I left Apple IOS and came back to Android! (My reasons why)----->>

[mrochester]

I don't think you understood what I was saying at all.

I'm talking about restricting a product for the sake of battery life, which I find to idiotic from a consumer standpoint. Do Apple products get better battery life that Android products? Duh, the answer will typically be yes. Can an iPhone do everything an Android phone can do because it is restricted? No, not even close.

Having a replaceable battery on a phone goes to the very heart of the difference between Apple and Android. It is about choice. You have the choice to buy and extended battery or stay with the factory installed one. You have the choice of buying an extra battery to use if that is what you feel you need. You have the choice to run flash or not install it all. You have a choice to run live wallpaper or install 50 different widgets. You have the choice set things up to conserve battery life or let things run wide open and let the sucker drain down as quickly as you want.

IMNSHO, I think that people make far too much of an issue about battery life anyway. These aren't flip phones, they are mobile computers now. Some people do more on their phone than they do on their own computer. If anyone expects a battery to last for a full day they are kidding themselves. How long do most true laptop batteries last? 6 hours or so? Why in the world would you expect something that works just as hard, if not harder to last a whole lot longer. Besides, this is why we have wall chargers and car chargers in the first place. If you are going to be away from any power source for a long period of time then you have the choice to buy an extra battery. If you are going to be away for longer than the life of two batteries then get three or four or twenty. You have the options available if that is what you need to do.

The whole point is that these options are available to Android users, but not Apple users. God gave us free will and so did Android. What we do from there is pretty much up to us.



Ummmm, yea. Just about anyone with an open mind would agree that sites like BGR and CNET are overly biased towards Apple.

Look up the iPhone vs Moto Droid review they did. The iPhone won even though they couldn't receive or make a call on it and they even commented about how horrible making calls were on the iPhone. How can a phone win a contest when it isn't capable of making or receiving calls?

Choice is only a 'good' feature if you actively use it. A replaceable battery is one area where this can be highlighted. In all the 10 years now I've been using smartphones, other than to take out/insert a sim card, I have never replaced or swapped a battery in any of my phones. To me, this makes a non-removable battery a non issue because it's not something I've ever had a need/desire to do, and I still don't. I suspect the vast majority of consumers don't do so either. Does that mean an Android phone with a removable battery is a better choice for me? Of course not, because I don't care whether I can remove the battery or not! I'm going to be looking at some other feature that is important to me.

I think where Apple are smart is that they allow consumers choice where consumers want choice (device colour, storage capacity) and don't allow choice for the sake of choice in areas that consumers don't care about. This then allows Apple to focus resources on making other features better.

 

[ickus]

Yeah that must be it...only tech idiots and women have iPhones. Ok...btw iPhones are taking over where Blackberry used to dominate...in the tech working class.

Not in my office they are not.....cmon dude just admit that most ppl buy an iphone because its a fashion accessory(mainly women)and apparently it makes you more popular with your friends....seriously i only know of 2 males who have iphones,while the rest (about 16)are all females

 

[jamisont]

Same/similar problems with both Android phones. Apps crashing? Sure...for me, a wash from my experience. But, the basic function of a phone crashing is what i am talking about, not a game or app. A phone that becomes unresponsive...a phone that reboots randomly. THAT is what i am talking about. Poor signal strength, poor Wifi reception, poor 4G reception. Both phones. These are the reasons why i gave up on the Epic 4G. These are the reasons why my wife won't go back to Android...but since she does not use it much other than texting and making calls (non-emergently, unlike me), she will put up with it until 2 year is up.

If i were to go back to Android, then i would need to go to Motorola for their good radios. But, then from what i hear, their update scheduling is horrible...but then again, i am still waiting for update on my Nexus S....

Duh what makes you think crashing on basic function is NORMAL for android???
That's why you get 14 day period to exchange your phone to test its hardwares.
Whatever you are claiming is true, how the fk i get 100+ 200+ uptime with GNex.. the android phone with new OS thst has compatibility issue with apps, ramdom reboot issue by media???
I have 90+ apps on it.

 

[UssjTrunks]

Flash = eat battery for breakfast and with big screen/processors, will eat for lunch and dinner too! Flash is outdated software that needs to die IMO. HTML5 is superior...and is the future.

