Another Apple fanboy makes the switch (1 Viewer)

Like Ron, Andy Ihnatko drops iPhone for Android. Is Gruber next?*:
http://www.techhive.com/article/2030042/why-i-switched-from-iphone-to-android.html
http://www.techhive.com/article/2030116/customize-and-collaborate-why-i-switched-from-iphone-to-android-part-2.html
Part 3 is probably on deck for tomorrow.
This hits the nail on the head and crystallizes the real world ramifications of closed versus open:
* Gruber switching to Android is as likely as Sam Posten switching to Android. I will win the lottery twice before that happens.

"Android is better than iPhone FOR ME" Why should I give half a damn about any user but myself? I try to be a good social citizen, but I have never thought “Though this unalterable factory setting frustrates me and makes this device more difficult for me to use, I shall suffer proudly, knowing that this device’s lack of customization features makes it less confusing to some new mobile phone user who still doesn’t understand why there’s no dial tone.” People whom I know, respect, and even consider to be friends have dismissed large phone screens as a cheap marketing gimmick that targets gullible consumers in the showroom, and which doesn't offer any practical benefits. Yikes. That's so incorrect, so far out of whack with reality as I experience it every day with the Samsung Galaxy S III, and with other flagship Android phones, that I can't even mount an argument against it. I can't think of anything to say other than "Nope. Wrong."

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The guy is spot on. I'd add, why should I as a user, not a stockholder, give a tenth of a damn about Apple's profit margins?

http://www.techhive.com/article/2030168/pros-and-cons-why-i-switched-from-iphone-to-android-part-3.html
Quote:

The iPhone is superior to a flagship Android phone at “easy to use on day one.” But it plateaus after a month. Android, I suggest, keeps getting easier to use as it continues to adjust to you and you keep learning new ways to get better performance.

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Quote:

As late as 2011, the iPhone was the phone you wanted if you wanted the most powerful and sophisticated smartphone on the market. Android was the phone you wound up with if your company refused to approve the iPhone you wanted. I look at the marketplace today and I insist that these two platforms are absolutely on equal footing.

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I don't know about all the different average users, but I recently found out that my father has 2x Samsung S3, LOL: one for use in Hong Kong, and one for here -- these days, he spends more time in HK than here it seems. Granted, the S3 is not his first smartphone, but I was a bit surprised he apparently doesn't like the iPhone after giving it a try at some point. He likes portable tech/devices and doesn't use a computer though -- never figured it out and/or felt it worthwhile enough even w/ Chinese version of OS/software -- and basically uses the smartphone for just about everything he'd want to do on a computer. He sorta regrets not getting the GN2 instead though, so maybe he'll end up upgrading sooner than later.
Pretty funny that he kept trying to sell *me* on various apps he loves over tea and dim-sum, LOL...
BTW, I wonder how many average smartphone users actually know they can use their phones for turn-by-turn GPS. My wife recently had to explain to a friend that she could use her Android phone for virtually free, turn-by-turn GPS -- and yes, I did get a pretty good $20 dash mount for my wife... and she has no real need for a BT headset (mainly for driving) anymore.
Also, yeah, SwiftKey on top of Android's much better (though not flawless) approach/implementation to copy/paste and such on top of the substantially bigger screen definitely makes a huge diff over the iPhone unless you rarely ever type anything on your phone. Even on my iPad3, the bigger screen w/ bigger soft keyboard (for less error-prone typing) doesn't really compare w/ my wife's GN2 or my S3 (to lesser extent) w/ SwiftKey installed... and I'm quite certain I don't use SwiftKey to its fullest potential either. I'm finding myself using the iPad3 much less than my GS3 these days in part because of that.
_Man_

I'm 2/3 though the essays. Great series by Ihnatko.

"If you’re not a tech columnist and you don’t have the option of experimenting with Android and Windows Phone and Blackberry 10 without first making a two-year commitment, switching from any device platform to any other requires a leap of faith and a period of itchy uncertainty. You’ll dog-paddle through choppy seas until once again there’s a steady teak deck under your feet and an umbrella drink in your hand." That's about how I feel. I can't get a good sense of modern Android phones. I can get a really good demo of the iPhone at the Apple store. But there's no good Google store to demo their phones. Bestbuy has non-functional plastic props. Verizon has ill-configured demo units with unworking stylii.

I'm still very happy with my GS3 except that the screen has already cracked twice since september. I cracked an iphone screen once and that was just days before trading it in to get cash towards the GS3. Also scratches too easily. I swill be putting a screen cover on the next one.

