Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Phones Andy Ihnatko - Why I switched from iPhone to Android

ChazUK

ChazUK

macrumors 603
Original poster
Feb 3, 2008
5,393
25
Essex (UK)
http://www.techhive.com/article/2030042/why-i-switched-from-iphone-to-android.html

Very interesing read, given some of the comments on issues that Android has in this very forum.

Before anyone froths at the mouth, heed this:
In this three-part epic, I'm going to walk you my decision. It's the story of why Android 4.1 and the S3 got me to switch. No way is it an argument about why anybody else should drop their iPhones and switch to a flagship Android phone.
Click to expand...

Is that now injested? Time to read a few snippets:

Settings:
Gosh, it's lovely to access and adjust hardware settings directly from Android's status bar, instead of drilling down through device menus!
Click to expand...

Keyboard:
As for speech-to-text (on the iPhone), I can truthfully say that I activate it every time I write anything longer than a sentence or two.

The microphone button is crowded right next to the spacebar, and iOS speech-to-text activates with a single careless tap instead of with a deliberate tap-and-hold. When I'm typing fast, I'm accidentally triggering speech-to-text All. The. Freaking. Time.

And if you don't like any of the keyboards that ship with Android, you can install one of your own. My add-on keyboard of choice is SwiftKey. It's doubleplus-brilliant and costs just four damn dollars.
Click to expand...

I find that typing on an Android device is faster and much less annoying than typing on my iPhone. It's not even close.
Click to expand...

Screens:

After just a couple of weeks with the Samsung Galaxy S III, my iPhone 4S screen stopped seeming "normal-sized." At first it became "small" and ultimately it became "too small."
Click to expand...

Size:
The GS3 is indeed slightly larger than the iPhone 5. That'll be a huge, huge problem for you if you like to go from bar to bar trying to win sucker bets in which the guy with the largest phone has to buy the next round. Otherwise, when is this marginally-larger size an issue?
Click to expand...

The iPhone is still too tall for me to easily operate with one hand, because an app's top row of controls is usually just out of reach.
Click to expand...

Now, Android is certainly not going to please everyone but it's always interesting to read how some die-hard iPhone users find using Android as an alternative.
 
M

maxosx

macrumors 68020
Dec 13, 2012
2,385
1
Southern California
My Nexus 4 / SGS III / Note II experiences have been fun, proving how compelling the Android OS is.

A nice breather from the severe limitations of the tiny display on my iP5.

Even better, I'm able to continue to enjoy the benefits of a fast & fun smartphone while Apple decides if they're more interested in watches & gadgets, or improving upon the iconic iPhone.
 
C

cnev3

macrumors 6502
Sep 13, 2012
462
56
If the guy kept accidentally pressing the speech to text button, I don't think its fair to blame the phone. Guess he didn't realize the feature could be turned off.
 
M

matttye

macrumors 601
Mar 25, 2009
4,957
32
Lincoln, England
My 2p: the "marginally bigger" S3 (apparently) is difficult to handle with one hand when you need to reach things in the top left hand corner, but the iPhone 5 is easy to handle no matter where you need to reach.

I'm right handed.
 
KentuckyHouse

KentuckyHouse

macrumors 68030
Jan 29, 2010
2,715
986
Lexington, KY.
cnev3 said:
If the guy kept accidentally pressing the speech to text button, I don't think its fair to blame the phone. Guess he didn't realize the feature could be turned off.
Click to expand...

Yes it is. Why wouldn't it be fair to blame the phone (or iOS more specifically)? He clearly says he uses the voice to text input regularly, so turning it off isn't an option. What he was saying was make it an option to make the button either single-tap (like it is now) or long-press to activate. I completely get where he's coming from on this (although I prefer the single-tap activation method).

As it is you have two options...on or off. That's not really an option if you use it regularly.
 
daveathall

daveathall

macrumors 68020
Aug 6, 2010
2,379
1,410
North Yorkshire
matttye said:
My 2p: the "marginally bigger" S3 (apparently) is difficult to handle with one hand when you need to reach things in the top left hand corner, but the iPhone 5 is easy to handle no matter where you need to reach.

I'm right handed.
Click to expand...

But on an Android device one doesn't need to have an app there, it can be placed in the most accessible position, all apps can be placed exactly where the user wants and can reach. On the iPhone if one has only 1 app its location is top left and cant be changed, if only 2 apps, they are top left and next to it, no other option. And some find that the iPhone 5 is too large to be able to reach that position (top left). No matter how many apps one has on an iPhone one of them is always in the top left hand corner, this doesn't need to be the case with an SGS3.

