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Regretting Android Purchase

I

Icy88

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 29, 2010
3
0
Yes, I moved on to the other OS after owning an iPhone since 2007. I have to JailBreak and unlock my first iPhone to make it work up here on Canada. I got curious on the perceived openness and other capabilities like "true multitasking" on Android that the fanboys are touting so I got myself a Samsung Galaxy S Captivate on Rogers and things went downhill.

I prefer the multitasking on the iOS and WP7 compared to the battery consuming implementation on my Galaxy S. I once forgot to kill several apps and left them running in the background and it ate 40% of my battery in like three hours. What's the point of having this kind of multitasking when it kills your battery so fast? I also do not like the fact that I have to be actively killing apps in order to preserve battery life.

I also have to root my SGS to make it usable, use One Click Lag Fix to get rid of the lag, use Juice Defender and SetCPU to under clock it to 100 MHz when idle to preserve battery life, use AudioBoost, install Dolphin because the default browser sucks, and numerous other "tweak apps" and hacks.

My experience with Android isn't a pleasing one. I have to do all sorts of geeky stuff to make my Galaxy S useful and last a day. I don't get a kick out of doing all these tweaks and prefer the "it just works" approach of Apple. Tweaking and hacking my Android device doesn't makes me happy, in fact, it's annoying.

It makes me wonder how the non-geek customers of Galaxy S who hasn't done a tweak manages their phone. It must have suck for them. No wonder the user loyalty of Android is at 28% compared to Iphone's 59%. I will switch back to iOS when iPhone 5 comes out. Android feels more like a beta OS compared to the polished iOS.

On the apps department, Android generally fails in quality compared to iOS's. Almost all the apps are better on iOS. Most Android widgets also don't appear elegant and have a Windows XP/ hacker feel.

I expect my Galaxy S to be a phone first and last a day with the smartphone features playing only a second fiddle role to its main purpose. Sadly, my Galaxy S fails its purpose out of the box without tweaks and tweaking Android is not fun at all.

I saved my wife all the hassle and bought her an iPhone 4. :D
 
So what is the real difference about the multi-tasking? Like I understand it leaves applications running in the background, but don't they both get you back to your application just how you left it? I don't think real multi-tasking is a good idea on a smart phone because it will slow the whole system down and you have a battery to worry about.
 
JoelTGM said:
So what is the real difference about the multi-tasking? Like I understand it leaves applications running in the background, but don't they both get you back to your application just how you left it? I don't think real multi-tasking is a good idea on a smart phone because it will slow the whole system down and you have a battery to worry about.
Click to expand...

From what I noticed on my wife's iPhone, most apps were suspended when multi- tasking while others like GPS, and VOIP apps are allowed true- multitasking. On Android, it seems like all apps are capable of running true-multitasking and eats on the battery really fast.
 
I tried Android and I agree with what the OP had to say, love that Apple "just works" despite some restrictions. They're there for our own good lol.
 
interesting, as my father was ooing and ahhing when i showed him the functionality of Android OS on my Droid X. I gave my pops the iPad, and he loved it from the get go.

Apple is good for non-technical users.

Android is good for those that like to tweak constantly.

If Android wants to dominate the market, they need to simplify the OS.

It just takes one crappy user experience and they lost a customer for good. This is the mantra that engineers should adhere to.

Battery life varies on each android device. Its not an OS only issue. Btw, killing apps on Android is NOT the way to go. Its not a windows operating system. Manually killing apps only eats up battery life more, especially on Android 2.2
 
Icy88 said:
Yes, I moved on to the other OS after owning an iPhone since 2007. I have to JailBreak and unlock my first iPhone to make it work up here on Canada. I got curious on the perceived openness and other capabilities like "true multitasking" on Android that the fanboys are touting so I got myself a Samsung Galaxy S Captivate on Rogers and things went downhill.

I prefer the multitasking on the iOS and WP7 compared to the battery consuming implementation on my Galaxy S. I once forgot to kill several apps and left them running in the background and it ate 40% of my battery in like three hours. What's the point of having this kind of multitasking when it kills your battery so fast? I also do not like the fact that I have to be actively killing apps in order to preserve battery life.

I also have to root my SGS to make it usable, use One Click Lag Fix to get rid of the lag, use Juice Defender and SetCPU to under clock it to 100 MHz when idle to preserve battery life, use AudioBoost, install Dolphin because the default browser sucks, and numerous other "tweak apps" and hacks.

