Why have some switch from the iPhone, but still consider iPad the best tablet?

LIVEFRMNYC said:

I've seen several users that stated they switched from iPhone to an Android, but still have the iPad cause they consider it the best tablet. I'm just curious as to why some of you feel that way, being that iPhone & iPad run iOS.

Is the screen the major factor in switching to an Android phone, which doesn't apply to tablets? Or other reasons?

I'm also asking this cause I hear one on the main reasons for switching from iPhone is some got bored or lack of features. But many of those same ones are still praising the iPad as the best. It's basically the same thing with bigger screen, so I don't get the reason behind this.

Me personally, I'm the opposite. Still not bored of my iP4 but I get bored of tablets quickly. Already went thru 3 Android tablets(still have one), a BB Playbook and still have a iPad2.

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Because up until recently, no Android tablet was good enough to compete with the iPad. Android Tablets started with and are still using Honeycomb, which is a crap OS. God does it suck! I really, really hate it. But now that Android tablets have optimized software (ICS and Jelly Bean) to go with good/fast hardware (cpu, gpu and battery life), there are a couple of tablets worthy of replacing the iPad for both media consumption and light workloads. Some, like the transformer also offer a keyboard and mouse to give you netbook capability.

I now predict that within a year, the iPad marketshare will start to shrink. Not drastically, but it will be noticed.

I also question this. It could be because the ipad has much better apps so far.
But i think people that switch from iphone just want a bigger screen

LIVEFRMNYC said:

Yes, but even the newer ones like Note 2 and Nexus 7. I still see a tons of comments that state iPad is preferred. Also it looks like Apple will compete against smaller tablets if the iPad mini rumor is true.

My guess is that people don't use their tablets as much as their phones. But I have yet to hear this as a explanation from anyone.

Just hearing mutiple reasons one ditched an iPhone, I'm just curious as why they would want to deal with those same reasons on an iPad.

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I ditched the iPhone for the S3, because the S3 is better in every aspect and has more capabilities over the iphone.

Excellent question. And the answer is actually very simple:

I require more of my smartphone. It's with me all the time, and therefore require it to do more. Truly threaded emails, better keyboard for emails/texting, easier access to contacts (direct dialing, direct messaging), quick access to toggles (at work I get poor reception cause i"m deep inside a building, but we have excellent wifi. So easy to just turn it on and off in and out of the office) and information thanks to widgets, easier to browse with Chrome (unlimited tabs, anyone?), and easier to browse/read on the larger screen.

But for the tablet, I demand much less from it. It's a luxury device, in my opinion, that I can use while traveling to browse, or to even do a quick email if I must, or to play games.

Also, iOS shines on the tablet. It's, in my opinion, terribly hindered on the iPhone (lack of side menus, lack of gesture controls, no real tabs in Safari), which is ironic.

onthecouchagain said:

Also, iOS shines on the tablet. It's, in my opinion, terribly hindered on the iPhone (lack of side menus, lack of gesture controls, no real tabs in Safari), which is ironic.

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this is exactly why I still have an iPad. IOS simply works better on the IPad compared to the iPhone. It's just more intuitive on a bigger screen (plus the app selection doesn't hurt). I don't see myself moving back to an iPhone until they revamp iOS.

Personally I believe it is because of the Android tablet app fragmentation. Most of the tablet apps on Android are just up-sized phone apps, and they look all warped and stretched. And the fact that generally the iPad is lot nicer of tablet.

onthecouchagain said:

Excellent question. And the answer is actually very simple:

I require more of my smartphone. It's with me all the time, and therefore require it to do more. Truly threaded emails, better keyboard for emails/texting, easier access to contacts (direct dialing, direct messaging), quick access to toggles (at work I get poor reception cause i"m deep inside a building, but we have excellent wifi. So easy to just turn it on and off in and out of the office) and information thanks to widgets, easier to browse with Chrome (unlimited tabs, anyone?), and easier to browse/read on the larger screen.

But for the tablet, I demand much less from it. It's a luxury device, in my opinion, that I can use while traveling to browse, or to even do a quick email if I must, or to play games.

Also, iOS shines on the tablet. It's, in my opinion, terribly hindered on the iPhone (lack of side menus, lack of gesture controls, no real tabs in Safari), which is ironic.

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I agree with this dude/dudette regarding tablet reasons. Simply iOS does have the best apps and for me tablet is play and media consumption. Also I do really like Apple so it was an easy fit for me.

I have my phone with me all the time and I need to know its capable of doing everything I might need it to at any given time.

My tablet I mainly use at home, when I also have access to a pc. I don't really need it to do as much and mainly use it as a book reader and web and forum browser.

Also, if I'm walking down the street and need to do something, I want it done as quickly as possible, and Android is quicker at most things because of widgets.

Of the Android tablets I've seen, none come close to the iPad. I haven't checked out the galaxy tab 10.1 or nexus 7 yet though.

