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unlinked

macrumors 6502a
Jul 12, 2010
698
1,217
Ireland
it's a nice attempt indeed
apple's closed circuit is superior though as all security reports indicate

I would be a little dubious of it since there have been apps like iRandomizer and Handy Light that snuck tethering in as a hidden feature. How detailed are the App Store checks really.
 

appledes7

macrumors 6502a
Jul 12, 2011
756
0
I believe that's because the iPhone 5 has a better touch latency than the Nexus 5 but there are android devices out there that score better than the iPhone like the Note 3 and HTC One M8.

Thats awesome. I am all for decreasing touch latency. Although I am not for android fanboys trying to hide it when it doesn't support their argument only to bring it out when it does. The fact of the matter is that touch latency, although not always immediately visible, impacts user experience and overall feel of the phone. Android users tend to just ignore it because in most cases the iPhone beats out major competitors. Then you also have to factor in how the different OS's react to touch input once it is received, another issue all together that certain people try to avoid.

Also its worth pointing out that in my example, touch latency isn't the problem. Immediately after touching the home button, there is a soft circular white glow around it to indicate that the home button has been touched. If that wasn't enough, there was still time for the OS to play through its home button touch sound while the phone still stayed there doing nothing. It wasn't until both of those things that the phone decided to do something. So I agree that touch latency can be an issue. But is touch latency the reason for the lag in my previous video? Not even close.
 
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Dontazemebro

macrumors 68020
Jul 23, 2010
2,173
0
I dunno, somewhere in West Texas
Thats awesome. I am all for decreasing touch latency. Although I am not for android fanboys trying to hide it when it doesn't support their argument only to bring it out when it does.

I don't know how one could hide that. The iPhone has been head & shoulders better than Android when comes to touch latency for quite a wile. It was only up until the Note 3 released that Android gained some steam.

I don't know where the S5 ranks out at but I believe the top 3 that we know of so far are

1. HTC One M8 - 47 ms
2. Note 3 - 67 ms
3. iPhone 5/5s - 75 ms

The rest of the pack falls in the 100ms or worse range. I was kind of surprised to see the LG G2 with a 112 or something like that.
 
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appledes7

macrumors 6502a
Jul 12, 2011
756
0
I don't know how one could hide that. The iPhone has been head & shoulders better than Android when comes to touch latency for quite a wile. It was only up until the Note 3 released that Android gained some steam.

I don't know where the S5 ranks out at but I believe the top 3 that we know of so far are

1. HTC One M8 - 47 ms
2. Note 3 - 67 ms
3. iPhone 5/5s - 75 ms

Hiding and showing specific scenarios that either hurt or help your argument occurs on both sides of the bias spectrum, so don't think I was limiting it to just this example.
 

mib1800

Suspended
Sep 16, 2012
2,859
1,250
Hiding and showing specific scenarios that either hurt or help your argument occurs on both sides of the bias spectrum, so don't think I was limiting it to just this example.

You are nitpicking over 20-50ms difference here. It is only your imagination if you can feel the difference.

But one thing you can absolutely feel is how SLOW the scrolling rate of iOS is. We are talking like many seconds slower on Iphone as you need a few more flicks to move the same amount as can be accomplished with one flick on android.
 

strausd

macrumors 68030
Jul 11, 2008
2,998
1
Texas
You are nitpicking over 20-50ms difference here. It is only your imagination if you can feel the difference.

But one thing you can absolutely feel is how SLOW the scrolling rate of iOS is. We are talking like many seconds slower on Iphone as you need a few more flicks to move the same amount as can be accomplished with one flick on android.

I won't get into the whole topic of lag that has been thrown around. But one area I will heavily disagree with you on is iOS scrolling speed.

I already wrote a rather lengthy post about this analyzing scroll behavior on both platforms. Its worth a read.

https://forums.macrumors.com/posts/18690396/

And a follow up post.

https://forums.macrumors.com/posts/18691053/
 

appledes7

macrumors 6502a
Jul 12, 2011
756
0
You are nitpicking over 20-50ms difference here. It is only your imagination if you can feel the difference.

This is 100% false.

1. Coming from a visual effects and 3D animation standpoint, just a single dropped frame at 24 fps, although it might not be "seen", can be felt.

2. We are talking about a nearly 1 second span where the OS has recognized input, but still does nothing. And if you care to read, you will see that I mentioned this can be even longer for other apps.
 

mib1800

Suspended
Sep 16, 2012
2,859
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This is 100% false.