My experience with Android isn't a pleasing one. I have to do all sorts of geeky stuff to make my Galaxy S useful and last a day. I don't get a kick out of doing all these tweaks and prefer the "it just works" approach of Apple. Tweaking and hacking my Android device doesn't makes me happy, in fact, it's annoying.

It makes me wonder how the non-geek customers of Galaxy S who hasn't done a tweak manages their phone. It must have suck for them. No wonder the user loyalty of Android is at 28% compared to Iphone's 59%. I will switch back to iOS when iPhone 5 comes out. Android feels more like a beta OS compared to the polished iOS.

On the apps department, Android generally fails in quality compared to iOS's. Almost all the apps are better on iOS. Most Android widgets also don't appear elegant and have a Windows XP/ hacker feel.

I expect my Galaxy S to be a phone first and last a day with the smartphone features playing only a second fiddle role to its main purpose. Sadly, my Galaxy S fails its purpose out of the box without tweaks and tweaking Android is not fun at all.

I saved my wife all the hassle and bought her an iPhone 4. :D
Click to expand...

All lies. Android doesnt need a task killer. Nice try tho.

I will agree only on one thing in your post, iOS app in SOME cases are more mature. Some Android apps have way more features and/or potential.

iPhone is a good phone, I wont lie about that. So long as you stop Lying about android. k?;)
 
In reality now that tablets are becoming more main stream the app useage for smartphones will decrease. Once you use an iPad going back to the iPhone screen is torture. Sure the phones are good for reading emails and web browsing in a pinch but that is it.

It wasn't that long ago that people used their cell phones just for making phone calls!
 
Battlestar said:
In reality now that tablets are becoming more main stream the app useage for smartphones will decrease. Once you use an iPad going back to the iPhone screen is torture. Sure the phones are good for reading emails and web browsing in a pinch but that is it.

It wasn't that long ago that people used their cell phones just for making phone calls!
Click to expand...

oh so from your gathering, smartphones will become obsolete and everyone will be carrying around 10 inch tablets around?

fyi, smartphones and tablets are two totally different devices, that serve different functions.

smartphones are here to stay, and so are tablets.
 
Battlestar said:
In reality now that tablets are becoming more main stream the app useage for smartphones will decrease. Once you use an iPad going back to the iPhone screen is torture. Sure the phones are good for reading emails and web browsing in a pinch but that is it.

It wasn't that long ago that people used their cell phones just for making phone calls!
Click to expand...

If people wanted a phone just for phone calls they wouldn't get smartphones.
 
I also went to a Android phone since having a Iphone 3G and 3Gs since release. Now I am back with a iphone 4. I got the Sprint EVO 4g. The best Android rated device you can get. But after using it for 4 months, I was done. Battery life is terrible, APPS were terrible, multi-tasking was a bit difficult to use. The Pre has better multitasking. 2.1 Android needed a task killer, 2.2 doesn't as it's built in. Without it, it would be a terrible phone. Either way, it worked for what it was designed for, but no where near as good and refined as the iphone is period.
 
I can't help but to agree with the OP. It reminds me of my experience with WinMo phones. Had to keep tweaking that little brick just to make it work decently as a smartphone.

I don't really see the point now that one have to work the tweaking and hacking way to make an expensive device get rid of too many faulty features.

Hence, I use an iPhone now.

Sure, there's some pleasure when you start tweaking your phone and then it works better, but I really prefer to just enjoy a video, make a call, check e-mails, etc.

And without the lag.

Maybe I'm getting old.:eek:
 
Look - you can not like or prefer the Android OS... but can we once and for all eliminate the misnomer that apple products "just work"

Because that's not true... or any truer/less true than Android.

If Apple products "just work" there wouldn't be lines at the genius bar or full classes/personal one on ones to learn how to use the phone and other products Apple makes.

All devices have a learning curve

And all devices have tweaks to make them optimal for the user using them.

The OP said he had to install hacks to make something work? How about that Air Printing (for 99 percent of the people) have to use a hack to get it to work?

How about all the people who fiddle with brightness, Location Services, wifi/3G, etc settings to extend their battery life?

Again - the OP is very much entitled to prefer iOS to Android. But the hyperboles and ignoring of iOS's shortcomings which either run parallel or otherwise to Androids immediately lose credibility for me.
 
samcraig said:
Look - you can not like or prefer the Android OS... but can we once and for all eliminate the misnomer that apple products "just work"

Because that's not true... or any truer/less true than Android.

