So I'm assuming most people on here already have a Mac and/or an iOS device. If that's the case, why go Android for your third device, whether it be phone or tablet? It seems like it makes so much more sense to stay completely within an ecosystem. Thoughts?
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Why go Android if you already have a Mac and iOS device?
- Thread starter Amplelink
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iOS 7 is great and all and you've probably heard this already but for me it just feels stale and boring.... From my experience with android it brings out my inner geek and I get excited with all the freedom you get compared to the cage of ios
Yeah, but what kinds of things of true practical value are you really getting with all that "freedom"? Serious question. I'm thinking about going Android with my next phone, but when I think about all of the iOS-specific things I have to give up, I just can't do it.
If one had to pick one of the 'trinity' of devices (phone/tablet/computer) to go outside of the Apple ecosystem, using Android for your phone offers best overall value, IMO. Android offers far greater functionality/customization vs. iOS and the Google Play store offers apps of comparable quality and actually far greater selection (in part due to the more robust functionality offered through Android). The only elements of iOS that will be lacking in Android are those that are proprietary to Apple (iMessage, AirPlay, iTunes purchased video, iBooks, Safari).
Android tablets still don't offer the comparable level of quality (both in hardware, though many will disagree with me, and apps) vs. iPads that Android phones provide when compared to the iPhone. Basically, there are far more high quality phones running Android than tablets.
Living entirely within one ecosystem can certainly offer many benefits, among them simplicity and consistency--two of the main reasons I choose to use Apple almost exclusively at this point. But at the same time, using ONLY Apple devices also means living with some compromises and quite simply, it can be pretty boring. I used Android phones and tablets for much of the past year and a half and it was both an eye opening and rewarding experience. I chose to move back to iOS for my mobile devices for a number of reasons, but a big one was ease of use with my friends/family (vast majority of which use iOS). If this element wasn't such a big factor in my decision, I'd probably be continuing to sample any number of Android devices over the next 6 months.
Android tablets still don't offer the comparable level of quality (both in hardware, though many will disagree with me, and apps) vs. iPads that Android phones provide when compared to the iPhone. Basically, there are far more high quality phones running Android than tablets.
Living entirely within one ecosystem can certainly offer many benefits, among them simplicity and consistency--two of the main reasons I choose to use Apple almost exclusively at this point. But at the same time, using ONLY Apple devices also means living with some compromises and quite simply, it can be pretty boring. I used Android phones and tablets for much of the past year and a half and it was both an eye opening and rewarding experience. I chose to move back to iOS for my mobile devices for a number of reasons, but a big one was ease of use with my friends/family (vast majority of which use iOS). If this element wasn't such a big factor in my decision, I'd probably be continuing to sample any number of Android devices over the next 6 months.
For me, I use Mac for my computer because I do a lot of programming and an OS based on Linux is much better than a PC for those needs. On the same hand, OS X offers plenty of other cool features to use when I'm not programming that are not included in standard Linux distros.
On the other hand, Android is just much more fun than iOS if you like coding and playing around with your phone's hardware/software. Those are my reasons anyway.
On the other hand, Android is just much more fun than iOS if you like coding and playing around with your phone's hardware/software. Those are my reasons anyway.
Freedom is measured by the number of things you can walk away from. Never consider freedom a bad thing, regardless of its supposed value to your ideals.
Example of that freedom would be things like using a PS3 controller to play games on an Android device. Or being able to connect any sort of peripheral device via an OTG cable or via BT, like say a mouse. Or being able to change default programs like the browser and keyboard to something you like more. Being able to customize the UI to how YOU like it, not how an OEM tells you. Being able to download any sort of attachment and save it to the phone or swap any type of file between PC and Android device. These are just a few examples of how that 'freedom' can benefit a person.
I have an ancient (but in pristine condition) iPhone 3GS that I use for two things:
1. Travel overseas with pre-paid SIM cards in whatever country I go to, and
2. Remote control of iTunes tracks and speakers around my house via WiFi.
I can use my MacBook to control iTunes being played from my Mac Pro, but it's a bit easier to just pick up my old iPhone, which is always in Airplane Mode and basically just an iPod when I'm home in America. I still have iOS 6 on it, which makes me smile.
If the iPhone were to disappear forever, I'd lose no sleep over it. Android fits my needs so much better. For example, I travel a lot, and I don't miss feeling helpless when the battery is dying at some airport and a power outlet is unavailable, because I have fully charged extra batteries in my bag that I can swap in.
Some people fear more than one system, but I use both Android and iOS, as well as Apple and non-Apple computer systems, so using multiple ecosystems is as natural as listening to music and tapping my foot at the same time.
1. Travel overseas with pre-paid SIM cards in whatever country I go to, and
2. Remote control of iTunes tracks and speakers around my house via WiFi.
I can use my MacBook to control iTunes being played from my Mac Pro, but it's a bit easier to just pick up my old iPhone, which is always in Airplane Mode and basically just an iPod when I'm home in America. I still have iOS 6 on it, which makes me smile.
If the iPhone were to disappear forever, I'd lose no sleep over it. Android fits my needs so much better. For example, I travel a lot, and I don't miss feeling helpless when the battery is dying at some airport and a power outlet is unavailable, because I have fully charged extra batteries in my bag that I can swap in.
