Why even Android anymore?

[michael9891]

I'd buy an iPhone if I wanted a phone completely different to mine. And Oreo looks and feels nothing like iOS. Can't believe people think phones are so similar they might as well buy an iPhone.

I'll be damned if I'm going back to using a phone that bugs the hell out of me because I can't do something as simple as putting apps wherever I want.

 

[Tsepz]

I'd buy an iPhone if I wanted a phone completely different to mine. And Oreo looks and feels nothing like iOS. Can't believe people think phones are so similar they might as well buy an iPhone.

I'll be damned if I'm going back to using a phone that bugs the hell out of me because I can't do something as simple as putting apps wherever I want.

Lol, exactly.

Heck, in terms of customisation and file access, iPhones are no better than some Feature Phones that I had from Sony Ericsson, at least the feature phones allowed me to use them as Mass Storage devices, with any PC I wanted.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

I'd buy an iPhone if I wanted a phone completely different to mine. And Oreo looks and feels nothing like iOS. Can't believe people think phones are so similar they might as well buy an iPhone.

Exactly. User Input and look is vastly different. Troubleshooting on iOS is much more of a pain, which is one of the downsides of everything being so integrated.

 

[dk001]

Exactly. User Input and look is vastly different. Troubleshooting on iOS is much more of a pain, which is one of the downsides of everything being so integrated.

That is a great point.
Using a Razer on Android 8.1, testing and iPhone 8+ and iPhone X on iOS 11.3, it is far easier in many cases to troubleshoot issues on the Razer than on either of the iPhones.

 

[jedwards87]

Just can’t live with only iOS. It’s home desktop, Status, Notifications, settings, are dated and even iOS 13 won’t change that.

Oreo and P(each pie) offer a nicer UI. The apps I use there was a time not too long ago were better on iOS but not now. And it seems like Apple got the wrong compiler for iOS 11 and a full 64-bit OS.

just bought Essential (Amazon dropped price $399), love the Note 8, along with iPhone X. The 7 and 7 Plus weren’t enough to change from the 6S Plus.

Android P offers a nicer UI ? It would appear that a lot of Android faithful are starting to hate what Google is doing to Android. And what is up with all the wasted white space Google is moving towards ? And the Google Feed is atrocious not to mention broken. With that said iOS is so freaking stale looking it is almost hard to look at.

 

[dk001]

Android P offers a nicer UI ? It would appear that a lot of Android faithful are starting to hate what Google is doing to Android. And what is up with all the wasted white space Google is moving towards ? And the Google Feed is atrocious not to mention broken. With that said iOS is so freaking stale looking it is almost hard to look at.

Considering I can download and use any launcher (love the Nova version on my Razer) I don't see why this is always raised as an issue. Use the Pixel Launcher of you want a preview taste of "P". What it looks like? LINK LINK2

When or if my Razer ever gets "P" (it just got O - v8.1) - I can always keep Nova or go with any number of launchers.

 

[macduke]

Nearly every single thing I need in a phone can be accomplished with an iPhone. The one sore spot is Siri. With Android I will likely never get the privacy and security that I require. Apple usually has the best hardware and design. I've been saying this for years, but eventually all phones will be thin slabs of glass that are all display and little else. We're getting close.

There's only so much you can do with design until it becomes something else—maybe something different entirely. A new category, such as a hybrid phone that unfolds into a tablet. Or some new type of AR wearable. But for now everything is going to look the same. Good design is good because it gets out of the way. If your goal is good design then it's inevitable that two companies would come up with similar UI/UX. Good design is a reaction to human psychological responses. Clean typography, white space, etc aren't simply style choices—they are designed to be more legible and keep everything organized so the eye doesn't get lost when using an app. I've been surprised at how many people don't realize this. If your goal is security then it's inevitable that things like the boot-loader will be locked down. If your goal is a thin enclosure then it's inevitable that you remove legacy technology such as headphone jacks and removable battery packs. And if your goal is privacy then you'll probably fall behind in technologies that utilize the mass collection of data such as machine learning and artificial assistants. Everything has a trade-off.

Apple was skating to where the puck will be. Eventually it will largely come down to whether or not you trust Google having all of your information. I think Android will eventually become more secure. That's one thing that most people aren't willing to sacrifice. But information? People love giving away information. Perhaps some will wise up with the fallout from this whole Facebook/Russia debacle, but like most things it will probably be swept under the rug and out of the collective consciousness.

 

[dk001]

Nearly every single thing I need in a phone can be accomplished with an iPhone. The one sore spot is Siri. With Android I will likely never get the privacy and security that I require. Apple usually has the best hardware and design. I've been saying this for years, but eventually all phones will be thin slabs of glass that are all display and little else. We're getting close.

