Anybody like me?: Love the iPad, but prefer Android phones over the iPhone?

[Kaykaykay]

Agreed on the value of competition. I hope both OSs thrive, and would like to see more competition, no matter what I buy.

I switched to Android after three generations of iPhone (3G, 4 and 4S) and am really happy with my Samsung Galaxy Note.

There are advantages and tradeoffs to both OSs, I find. Neither gives me all the features I want.

I'm not loyal to any brand or operating system. Each time I buy a device, I compare against what else I could buy and go with what's best for my uses at the time.

 

[EvilMonkey]

I can literally text from a single thread on my iPad or my phone. I can save a website as a favorite on my iPad and later when I pick my phone, it's in my favorites. Calendar appointments etc I could go on and on with benefits you can't find on Dropbox or its equivalents. But if you've never used an iPhone/iPad combo, you won't mind cuz you don't know any better.

All of that is easily done with Android (and it'll sync with the phone, your iPad (or iPhone), your PC and pretty much any other device). It's hardly remarkable or unique to iOS, so I'm not sure what you're going on about. My calendar appointments, emails, messages, and favorites (and various other things) have synced across my Android phone, iPad, and my PC for years now. It's nothing special or anything that only iOS does. I don't even think about it any more. I make a favorite in IE (or Chrome, or Firefox) on my PC, and it's on all my other devices in about 5 seconds. All my messages are everywhere, my files are everywhere, etc. I can make appointments on any device and they show up on everything else.

Don't get me wrong...I like that you're excited about it, but it's kind of like "welcome to a few years ago" as far as I'm concerned.

As for the original topic, you couldn't pay me enough to use an iPhone. I like my iPad, but the iPhone is very limited and dumbed down for what I want a phone to be able to do (my two cents).

 

[petermillard]

I like my iPad, but the iPhone is very limited and dumbed down for what I want a phone to be able to do (my two cents).

And similarly, I have no idea what an Android phone would do for me that iPhone doesn't <shrug> I think it's great that we have the choice, but personally I have no need for a over-sized phone or 'phablet' - but that's just me. I don't want a wide-screen iPhone either, and if the rumours of a 16:9 iPhone 5 turn out to be true, then I don't think I'll be upgrading for a while.

My two-penneth

 

[NoNoBadDog]

Yeah, I'll have to agree that the iPhone is too dumbed down. I guess that is okay for someone who isn't concerned with adapting a device to individual needs and preferences...but for anyone that wants even a little control over the way their device is configured, the iPhone isn't even a option. Unless all you want is a choice of th color of the case you buy for it.

Sent from my iPad 3rd Gen using ipf

 

[EvilMonkey]

And similarly, I have no idea what an Android phone would do for me that iPhone doesn't <shrug> I think it's great that we have the choice, but personally I have no need for a over-sized phone or 'phablet' - but that's just me. I don't want a wide-screen iPhone either, and if the rumours of a 16:9 iPhone 5 turn out to be true, then I don't think I'll be upgrading for a while.

My two-penneth

Don't get me wrong, I know exactly what an iPhone does. If you're serious and you have no idea what Android does that the iPhone doesn't (more accurately, iOS doesn't) then I'd be happy to help. They both have their strengths and weaknesses, but Android does quite a bit if you're willing to get past the fanboyish comments on the internet from people who probably haven't used both (ignorance is bliss, they say).

But I highly suggest you (or anyone who actually wants to know what some of the major differences are) view these videos. There are 5 of them and they are longish (and Android-biased), but they compare the major features of both OS's. The speaker does make a few mistakes (like he says Android has a 15 second free trial of any app, but it's 15 minutes, and he apparently doesn't know about the long-press to get the magnifying glass in iOS to place the cursor) but for the most part, it's pretty accurate.

EDIT: I tried to post the links, but this stupid forum software kept embedding the videos no matter what I tried, so I'll just post the first one and you can find the other 4 easily enough from Youtube.

I hope they help.

 

[seneca18]

Here is my non customizable, dumbed down iPhone previous posters talk about.

 

[EvilMonkey]

I suppose we're supposed to be impressed (Cydia, I presume?). Not quite as impressive as 6500+ pages of customized Android phones I'm only partly kidding.

And it doesn't negate the "dumbed down" comments we were referring to.

[Moderator edit: Removed link to,external forum. Please read the rules. Thanks.]

 

[NoNoBadDog]

Nice, but the amount of effort and work that it takes to do that on an iPhone is significantly more than on Android. As said, they are both good platforms, but iOS is just not as easy to customize as is Android, nor do I think it ever will be.

Sent from my iPad 3rd Gen using ipf

 

[ajcgn]

Don't get me wrong, I know exactly what an iPhone does. If you're serious and you have no idea what Android does that the iPhone doesn't (more accurately, iOS doesn't) then I'd be happy to help. They both have their strengths and weaknesses, but Android does quite a bit if you're willing to get past the fanboyish comments on the internet from people who probably haven't used both (ignorance is bliss, they say).