Moot point. Android supports both HTML 5 and Flash. You can disable Flash if you don't like it. I prefer having choice, which is what Android is all about.

 

[UssjTrunks]

You mean the CNET Tech executive editor who has had 4 Android phones before the 4S?? That one? The one who is also tech editor for CBS and other media??

Is CNET bias for Apple?

CNET is incredibly biased towards Apple. Their phone and laptop editors are some of the biggest fanboys I have ever seen. A lot of their reviews and articles contain flat out lies or opinions based on false information. They are highly unprofessional. Besides being biased, CNET is also corrupt. They fired a senior Gamespot editor in 2007 because he didn't give a favourable review to a game developed by one of their sponsors.

 

[OfTheDamned]

Same/similar problems with both Android phones. Apps crashing? Sure...for me, a wash from my experience. But, the basic function of a phone crashing is what i am talking about, not a game or app. A phone that becomes unresponsive...a phone that reboots randomly. THAT is what i am talking about. Poor signal strength, poor Wifi reception, poor 4G reception. Both phones. These are the reasons why i gave up on the Epic 4G. These are the reasons why my wife won't go back to Android...but since she does not use it much other than texting and making calls (non-emergently, unlike me), she will put up with it until 2 year is up.

If i were to go back to Android, then i would need to go to Motorola for their good radios. But, then from what i hear, their update scheduling is horrible...but then again, i am still waiting for update on my Nexus S....

And I'll repeat it once again for you.....you have a bad phone. There is something wrong with your phone. The electronic device that you purchased and your wife now uses is not functioning properly. You have a lemon. I could go on saying it in 5 different languages and probably 15 different ways and I still don't think you would listen.

I can also go to the trouble of posting links to articles and forum posts were iPhones, BalckBerries and just about every other OS, brand or version of a phone does the same thing. I still don't think you'd listen because it has all been said before.

I still have no idea why you absolutely refuse to understand or accept this, but it is your life and if you choose to have misplaced anger or hate that is all on you.

Choice is only a 'good' feature if you actively use it. A replaceable battery is one area where this can be highlighted. In all the 10 years now I've been using smartphones, other than to take out/insert a sim card, I have never replaced or swapped a battery in any of my phones. To me, this makes a non-removable battery a non issue because it's not something I've ever had a need/desire to do, and I still don't. I suspect the vast majority of consumers don't do so either. Does that mean an Android phone with a removable battery is a better choice for me? Of course not, because I don't care whether I can remove the battery or not! I'm going to be looking at some other feature that is important to me.

I think where Apple are smart is that they allow consumers choice where consumers want choice (device colour, storage capacity) and don't allow choice for the sake of choice in areas that consumers don't care about. This then allows Apple to focus resources on making other features better.

So you don't take your battery out most of the time, but what if you dropped your phone in water? Removing the battery would come in pretty handy at that point wouldn't it? I know I'd prefer to take my battery out and drop my phone in a bag of rice. This is possible with most phones on the market. With iPhone you are just out of luck in that department.

 

[UssjTrunks]

So, stability, reliability, etc. don't count? I lost count how many times i have to reboot my wife's Nexus (and my old Androids)...how many times it froze on me during an important call...how many times it died on me during the night because some wild app going crazy (resulting in a miss alarm!!)...and so on. Can Android beat Apple at these very BASIC function of a reliable phone? If it can, then show me where and i will sign up! Screw the widgets or the fish aquarium background (love those things!), i want a phone that works! And maybe unlike some of you, my phone is EVERYTHING to me, for pleasure and work. Yeah, i am a disgruntled Android user, who began with Android but lost confidence in it. And what has Google shown? The ability to push things under the carpet and go onto something else. Did they fix what was broken with Gingerbread? Nope. Moved on. Did they fix what was wrong with Nexus S? Nope. Moved on. Where is the Google experience?? Remember, Google told us Nexus S owners that ICS will come to Nexus within "weeks"! I am sure that they only did this so that people buy into the "Google experience" and that folks think that Google phones are different. We're in February 17, 2012...and there is no ICS in sight for Nexus S. I am sure when the next gen GN comes out (with the next 5.0?), Google will say the same things to you folks...and then leave you out in the cold!

