Why is Android always the default "alternative"?

[Moto G]

You know... all I see on this forum, is the hunreds of Android alternatives to iPhones being discussed. I never see much Windows Phone discussion. Let me state now - up front - I don't "care" that this is the case, I am just wondering why Lumia love and WinPhones seem to be barely mentioned?

Way better cameras, and an OS that (personally) I feel is a breath of fresh air, far from the madding crowd of bickering between Apple and Android obsessives alike.

I own a Moto G and a Lumia 630. Both have independant benefits, but overall, I prefer the tightness and the iOS-esque integration and fluidity, not to mention Siri's hottest competitor, with the obvious benefit of not having to pay a premium for a voice assistant ... Cortana on my Lumia 630 cost me £60 *prepaid, new and unlocked*.

The camera on this phone is superb! It can see things IN THE DARK, which my Moto G can't even see WITH THE FLASH ENABLED...


Here's my top reasons I love my week-old Lumia 630, NOT in order of preference:

#1 Cortana (not my #1 reason, just happened to come to mind first) she actually has a PERSONALITY - Google Now (or whatever they call it this month) sounds like a nerdy librarian was hired to do the voice samples in her lunch hour, one day.

#2 Price

#3 The stunning camera

#4 Lumia "ReFocus"

#5 WordFlow keyboard (yes I know it's basically "SwiftKey", but it is built into the OS)

#6 Being able to text using my voice, WAY better than Google's puny effort.

#7 Being able to have SMS read to me without touching the phone, and reply by by dictation


THE COLOUR!!!!!!!!!!!!! FLOURESCENT GREEEEEN!! Sure makes most other devices look as dull as a wet weekend.

Any thoughts or things to add? Cheerio


[_ UPDATE _]

Please see my most recent post

 

[mclld]

Doesn't care, then posts manifesto

 

[kenypowa]

MS was so far behind that by Windows Phone 7 came out, it is pretty much game over. And it is just ugly. Windows phone home screen is like a bunch of blinking ads screaming at the user for their attention.

 

[Moto G]

Doesn't care, then posts manifesto

Captain cynical, welcome - please feel free to bow out, if my posting is not to your personal taste. Some people express sincere enthusiasm you know - it doesn't mean they are biased, they're just passionate. Sorry you can't express yourself this way, but Thank you

 

[hallux]

Because Android is more popular and holds more market share than WinMo?

Of the items you mentioned, #'s 6 and 7 can be done on Android devices, if you have the right one. My Moto X will read my texts to me and allow me to reply by voice, if I'm driving or at home. I don't really care what the camera on my phone can do, if I want to take a picture worth making a poster out of, I'll grab my Canon EOS-M with it's MUCH larger (in dimensions) 18 MP sensor.

 

[triptolemus]

For essentially the same reason why no one here is touting BlackBerry as a viable alternative.

Windows Phone at 2% to 3% of market share doesn't really scream from the mountain tops the way the 80-odd percent market share enjoyed by Android does.

(Source: http://www.idc.com/prodserv/smartphone-os-market-share.jsp )

Microsoft has a long road ahead before it digs itself out of its own piss poor reputation in the mobile marketplace.

I use a mix of mobile devices. Personally owned to employer-provided devices takes me into iOS, Android, and Windows Tablet (Win 8). While the Win 8 tablet is a good devices for what it does, I, for one, wouldn't choose it for a personal device. Let's face it, when the market sees "Microsoft" the market sees workplace. It seems to me that many use their personal devices to escape their mundane reality -- and for most, that's work!

 

[Lava Lamp Freak]

I think the current market share reflects attitudes people have about the available platforms. Windows Phone is loved by many, but not as many as Android and iOS. The coverage on this forum is probably just representative of the market share.

 

[Moto G]

For essentially the same reason why no one here is touting BlackBerry as a viable alternative.

Windows Phone at 2% to 3% of market share doesn't really scream from the mountain tops the way the 80-odd percent market share enjoyed by Android does.