One handed I cant reach the top corner of an iPhone 5 or a SGS3.
 
maflynn

maflynn

macrumors Haswell
May 3, 2009
73,478
43,405
There are a lot of features that draw me to android (both hardware and software) but there are features in iOS/iPhone that do the same.

Unlike Andy I'm finding my needs met better with iOS. He makes a good case regarding typing and the larger screen but for me I'm liking how integrated iOS is with iCloud and how I do things. I don't use gmail (I have an account) and I prefer using OSX's calendar app and it syncs automatically.

My point is that Android certainly has features that are superior to apple, but being fully ingrained in the the ecosystem has both advantages and disadvantages.

I'm willing to make the jump of the S4 meets expectations but I'll wait and see
 
N

NewAnger

macrumors 6502a
Apr 24, 2012
904
3
Denver Colorado
I agree on a lot of points. My Nexus 4 is still my goto phone although I still have my 4S on AT*T contract and have 23 months to go on it.

The hardest part on on deciding on getting an Android was making the initial purchase. It was hard to press the complete my purchase button but when I did, I was so excited to know I would get my phone the very next day.

I honestly don't think I'll ever buy another iPhone after using my Nexus 4 for three weeks now. I get an email and I just swipe down, click on the mail and I'm reading it in 1 second, it's that fast.

I used to listen to the TechGuy show all the time but I quit when Leo would say he honestly liked a certain phone better than the iPhone. I didn't want to hear that there could be better phones because I was still in the love relationship with my iPhone. Wish I wouldn't have signed a new 4S contract in January. I could always break it and see the phone.
 
maflynn

maflynn

macrumors Haswell
May 3, 2009
73,478
43,405
I think apple really needs to consider how phone manufacturers are pushing the envelope on phone designs and how Android is being developed (both by google and in this case samsung). We're seeing a high level of innovation, where as apple we're only getting small incremental updates.
 
M

matttye

macrumors 601
Mar 25, 2009
4,957
32
Lincoln, England
daveathall said:
But on an Android device one doesn't need to have an app there, it can be placed in the most accessible position, all apps can be placed exactly where the user wants and can reach. On the iPhone if one has only 1 app its location is top left and cant be changed, if only 2 apps, they are top left and next to it, no other option. And some find that the iPhone 5 is too large to be able to reach that position (top left). No matter how many apps one has on an iPhone one of them is always in the top left hand corner, this doesn't need to be the case with an SGS3.

One handed I cant reach the top corner of an iPhone 5 or a SGS3.
Click to expand...

It's more the notification bars of the respective devices when I need to use the top left hand corner, but for me, I can handle the iPhone one handed just fine without shifting my grip, but reaching the top left hand corner of an S3 is hard without shifting grip.
 
ugahairydawgs

ugahairydawgs

macrumors 68030
Jun 10, 2010
2,959
2,457
I think far too often we try to find these deep meaning as to why one platform is better than the other when most of the time the solution is quite simple.

Android is attractive to two types of people: 1.) those looking for a bargain and 2.) those who like to tinker with their devices. The sheer number of phones out there helps some people that want a smart phone but don't want to break the bank have an option that fits their needs. iPhone has close that gap a bit with the free on contract iPhone 4, but before that the only game in town was Android. Similarly if tinkering around with settings and various parts of the OS are your cup of tea, obviously Android is going to be the way to go.

iOS is attractive to those who don't care about either of those things and just wants something that is fairly intuitive to use. Being tied in to Apple's much more mature ecosystem also holds folks in.

People that hang out on sites like this tend to lose track of the fact that the general public doesn't care about rooting and things like that and just want the phone that best fits in their life. Generally....that is the one that's easiest for them to just pick up and use.
 
Fernandez21

Fernandez21

macrumors 601
Jun 16, 2010
4,839
3,177
Eh, I carry two phones and use both regularly. I still find the iphone is my go to phone because of how stable it is and the quality of the apps and how well integrated it is with my Mac. But I still enjoy using my android phones and setting them up how I want and using emulators.
 
I

Irishman

macrumors 68040
Nov 2, 2006
3,392
843
ChazUK said:
http://www.techhive.com/article/2030042/why-i-switched-from-iphone-to-android.html

Very interesing read, given some of the comments on issues that Android has in this very forum.

