Anyone else really hesitant to switch from iPhone/iOS because of the apps

SilentLoner said:

I mean the lack of a consistent usability/reliability with android has me worried. I also don't like the fact the apps don't seem as refined alot of the time. I'm not against switching from iOS but it would take alot. Anyone else feel that way?

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There's only one way to find out. I always say, there's a world to discover with Android. And you might find the truth is far less dire than some members here will have you believe. You might even find yourself unable to leave.

The soon-to-be Galaxy S4 might be your best ticket...

I took a leap and switched to a Windows 8 phone. I got the Lumia 920, I've used iPhones since they came out and had every model except the first one. I was so nervous about doing it but I was very surprised with it. Overall I am satisfied with the switch, especially since I figured out how to import my iTunes library onto it. The apps in the windows store are fine enough for me and I really like that a lot of them have free trials. I will keep my iPad so at least I don't loose out on all the apps I bought.

I love how the Play store shows you how many downloads each app has and shows device specific reviews. Something iOS should do. If I have a nexus 4 and someone is complaining about the apps performance on an HTC G1 i know to take that review with a grain of salt. It's very handy for reading about people's experiences with an app on the device I actually own.

I was worried about the apps going from an iPhone to the Nexus 4, but they have gotten a lot better over the years. Somethings are better on iOS than Android, oddly Google's own YouTube app immediately springs to mind, as does Facebook. But there are loads of other Android apps that are capable of doing things you could only dream about on iOS.

My biggest worry was a good enough Twitter client, as I'm a huge fan of Tweetbot. It took me awhile to find a good replacement, but thanks to some recommendations from the posters here I've found one. It won't be a seamless transition, but you'll adapt if needed.

Sylon said:

I was worried about the apps going from an iPhone to the Nexus 4, but they have gotten a lot better over the years. Somethings are better on iOS than Android, oddly Google's own YouTube app immediately springs to mind, as does Facebook. But there are loads of other Android apps that are capable of doing things you could only dream about on iOS.

My biggest worry was a good enough Twitter client, as I'm a huge fan of Tweetbot. It took me awhile to find a good replacement, but thanks to some recommendations from the posters here I've found one. It won't be a seamless transition, but you'll adapt if needed.

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Google made the Android Youtube app worse, it used to be much better. It used to adhere to their Android human interface guidelines, and was a great example of a Holo app done right... then they introduced that horrible new interface where you have to continually scroll down to get related videos, comments etc.

@ the OP, how worried you should be depends on your interests. If you have any niche interests, or live in a smaller country, it's very likely you won't be able to find Android apps for a few of your use cases, or you may be able to find them, but there's a good chance that they'll be awful compared to their iOS counterparts. Give an Android device a good test run- don't sign up for a contract with one until you're sure you'd be happy with one and the Android versions of the apps you use/like. The Nexus 7 is probably the cheapest way to try Android, although the device itself is pretty bad- you shouldn't be seeing things like scrolling lag on a flagship device released in 2012, but you do with the N7. It'd at least give you an idea of what Android's like though, that's what I did and I didn't like it. Give it a go and see how you fare.

I used to think this but then picked up a Nexus 7 and between the free apps and the $25 credit Google gives you my out of pocket costs to get all the same apps used on my iPhone onto my Nexus 7 was $0. The most expensive apps were two $5 apps that let me sync my contacts and calendar events between iCloud and my Nexus. Money well spent.

For the various games I have purchased over the years but stopped playing, it wasn't a big deal to give them up, I got my $.99 worth from them already.

Apollo 13 said:

the **** you are talking about it retarded and been like that since almost day 1 android came out. You are talking about the speed of how fast it is to get to the top and bottom. I'm talking about scrolling while reading or looking for movies in say Netflix. Don't say what I'm saying is misinformed when everything I have said has been mentioned on XDA developers fool. lolz at you telling me I don't own the stuff I posted. Look at my past post history and you'll see what I own since I mentioned way before this post. Oh let me not for I own an Apple TV 3...let me guess you're going to say I don't own that either?

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On the S3, scrolling is smooth whether it is fast or slow. The frame rate may not be as high as iOS but from a usage standpoint there is no degradation in usability.

BUT it is not the case with iOS. iOS just can't scroll as fast as android which makes it a pain to use when you just want to flip thru the page quickly. To scroll the same amount with one long flip in Android, you need at least 3-4 flip in ios.

I personally don't think that's a good reason. I can see where your coming from and thought about it for a bit before I made the plunge. Since I got my GS3 I couldn't be happier, my only complaint being I hadn't jumped ship earlier. If you have a ton of music, look to either Spotify or Google Music. They are great alternatives and integrate with iTunes (Google music more than Spotify (free version)).

For the most part though all high profile apps are on Android that are on iOS, and some great apps that iOS doesn't have. For the rest, most likely you will be able to find a replacement app for anything if you don't mind a little change upfront.

daveathall said:

I have all the major apps on my SGS3/Nexus 4 that I had on my iPhones, they are easily as polished. I also have some that I wish were in the Apple App store that I would like to put on my iPad mini.

I also like the fact that for up to 15 minutes one can try the app and if not suitable, get a refund. I have used this feature on numerous occasions in the play store, the app store would be enhanced if it also did this.

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Agree. Its rare that you you cant find the same thing or same type of app for both, but it does exist. The major ones are all there for both.

As for the 15 minute refund, it used to be 24 hours which was much better. 15 minutes i dont feel is enough time with some more in depth apps. It should be at least an hour but it is better than nothing and being stuck with an app.