1. Coming from a visual effects and 3D animation standpoint, just a single dropped frame at 24 fps, although it might not be "seen", can be felt.
Maybe you are feeling it wrong. Talking about "bad" feeling, I also hate the fact that whenever I touch the screen on an iOS device, everything stops loading. When you release your finger, you have to wait for loading to continue where it was paused. This is so inefficient compared to android.

On android everything happens in real time i.e. while you are moving/scrolling around the screen, the background loading continues and you dont have to wait.

2. We are talking about a nearly 1 second span where the OS has recognized input, but still does nothing. And if you care to read, you will see that I mentioned this can be even longer for other apps.

That cannot be the normal behaviour. On my ipad, when a page is loading, the keyboard input lags like mad. On most iOS app, the keyboard is totally unresponsive until the loading stops. Can I use this to fault the iphone as being LAGGY ALL THE TIME? Well, using your way of reasoning Iphone IS LAGGY.
 

Lava Lamp Freak

macrumors 68000
Jun 1, 2006
1,572
624
This is 100% false.

1. Coming from a visual effects and 3D animation standpoint, just a single dropped frame at 24 fps, although it might not be "seen", can be felt.

2. We are talking about a nearly 1 second span where the OS has recognized input, but still does nothing. And if you care to read, you will see that I mentioned this can be even longer for other apps.

I agree. I use the word "feel" because although I may not be able to explain what is happening, it is something that is noticeable.
 

appledes7

macrumors 6502a
Jul 12, 2011
756
0
Maybe you are feeling it wrong.
HA! I had to single out this sentence just because it made me laugh so hard.

Talking about "bad" feeling, I also hate the fact that whenever I touch the screen on an iOS device, everything stops loading. When you release your finger, you have to wait for loading to continue where it was paused. This is so inefficient compared to android.
From what I remember of iOS, touching and holding just stops the visuals from loading. Meaning data is still being loaded, its just not being visually updated. The second you take your finger off, all the data that was loaded while you held your finger down will appear. I see how that can be confusing to some, so maybe you just got it a little confused?

On android everything happens in real time i.e. while you are moving/scrolling around the screen, the background loading continues and you dont have to wait.
While true, I have never come across a real world situation where this makes a difference. If I am scrolling down a web page, I can't keep my finger down 100% of the time or no scrolling would take place! And as a web page is loading while it is just blank, why would I need to keep my finger held down?


That cannot be the normal behaviour.
It is.

On my ipad, when a page is loading, the keyboard input lags like mad.
Just out of curiosity, what iPad do you have?

I have dabbled with my dad's iPad Air and have not come across this problem. Although I often come across laggy keyboards on my Android devices when typing in comment fields on websites.

On most iOS app, the keyboard is totally unresponsive until the loading stops. Can I use this to fault the iphone as being LAGGY ALL THE TIME? Well, using your way of reasoning Iphone IS LAGGY.
Yes, there can be. But there are also plenty of times where Android keyboards are even more laggy. Often times when I bring up Google Now it takes a little bit of time for my Nexus 5 to bring up the keyboard. I also often see dropped frames for the animation to bring up the keyboard.

I try my best to be unbiased, although we both know it is nearly impossible for one person to be 100% unbiased. There have been points made here by you and others regarding downfalls of iOS that I have agreed with. But I am noticing a pattern with you. This discussion really got going when I posted a video showing a nearly 1 second lag just to go to the homescreen. The pattern I have noticed is that instead of tackling the issue that started this big discussion (the 1 second lag), you avoid it and instead steer the topic to problems with iPhone. Thats all fine and good, the iPhone has plenty of problems. And I have been straight with you and have acknowledged the problems that I agree with. So I am just pointing out this pattern of yours where you refuse to acknowledge problems with Android. This is basically the definition of fanboyism in my eyes. When someone brings up a problem about the thing you are a fan of, you avoid it and instead put blame on the competition. But you are clearly trying to stray from the topic because you don't like where the topic is going.

Again, I am fine acknowledging problems with either OS because neither is perfect. I just don't like conversing with fanboys who will only talk good about one OS and only talk bad about another. And this pattern of yours isn't with me. Someone posted a link to a fairly in depth review of iOS scrolling in response to your bash on it, yet you have avoided responding to it.