There's only so much you can do with design until it becomes something else—maybe something different entirely. A new category, such as a hybrid phone that unfolds into a tablet. Or some new type of AR wearable. But for now everything is going to look the same. Good design is good because it gets out of the way. If your goal is good design then it's inevitable that two companies would come up with similar UI/UX. Good design is a reaction to human psychological responses. Clean typography, white space, etc aren't simply style choices—they are designed to be more legible and keep everything organized so the eye doesn't get lost when using an app. I've been surprised at how many people don't realize this. If your goal is security then it's inevitable that things like the boot-loader will be locked down. If your goal is a thin enclosure then it's inevitable that you remove legacy technology such as headphone jacks and removable battery packs. And if your goal is privacy then you'll probably fall behind in technologies that utilize the mass collection of data such as machine learning and artificial assistants. Everything has a trade-off.

Apple was skating to where the puck will be. Eventually it will largely come down to whether or not you trust Google having all of your information. I think Android will eventually become more secure. That's one thing that most people aren't willing to sacrifice. But information? People love giving away information. Perhaps some will wise up with the fallout from this whole Facebook/Russia debacle, but like most things it will probably be swept under the rug and out of the collective consciousness.

Here is a little something I hope comes to fruition. LINK
What I have received so far looks like it has a very good chance. It would compliment my Razer nicely.

 

[Michael Goff]

Android P offers a nicer UI ? It would appear that a lot of Android faithful are starting to hate what Google is doing to Android. And what is up with all the wasted white space Google is moving towards ? And the Google Feed is atrocious not to mention broken. With that said iOS is so freaking stale looking it is almost hard to look at.

A lot of the complaints I have read equate to "but it looks somewhat like iOS if you squint hard enough". Those can be safely ignored.

 

[mib1800]

Nearly every single thing I need in a phone can be accomplished with an iPhone. The one sore spot is Siri. With Android I will likely never get the privacy and security that I require. Apple usually has the best hardware and design. I've been saying this for years, but eventually all phones will be thin slabs of glass that are all display and little else. We're getting close.

There's only so much you can do with design until it becomes something else—maybe something different entirely. A new category, such as a hybrid phone that unfolds into a tablet. Or some new type of AR wearable. But for now everything is going to look the same. Good design is good because it gets out of the way. If your goal is good design then it's inevitable that two companies would come up with similar UI/UX. Good design is a reaction to human psychological responses. Clean typography, white space, etc aren't simply style choices—they are designed to be more legible and keep everything organized so the eye doesn't get lost when using an app. I've been surprised at how many people don't realize this. If your goal is security then it's inevitable that things like the boot-loader will be locked down. If your goal is a thin enclosure then it's inevitable that you remove legacy technology such as headphone jacks and removable battery packs. And if your goal is privacy then you'll probably fall behind in technologies that utilize the mass collection of data such as machine learning and artificial assistants. Everything has a trade-off.

Apple was skating to where the puck will be. Eventually it will largely come down to whether or not you trust Google having all of your information. I think Android will eventually become more secure. That's one thing that most people aren't willing to sacrifice. But information? People love giving away information. Perhaps some will wise up with the fallout from this whole Facebook/Russia debacle, but like most things it will probably be swept under the rug and out of the collective consciousness.

All this about iPhone is more secure is a fallacy. How much secure info do you keep in the phone? Very little. Most of your info is in the cloud when you use apps in your iPhone. You use Google, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, icloud etc in iphone You already put yourself out there. In fact there is no difference between android and iPhone. It would be foolish to think iPhone users info wasn't leaked in the Facebook debacle. iCloud isnt safe either since it has leaked huge amount of personal pictures and info of you before.

For me iPhone comes out short in a lot of functions. E.g
-automated (sound/setting/location) profile and automated tasks like sending message or changing wallpaper periodically etc.
-something like Secure Folder where i have another phone environment within my phone which I can isolate certain info or run another copy of the same app with a different account.
-open interconnectivity where I can transfer data (via usb/bt/WiFi) or cast screen to any device without additional hardware like Apple TV.
-dual SIM support.
-UI customisation - iPhone is so stale

 

[michael9891]

Exactly. User Input and look is vastly different. Troubleshooting on iOS is much more of a pain, which is one of the downsides of everything being so integrated.

I don’t mind iOS so much on my iPad but don’t want it on a phone again. At least not until there’s some significant changes.

 

[nviz22]

I am at a cross roads myself. I really like what Google is doing with the Pixel 2 XL. However, their hardware issues scare me a bit. I might consider sticking with Apple because I know I can get something that just works and will have longevity.