But I highly suggest you (or anyone who actually wants to know what some of the major differences are) view these videos. There are 5 of them and they are longish (and Android-biased), but they compare the major features of both OS's. The speaker does make a few mistakes (like he says Android has a 15 second free trial of any app, but it's 15 minutes, and he apparently doesn't know about the long-press to get the magnifying glass in iOS to place the cursor) but for the most part, it's pretty accurate.

EDIT: I tried to post the links, but this stupid forum software kept embedding the videos no matter what I tried, so I'll just post the first one and you can find the other 4 easily enough from Youtube.

YouTube Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMiY1kSTHZw&list=FLjHGMArjCSCO6yz-js37nBA&index=6&feature=plpp_video"]Android Vs iOS The Truth about Apple and Google's OS Part 1 of 5 - YouTube

I hope they help.

Thanks for the link, those are some of the things that are a PITA about my iPhone. Still have a long time on my Rogers contact, so plenty of time to worry about what my next phone will be. It's weird that Apple is so restrictive. Seems like they would be better served if they could have expert and simple modes in their IOS and let the user decide how much they want to customize.

 

[kilofox]

Here is a point that makes the iPhone/iOS not for me... unless you are jailbroken, to toggle bluetooth on/off from the home screen, you have to tap your screen 3 times and one more to toggle. Settings/General/Bluetooth/On or Off. WHY???

I use my iPad at a more leisurely pace than my phone. With my phone, I want get things done as efficiently and as quickly as possible as I am at work or on the go. The iPhone is too "screen tappy" for me to use in that manner.

 

[Yakuzagang5]

I'm right there with ya OP, got a wifi iPad 3 and an HTC rezound. I love iPhones, but screen size and battery life killed me for me. I know iPhones generally get better battery life, but with the extended battery, under opted/underclocked(slightly) kernel, and data/wifi/Bluetooth off when I turn off the screen, I get 2 days of heavy use easy. Heavy use meaning 4-5 hours a day of screen-on time an around 30-34 hours total. With my 4S I got MAYBE 4-5 hours screen on time, no LTE, smaller lower res screen, and dimmer screen. I'm on my iPad all day at home, and when I'm not home, it's LTE all the way lol

 

[dahauss]

Same here iPad user but android phone user. Iphones cost way too much.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[petermillard]

..If you're serious and you have no idea what Android does that the iPhone doesn't (more accurately, iOS doesn't) then I'd be happy to help....

Thanks for taking the time to post the videos. I'm serious about the fact that I have no idea what Android would do for me that an iPhone doesn't e.g. a big deal for people seems to be Android's customisation, something I'm not remotely interested in. Like in the first video you kindly posted, the first thing the guy complained about is the inability of iOS to change the default browser, whereas for me that's a non-issue.

Similarly with switching Bluetooth and WiFi on and off - why bother? Conserving battery life? Not necessary for me - in a typical day I get through a few hours of podcasts or music, half an hour or so of making or taking calls, a few emails and a fair bit of messaging, and I usually finish the working day with ~50% battery.

And so on...

I get the impression that Android is very much the OS for folks who like to tinker, who like their mobile experience to be 'just so' - well, as you've probably guessed, that's not me. I just want to buy a phone and use it - it's a phone, not a hobby.

Cheers, Pete.

 

[Kaykaykay]

Thanks for taking the time to post the videos. I'm serious about the fact that I have no idea what Android would do for me that an iPhone doesn't e.g. a big deal for people seems to be Android's customisation, something I'm not remotely interested in. Like in the first video you kindly posted, the first thing the guy complained about is the inability of iOS to change the default browser, whereas for me that's a non-issue.

Similarly with switching Bluetooth and WiFi on and off - why bother? Conserving battery life? Not necessary for me - in a typical day I get through a few hours of podcasts or music, half an hour or so of making or taking calls, a few emails and a fair bit of messaging, and I usually finish the working day with ~50% battery.

And so on...

I get the impression that Android is very much the OS for folks who like to tinker, who like their mobile experience to be 'just so' - well, as you've probably guessed, that's not me. I just want to buy a phone and use it - it's a phone, not a hobby.

Cheers, Pete.

I turn off Bluetooth and wifi when I'm not using them, not because of battery life, but because of security.

I'm not into tinkering. With my Samsung Galaxy Note, I've found it easy to do what I need without tinkering, as opposed to iPhone, which would require me to jailbreak and tinker to do many of the same things.

I basically waited till Android phones caught up to iPhone on ease of use, and for me on the Note, they have. I initially went with three generations of iPhone because I just want devices that work. There are many Android phones that haven't reached that bar, but I've found that there's a good selection that do now, which is a win for consumers in choice.

 

[Yakuzagang5]

Actually, the be fair to that guy, it is a bit harder to theme the status bar and that kind of stuff on Android phones than on an iPhone. Other than changing kernel stuff, it's easier to do a lot of stuff on the iPhone than on Android. Now if you take two completely stock phones, that's a completely different story. But after each device is rooted/jail broken, I believe iPhones win in customization. Especially is ease of customization. You don't have to go scouring the Internet for a thread about some theme some guy posted, that is only available specifically for the Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch, you simply load up Cydia and hit Themes.

In the end, they both have pros and cons. They're about even in my book, at 48/48, with Windows Phone taking the last 4% lol