Debating the Move to Android and the 6P - Getting grief on iMessage

mark1210

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Hello,

First time poster but been a several week lurker. First, let me state that I've had an iPhone since the very first iteration - but after all these years I think it's time for a change. I was at a local phone store and was about to pull the trigger on an iPhone 6S plus but decided to play around with various android devices and was impressed overall. I'm far from an expert, but it seems various brands have their own "Crapware" - can this be removed off any android phone? The store phones were in some kind of lockdown mode where apps couldn't be moved or deleted.

I'm pretty heavily leaning to the Nexus 6P but am concerned with 3 main things:

1) What is the release cycle? I'd hate to plop down 500 bucks and a Nexus 7 (or whatever is next) come out a few months later.
2) I've talked to some friends about jumping the iOS ship and they think I am nuts - I didn't think about it, but apparently I'd lose iMessage and be stuck using SMS and MMS. Apparently MMS transfers can't be over more than 1MB and are highly compressed so that has me concerned as well. No one I've spoken to seems all that eager to install whatsapp for example just to communicate with me. I'm already being called the "green guy" and was told I'd lose out on group texts. Any truth to this? How did you guys "cope" with the loss of iMessage =)
3) Does the Nexus 6P support an exchange e-mail account? I don't have a gmail and I could create one, but my e-mail is all done via hosted exchange - I'm assuming active sync and push is supported?

Thanks
 

Golfdriver97

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Welcome to the forums, and hopefully, Android!!

1. The Nexus devices are the ones that are the most free of bloatware.
2. As for the release cycle, they normally get released in the fall, so you would have about 7-9 months of use.
3. You would still need a Gmail account to setup things like the Play store. But chances are, there is an app somewhere that can handle whichever email account you need.

Edit: I am flagging some other Ambassadors who might be able to help more with the Apple to Android concerns.
 

UJ95x

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GD has answered most of your questions. But in regards to messaging, it might be a bit of a pain if all or most of your contacts use iMessage for group messaging. You can still be a part of the ones that are purely MMS, but if that is not how the current ones are setup they'd have to make a new one. And it is true that MMS has size limits. You can forget about sending any video files directly, and most GIFs as well. Pictures will be fine for the most part though.
 

Ry

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2) I've talked to some friends about jumping the iOS ship and they think I am nuts - I didn't think about it, but apparently I'd lose iMessage and be stuck using SMS and MMS. Apparently MMS transfers can't be over more than 1MB and are highly compressed so that has me concerned as well. No one I've spoken to seems all that eager to install whatsapp for example just to communicate with me. I'm already being called the "green guy" and was told I'd lose out on group texts. Any truth to this? How did you guys "cope" with the loss of iMessage =)

Android phones will use SMS and MMS standards for text and media messaging.

You will have limits on MMS.

You could possibly still miss out on group texts. Your friends may need to start new threads on their iPhones.

Posted via the Android Central App on the Moto X Pure Edition
 

anon(596177)

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You could always force your friends to use Google hangouts that way you would have a platform that anyone on an android or iPhone would be able to communicate through :p, but that's not likely to happen of course.
 

anon(596177)

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"Nine" is arguably one of the best exchange email apps on android. I use it for work email and it is fantastic.

Also, adding to your release cycle question. While the next Nexus phone would theoretically be introduced 7-8 months from now, Nexis phones are also the longest supported Android phone, with the normal cycle of supported Android updates in the ballpark of three years from original release date. Add on top of that the fact that the 6p is easily the best Nexus phone made to date (and arguably the best Android phone in general) it's a real good time to switch if you are seriously considering it.

I wouldn't worry too much about the hassle you are getting from your pals. Just pull out your phone and show them a sweet music video on your 2k screen and dual stereo front facing speakers.
 