If Apple products "just work" there wouldn't be lines at the genius bar or full classes/personal one on ones to learn how to use the phone and other products Apple makes.

All devices have a learning curve

And all devices have tweaks to make them optimal for the user using them.

The OP said he had to install hacks to make something work? How about that Air Printing (for 99 percent of the people) have to use a hack to get it to work?

How about all the people who fiddle with brightness, Location Services, wifi/3G, etc settings to extend their battery life?

Again - the OP is very much entitled to prefer iOS to Android. But the hyperboles and ignoring of iOS's shortcomings which either run parallel or otherwise to Androids immediately lose credibility for me.
Click to expand...

The learning curve for a android based device is much higher vs the iphone which is very simple to use. Even my 65 year old Mom can figure it out while she hated trying to figure out my Android. She even said the iphone is just simpler to use. Some of us have experienced many phones and can compare the iphone to others.

No short comings, with ease of use. The iphone wins there and with battery life and refinement.
 
Icy88 said:
From what I noticed on my wife's iPhone, most apps were suspended when multi- tasking while others like GPS, and VOIP apps are allowed true- multitasking. On Android, it seems like all apps are capable of running true-multitasking and eats on the battery really fast.
Click to expand...
This statement reveals the complete lack of knowledge of the Android OS. Apps running in the background is a normal part of how Android functions. Since they are not polling, there is no extra drain on the battery. Battery life on a Samsung Captivate / Galaxy S series is a bit less because it's powering a 4" display not a 3.5" like the iPhone. I know, I have both an iPhone 4 and Galaxy S. I get excellent battery life that is only slightly less than my iP4.

Icy88 said:
I once forgot to kill several apps and left them running in the background and it ate 40% of my battery in like three hours. What's the point of having this kind of multitasking when it kills your battery so fast? I also do not like the fact that I have to be actively killing apps in order to preserve battery life.
Click to expand...
This is complete nonsense, task killers are not needed. They were created by developers that are no smarter than users that do not learn about the Android OS before making assumptions.

Icy88 said:
I also have to root my SGS to make it usable, use One Click Lag Fix to get rid of the lag, use Juice Defender and SetCPU to under clock it to 100 MHz when idle to preserve battery life, use AudioBoost, install Dolphin because the default browser sucks, and numerous other "tweak apps" and hacks.
Click to expand...

This post is nothing but sour grapes, based on assumptions, not knowledge of Android. Android is not iOS. They are two completely different operating systems.

aohus said:
Android is good for those that like to tweak constantly.
Click to expand...

Not true, this is a myth perpetuated by those who have no clue about how Android functions and begin hacking around instead of investing a little time to learn what they are doing.

I have both iPhones and Android phones. They each have their pros and cons like any other tech device, I find them both quite enjoyable.
 
Its a very simple reason why Android will slowly fail while iPhone will clime. And that reason is, fragmentation. Its going to kill Android and any developers who are looking for a platform to make money. So many phones with such a different range of features, and many of them stuck in lower outdated versions of the Android OS. So as a developer your better off investing your time and money into a platform that you know will reach the maximum audience.

As an example, the developers of Angry Birds mentioned about the difficulties of coding the game so it could work on so many other phones. They had to come to a point where they needed to cut out lower versions of android (such as 1.6). However, the same developer mentioned that the game angry birds had no trouble running on the first iPhone, which is years outdated at this point. This further proves the point that fragmentation is going to kill android.
 
dgree03 said:
All lies. Android doesnt need a task killer. Nice try tho.

I will agree only on one thing in your post, iOS app in SOME cases are more mature. Some Android apps have way more features and/or potential.

iPhone is a good phone, I wont lie about that. So long as you stop Lying about android. k?;)
Click to expand...


Actually I have experience on Android too. Yes it most definitely needs a task killer. You open too many apps and it slows to a crawl. Without a killer the Android OS would be useless after opening up a couple apps.
 
spikefood said:
Its a very simple reason why Android will slowly fail while iPhone will clime. And that reason is, fragmentation. Its going to kill Android and any developers who are looking for a platform to make money. So many phones with such a different range of features, and many of them stuck in lower outdated versions of the Android OS. So as a developer your better off investing your time and money into a platform that you know will reach the maximum audience.

As an example, the developers of Angry Birds mentioned about the difficulties of coding the game so it could work on so many other phones. They had to come to a point where they needed to cut out lower versions of android (such as 1.6). However, the same developer mentioned that the game angry birds had no trouble running on the first iPhone, which is years outdated at this point. This further proves the point that fragmentation is going to kill android.
Click to expand...