I am fine continuing this conversation. But before you try and change the topic to iPhone bashing, at least address the issue that started the conversation between you and I.

----------

I agree. I use the word "feel" because although I may not be able to explain what is happening, it is something that is noticeable.

Absolutely. It is these kinds of intangibles that you won't find on a spec sheet but make a huge difference to the overall user experience. Thats part of the reason I think talking about this is almost pointless on forums because all people really want to see/talk about is numbers and specs. But higher numbers don't equate to a better user experience.
 

Robster3

macrumors 68000
Dec 13, 2012
1,987
0
As soon as someone says my dad's phone or iPad does this or that i stop reading. So many know it all kids on here:rolleyes:
 

appledes7

macrumors 6502a
Jul 12, 2011
756
0
As soon as someone says my dad's phone or iPad does this or that i stop reading. So many know it all kids on here:rolleyes:

Well its a darn good thing you do your research before jumping to conclusions. Oh wait...

Frame 60 to 85 is not 1/3rd of a second. You must have not completely read my point.

Also, I disagree with you that this is something most people won't see. You can clearly see the home button light up and hear the button sound go all the way through while the phone still hasn't changed. Let me break down exactly what happens for you:

User presses the home button:
Phone recognizes touch input from user
Run command to turn home button circle white for a split second
Run command to play touch sound for a split second
Actually do what the user wanted

All of this is clearly visible in the video.

You can argue that many people might not see it. You can argue that all you want, I still disagree. But more so than what people can visible see, it is what people feel as they use their device. You might not always see dropped frames in an animation, but you are more likely to feel the "clunkiness" of it. I am actually getting my M.F.A. in 3D modeling, rigging, and animation. So I know because of that, I can probably notice these things more easily than others because those smaller things are what I am trained to look for. At the same time, I also know that a dropped frame or two might seem like it is unnoticed, but the viewer can feel that something is off. When talking to professional animators, all the time you will hear them say "it feels a little clunky right here" as opposed to "it looks a little clunky right here."

How many kids do you know are currently working on their MFA? And just in case you were wondering, my MFA is 2 classes away from a PhD in the same field.
 

mib1800

Suspended
Sep 16, 2012
2,859
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HA! I had to single out this sentence just because it made me laugh so hard.


From what I remember of iOS, touching and holding just stops the visuals from loading. Meaning data is still being loaded, its just not being visually updated. The second you take your finger off, all the data that was loaded while you held your finger down will appear. I see how that can be confusing to some, so maybe you just got it a little confused?

While true, I have never come across a real world situation where this makes a difference. If I am scrolling down a web page, I can't keep my finger down 100% of the time or no scrolling would take place! And as a web page is loading while it is just blank, why would I need to keep my finger held down?

That's the annoying part. The screen only renders when you take away your finger but is frozen otherwise. You have to wait before screen renders complete after you move your finger away (and we are talking about tangible time that is more than "your feeling time"). It is just not real-time like Android.

Just out of curiosity, what iPad do you have?

I have dabbled with my dad's iPad Air and have not come across this problem. Although I often come across laggy keyboards on my Android devices when typing in comment fields on websites.

I have an ipad3. While safari is loading or background loading a page, the keyboard lags/refuses to show.

Yes, there can be. But there are also plenty of times where Android keyboards are even more laggy. Often times when I bring up Google Now it takes a little bit of time for my Nexus 5 to bring up the keyboard. I also often see dropped frames for the animation to bring up the keyboard.

I never experience keyboard lag under normal use on my Note3. I am using stock Samsung keyboard. If you are running many concurrent/background apps that may cause the keyboard to lag but then again that is not normal behaviour.

I try my best to be unbiased, although we both know it is nearly impossible for one person to be 100% unbiased. There have been points made here by you and others regarding downfalls of iOS that I have agreed with. But I am noticing a pattern with you. This discussion really got going when I posted a video showing a nearly 1 second lag just to go to the homescreen. The pattern I have noticed is that instead of tackling the issue that started this big discussion (the 1 second lag), you avoid it and instead steer the topic to problems with iPhone. Thats all fine and good, the iPhone has plenty of problems. And I have been straight with you and have acknowledged the problems that I agree with. So I am just pointing out this pattern of yours where you refuse to acknowledge problems with Android. This is basically the definition of fanboyism in my eyes. When someone brings up a problem about the thing you are a fan of, you avoid it and instead put blame on the competition. But you are clearly trying to stray from the topic because you don't like where the topic is going.