Tony, Did you use a case for your GS3? Just wondering if that would matter enough... _Man_

DaveF said:

"If you’re not a tech columnist and you don’t have the option of experimenting with Android and Windows Phone and Blackberry 10 without first making a two-year commitment, switching from any device platform to any other requires a leap of faith and a period of itchy uncertainty. You’ll dog-paddle through choppy seas until once again there’s a steady teak deck under your feet and an umbrella drink in your hand." That's about how I feel. I can't get a good sense of modern Android phones. I can get a really good demo of the iPhone at the Apple store. But there's no good Google store to demo their phones. Bestbuy has non-functional plastic props. Verizon has ill-configured demo units with unworking stylii.

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Agreed on that. I wasn't impressed by the GS3 either when I briefly checked it out at Verizon store. But after all the raves for the GS3 (sans the battery life issue) and then the GN2, jumping on the GN2 for my wife (w/ V's meager 2-week trial period) sold me on it. I would've gone for the GN2 instead of GS3 though, if my company allowed. Not sure though if I'd actually use the S-Pen all that much -- my wife doesn't. _Man_ PS: I currently find battery life on my GS3 just barely acceptable. It lasts all day for me maybe 1/2 the times so far -- really depends heavily on screen time. The iPhone would probably last me all day easily, but that will likely be partially due to me not wanting to use it as much.

http://www.imore.com/switching-android-or-not?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter "Where Andy values the flexibility of Android, I see it as a time sink. ... I've learned the value of the consistent 9-panel grid. And yes, these days even my Nexus 7 and Nexus 4 are as stock as the day they were born."

He judoed a few of Andy's reasons for switching (customization, app sharing, and multiple screen sizes) into negatives. These are things most iPhone fans covet. To actually turn them into reasons not to switch is goddamned pathetic.
It's the very definition of iSheep.
[SIZE= 13px] [/SIZE]

Hanson said:

* Gruber switching to Android is as likely as Sam Posten switching to Android. I will win the lottery twice before that happens.

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Once again I'll note that I own more Android devices than anyone in this thread. I use stuff that works for what I want to do. I don't hold philosophically to any company or technology. If stuff works for you, great! If you want my advice I will do my best to understand both your wants and needs along with how tetchy you are. As a very smart person once said to me: "I don't care what brand of Motorcycle you ride but I do care which one -I- ride". For me it's not even the brand but what's under the hood AND how comfortable it is to ride. If that means I gotta relearn something that the manufacturer does a little differently to get the most out of the experience, so be it. But I'll not have to constantly tweak and poke and live with a million little inconveniences because the vendor wants to be all things to everybody. That's just me tho, if you get off on that, have at it

Once again I'll note that I own more Android devices than anyone in this thread.

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Are you sure about that? I have three phones and three tablets. And they are all being used.
Yes, it all comes down to the best device for YOU. Which, in your case, has an Apple logo

I guess if someone is too tempted to constantly tweak one's device instead of actually using it to serve one's needs/wants, then yeah, that should probably factor into one's choice. I (and probably most users) don't personally find that to be an issue at least w/ the Samsung GS3 and GN2 though. And I do regularly wish iOS would allow enough customization to make my iPad3 more user-friendly to me... much like what Ihnatko points out... Actually, I'm also starting to grow tired of not having a back function/button among other things on iOS, which I hadn't expected until I got the GS3. _Man_

Man I did have a case on the last time I dropped it and the case and the screen cracked. No biggie. thats why I have a breaking plan for when this happens.

Originally Posted by ManW_TheUncool
I guess if someone is too tempted to constantly tweak one's device instead of actually using it to serve one's needs/wants, then yeah, that should probably factor into one's choice.

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That's like the early Windows Phone ads that touted how little you needed to use it. It's like saying, "I don't want it because I'll like it too much". Isn't he just admitting the iPhone is less immersive/involving than Android?

I don't know. I find my GS3 plenty immersive enough w/out constantly tweaking it -- and don't even play games on it (other than my usual fantasy baseball stuff).

TonyD said:

Man I did have a case on the last time I dropped it and the case and the screen cracked. No biggie. thats why I have a breaking plan for when this happens.

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I hate paying for insurance on that though it's definitely a more real concern w/ smartphones. Mine is a company phone, so not a concern to me, but I do wonder a little for my wife's GN2... I actually reluctantly bought AppleCare for our iPad3, and haven't needed it so far... _Man_

I've dropped my naked GN2 dozens of times. Not a scratch. One time I tried to catch it with my foot and ended up kicking it 12 feet down a hardwood floor hallway. However, if you look at the screen in bright light at the right angle, there are fine scratches all over the screen, presumably from pulling it in and out of pockets. My GS2 never had a scratch and I never used a case or screen protector for it either.

Do Android phones get OS upgrades? I've been noodling on the next phone upgrade (notionally this Fall with the iPhone 5S). My impression is that an Android phone should be assumed to never get new OS upgrades or features after purchase; whereas an iPhone has been guaranteed a couple of nice updates over a couple years.


Is my 'conventional wisdom' out of date?

/GetsPopcorn