Right - because right now the iPhones aren't fragmented? I'll give you that there's MANY more/different phones running Android. But have you NOT noticed that lately iOS is fragmented? Features are available only for the iPhone 4, or 3GS and 4, etc. Is it AS fragmented - perhaps not. But to suggest that iOS is NOT fragmented is also a misnomer now.
 
samcraig said:
Right - because right now the iPhones aren't fragmented? I'll give you that there's MANY more/different phones running Android. But have you NOT noticed that lately iOS is fragmented? Features are available only for the iPhone 4, or 3GS and 4, etc. Is it AS fragmented - perhaps not. But to suggest that iOS is NOT fragmented is also a misnomer now.
Click to expand...

How is it fragmented when the 3G runs the same updated 4.2 iOS as the 4? The only iPhone that the latest update doesn't support is the first one(2G). And that's a 3 year old device which still works with most apps. As far as newer features being only available for 3GS & 4, that's due mostly cause of hardware changes/upgrades.
 
I have been very curious about the Android platform. Thanks for sharing your experience with us, cause I love the integration of Apple products. I guess Android isn't for me, cause hacking isn't something I want to do everyday. iPhone 5 for me! ;)
 
dgree03 said:
All lies. Android doesnt need a task killer. Nice try tho.

I will agree only on one thing in your post, iOS app in SOME cases are more mature. Some Android apps have way more features and/or potential.

iPhone is a good phone, I wont lie about that. So long as you stop Lying about android. k?;)
Click to expand...

I had three Android phones and yes you do need task killers in 2.2. I tried the phone with and without TK. Battery life was better with the task killers.

This was true with both my daughter's Incredible and my X and Incredible.
 
Sorry but you do not understand how they work on the Android. They do run in the background and is one of the main reasons why Android phones drain their batteries so fast. Look at the HTC Hero, small screen, but it drains fast. It's not the screen, it's the apps. And the main reason why they needed Advanced Task Killer to save battery life.

Task killers WERE needed before 2.1. Now 2.2 HAS ONE BUILT IN. So I guess they are needed. :rolleyes:

wirelessmacuser said:
This statement reveals the complete lack of knowledge of the Android OS. Apps running in the background is a normal part of how Android functions. Since they are not polling, there is no extra drain on the battery. Battery life on a Samsung Captivate / Galaxy S series is a bit less because it's powering a 4" display not a 3.5" like the iPhone. I know, I have both an iPhone 4 and Galaxy S. I get excellent battery life that is only slightly less than my iP4.


This is complete nonsense, task killers are not needed. They were created by developers that are no smarter than users that do not learn about the Android OS before making assumptions.



This post is nothing but sour grapes, based on assumptions, not knowledge of Android. Android is not iOS. They are two completely different operating systems.



Not true, this is a myth perpetuated by those who have no clue about how Android functions and begin hacking around instead of investing a little time to learn what they are doing.

I have both iPhones and Android phones. They each have their pros and cons like any other tech device, I find them both quite enjoyable.
Click to expand...
 
Call iOS's "fast app switching" bar whatever you want. It's also a task killer. Sometimes apps don't launch correctly - the only way to get them to relaunch is to kill them from the fast app switching bar. How is THAT not task killing?

Some apps (and yes - perhaps it's developer error) do cause battery drain.

Maps app will drain unless killed from the fast app (IE TASK BAR) as they have been designed for.

Point is - calling it anything other than a task manager is marketing and misdirection. Those that will argue otherwise are failing to call a spade a spade.
 
samcraig said:
Call iOS's "fast app switching" bar whatever you want. It's also a task killer. Sometimes apps don't launch correctly - the only way to get them to relaunch is to kill them from the fast app switching bar. How is THAT not task killing?

Some apps (and yes - perhaps it's developer error) do cause battery drain.

Maps app will drain unless killed from the fast app (IE TASK BAR) as they have been designed for.

Point is - calling it anything other than a task manager is marketing and misdirection. Those that will argue otherwise are failing to call a spade a spade.
Click to expand...

The iphone is better with the apps as if they aren't doing anything they are in idle state not using extra power. While the Android even not in use they use extra power. Yes they both are task killers, Android is automatic if you want, and iphone is manual, but the iphone ones don't really need to be killed as they don't cause issues with battery life.
 
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