Vegastouch said:

As for the 15 minute refund, it used to be 24 hours which was much better. 15 minutes i dont feel is enough time with some more in depth apps. It should be at least an hour but it is better than nothing and being stuck with an app.

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Yes, I think you're right. Thinking back, I would have probably kept more apps if I was given a little more time to have a play around, and more importantly for me, see if I understood how to actually use it in some depth, an hour would be a good time.

Vegastouch said:

Agree. Its rare that you you cant find the same thing or same type of app for both, but it does exist. The major ones are all there for both.

As for the 15 minute refund, it used to be 24 hours which was much better. 15 minutes i dont feel is enough time with some more in depth apps. It should be at least an hour but it is better than nothing and being stuck with an app.

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People used to take the pee with games, completing them within the 24 hours and getting a refund.

After my time with both platform and constantly scanning google play, i will say that as long as phones are concerned, apps in most categories are pretty good now. Many iOS apps have counter parts in android which sometimes also give more functionality due to the OS flexibility.

On the tablets, it is improving. Some real good android phone apps have tablet versions which actually look like they were made for a 7 or 10 inch screen (or for sizes in between), so we are almost there.


There is one lacking aspect though, games. Now if you are a Gameloft, EA, Rovio games fan, or those simple temple run and plants vs zombies type-ish games that everyone likes because they are *too* casual (seriously, they barely need any processing effort from the brain), you will be at home. But many indie devs publish great games on iOS which have taken more of my play time vs. AAA titles (which lack depth being the fact they are mobile games). Examples are kingdom rush (with the sequel in tow), battleheart (android version is behind in updates, and mikamobile has stopped their development for android), pixel people etc. Heck even street fighter mobile is off limits. I frankly don't know why developers are still hesitant to make these available on android now that the hardware is top notch, the software has matured a lot, and the marketshare is impressive.

Even EA sometimes refrains to publish all titles as well.

Then there are the apps put by your local businesses, services etc which sometimes are not produced for android.

This is not a big deal for android enthusiasts may be, but having all this available on android phones and tablets would be great, and i am sure everyone would love it too!

My platform of choice would definitely be android if i could run all my iOS apps on one. It is the apps which have me tethered to the iOS world. Considering it is the other way around when it comes to mac vs. PC, i am completely surprised that iOS still enjoys quality app selection edge over many platforms despite its bigger brother OSX failing in that for years.

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TacticalDesire said:

I love how the Play store shows you how many downloads each app has

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I agree with the rest of the comment, but the above makes little sense. I have seen amazing apps which barely get noticed and have 100-500 installs, and some useless stuff which i am not interested in that has millions. Downloads means little for app quality IMO.

SilentLoner said:

I mean the lack of a consistent usability/reliability with android has me worried. I also don't like the fact the apps don't seem as refined alot of the time. I'm not against switching from iOS but it would take alot. Anyone else feel that way?

Click to expand...

You have nothing to worry about! I switched and have been pleasantly surprised!

SilentLoner said:

I mean the lack of a consistent usability/reliability with android has me worried. I also don't like the fact the apps don't seem as refined alot of the time. I'm not against switching from iOS but it would take alot. Anyone else feel that way?

Click to expand...

Trust me they are as good....no worries here and that was never a concern...go ahead take the plunge

I've had a droid in the past and my experience is that apple does make you pay for their apps, but the droid apps are of terrible quality almost all the time. The games aren't as good, and it drains the battery without a kill program app. Meh, I hated the apps on the droid. Part of the reason I switched to apple.

Most Android apps have better functionality than iOS counter part as android is much more capable OS. These include automated data download/upload, event driven notifications, easy data sharing betw apps/clouds, background execution etc which are not possible in iOS. In fact, there are many apps in android that have no equivalent or are not possible to be implemented in iOS.

Android apps UI is much less clutter and can make more efficient use of screen space. iOS apps always have the command and navigation button strips which can take up to 25% of screen area (for iphone) leaving less for essential info. Also iOS has the retarded scrolling speed which requires 3-4 times more flips just to scroll thru the same amount material as android.

Add all these up, I find the diversity of apps and the user experience of iOS apps is less satisfactory than android. Of course the above do not apply to games.

Is there a way to turn off notifications from apps (like ad notifications etc and the news garbage from games apps that I don't want) on android? That drove me crazy on my gs3 and before I could fix it, I had it sold.

On the iPhone I can disable notifications for any app from the common notifications settings. Anything like that on non-ios devices? I don't want bards tale to tell me they have xxxx game for sale this week and clutter my notifications.

sentinelsx said:

Is there a way to turn off notifications from apps (like ad notifications etc and the news garbage from games apps that I don't want) on android? That drove me crazy on my gs3 and before I could fix it, I had it sold.

On the iPhone I can disable notifications for any app from the common notifications settings. Anything like that on non-ios devices? I don't want bards tale to tell me they have xxxx game for sale this week and clutter my notifications.

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In Apps there are two ways i know of to get rid of ads. One is to buy the pro version and the second is to root your phone and use the App, ad free. Not sure what you mean by news garbage in games since i really dont play many games

I'm not about to let the cost of apps hold me back from experiencing any other smartphone that interests me.

Besides I'm not about to leave Apple. I'm simply adding another fun new phone to the mix.

Apps on Android have often more functions then on iOS. A good example is DropBox. On iOS I can not open a TXT file and edit something, need to do some complex file moving, and moving it back to DropBox, in Android I simply can (same as in Windows).