I have owned an unrooted Nexus S for almost 5 months now. I'm a very heavy phone user and I have not had the phone crash or freeze once in that span. Not a single time.

 

[Frisco]

I prefer having choice, which is what Android is all about.

Yep.. and it's humorous in a sort of creepy way how media, reviewers and some Apple chokers.. I mean users , throw in the "fragmented" word about Android's diversity of design nuances.

If "fragmentation" of the product line were inferior, Android would have died a slow death not long after the HTC Dream was joined by the Motorola Droid. Instead Android has been flourishing and competing just fine with Apple and R.I.M.

 

[lunatic59]

Phones are manufactured things. They are not grown from seeds or created by magic or assembled from random molecules like a Star Trek replicator. Any process that includes a human component will occasionally fall flat on its ... um ... face. That' why there are consumer laws and manufacturer warranties. Ranting and railing about a defective product might make you feel better, but it does little to remedy the situation. Just look how obsession worked out for Captain Ahab.

And, in truth, ranting and railing about someone else ranting and railing isn't very productive either, so ... *deep breath*

So let's agree on a few things. Both Android and iOS work. Both crash, too. Both have strengths, weaknesses, idiosyncrasies, advantages and limitations. They also both have rabid proponents and detractors.

I propose two things. One, let's get back to the OP's topic and politely discuss the observations that made a switch from iOS to Android beneficial. And two, make sure our Rabies shots are up to date so we don't start foaming at the mouth and randomly snapping at anyone within reach.

 

[Drew5150]

Yeah I have to agree that Some apple users can get annoying because they think they have the best product on earth, but couldn't tell you why. Of course this type of thing happens with non apple product too.

Example: my wife works at a small store and a lady came to purchase something, but it wasn't in stock. So my wife grabbed her phone to look it up on the net. She says lets walk over to the door cause reception is pretty bad in the store. The lady says, oh no I have an iPhone. So my wife patiently waits for the lady to realize that her iPhone can't fix poor reception or dead zones (both phones on same service). My wife then points to the door where the phone should work.

Does this make the iPhone bad? No, but its funny how people expect things to be so much better because of popularity or sales numbers.

Same type of stuff used to happen with blackberry users, and probably happens with some android users.

Is the iPhone the best phone? For some people yes, others definitely no.

Myself, wife and brother in law all use android phones. So their dad wanted to get a new phone like us. But we all ended up talking him into an iPhone mainly for its simplicity over android. Plus his close friends also own them and that makes it easier for him to get questions answered. And he doesn't want a huge phone so the size is just about right for him.

It is funny though how bent apple gets over stolen ideas. Yet stealing ideas was one of Steve's jobs secrets to success.

 

[Slug]

Can I also add a request that, out of fairness, members don't respond directly to posts by another who is temporarily unable to participate in the discussion themselves?

Thanks.

 

[funpig]

Choice is only a 'good' feature if you actively use it. A replaceable battery is one area where this can be highlighted. In all the 10 years now I've been using smartphones, other than to take out/insert a sim card, I have never replaced or swapped a battery in any of my phones. To me, this makes a non-removable battery a non issue because it's not something I've ever had a need/desire to do, and I still don't. I suspect the vast majority of consumers don't do so either. Does that mean an Android phone with a removable battery is a better choice for me? Of course not, because I don't care whether I can remove the battery or not! I'm going to be looking at some other feature that is important to me.

I agree 100%. I have never bought a spare battery for anything. I do not want to have to carry a spare or to take the time to charge a spare. It is just too inconvenient. In fact when I bought my last laptop, it originally came with an extended life battery which jutted out the bottom. I returned it for a regular model because I did not want the bulk. Another thing is that Li ion batteries will deteriorate over time so you are better off owning one at a time as opposed to several at the same time. The only good thing about my removable battery in my Android is that I can reboot by removing the battery when it freezes.

 

[Frisco]

There is no choice as to battery replacement with iPhones.

There is with most Androids.

Again, as with so many aspects of these devices: choices = Android. No choices = iPhone.