(Source: http://www.idc.com/prodserv/smartphone-os-market-share.jsp )

Microsoft has a long road ahead before it digs itself out of its own piss poor reputation in the mobile marketplace.

I use a mix of mobile devices. Personally owned to employer-provided devices takes me into iOS, Android, and Windows Tablet (Win 8). While the Win 8 tablet is a good devices for what it does, I, for one, wouldn't choose it for a personal device. Let's face it, when the market sees "Microsoft" the market sees workplace. It seems to me that many use their personal devices to escape their mundane reality -- and for most, that's work!

Ubiquity != "better". I'm sure more Americans eat MacDonalds than at a prime steak house, daily, but that doesn't make the lesser frequented (on footfall) steak houses a lesser experience. IMHO, Android is a fragmented, inconsistent mess - mass share doesn't make it a better experience or a more refined platform, it LITERALLY only means that more people use it, and that is all.

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I think the current market share reflects attitudes people have about the available platforms. Windows Phone is loved by many, but not as many as Android and iOS. The coverage on this forum is probably just representative of the market share.

Thank you for a polite, concise reply without any emotionally attached agenda. God bless you - I agree with you on those points.

 

[triptolemus]

Ubiquity != "better". .

I never said it was.

The market says it is.

Far as I can tell, your question (rant) was "I am just wondering why Lumia love and WinPhones seem to be barely mentioned?" I just gave you my opinion, dude... I'm not looking for a debate. Post #2 had it right... you say you "don't care" then post a rant.... hmmm.

Everyone who agrees with you is a saint... everyone who disagrees is "impolite"? (See post #8)... Nonsense.

 

[Moto G]

I never said it was.

The market says it is.

Far as I can tell, your question (rant) was "I am just wondering why Lumia love and WinPhones seem to be barely mentioned?" I just gave you my opinion, dude... I'm not looking for a debate. Post #2 had it right... you say you "don't care" then post a rant.... hmmm.

Everyone who agrees with you is a saint... everyone who disagrees is "impolite"? (See post #8)... Nonsense.

I'm sorry for you that you think this is a "rant" - maybe you're starting from an expectation of looking for fault in people's opinions? It isn't a rant - calling a dog a fish because you want it to be a fish, doesn't make it one. No - the market BUYS more Androids and iPhones, the market is mainly average people who wouldn't know the difference between a smartphone software framework and a recipe for onion bagels - the marketshare IS NOT IN ANY WAY related to the design and integrity of a software/hardware platform - that makse no sense on ANY plane; One is economics and finance, the other is engineering and design - I'm not sure how you managed to associate them together as the same thing...

It's possible to have a gracious, polite approach, without throwing accusational undertones around in an attempt to belittle someone's views - I respect people who are balanced and polite MORE than those who storm in with "RIGHT - WHO'S RANTING HERE??!!!".

Noone is ranting. If my style displeases your sensibilities, you are adult enough to leave without needing to cause a fuss and draw attention, I am certain.

 

[skratch77]

I like androids hardware over anything from ms.

Just the screens alone on the current Samsung phones are enough to keep me from ever leaving.

 

[ucfgrad93]

Glad you found a phone you like OP, even if I do find the choice a little ironic given your screen name.

That said, just because you find it wonderful doesn't mean everyone else will.

 

[triptolemus]

The fact is that finance drives engineering -- that would be how one would typically associate the two. You can talk about fish and bagels all you want. You can say over and over how the "market" doesn't know what its talking about. Again, the fact is, the market has the only voice that matters -- dollars. It will be irrelevant and meaningless when the market says it is.

Here's an analogy that makes more sense than fish and bagels: Do you work for appreciation of your craft, or do you work for money?

Again, I'm not looking for fault in your opinion. As I said above, you asked for others' opinions. You got mine. There was absolutely nothing ungracious or impolite in my post #6 above, right? Exactly.