It comes down to better hardware specs or longer software support.

WWDC and the fall pressers cannot come soon enough.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

I don’t mind iOS so much on my iPad but don’t want it on a phone again. At least not until there’s some significant changes.

Same here. I'm still enjoying my iPad Air. It's feels like iOS updates evolve perfectly for the iPad, but I can't say the same for the iPhone. Android is the exact opposite, evolving perfectly for smartphone but not for tablets. I don't think Google even cares about tablets anymore, the focus is on Chrome OS for hybrid hardware.

 

[hallux]

I really like what Google is doing with the Pixel 2 XL. However, their hardware issues scare me a bit.

Such as...?

I'm not seeing image retention or screen burn-in issues on my 2 XL, and I use Android Auto on the phone screen. The headphone adapter is working flawlessly for me (I need to use it in the car to listen to podcasts). I've had mine for about 4 months at this point.

 

[slitherjef]

Wow... Guess I kind of stirred the pot a bit. Not everyone shares my views and that's fine. I still think Google is taking a page from Apple on a lot of stuff philosophy and design language etc, I mean they've even added code for a notch and handset manufacturers are leaning towards notches also. (It's not just the notch, it's other examples too, I'm just using that argument for reference...)

Maybe this is an evolutionary step in the bezeless direction.

At any rate I'm obviously looking at things differently then (most) everyone else. I did enjoy reading everyone's posts here, made for some good discussion I think.

 

[nviz22]

Such as...?

I'm not seeing image retention or screen burn-in issues on my 2 XL, and I use Android Auto on the phone screen. The headphone adapter is working flawlessly for me (I need to use it in the car to listen to podcasts). I've had mine for about 4 months at this point.

Screen burn in, vibrator issues, etc. You’re lucky you haven’t had any issues. I had a rough patch with Samsung myself recently.

 

[macduke]

All this about iPhone is more secure is a fallacy. How much secure info do you keep in the phone? Very little. Most of your info is in the cloud when you use apps in your iPhone. You use Google, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, icloud etc in iphone You already put yourself out there. In fact there is no difference between android and iPhone. It would be foolish to think iPhone users info wasn't leaked in the Facebook debacle. iCloud isnt safe either since it has leaked huge amount of personal pictures and info of you before.

I keep a lot of secure info on my phone. For instance, I have over 350 passwords for various web servers and sensitive computer networks in 1Password. I also have all of my banking and investment apps on my iPhone, along with over 20,000 photos going back to 2007.

I also don’t use Google or Facebook apps. I used Gmail 2004-2011 and Facebook 2004-2010. iCloud is secure and my messages are end-to-end encrypted.

As for iCloud being safe, no personal photos or information about me on iCloud has ever leaked. Why would you say that? Are you one of the ignorant people who heard about celebrity nude photos being hacked and never looked into it any further? These idiotic celebs didn’t enable two-step or two-factor authentication and used security questions that people could easily source. How? Well, they’re famous and their entire life had been researched and is available in searchable form online. This isn’t hacking as much as it is guessing a password based on things you know about a person. It’s a huge difference.

It’s just really weird that you would assume that I don’t have sensitive info on my phone, that I use all those stupid social apps and that my iCloud was hacked. But I guess when all you’ve ever known is Android then you just assume that privacy and security are things of the past which no longer exist. I’m glad that I don’t have to live in your world. iOS and Android could not be further apart when it comes to privacy and security, full stop, end of story.

 

[mib1800]

I keep a lot of secure info on my phone. For instance, I have over 350 passwords for various web servers and sensitive computer networks in 1Password. I also have all of my banking and investment apps on my iPhone, along with over 20,000 photos going back to 2007.

I also don’t use Google or Facebook apps. I used Gmail 2004-2011 and Facebook 2004-2010. iCloud is secure and my messages are end-to-end encrypted.

As for iCloud being safe, no personal photos or information about me on iCloud has ever leaked. Why would you say that? Are you one of the ignorant people who heard about celebrity nude photos being hacked and never looked into it any further? These idiotic celebs didn’t enable two-step or two-factor authentication and used security questions that people could easily source. How? Well, they’re famous and their entire life had been researched and is available in searchable form online. This isn’t hacking as much as it is guessing a password based on things you know about a person. It’s a huge difference.

It’s just really weird that you would assume that I don’t have sensitive info on my phone, that I use all those stupid social apps and that my iCloud was hacked. But I guess when all you’ve ever known is Android then you just assume that privacy and security are things of the past which no longer exist. I’m glad that I don’t have to live in your world. iOS and Android could not be further apart when it comes to privacy and security, full stop, end of story.