You are not trying. It is just nitpicking like Apple. Apple made a big deal about swipe-to-unlock which is just ONE function out of thousands that are crucial in the phone. Where is the big screen iphone? When is Apple going to address the limitation

Again, I am fine acknowledging problems with either OS because neither is perfect. I just don't like conversing with fanboys who will only talk good about one OS and only talk bad about another. And this pattern of yours isn't with me. Someone posted a link to a fairly in depth review of iOS scrolling in response to your bash on it, yet you have avoided responding to it.

You are talking about the difficult to do continuous quick flicks to activate fast discrete jump scroll in iOS? That is still not user friendly and is different from the kinetic scrolling of Android.

btw: all I see is you talk bad about android. did you write anything bad about iphone (see below my points)? Now it seems like you want to claim you are neutral. You are the one who is confused. You are the one who made blanket statement about android based on ONE video which shows the lag.

I am fine continuing this conversation. But before you try and change the topic to iPhone bashing, at least address the issue that started the conversation between you and I.



----------



Absolutely. It is these kinds of intangibles that you won't find on a spec sheet but make a huge difference to the overall user experience. Thats part of the reason I think talking about this is almost pointless on forums because all people really want to see/talk about is numbers and specs. But higher numbers don't equate to a better user experience.


I am not bashing Iphone but you are the one who keeps regurgitating the same old same old about "milliseconds" lag which I don't experience at all with my Note 3. You make such a big deal about it which to most android users (using newer devices) it really means nothing as we can't really feel it like you can.

Why don't you talk about more "tangible" user experience?
1) Like the really user unfriendliness of the centralized "Settings" in iOS (come out of the app and then scroll and scroll to find the setting for the particular app),
2) or once you uninstall iOS app, it deletes your important data/files as well.
3) or there is no "back" button or dedicate "multi-task" buttons etc.
4) email attachment limitations
5) small screen.
etc etc.

It is the same old things we have covered many times.
 

appledes7

macrumors 6502a
Jul 12, 2011
756
0
That's the annoying part. The screen only renders when you take away your finger but is frozen otherwise. You have to wait before screen renders complete after you move your finger away (and we are talking about tangible time that is more than "your feeling time"). It is just not real-time like Android.
I agree that can be annoying, but I fail to see where this would actually cause an issue in a real world situation.



I have an ipad3. While safari is loading or background loading a page, the keyboard lags/refuses to show.
I agree the iPad 3 has some lag. That is part of the reason I got rid of mine. But saying older hardware is slower than newer hardware is expect. The impressive part comes when older harder is faster than newer hardware, and this is the case with my fiances iPhone 5 and my Nexus 5.



I never experience keyboard lag under normal use on my Note3. I am using stock Samsung keyboard. If you are running many concurrent/background apps that may cause the keyboard to lag but then again that is not normal behaviour.
It is normal behavior on all my Android devices. Even with no backgrounding apps. With backgrounding apps it is more apparent, but that is also a testament to Android's poor memory management.



You are not trying.
I disagree. Being unbiased is impossible. Trying to be unbiased is. Trying to be unbiased involves acknowledging the ups and downs of both sides, which I have done. You, however, have not.

It is just nitpicking like Apple.
A 1 second lag with the phone doing nothing is not lag. You make a bigger deal about even shorter lag on iOS! Stop being a hypocrite and start looking at both sides of the argument.

Apple made a big deal about swipe-to-unlock which is just ONE function out of thousands that are crucial in the phone.
A company is allowed to make as big of a deal as they want about their own R&D that helped them make billions.

Where is the big screen iphone? When is Apple going to address the limitation
Have you not been keeping up with rumors? Larger iPhones are coming soon.


You are talking about the difficult to do continuous quick flicks to activate fast discrete jump scroll in iOS? That is still not user friendly and is different from the kinetic scrolling of Android.
Scrolling was what another person on here was talking about. But from my understand of what was written, on longer articles iOS can scroll to the bottom in much less flicks than Android.

btw: all I see is you talk bad about android. did you write anything bad about iphone (see below my points)? Now it seems like you want to claim you are neutral. You are the one who is confused. You are the one who made blanket statement about android based on ONE video which shows the lag.
You see what you want to see. I have said good and bad things about both platforms. You continue to stick to your own predictable fanboyism.