Before anyone froths at the mouth, heed this:


Is that now injested? Time to read a few snippets:

Settings:


Keyboard:




Screens:



Size:




Now, Android is certainly not going to please everyone but it's always interesting to read how some die-hard iPhone users find using Android as an alternative.
Click to expand...

As opposed to many of the "Apple is failing to innovate and is dying on the vine, and needs to tickle my *aint with something mind-blowing!" screeds we get here too often, Andy's reasons are very personal (the dude's got big hands and fat fingers - I watch him on Macbreak Weekly), and very reasonable. I respect the man as a tech writer, and as a Mac fan.

I expect making the decision to make the change was painful for him.
 
L

LIVEFRMNYC

macrumors G3
Oct 27, 2009
8,780
10,844
That's why I willingly parted with my unlimited data plan. On my new LTE plan, I can swap my iPhone's SIM with other phones and get the high speeds all of the other digital features of the AT&T network.
Click to expand...

This doesn't make sense. I still have my unlimited iPhone data plan since the release of the iP4. I got the GS3 on contract and had no problems keeping my plan.
 
KentuckyHouse

KentuckyHouse

macrumors 68030
Jan 29, 2010
2,715
986
Lexington, KY.
LIVEFRMNYC said:
This doesn't make sense. I still have my unlimited iPhone data plan since the release of the iP4. I got the GS3 on contract and had no problems keeping my plan.
Click to expand...

I had the exact same thought when I read that. I bought my S3 off contract then purchased a used iPhone 5 a couple of months ago. I went to AT&T, swapped out my micro Sim for a nano Sim, and off I went. I'm typing this on my S3 right now using the nano Sim from my 5 in an adapter. I never had to touch my contract. Everything works perfectly (including iMessages when I switch back to my iPhone).
 
blairh

blairh

macrumors 603
Dec 11, 2007
5,830
4,100
NewAnger said:
I used to listen to the TechGuy show all the time but I quit when Leo would say he honestly liked a certain phone better than the iPhone. I didn't want to hear that there could be better phones because I was still in the love relationship with my iPhone. Wish I wouldn't have signed a new 4S contract in January. I could always break it and see the phone.
Click to expand...

Dude, wtf. That is all.
 
bmac4

bmac4

macrumors 601
Feb 14, 2013
4,853
1,856
Atlanta Ga
ugahairydawgs said:
I think far too often we try to find these deep meaning as to why one platform is better than the other when most of the time the solution is quite simple.

Android is attractive to two types of people: 1.) those looking for a bargain and 2.) those who like to tinker with their devices. The sheer number of phones out there helps some people that want a smart phone but don't want to break the bank have an option that fits their needs. iPhone has close that gap a bit with the free on contract iPhone 4, but before that the only game in town was Android. Similarly if tinkering around with settings and various parts of the OS are your cup of tea, obviously Android is going to be the way to go.

iOS is attractive to those who don't care about either of those things and just wants something that is fairly intuitive to use. Being tied in to Apple's much more mature ecosystem also holds folks in.

People that hang out on sites like this tend to lose track of the fact that the general public doesn't care about rooting and things like that and just want the phone that best fits in their life. Generally....that is the one that's easiest for them to just pick up and use.
Click to expand...

So you may be right about the tinkering thing, but you are away off with the cheaper thing. Android phones are just as expensive as iphones are. Sure android goes down after the phone had been out for months, but over all of you get a flagship android then you are paying at least $200 on contact. Apple had always made their 2 year old phones cheaper, so the iphone 4 being free now is nothing new.
 
ugahairydawgs

ugahairydawgs

macrumors 68030
Jun 10, 2010
2,959
2,457
bmac4 said:
So you may be right about the tinkering thing, but you are away off with the cheaper thing. Android phones are just as expensive as iphones are. Sure android goes down after the phone had been out for months, but over all of you get a flagship android then you are paying at least $200 on contact. Apple had always made their 2 year old phones cheaper, so the iphone 4 being free now is nothing new.
Click to expand...

The top end ones sure, but for every GSIII on the market there are multiple Samsumg Captivate Glides and Galaxy Express.
 
bmac4

bmac4

macrumors 601
Feb 14, 2013
4,853
1,856
Atlanta Ga
ugahairydawgs said:
The top end ones sure, but for every GSIII on the market there are multiple Samsumg Captivate Glides and Galaxy Express.
Click to expand...

Yea sure, but for every iphone 5 they is the 4, or before that it was the 3gs,or before that it was the 3g. Apple gives people cheaper options too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom