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Some Issues with Android I've Seen

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dchamann

Lurker
I have been a committed Gmail/Google Apps user for years now and intimately involved in mobile content and applications development... I even just setup a new business with several users just 3 months ago totally based upon a Google Apps back-end. Recently, I made the decision to switch from my old iPhone 3G to a Samsung Galaxy S. The logic was: who better to offer a seamless, integrated approach in managing/accessing Google Apps/Gmail (numerous accounts) than Android (a Google O/S) on the phone....?? What a mistake!! Have experienced nothing but issues - while my employees quite happily continue to use their gmail/Google apps easily from their iPhone...

Some experiences t share:
- Constant synching issues - sometimes works/sometimes doesn't - between my corporate Gmail account and the phone. As I write this, I am staring at a phone screen "hung" on checking incoming server issues as I try to reconfigure inbound settings to IMAP (suggested by Google help pages). Have already invested hours trying to fix this... Basically, the phone hasn't received any inbound mails for two weeks now...
- On Maps, I have installed the voice plug-in, but it keeps asking me again and again to install it - again, sometimes works, sometimes doesn't
- Contention scenario management - horrible! Between powering down, incoming calls, text messages, etc - God help you if you are in the middle of something if an unplanned event occurs
- Apps closing out - having to go in and constantly close down apps to conserve CPU - what a pain... Multi-tasking - maybe... Complete pain-in-the-butt - most definitely
- Support - my experience on setup and resolving issues - horrible. Basically involved having a tech person at the mobile network operator retail location scan forums for answers to my setup questions and now me doing the same afterwards. Great if you have alot of time to waste - I don't...
- Apps - range from great to a complete joke. Now I understand why Apple retains so much control over this process for their products.

Bottom line: maybe six more weeks to wait until iPhone 5 is released then I'm done with this piece of crap phone and O/S. I can't wait to be welcomed back to a seamless existence of apps that work seamlessly together, intuitive user flows, and Genius Bar if I need it.
Congratulations Google - you have now become the Microsoft of the past for the decade of the future. Sure - the system is open and anyone (and I do mean "anyone") can supply apps and plug-ins but the tradeoff is a horrible user experience with a vast majority of functionality that is inaccessible or just doesn't work altogether....
 
dchamann said:
- Apps closing out - having to go in and constantly close down apps to conserve CPU - what a pain... Multi-tasking - maybe... Complete pain-in-the-butt - most definitely
Click to expand...

An app in memory, but not in the foreground should not be using CPU. If you constantly close down apps using a task killer, you are actually draining the CPU more as Android reloads the app into memory again. Android manages apps and processes to try to keep the most often/recently used apps in memory as they are more likely going to be used again soon. You don't have to close down an app to conserve CPU. If the app does nothing in the background, it doesn't use CPU cycles.
 
The OP has brought up six specific issues with Android (by his experience).

Maybe those issues can be discussed, and/or resolved here, but only if we stick to the issues at hand instead of making remarks about him in particular. ;)
 
dchamann said:
- Apps - range from great to a complete joke. Now I understand why Apple retains so much control over this process for their products.
Click to expand...

I try to stick with the great ones. The quality of apps are going to vary. I read the descriptions and comments before deciding whether to download the app. What type of apps are you looking for that you cannot find good ones? You can always ask on these forums or the app forum if you are having difficulty finding certain apps.

I understand that technology can be frustrating at times. Apple products have also caused frustration amongst users as well.
 
dchamann said:
- Constant synching issues - sometimes works/sometimes doesn't - between my corporate Gmail account and the phone. As I write this, I am staring at a phone screen "hung" on checking incoming server issues as I try to reconfigure inbound settings to IMAP (suggested by Google help pages). Have already invested hours trying to fix this... Basically, the phone hasn't received any inbound mails for two weeks now...
Click to expand...
While IMAP should work, I have to ask... why are you using IMAP to access a Gmail account, instead of using the Gmail app?
dchamann said:
- On Maps, I have installed the voice plug-in, but it keeps asking me again and again to install it - again, sometimes works, sometimes doesn't
Click to expand...
What voice plug-in? TTS should be functional right out of the box?
dchamann said:
- Contention scenario management - horrible! Between powering down, incoming calls, text messages, etc - God help you if you are in the middle of something if an unplanned event occurs
Click to expand...
Of course incoming calls will interrupt what you're doing; it's no different than any phone in that regard. The stock messaging app should only produce a notification in the notification bar; do you find this disruptive, or is something else happening? Are you saying the phone powers down by itself?
dchamann said:
- Apps closing out - having to go in and constantly close down apps to conserve CPU - what a pain... Multi-tasking - maybe... Complete pain-in-the-butt - most definitely
Click to expand...
You're going about it all wrong. Launch what you want to use, and let Android manage it from there. Apps in memory typically don't use any resources unless they're designed to do something in the background.
dchamann said:
- Support - my experience on setup and resolving issues - horrible. Basically involved having a tech person at the mobile network operator retail location scan forums for answers to my setup questions and now me doing the same afterwards. Great if you have alot of time to waste - I don't...
Click to expand...
Fair enough. There's no ONE place to go for support.
dchamann said:
- Apps - range from great to a complete joke. Now I understand why Apple retains so much control over this process for their products.
Click to expand...
I'm not sure what you mean by "joke". Are you referring to apps that serve no purpose other than to occupy your time, or apps that claim to perform some useful function, yet don't do it well, or at all?
 
dchamann said:
- Apps - range from great to a complete joke. Now I understand why Apple retains so much control over this process for their products.
Click to expand...

‪31 Fart Apps in 90 Seconds‬‏ - YouTube

Bottom line: maybe six more weeks to wait until iPhone 5 is released then I'm done with this piece of crap phone and O/S. I can't wait to be welcomed back to a seamless existence of apps that work seamlessly together, intuitive user flows, and Genius Bar if I need it.
Click to expand...

Also cool cases that have a hole to show the logo!

PS Make sure to get the one with the bigger geebees.
 
I don't think dchamann has ruled out the probability of the hardware being the problem. I've never heard of anyone on here stating they had this many problems with the software alone. My coworker got tired of his Galaxy S phone (Fascinate) and got an iPhone. He refused to try any other Android phone.

Otherwise, I think the others have done a good job of pointing out the flaws in the OP's "problems".

Have you tried doing a factory reset??
 
dchamann said:
Apps closing out - having to go in and constantly close down apps to conserve CPU - what a pain... Multi-tasking - maybe... Complete pain-in-the-butt - most definitely
Click to expand...
How, exactly, have you determined that you need to force close apps to conserve CPU? This sounds like the typical mistaken Android newbie assumption from those coming from mobile OS's where OCD levels of management were required. I'm not saying that you're not encountering a case where you are running into problems with CPU cycles but a lot of people mistakenly assume or don't properly understand the difference between coincidental and causal.

dchamann said:
Support - my experience on setup and resolving issues - horrible. Basically involved having a tech person at the mobile network operator retail location scan forums for answers to my setup questions and now me doing the same afterwards. Great if you have alot of time to waste - I don't...
Click to expand...
That's definitely an issue and forums are really your best bet IMO but I've always used forums for any device that I've ever used as they've been more effective in my experience (even for iOS).

dchamann said:
Apps - range from great to a complete joke. Now I understand why Apple retains so much control over this process for their products.
Click to expand...
The iOS app store is really no different. In any case, what's "great" or not is highly subjective. A lot of people do like Apple's walled garden and the appearance of iOS apps. If you have those preferences then you should be using iOS IMO.

dchamann said:
Bottom line: maybe six more weeks to wait until iPhone 5 is released then I'm done with this piece of crap phone and O/S. I can't wait to be welcomed back to a seamless existence of apps that work seamlessly together, intuitive user flows
Click to expand...
Every option in real life has pros and cons. An option with only pros only exists in the imagination, in my opinion. Even iOS has its own issues, as mentioned above. Selecting a mobile OS is about finding one that has a balance of pros and cons that work for you. Never assume that your preferences are universal. You may prefer iOS. The next person may not.
 
It seems as if dchamann had a whirl wind of issues that unfortunately combined into the perfect S-storm.

First is coming from IOS to Android. That migration alone can be a headache. Things just work differently between the two OS's.

Second is support . Discovering just who to approach when searching for answers to problems can be like searching for the Fountain of Youth.

Finally there's the phone itself. Samsung had a beast of a phone, hardware wise, with the Galaxy S series. The problems arise when you want this hardware to work like it should. The GPS is hit or miss, mostly miss. The file system causes lag and other issues. At least the screen is top notch. Unless you were willing to root and swap roms, kernels and voodoo it, problems just flowed from the phone.

Like others have stated, there are pros and cons to both systems. It seems as though you are more in tune with IOS and as such the Iphone may more suited to your liking.
 
From reading the OP, I can conclude that many of the frustrations directed at Android are not Android-specific, but a mindset incompatibility caused by the OP's previous platform, iOS.

I have the exact opposite problem; whenever I use an iOS device (or even a Mac), I am frustrated to no end. I often think they do things differently just to be different. Functionally, it makes no sense and goes against everything I know about computer user interfaces. Funny, because they are known for being easy to use.

So I'm chalking this one up as a "personality conflict" with Android and nothing more. We can discuss the specifics till the sun supernovas and it won't make any difference. The OP seems to know what device is best for him/her, and in the end, that's all that matters.
 
Mod staff, including my pal novox77 and I, have given this thread great consideration.

We find that there are interesting things yet to be discussed, but will ask all participants to note that we may be discussing among ourselves, so please avoid frustration with the OP, it looks like his decision is a done deal.
 
Sounds like you're pretty frustrated with Android, I hope you have better luck with the iPhone 5. I'm sure it'll be a very nice device.
 
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