I am not bashing Iphone but you are the one who keeps regurgitating the same old same old about "milliseconds" lag which I don't experience at all with my Note 3.
And you are doing the same old same old misunderstanding not able to comprehend that 25 frames at 29 frames per second is nearly a full second of lag.

You make such a big deal about it which to most android users (using newer devices) it really means nothing as we can't really feel it like you can.
Is the Nexus 5, the highest spec'd phone to run vanilla Android the way Google wanted, not high end enough for you?

Why don't you talk about more "tangible" user experience?
1) Like the really user unfriendliness of the centralized "Settings" in iOS (come out of the app and then scroll and scroll to find the setting for the particular app),
2) or once you uninstall iOS app, it deletes your important data/files as well.
3) or there is no "back" button or dedicate "multi-task" buttons etc.
4) email attachment limitations
5) small screen.
etc etc.

Because all you did was mention subjective points. Only one of those is an objective argument related to tangible user experience. And that is email attachments which is easily overcome using cloud storage.

If you really wanted to talk about tangible user experience you would have done some research and noticed that there is already an entire thread on the matter. Since you didn't bother to do a simple search, I am going to come to the conclusion that you really aren't that interested in it, you were just hoping to throw out a few points you thought would do a good job at hopefully helping your "argument." Unfortunately for you, it didn't.

Plus avoiding intangible attributes of the user experience all together is just being ignorant.
 

Technarchy

macrumors 604
May 21, 2012
6,753
4,927
None of the reviews I've seen of the S5 mentions any lag. They've all said its smooth and snappy. Guess I'll see for myself on the 11th. ;) Fingers crossed.

Heard the same thing about the S4...wasn't true.

Though based upon my time in AT&T shop the S5 did seem more responsive and TW had a cleaner, flatter look.

It's tempting but the S4 felt so sloppy compared to my iPhone that I'm leery about changing again. My iPhone 5S just does so much perfect for me that it's hard to take a chance.

And I'll be honest in saying all the appeal with the S4 is hardware related. If iOS 7 ran on similar hardware I wouldn't be thinking about the S5 for an instant.
 

Robster3

macrumors 68000
Dec 13, 2012
1,987
0
Well its a darn good thing you do your research before jumping to conclusions. Oh wait...



How many kids do you know are currently working on their MFA? And just in case you were wondering, my MFA is 2 classes away from a PhD in the same field.

Yeah Yeah

----------

LOL.

^^^ That is probably one of the best responses I have ever seen on here.

You are a believer:rolleyes:
 

mib1800

Suspended
Sep 16, 2012
2,859
1,250
I agree that can be annoying, but I fail to see where this would actually cause an issue in a real world situation.

I also fail to see why "milliseconds" UI lag would cause an issue in a real world situation.


You see what you want to see. I have said good and bad things about both platforms. You continue to stick to your own predictable fanboyism.

I don't see iOS any better. Put apps in the background and it just guzzle up the RAM. Worst is when RAM runs out iOS just kill those background apps without restarting them. Android at least know how to load/unload apps as when required.


I disagree. Being unbiased is impossible. Trying to be unbiased is. Trying to be unbiased involves acknowledging the ups and downs of both sides, which I have done. You, however, have not.

Well, you dismissed the slow scrolling speed of Iphone and the frozen screen of iOS when your finger is touching the screen as "do not impact real world use". That's your objectivity there. :p

A 1 second lag with the phone doing nothing is not lag. You make a bigger deal about even shorter lag on iOS! Stop being a hypocrite and start looking at both sides of the argument.

When I press the home button on Iphone, it takes more than one second to go to home after all the transition. Is that lag? Or if I touch an input field, the keyboard takes 1/2 seconds to show. Is that lag? I have to double-click home button twice on iphone to call up recent app which is much longer than single tap on s5/vanilla android. Is that lag on iphone?

Have you not been keeping up with rumors? Larger iPhones are coming soon.

But it is not here yet.


Scrolling was what another person on here was talking about. But from my understand of what was written, on longer articles iOS can scroll to the bottom in much less flicks than Android.

You see what you want to see. I have said good and bad things about both platforms. You continue to stick to your own predictable fanboyism.

But that doesnt help in general scrolling. Slow scrolling is a flaw with iOS but you refuse to see. :p


And you are doing the same old same old misunderstanding not able to comprehend that 25 frames at 29 frames per second is nearly a full second of lag.

