nube_android
Active member
I agree on almost all points. But honestly, the best Android phone that money can buy isn't the HTC One or the S4. It's the Nexus 4. Sleek design, $299 and pure vanilla Android. Phones with all of those clunky skins get annoying, and it takes a supercomputer to run them smoothly. That's why Nexus is best if your doing Android at all. The only phones that come close are Motorola's (They have the lightest skins).I've been an iPhone user for years, but I despise Apple and especially iTunes. I'm a software engineer, and the promise of an open phone OS with endless possibilities lured me to Android. I got the S4 a week ago, and the transition has been anything but painless. I'm really considering switching back to the iPhone5, and here's why:
1. The S4 is just too big. It doesn't fit in my pocket nicely, and it's not comfortable to hold with one hand. It's awkward, and I often feel like I might drop it.
2. Notifications suck. I love the way iPhone did it - when I get new text messages, the screen lit up and I could see the message right there. If I received multiple messages, I could see them all. If I got Facebook comments, they were there too. All stacked up and scannable without unlocking or going to different apps. This is VERY important to me, because I receive a lot of updates about a lot of things, and I don't want to constantly fiddle with my phone to see them. I have it on my desk and I want to quickly glance to see what came in, then move on. I've tried a few lock screen notification apps, but none seem to work perfectly.
3. Hardware mute. I really miss this on the S4. I like having a hardware toggle switch to mute my phone if it's going off in a meeting or something. I like being able to mute it in my pocket without having to touch the screen at all. IMO, this should be a REQUIRED feature on all phone hardware.
4. Endless tinkering. I've already spent many hours trying apps, reading about Android, messing with widgets, etc. My hope was that I could get it setup exactly how I want, then never have to tinker again, but that doesn't seem like how it will go. I'm still trying to make the user interface something that I think is usable! It just seems so clunky to me, compared to the smooth and efficient interface of the iPhone.
5. App count badges (minor). I loved the little red indicator on each app, telling me how many games I have to play in WWF or how many notifications I have in another app. I miss this easy indicator in Android.
Listen... I love the potential of Android. I get it. It seems like I should be in love with it, but when it comes down to it, I just want a phone that is really usable out of the box. I don't want to have to find 10 different apps to replace the default functionality. I don't want to spend hours messing with the layout of widgets, home screens, and lock screens.
When I REALLY want is either:
- An Android UI that is well designed and consistent across the whole system, removing all the little productivity annoyances
or
- An iPhone that is not so locked down and controlled by Apple.
I have not (yet) rooted my S4, but that sounds like just one more thing to consume my time in the quest for a usable phone.
I've also never jailbroken my iPhones in the past, but I'm wondering if a jailbroken iPhone5 really is nirvana.
Any thoughts? What am I missing that might make me want to stay with the S4+Android?
Thanks,
Matt
But overall, just buy an iPhone.
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Well, for a thread on an internet forum, yeah it has been. If you want to see a bunch of kids fighting, go to the Blackberry forums. It's appalling.
I mentioned Windows Phone a while ago, and a reply mentioned that the notifcations kinda sucked. And yeah they do, but it's not like they don't exist. When you get a text or email, what Microsoft calls a toast pops up at the top, sort of like the Android notification bar - even on the lock screen. Touch that and you are taken to the notifying app. Even on phones that have an LED (HTC 8X for instance) the LED does not blink for a message or missed call. Otherwise it's a very good experience, and I keep going back to the Lumia 928 for that frankly beautiful screen and the OS. It's as elegant as iOS, but without the old-school clunkiness. Android does allow you more flexibility, but it's an exercise in patience to make it look as cohesive as W8 looks out of the box. It's worth it though. But I'm not giving up W8
iOS and WP provide the best out of box experience.