare things that are not equal? The S4 and HTC One are an OS plus a skin. I just don't see how that is equal to just running ios. I will compare the nexus 4 and the iPhone 5 all day long cause they both run the vanilla OS for each.
Are you talking about iMessage group chat? Or is it about sending SMS to a predefined group which most phone can do? You do know iMessage is just limited to Apple platform so it is not ideal either. Something like Whatsapp is more ideal since it is not platform specific.
I prefer my SMS to be separated from IM. When I send SMS usually it is important and i want guaranteed delivery without delay. iMessage can't since it depends on Apple server and internet connection. When I want to chit-chat I switch to Whatsapp which everyone I know have (no matter which phone they are using).
No issue using google now or s-voice to call. One great thing with google is that you can download the voice module to local storage. This allows you to use voice-to-text even if no internet connection. And it is so much faster than iphone voice module.
The one I am using n-drive have no such issue. Are you refering to Google Nav?
So you do agree that your statement "iphone basic features are more polished" is inaccurate.
I dont agree about you saying Android keyboard is "inaccurate". Even if it is less accurate, it still gives you matching words around the keys you typed and one of those words will likely match the one you want. You just tap the word (replaces tapping the spacebar) to select the word - no extra effort needed. At least you dont have to keep typing and typing and hope that the right word will come out like in iphone keyboard.
They are equal because its what the consumer buys in the store. The vast majority of consumers have no idea what vanilla android means, and if they did probably don't care. If the majority, by far, of android phones sold are skinned versions then the public perception will be that they lag. I understand and appreciate your point, but don't think it matters much in the bigger sense of things. By the same token a jailbroken phone is a hack thru and thru that someone specifically looks for to alter what the manufacturer gave you, a hack that is far from mainstream and certainly not sold in stores or condoned by Apple.
I think its just semantics though, I do see what you mean.
I mean I understand that most consumers are going to buy skinned android phones. That does not make android a system as a whole that lags. What should be said is Touchwiz lags not android. That is fine it you want say android has lag and is not as smooth, but just because a Samsung creates a phone with a ton of features that slow down android does not mean android is slow.
In those same carrier stores they also have iPhone 4's. Does that mean we need to compare them too? Cause if we did that then well then that iPhone really can't keep up.
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