Are you sure you know what you are talking here?. frame rate only governs smoothness but not duration. Encode the same movie in 20 or 30 frames. Both versions will finish playing at the same time eventhough you may find the 20 framerate to be not as smooth.

Iphone give you more smoothness but sacrifice speed.

Because all you did was mention subjective points. Only one of those is an objective argument related to tangible user experience. And that is email attachments which is easily overcome using cloud storage.

If you really wanted to talk about tangible user experience you would have done some research and noticed that there is already an entire thread on the matter. Since you didn't bother to do a simple search, I am going to come to the conclusion that you really aren't that interested in it, you were just hoping to throw out a few points you thought would do a good job at hopefully helping your "argument." Unfortunately for you, it didn't.

Plus avoiding intangible attributes of the user experience all together is just being ignorant.

It is subjective to you because you don't want to see it as problems. To many, those issues are important than a little more "smoothness" which never affects the overall function but "feeling".
 

Savor

Suspended
Jun 18, 2010
3,742
918
It may take you some time getting used to Android. But unlike me which took almost a month to get used to the quirks and almost a year to actually prefer it over iOS, Android has come a long way since Gingerbread that it may not take as long to like Android for the OP.

Some advice for Android newbies -

- Disable all apps you never use and force close some apps you aren't using but is waking up on its own (ie Viber) when you check apps running under RAM usage.

- Rid of most widgets/live wallpapers that consume battery.

- Hide as much app icons if you can esp system setting type of apps you generally don't open up weekly.

- Keep your homescreen at 2-3 pages max. Just keep rest of the apps you barely use in the app drawer, hide them, or disable them.

- Keep the battery percentage indicator within the notification bar and never next to the time on top. Prevents you from being OCD about battery life.

- Check allow installation of apps from unknown sources to sideload apps.

- Google the app name + apk if you can't find an app in the Play Store. I still got Flappy Bird days after it was taken down.

- Linking swipe gestures with certain actions or apps like Pocket, Screen Off, and Wakelock Detector are great.

Apps -

Nova Launcher Prime - Generally considered one of the best 3rd party launcher, I suggest using those swipe gestures and download an icons pack of your liking. I use MIUI icons pack but the roundish square icons (ala iOS) is starting to look childish and cartoonish. And even more on an oversaturated SAMOLED display. I'm starting to prefer sharper lines like HTC's Sense 5 app icons. Still anything can be better than the zooming white backgrounds, inconsistent neon gradient/translucency eyesore from iOS7.

Swipe Home Button - Slightly confusing at first, so uncheck everything under Advanced setting esp turn off the annoying haptic feedback. BINDING setting is the one you will be using the most. Swipe up from the bottom center of the screen and it acts like a home button. And use the other gestures to open apps or do certain actions you like. Those swipe gestures works better if the app doesn't have an on-screen menu button on the bottom. This app works better for Samsungs and Androids with capacitive buttons outside the screen.

Screen Lock and Off - Turn off screen without needing to hit power button. Cool animations too. Use a swipe gesture for this using Nova or Swipe Home Button app. I use the latter and everytime I swipe towards up/left, my phone does a W-Shaped animation to turn off. On my old Nexus One, I use the Holo Launcher and link swipe up gesture to Screen Off. Looks cooler than closing cards on webOS. Many animations look cool. So if you can't decide, there is a random option.

ES File Explorer - I used ASTRO for awhile but this file manager had a Bluetooth option so I've been using it ever since.

QuickPic - Use dark theme if you have AMOLED. Best third party photo gallery app that can include videos.

SMS Wakeup - It wakes up your screen when you receive a text similar to iOS. Saves wearing out the power (or home button) to wakeup the screen. Under preference, just uncheck pop-up notification.

Du Battery Saver - Doesn't really save battery but is more accurate to me with app battery usage than GSAM Battery Monitor which uses the same amount of RAM. And it has sound alerts when your phone is fully charged or at 30% left.

App Backup & Restore - Backup all your apps. This prevents you from having to live with a bad update.

TubeMate - Better than MxTube from Cydia as you can choose the resolution downloading from YouTube and you can generally download any video from most sites (even Adult ones) using the URL option. This isn't found in the Play Store. Google it and sideload the app. One of the best apps iOS doesn't have.