Almeuit

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1) What is the release cycle? I'd hate to plop down 500 bucks and a Nexus 7 (or whatever is next) come out a few months later.
2) I've talked to some friends about jumping the iOS ship and they think I am nuts - I didn't think about it, but apparently I'd lose iMessage and be stuck using SMS and MMS. Apparently MMS transfers can't be over more than 1MB and are highly compressed so that has me concerned as well. No one I've spoken to seems all that eager to install whatsapp for example just to communicate with me. I'm already being called the "green guy" and was told I'd lose out on group texts. Any truth to this? How did you guys "cope" with the loss of iMessage =)
3) Does the Nexus 6P support an exchange e-mail account? I don't have a gmail and I could create one, but my e-mail is all done via hosted exchange - I'm assuming active sync and push is supported?

I will try and answer you questions below. I used to use an iPhone 6 Plus and I still dabble in iOS since my gf now has the iPhone 6S Plus and an iPad Air 2.

1) The release cycle is just like Apple. Usually once a year a new / updated phone is released.

2) There is a tiny truth to this but not as bad as they make it seem.

  • First you can still use group messages with SMS/MMS. I do it all the time with friends who have iPhones and those who have Androids (or even a mix of both).
  • MMS does get compressed by the carrier but this is mainly for videos. Pictures are fine. Videos do get dumbed down to almost unwatchable so sharing via other means (YouTube) is best. If you send a ton of video to iPhone friends you will miss that part of iMessage but photos will be just fine.

3. There are various apps that can handle exchange with no real issue (see the post above mine for a good recommendation).
 
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raziel

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There are several alternatives to iMessage at people are already using such as hangouts, Facebook messenger, and whatsapp. If that friend is important enough, they would download it to stay in touch with you if they don't have it ;)
 

Wildo6882

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I will try and answer you questions below. I used to use an iPhone 6 Plus and I still dabble in iOS since my gf now has the iPhone 6S Plus and an iPad Air 2.

1) The release cycle is just like Apple. Usually once a year a new / updated phone is released.

2) There is a tiny truth to this but not as bad as they make it seen.

  • First you can still use group messages with SMS/MMS. I do it all the time with friends who have iPhones and those who have Androids (or even a mix of both).
  • MMS does get compressed by the carrier but this is mainly for videos. Pictures are fine. Videos do get dumbed down to almost unwatchable so sharing via other means (YouTube) is best. If you send a ton of video to iPhone friends you will miss that part of iMessage but photos will be just fine.

3. There are various apps that can handle exchange with no real issue (see the post above mine for a good recommendation).

I have a question about sharing videos via YouTube (as I'm quite possibly moving back to Android from iOS and EVERYONE in my family aside from my wife uses iOS): can the videos that you share be downloaded from YouTube by the person viewing them? My parents like to save videos of our kids that we send to them. If this was possible, I would use that in a heartbeat and it would alleviate some of the problem of converting back to Android.
 

raziel

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I don't have an android phone in front of me but you can share videos in Google photos and you can download them directly to your phone.
 

Cold_Funky

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I only used iPhone for a couple of weeks w years ago, so I don't have a ton of experience. However, I will say that if you are getting rid of the Apple make sure you turn iMessage off on your device before switching your sim card to the new device. I returned the iPhone and didn't know this and had massive headache for several months afterward because messages from any other iMessage users were going to the Apple servers and staying there. No one at Apple could do anything about it and I just had to wait. If I had switched that little slider, I'm told none of it would have been an issue.
 

sstephen17

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The biggest pain is group messages, especially those where you would be the only Android user. You'll usually need to have one of them create the group text again from scratch. Ideally, you'll want to do it when everyone is present (party?) because it doesn't always work and you'll never know because they won't see/respond to your text.

I roll my eyes when my iPhone friends complain that my texts appear in green instead of the traditional blue. Hey, at least you'll stand out now right? Personally, I enjoy being able to change the color of my texts based on who is sending them.
 

southflpix

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I agree that the loss of iMessage is a factor. SMS / MMS are serviceable, but simply not as good for reasons already mentioned, and in addition to the previously stated advantages, iMessage uses end to end encryption so it's far more secure. Since Android does not have a 'default' messaging app, about the only thing you can do is try to get your friends to download a 3rd party messaging app for you or just tough it out with SMS / MMS and deal with the drawbacks.

Posted via the Android Central App