You sync your 1password don't you? Oops

Because of the ignorance of icloud regarding users behaviour that the hacking occurred. So security is as good as the users. It doesn't matter whether you are in android or iOS.

There are many buzz about android insecurity than ios but in actual events people got hacked both iOS and Android got their fair share. To think one is much safer than the other is naive imo

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

Screen burn in, vibrator issues, etc. You’re lucky you haven’t had any issues. I had a rough patch with Samsung myself recently.

Out of all the Samsung phones I've owned. I only had one two hardware issues. That was a wifi issue with the S6 edge, which was replaced by my carrier. And the infamous Note 7 recall. Other than that, I have strong confidence in Samsung's phone quality.

 

[mib1800]

Out of all the Samsung phones I've owned. I only had one two hardware issues. That was a wifi issue with the S6 edge, which was replaced by my carrier. And the infamous Note 7 recall. Other than that, I have strong confidence in Samsung's phone quality.

I have owned galaxy since first generation. None has got any hardware issues during the period of my ownership (usually 2-3years).

 

[hemon]

I have owned galaxy since first generation. None has got any hardware issues during the period of my ownership (usually 2-3years).

With the iPhone, iPad and MacBook Air I had EVERY generation problems (with the battery, home button, headphone output, SSD, display…)!

 

[macduke]

You sync your 1password don't you? Oops

Because of the ignorance of icloud regarding users behaviour that the hacking occurred. So security is as good as the users. It doesn't matter whether you are in android or iOS.

There are many buzz about android insecurity than ios but in actual events people got hacked both iOS and Android got their fair share. To think one is much safer than the other is naive imo

YES, like I said, it syncs over iCloud. It's secure! There is no nativity on my part. I am a quite competent technical professional. Android has nothing on iOS when it comes to security. It's completely laughable to suggest otherwise.

 

[mib1800]

YES, like I said, it syncs over iCloud. It's secure! There is no nativity on my part. I am a quite competent technical professional. Android has nothing on iOS when it comes to security. It's completely laughable to suggest otherwise.

It syncs...so information is not kept in phone contrary to what you said. So others have access to your info (like all your other info as in my point)

iCloud or iOS is as secure as any cloud out there. With apple bumbling track record in doing software (case in point iOS 11, Siri, jail break capable iOS, celebrity information leaks, closed system+sweep under carpet without anyone knowing issues, hidden purposeful built-in slow-down software), it is more laughable to suggest otherwise.

 

[adnbek]

Exactly, it seems so "odd" that Apple removes the headphone jack while offering a solution, to its own problem/solution, which would be, dongles. Instead of having to carry around a dongle everywhere, why not just pay a hefty price for some BT earbuds! Pure greed at its finest. Why not have the option to retain the headphone jack, and give users the option to purchase airpods, or a dongle if they may choose to live the #DongleLife.

Because you don’t have to carry around the dongle. Just keep it plugged in to your favorite pair of headphones and it’s just a slightly longer cord. And that’s an issue because?

 

[pika2000]

It is true that many Android OEMs are following the trend without actually knowing what they're doing. Example is the notch. Apple went with a notch on the X because they had no choice if they wanted a full edge-to-edge display. A space is still needed for the front facing sensors and ear piece. Android OEMs saw the notch as a style and copied it, yet many still left a sizeable chin on their phones, which is stupid.

Another example is the removal of 3.5mm jack. Apple did it to offer IP67, and we know how cramped it is inside the iPhone. Well, now many Android OEMs are also removing their audio jack, but don't offer anything else in return. Sony took out the 3.5mm jack on their XZ2, but it is THICKER than even their previous XZ (which has 3.5mm jack AND IP68 certified). It just shows that these Android OEMs are not thinking completely straight. They are doing things just because it is the trend, not because they want to make a great product. Heck, even Google removed the headphone jack on their Pixel 2 AFTER they made fun of Apple for doing it previously (worse, they don't even bundle a USB-C headset with the device, you have to buy your own headset).

Having said that, I will still have an Android phone, even if I use iPhone primarily. Some of the reasons are:
- dual SIM
- low entry price for secondary (or even tertiary) phone. And the cheap phones are getting really really good. There are $100 Android phones with fingerprint scanner and fast enough hardware for everyday tasks
- certain apps in some countries are only available on Android due to its marketshare

And we are also seeing a good trend in terms of updates. Google's Android One program seems to be getting traction, with Xiaomi and Nokia on board. Even some chinese OEMs are actually doing a good job with the security updates. I have a Vivo phone with Lollipop, but it has March 2018 security patch.