MovieTube - This app finds movies uploaded on YouTube. Slim pickings now as it gets better towards Christmas time. I use the 2.2.3 version as 4.0+ provides where to stream some of the latest ones when I only want to see movies uploaded on YouTube and use TubeMate to download them. Understand most movies uploaded on YouTube get flagged and get taken down after a day or two. I was lucky enough to download Pulp Fiction, The Avengers, and about 25 other movies in HD before they were taken down.

MoboPlayer - Use the mini-player. My Wife has received the most compliments using the mini-player as well as the Screen Off & Lock animations. I can even play TWO videos at the SAME TIME (like Gotye and his Star Wars parody) using MoboPlayer's mini-player and then opening the QuickPic or default video player. It kills battery faster but it puts those extra cores to good use. Makes using iOS feel primitive at times.

Wakelock Detector - Hate the icon but I hide it and just use a swipe gesture to open it to check if my phone is in deep sleep and how much screen time usage. Since I have Du Battery Saver, I had to let go of GSAM Battery Monitor as it takes nesrly same amount of RAM. Wakelock Detector takes up very little RAM. Lesser wakelocks and more deep sleep means the better the battery life esp on standby.

SwiftKey - My default keyboard. Use the Light theme as the other ones look hideous. Best prediction system ever. Better than plain old auto-correction. Makes typing on anything else feel slow. But you need to use it for a week so it can learn the words you like to type before you type it. And turn off Flow if you are not into swipe texting. I know SwiftKey Notes is on iOS but it is nothing like making the keyboard as a default. One of the other killer-apps found on Android not found on iOS.

This is just some advice worth 2.5 years of personal experience to the OP. I can't make you change your mind. And if iOS is still your thing, no problem of going back. I just hope Android newbies can enjoy the platform easier and faster from the start unlike my first experience with it.
 

grandM

macrumors 68000
Oct 14, 2013
1,520
302
I would be a little dubious of it since there have been apps like iRandomizer and Handy Light that snuck tethering in as a hidden feature. How detailed are the App Store checks really.
One of the many many pages on security iOs versus android: http://www.zdnet.com/sorry-to-say-that-apple-platforms-are-still-more-secure-7000026880/

And there are many more... Anyone can upload a malware app on android through usb etc. Android is the windows of mobile devices (ignoring there is a windows actually on mobile devices). It's cheaper, it has its advantages but security is inferior...
 

unlinked

macrumors 6502a
Jul 12, 2010
698
1,217
Ireland
One of the many many pages on security iOs versus android: http://www.zdnet.com/sorry-to-say-that-apple-platforms-are-still-more-secure-7000026880/

And there are many more... Anyone can upload a malware app on android through usb etc. Android is the windows of mobile devices (ignoring there is a windows actually on mobile devices). It's cheaper, it has its advantages but security is inferior...

You can load malware onto my Mac over usb too. Most devices are pretty insecure once you have physical access to them.
 

grandM

macrumors 68000
Oct 14, 2013
1,520
302
You can load malware onto my Mac over usb too. Most devices are pretty insecure once you have physical access to them.
On a mac computer you could do so but you would have to hack a unix system. It can be done, but it isn't simple. Just agree that android has a lot of flexibility and choice but isn't as safe. It's clear as water...
 

Peanut207

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Mar 2, 2010
498
119
It may take you some time getting used to Android. But unlike me which took almost a month to get used to the quirks and almost a year to actually prefer it over iOS, Android has come a long way since Gingerbread that it may not take as long to like Android for the OP.

Some advice for Android newbies -

- Disable all apps you never use and force close some apps you aren't using but is waking up on its own (ie Viber) when you check apps running under RAM usage.

- Rid of most widgets/live wallpapers that consume battery.

- Hide as much app icons if you can esp system setting type of apps you generally don't open up weekly.

- Keep your homescreen at 2-3 pages max. Just keep rest of the apps you barely use in the app drawer, hide them, or disable them.

- Keep the battery percentage indicator within the notification bar and never next to the time on top. Prevents you from being OCD about battery life.

- Check allow installation of apps from unknown sources to sideload apps.

- Google the app name + apk if you can't find an app in the Play Store. I still got Flappy Bird days after it was taken down.

- Linking swipe gestures with certain actions or apps like Pocket, Screen Off, and Wakelock Detector are great.