 

[aysiu]

My wife's iPhone is old, but she's not yet eligible for an upgrade to a new iPhone. She is not going to pay $79, plus $6.95 shipping, subject to local tax to have Apple replace the battery for her. Instead she's just having to charge it quite often.

That's how the replaceable battery is handy. When my last Android phone was old, I just bought an extra battery off Amazon for $5, and it was like brand new again.

Right now, I have an extra battery for my Galaxy Nexus, and it's not a lot of trouble to deal with. I just use it and carry around the other one just in case. Then on Saturday, I swap it out for the just in case and make my main battery the "just in case" battery. Then the next Saturday, I do the same. And so on.

Even if you don't personally have any need to swap out the battery, that can't be an objection to the battery being swappable. After all, just because you can swap the battery out doesn't mean you have to swap the battery out. It's like iPhone fanatics (as opposed to just normal iPhone users, who are not all fanatics) proclaiming that Flash on Android is a battery sucker. Well, the default settings on just about every Android browser that uses Flash is to have Flash play only on demand. So all it means is that there is no Flash... unless you want it.

 

[Eugene]

I went from Windows mobile to Android back in November 2009 when the droid first launched. Late last year I got in a new position at work and my boss had a company owned ipad which he wasn't using so he let me take it. I upgraded it to the latest ios 5 and was really amazed at the lack of details and polish that apple users claim. My first issue was the always caps keyboard and having to constantly move my hand to look at the shift key to see if it was bluegrey or greyblue to tell if it was caps or not. Second issue was the stupidly horrible autocorrect which I would have to keep fighting with to correct its mistakes only to have it correct my corrections again. Then trying to edit, you just can't position the cursor where you want to, it will select the whole word or something stupid. Android keyboard and editor was just so much more refined and useful.
installing an app the icon would land on one of the home screens and I kept trying to drag it to where I wanted with no success until my boss demonstrated that you have to drag down then across, you can't just drag across like in Android, you have to look first to see what row is empty then go back and drag down and over.
The calendar was about useless. I could only see my primary google calendar so I had to search to see how to display more then go to a special page made by google to enable them for idevices. Then they all display as shades of orange and brown, sort of a Halloween camouflage so I couldn't tell which was which anymore by the grey/red/blue/green colors i had chose in google. I tried to tell it to sync my whole calendar instead of just the most recent and after an hour it finally would turn on, I thought I was going to have to pull out the highly refined and polished paperclip they ship in the box, i guess they lock up enough they have to ship a reset tool.
The web browser was next to useless, a few pages I tried would actually work, many would sell you an app, others would display but you couldn't do anything.

I just can't believe people actually buy idevices, but then again I couldn't believe people bought beanie babies or chia pets and such.

 

[UssjTrunks]

I went from Windows mobile to Android back in November 2009 when the droid first launched. Late last year I got in a new position at work and my boss had a company owned ipad which he wasn't using so he let me take it. I upgraded it to the latest ios 5 and was really amazed at the lack of details and polish that apple users claim. My first issue was the always caps keyboard and having to constantly move my hand to look at the shift key to see if it was bluegrey or greyblue to tell if it was caps or not. Second issue was the stupidly horrible autocorrect which I would have to keep fighting with to correct its mistakes only to have it correct my corrections again. Then trying to edit, you just can't position the cursor where you want to, it will select the whole word or something stupid. Android keyboard and editor was just so much more refined and useful.

I actually find the iOS keyboard to be much better than the default Android one (it's probably the worst keyboard I've ever used, IMO). However, Android allows you to download third party keyboards, which of course, are much better than the iOS one. Swype puts any mobile keyboard to shame.

 

[UssjTrunks]

There is no choice as to battery replacement with iPhones.

There is with most Androids.

Again, as with so many aspects of these devices: choices = Android. No choices = iPhone.

I don't understand how anyone can argue against having choice. That's like saying you don't like democracy because it gives you too many freedoms; you'd rather live in a dictatorship.

 

[mrochester]

So you don't take your battery out most of the time, but what if you dropped your phone in water? Removing the battery would come in pretty handy at that point wouldn't it? I know I'd prefer to take my battery out and drop my phone in a bag of rice. This is possible with most phones on the market. With iPhone you are just out of luck in that department.