 

[Moto G]

Glad you found a phone you like OP, even if I do find the choice a little ironic given your screen name.

That said, just because you find it wonderful doesn't mean everyone else will.

Haha - well I own a Moto G too (for now) and at the time of account creation, I used the first thing that seemed prominent. I am not a "side taker" - just because I really enthuse over one platform, doesn't mean I "hate" all the others by default

I like the Moto G too... I'm just struck on how solid and stunning the whole Windows/Lumia combination is, especially being a photographer...

(awaits photographic "purists" and pixel snobs telling me I need a dSLR instead of a phone camera... yeah? Thanks guys - you choose your own path eh).

 

[Technarchy]

I wish it wasn't the case, but Blackberry sucks, and Windows Phone can't seem to find its legs because the app support is so very limited.

Take every app in the Play Store, and dump it onto Windows Phone, and I wouldn't have an S5 right now. I'd have an HTC M8 WP.

Google is very well aware of this so they gimp Windows Phone in a big by not supporting it.

 

[Moto G]

The fact is that finance drives engineering -- that would be how one would typically associate the two. You can talk about fish and bagels all you want. You can say over and over how the "market" doesn't know what its talking about. Again, the fact is, the market has the only voice that matters -- dollars. It will be irrelevant and meaningless when the market says it is.

Here's an analogy that makes more sense than fish and bagels: Do you work for appreciation of your craft, or do you work for money?

Again, I'm not looking for fault in your opinion. As I said above, you asked for others' opinions. You got mine. There was absolutely nothing ungracious or impolite in my post #6 above, right? Exactly.

You can't "buy" good platform design by throwing money at it - that's a very simplistic (and rather naive) view of how plaforms come to pass. If you could, what is Google's excuse? Android is a complete mess, engineering wise.

Engineers design platforms, silicon and software, not accountants. You could offer me ten trillion dollars to "design me a platform which everyone loves, which will never crash and which will dominate marketshare in 3 years time" ... I'd laugh, and ask you to come back when you have half an idea of how this actually works.

As much as you may disagree, money and popularity CANNOT buy everything.

 

[ucfgrad93]

Haha - well I own a Moto G too (for now) and at the time of account creation, I used the first thing that seemed prominent. I am not a "side taker" - just because I really enthuse over one platform, doesn't mean I "hate" all the others by default

I like the Moto G too... I'm just struck on how solid and stunning the whole Windows/Lumia combination is, especially being a photographer...

(awaits photographic "purists" and pixel snobs telling me I need a dSLR instead of a phone camera... yeah? Thanks guys - you choose your own path eh).

I've heard great things about the Lumia cameras. But for me, the UI is atrocious, I don't like the design of the phones, and the app store is severely lacking. All of those things combined make Windows Phones a no go for me.

 

[Moto G]

I wish it wasn't the case, but Blackberry sucks, and Windows Phone can't seem to find its legs because the app support is so very limited.

Take every app in the Play Store, and dump it onto Windows Phone, and I wouldn't have an S5 right now. I'd have an HTC M8 WP.

Google is very well aware of this so they gimp Windows Phone in a big by not supporting it.

Google should stick to what they're good at - search... and eternal Betas... and a few dozen abandoned "experimental" projects. Throwing their software out of the door half-baked, for free, to anyone who wants it, is what has caused Android to have marketshare, not the quality of the product OR the consistency and uniformity of the UX and UI.

 

[skratch77]

What good is the camera on the lumina when you don't even have instantgram to post pics lol

 

[triptolemus]

You can't "buy" good platform design by throwing money at it - that's a very simplistic (and rather naive) view of how plaforms come to pass. If you could, what is Google's excuse? Android is a complete mess, engineering wise.

Engineers design platforms, silicon and software, not accountants. You could offer me ten trillion dollars to "design me a platform which everyone loves, which will never crash and which will dominate marketshare in 3 years time" ... I'd laugh, and ask you to come back when you have half an idea of how this actually works.