Some people fear more than one system, but I use both Android and iOS, as well as Apple and non-Apple computer systems, so using multiple ecosystems is as natural as listening to music and tapping my foot at the same time.
Some of my reasons for going Android:
- Swipe typing. I write a lot on my phone, and this has more than doubled my writing speed.
- Access to larger screens. With the Note 2, I finally have a big enough screen that I can read and edit Word documents for work right on my phone.
- More variation for my homescreen/look and feel of the UI.
- Widgets: most importantly a quick on/off switch for wifi tether that I swear has prolonged my life expectancy by ten years already.
- Gesture commands for the UI, such as two finger swipe down instead of pressing the power button or pinch to lower the screen brightness to 50% of the usual minimum (to not disturb others/go unnoticed in a dark room).
- Reading and sending SMS/MMS to everyone, not just iPhone users, right from my computer browser.
- Dismissing individual notifications from the notifications pulldown menu.
- Quicker to manage files using my phone, like just plugging in the USB cable whenever and dragging a file into my file system, plugging out and leaving. All in about 30 seconds - no software needed.
- Doing the same using wifi file transfer through my browser.
- The possibility to root and totally change the behavior of my phone if I get bored with it.
But - I'd still have switched if only for the Swipe typing. That is one function that has completely changed what I can do with my phone, and one that I wouldn't pass up for anything. Until iOS has that, I simply can't buy another iPhone.
I have Macs and prefer Android, simple as that. Apple eco system is not for me and pointless anyway as I waaaaaaay prefer my PC as my media base for movies etc. Plus I don't have to deal with stupid slow itunes everytime I plug in for every little simple thing. Mount the Android phones/tablets quickly as a usb drive, move files, movies, whatever you want fast an efficiently, and disconnect, or wirelessly which works even better then on iOS imo.
Plus as far as the phones, for personal and business use, much much prefer Android. I still have iPhones but their the wifeys as she likes the smaller footprint and one if through her work anyway. Oohara gave some of the reason I prefer Android as well.
Basically I hate iTunes and Eco
, some people prefer just plugging in and dealing with itunes, not me
I was on Andriod before I had a Mac.
I can't stand Safari, I MUCH prefer Chrome, so the benefit of bookmark and reading list sync to Safari on iPhone is useless to me.
I have a 3rd-party app for password sync so iCloud keychain is useless.
My Mac can still connect to my Google services such as mail and calendar, so integration across platforms isn't an issue, I just use my Google account rather than iCloud. There's a Google Drive app for Mac, I use that to interface with my Google Drive account and upload files I might want to access from my mobile devices.
I can't stand Safari, I MUCH prefer Chrome, so the benefit of bookmark and reading list sync to Safari on iPhone is useless to me.
I have a 3rd-party app for password sync so iCloud keychain is useless.
My Mac can still connect to my Google services such as mail and calendar, so integration across platforms isn't an issue, I just use my Google account rather than iCloud. There's a Google Drive app for Mac, I use that to interface with my Google Drive account and upload files I might want to access from my mobile devices.
Larger screen. Fair off-contract price. Not needing to swipe to unlock all day and night.
Also I feel no need to stay in the ecosystem at this point. I don't use iTunes for music. (Google Music.) The Gmail app is awesome. Habit browser is more advanced than Safari.
The only reason I'd consider an iPhone in the future is if it's crazy light and obviously packs a larger screen.
Everything that has been listed so far except I'm not a mac guy. I prefer PCs with the occasional splash of iOS/Android on my personal device. I'm not tied down to an ecosystem, never have and never will be so it's hard for me to relate to people who use this as an excuse. I just use what works for me, be it Android, Apple, Microsoft, Samsung, HTC etc.
Provided you're willing to learn the android ecosystem and put the time into its quirks and differences, managing both environments and moving information between the two is pretty easy.
I just gave up my IP 4S for a Samsung Galaxy S 4. I enjoy using Android, if nothing else but for the freshness of change. While I like and appreciate OS X, I also am a Linux user and the differences keep it all interesting. I don't get too hung up on customization, but I don't feel locked into the ecosystem because I don't use iTunes, and the app store is akin to the Linux software respositories, at least in terms of free stuff. I mostly made the Android move for a larger screen and faster phone.
This is what I keep running into.
I currently have a personal iPhone 5 and an iPhone 5S through work. Been toying with the thought of switching out my iPhone 5 for a Nexus 5 or Galaxy S5. The only real reasoning is to just have something new to play with and to be able to give honest real world contrast of the two devices when people pipe up with "this or that is better" claims.
However, I'm a long time Apple user, who takes full advantage of the iCloud services, has several hundred dollars of Apps tied to my AppleID, most of my friends/family (80+%) are on iOS devices so iMessage is nice, etc... It's hard to justify tossing out a couple hundred bucks on a device that will more or less be a toy for me to play with for a few months. The other big hurdle is that the Android OS really doesn't seem very intuitive, which may be a result of me being quite entrenched in iOS since it's launch. Every time I've played with one, which is admittedly not much (maybe 6 times, for 15-20 min at a time), I find myself swiping and tapping endlessly only to finally accomplish what I was trying to do or to eventually just give up. I'm most definitely a power user, so I'm sure this will go away rather quick once I have one for a couple hours, but it's still unnerving.
I carry two phones (one for work, one personal) and carrying 2 iPhones just feels dumb, I know, I did it for a couple of months before android made the jump to jelly bean.