I've never dropped a phone in water so it's not an eventuality I plan for. If I planned for everything that could happen to my phone, it would be wrapped in some sort of bullet proof armour!

I don't understand how anyone can argue against having choice.

That depends what sacrifices you have to make to get that choice. If you have to sacrifice something you like/want to get that choice, then that choice is no longer a good thing.

I think my main point in all of this is that choice does not equal better. If you had a choice of 10 things, but they were all crap, would you be celebrating that choice?

 

[ickus]

I think my main point in all of this is that choice does not equal better. If you had a choice of 10 things, but they were all crap, would you be celebrating that choice?

So whats bad about having the choice of having a bigger screen or using flash or having a removable battery?.....whats so bad about having the ability to use widgets or customizing your own phone?

 

[lightningdude]

The bad thing about the ability to make choice is the experience for those users who are too technologically ignorant to make use of those choices. You know, the type of person that is overwhelmed when presented with the plethora of customization options that can be found by a simple search in the Android Market.

These are the people that I recommend iPhones to. My wife is getting ready to make the jump to a smartphone, and I'm really considering pushing her toward the iPhone. The iTunes integration and simplicity of use are two factors that would really make the transition easier for her.

Now, I'm not saying that I'm superior to anyone, or that she is, in fact, less intelligent than I am. I'm simply saying that she isn't ready for the full immersion into the smartphone world. In fact, I used an iPod Touch in addition to a flip phone for a while, and that gave me the push to try Android. Everyone's gotta start somewhere.

 

[mrochester]

So whats bad about having the choice of having a bigger screen or using flash or having a removable battery?.....whats so bad about having the ability to use widgets or customizing your own phone?

Well to get all of those things I would have to live with either Android or Symbian OS. That would be the sacrifice. If I could live with or liked either of them, then the choice would be good. But as I can't/don't, that choice isn't a good thing. If you're happy with either of those 2 OS's, then the choice between a larger screen and removable battery might seem like plus point to you.

 

[!on]

There are pros & cons of both. Neither are perfect, some things are similar & some are different.

I agree with the OP's sentiments though. To be honest I'm embarrassed for apple over the childish way they conduct themselves. It's desperation.

 

[Frisco]

The bad thing about the ability to make choice is the experience for those users who are too technologically ignorant to make use of those choices. You know, the type of person that is overwhelmed when presented with the plethora of customization options that can be found by a simple search in the Android Market.

"Technically ignorant" has a negative twinge to it that I personally resent, as I think back to those great days of first acquiring an Android device and coming here to get help. Truly ignorant people do not ask for help. And to be overwhelmed with choices is a good thing, it means you've got a lot of new ground to learn about. To disrespect those "overwhelmed" users seems crass and condescending toward the majority of new users and new members here.

The success of Android and iPhone both bear out the different moods of smartphone users than any different "types" of users, in my opinion. This is why we see so many switching, posting about their bad experience here or there with this or that device, etc. Market analysis seems to bring us nowhere when we try to assign gender, tech savvy, etc to either Android or iPHone. We see data "proving" conflicting conclusions about that.

 

[Eugene]

I actually find the iOS keyboard to be much better than the default Android one (it's probably the worst keyboard I've ever used, IMO). However, Android allows you to download third party keyboards, which of course, are much better than the iOS one. Swype puts any mobile keyboard to shame.

I didn't say the ios keyboard is bad, what I'm saying is the ios users claim ios to be the most advanced and refined and the android keyboard has extra refinements that ios does not, like not being stuck in AOLish caps all the time.

 

[dan330]

I think my main point in all of this is that choice does not equal better. If you had a choice of 10 things, but they were all crap, would you be celebrating that choice?

if it was 10 bad things... like death.. loss of a limb.. ways to go blind... loos a great job...ways to loose your home...
----ok you are 100% right.. that would suck!!!

but... we are not talking about that.. we are talking about choices on a smartphone...

you want a phone that takes choices away.. to save on battery and performance (smoother ui graphics)...

i want a phone that gives me the choice to take away the same things...or use them if i wish.