As much as you may disagree, money and popularity CANNOT buy everything.

Again, you're missing it.

The market is the one throwing money at it. The market says Android is good (enough?). You are saying that Android is a mess. The market disagrees!

If you wish to have a discussion about the engineering merits of various mobile platforms, perhaps you would be better off to begin your dialogue with something other than "I am just wondering why Lumia love and WinPhones seem to be barely mentioned?" Because that question has absolutely zero to do with engineering and everything to do with market penetration. See the difference? I do.

Oh, sorry about your Win Phone. (It was time for something rude.)

 

[Moto G]

I've heard great things about the Lumia cameras. But for me, the UI is atrocious, I don't like the design of the phones, and the app store is severely lacking. All of those things combined make Windows Phones a no go for me.

Fair enough - the cameras are second to none (so far, from my humble experience). You are right about the apps... but then... who NEEDS a billion apps stuffed into their phone? There's only so many apps you NEED, or can use at once - the majority of Google Play Store is junkware and copyware, so that's no substantial reason to use Android, in my view.

----------

Again, you're missing it.

The market is the one throwing money at it. The market says Android is good (enough?). You are saying that Android is a mess. The market disagrees!

If you wish to have a discussion about the engineering merits of various mobile platforms, perhaps you would be better off to begin your dialogue with something other than "I am just wondering why Lumia love and WinPhones seem to be barely mentioned?" Because that question has absolutely zero to do with engineering and everything to do with market penetration. See the difference? I do.

Oh, sorry about your Win Phone. (It was time for something rude.)

Fair point - the experience is "good enough" for housewives and people who want to send selfies around the globe - I am perhaps looking too deeply at the technical aspects of WinPhone & Android compared to overall platforms and their design.

Android IS a horrible, ineffcient mess which is only helped by throwing cores, ram and battery capacity at it, but the public ain't engineers - overall - so I doubt they know the difference, and indeed - why should or would they?

 

[triptolemus]

Google are idiots

I almost missed this little gem. Google, a company with a market value of $389 billion, are all idiots?

And you, MacRumors member Moto G, with a market value of $0, are... what, exactly?

 

[ucfgrad93]

What good is the camera on the lumina when you don't even have instantgram to post pics lol

Fair enough - the cameras are second to none (so far, from my humble experience). You are right about the apps... but then... who NEEDS a billion apps stuffed into their phone? There's only so many apps you NEED, or can use at once - the majority of Google Play Store is junkware and copyware, so that's no substantial reason to use Android, in my view.

I disagree. Apps are very important part of the smartphone ecosystem. I may only have a couple of dozen on my HTC One (M7) but they are important to me.

 

[Moto G]

I almost missed this little gem. Google, a company with a market value of $389 billion, are all idiots?

And you, MacRumors member Moto G, with a market value of $0, are... what, exactly?

I am human... sinful and fallible, only here by God's mercy and love - also an idiot - how about you?

Okay - "idiots" is a bit of an umbrella statement - please ignore that outburst, I'll go back and take that out



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I disagree. Apps are very important part of the smartphone ecosystem. I may only have a couple of dozen on my HTC One (M7) but they are important to me.

Yep, apps ARE important, but when it comes to the realms of MILLIONS of apps, no sane person could ever need OR want even a tiny fraction of that number - 100,000 crappy apps are still 100,000 crappy apps - when all you want is 10-50 high quality apps. Do you think about the 999,990 apps you DON'T want or use, or the 10 you DO use?

Quality, not quantity.

 

[triptolemus]

What don't you get?

Pick a discussion:

1) Sound engineering principles.

2) Profit.

The two are, more often than not, mutually exclusive. A fact which may not often appear to be supported by logic. Every once in a while, engineering and profit come together and something wonderful is created. The other 99% of the time? Forget it. Pick one, and get out of fantasy land.