Apps -

Nova Launcher Prime - Generally considered one of the best 3rd party launcher, I suggest using those swipe gestures and download an icons pack of your liking. I use MIUI icons pack but the roundish square icons (ala iOS) is starting to look childish and cartoonish. And even more on an oversaturated SAMOLED display. I'm starting to prefer sharper lines like HTC's Sense 5 app icons. Still anything can be better than the zooming white backgrounds, inconsistent neon gradient/translucency eyesore from iOS7.

Swipe Home Button - Slightly confusing at first, so uncheck everything under Advanced setting esp turn off the annoying haptic feedback. BINDING setting is the one you will be using the most. Swipe up from the bottom center of the screen and it acts like a home button. And use the other gestures to open apps or do certain actions you like. Those swipe gestures works better if the app doesn't have an on-screen menu button on the bottom. This app works better for Samsungs and Androids with capacitive buttons outside the screen.

Screen Lock and Off - Turn off screen without needing to hit power button. Cool animations too. Use a swipe gesture for this using Nova or Swipe Home Button app. I use the latter and everytime I swipe towards up/left, my phone does a W-Shaped animation to turn off. On my old Nexus One, I use the Holo Launcher and link swipe up gesture to Screen Off. Looks cooler than closing cards on webOS. Many animations look cool. So if you can't decide, there is a random option.

ES File Explorer - I used ASTRO for awhile but this file manager had a Bluetooth option so I've been using it ever since.

QuickPic - Use dark theme if you have AMOLED. Best third party photo gallery app that can include videos.

SMS Wakeup - It wakes up your screen when you receive a text similar to iOS. Saves wearing out the power (or home button) to wakeup the screen. Under preference, just uncheck pop-up notification.

Du Battery Saver - Doesn't really save battery but is more accurate to me with app battery usage than GSAM Battery Monitor which uses the same amount of RAM. And it has sound alerts when your phone is fully charged or at 30% left.

App Backup & Restore - Backup all your apps. This prevents you from having to live with a bad update.

TubeMate - Better than MxTube from Cydia as you can choose the resolution downloading from YouTube and you can generally download any video from most sites (even Adult ones) using the URL option. This isn't found in the Play Store. Google it and sideload the app. One of the best apps iOS doesn't have.

MovieTube - This app finds movies uploaded on YouTube. Slim pickings now as it gets better towards Christmas time. I use the 2.2.3 version as 4.0+ provides where to stream some of the latest ones when I only want to see movies uploaded on YouTube and use TubeMate to download them. Understand most movies uploaded on YouTube get flagged and get taken down after a day or two. I was lucky enough to download Pulp Fiction, The Avengers, and about 25 other movies in HD before they were taken down.

MoboPlayer - Use the mini-player. My Wife has received the most compliments using the mini-player as well as the Screen Off & Lock animations. I can even play TWO videos at the SAME TIME (like Gotye and his Star Wars parody) using MoboPlayer's mini-player and then opening the QuickPic or default video player. It kills battery faster but it puts those extra cores to good use. Makes using iOS feel primitive at times.

Wakelock Detector - Hate the icon but I hide it and just use a swipe gesture to open it to check if my phone is in deep sleep and how much screen time usage. Since I have Du Battery Saver, I had to let go of GSAM Battery Monitor as it takes nesrly same amount of RAM. Wakelock Detector takes up very little RAM. Lesser wakelocks and more deep sleep means the better the battery life esp on standby.

SwiftKey - My default keyboard. Use the Light theme as the other ones look hideous. Best prediction system ever. Better than plain old auto-correction. Makes typing on anything else feel slow. But you need to use it for a week so it can learn the words you like to type before you type it. And turn off Flow if you are not into swipe texting. I know SwiftKey Notes is on iOS but it is nothing like making the keyboard as a default. One of the other killer-apps found on Android not found on iOS.

This is just some advice worth 2.5 years of personal experience to the OP. I can't make you change your mind. And if iOS is still your thing, no problem of going back. I just hope Android newbies can enjoy the platform easier and faster from the start unlike my first experience with it.

Thanks for the tips!
 

unlinked

macrumors 6502a
Jul 12, 2010
698
1,217
Ireland
On a mac computer you could do so but you would have to hack a unix system. It can be done, but it isn't simple. Just agree that android has a lot of flexibility and choice but isn't as safe. It's clear as water...

Unix isn't a panacea.
<------ working on Unix boxes for decades

Mostly people are the weak spot. Everything else is generally window dressing.
 
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