+ 1 to what others have said:

- My phone is for quick access to information, not for long browsing sessions. Android excels at information display and the ability to move between apps. This is especially true as you follow a path between them and the Back key allows you to retrace your steps easily.

- My tablet is for more prolonged sessions, and while name brand Android tablet hardware is excellent (most even include GPS, for example), iOS has an edge in apps that are optimized for the tablet screen size. At least, for now.

That said, my family actually uses Android tablets far more often around the house. Why? Because we love the 7" form factor and Apple as yet has ignored that market.

More and more mainstream apps are moving to Android tablets, too. The addition of Wacom pen technology to tablets is also a plus in their favor for anyone who has a need to input hand written or drawn info.

Wrathwitch said:

I agree with this dude/dudette regarding tablet reasons. Simply iOS does have the best apps and for me tablet is play and media consumption. Also I do really like Apple so it was an easy fit for me.

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I agree also. Love my iPad and my S3. iPad is used at home so there are lots of options if I run into a snag because of the limitations. My phone is used on its own and needs to do anything I need it to without back-up alternatives. The big screen is also a great bonus compared to my old iPhone 4.

I've always preferred an iPhone with Android tablet. I like to mess around with Android but need a phone to just do simple things.

So I can root, rom, overclock etc etc. and if it's not working exactly how I like its not a big deal.

I actually like Honeycomb. Considering the only difference between honeycomb and ICS is swipe to close apps and different settings menu I don't really see what's to not like. Huge leap from gingerbread IMO.

I have an iPad 2 which is nice but it lacks in the customization I prefer in a "toy".

There's no apps on the iPhone that I need that I can't get on Android. Non-removable batteries and lack of memory slot are unacceptable. And there is no iPhone like the Galaxy Note.

On the other hand, the iPad has quite a lot of things that interest me that I don't think I can get on Android.

And #1 is the 4:3 retina screen.

But if there's an A4 Android tablet with a 4:3 retina screen, I will probably switch. Too bad, magazines should support Android.

Pretty much like the above, greatly prefer my GSII to my iPhones, however Apple still has the edge imo in regards to the tablets, though now with ICS and Jelly Bean the new Android tabs are really sweet. Loved the new Nexus tab, only thing that held me back was no micro-sd slot.

iPad is the best designed tablet and I can fully rely on the stability of iOS to do some serious work on. Other tablets don't even compare and unfortunately ICS runs sluggish on Android tablets and aren't as smooth as they are on the phones. I use my iPad LTE on the road more than I do with my MacBook Air 11 2012 i7 which pretty much stays docked to a Thunderbolt display at home.

When coupled with the Logitech Ultrathin keyboard, it becomes the ultimate productvity device in its class especially with apps such Quick Office and Notability. I've went on business trips for an entire week relying soley on the ipad and left my worklaptop and even MacBook Air at home. The retina display is a huge plus and makes reading emails and working on documents all day on the go a great experience. And when the work day is over, I just take it off the keyboard and watch Netflix or anime off of Crunchyroll. If I have access to an Apple TV, I can easily watch it on the big screen.

Now on the phone side, it is a much different story. The Galaxy S3 one ups the iPhone with the camera, battery life, screen size, LTE speed, and other functions that I personaly need that the iPhone 4S (which is still a great phone) doesn't have which is important because I spend 80% of my time on the go vs stopping at a desk or flat surface to have an opportunity to pysically type on. I can leave all mobile devices at home and take the Galaxy S3 with me and I can survive with that alone. But having the large screen size of the iPad and keyboard makes it a great device to compliment it.

Try reading an epub book on an iPad, then the same book on an Android tablet.

That's all you need to know that iPad is a better tablet.

soulreaver99 said:

When coupled with the Logitech Ultrathin keyboard, it becomes the ultimate productvity device in its class especially with apps such Quick Office and Notability. I've went on business trips for an entire week relying soley on the ipad and left my worklaptop and even MacBook Air at home. The retina display is a huge plus and makes reading emails and working on documents all day on the go a great experience. And when the work day is over, I just take it off the keyboard and watch Netflix or anime off of Crunchyroll. If I have access to an Apple TV, I can easily watch it on the big screen. it.

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The "ultimate" productivity device wouldn't choke when you plugged a mouse in after the keyboard.

I have both but rarely use the iPad. I have a 2 though.

phones are alot closer but nothing beats the ipad as a tablet

all the other droid tablets are trash

cynics said:

The "ultimate" productivity device wouldn't choke when you plugged a mouse in after the keyboard.

I have both but rarely use the iPad. I have a 2 though.

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aside from games and posisible art, why would you need a mouse when you can use the touch screen? I don't need a mouse to send emails and work on Word documents, power point presenations and Excel spreadsheets. Everyone has different uses.

soulreaver99 said:

aside from games and posisible art, why would you need a mouse when you can use the touch screen? I don't need a mouse to send emails and work on Word documents, power point presenations and Excel spreadsheets. Everyone has different uses.

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When I connect the tablet to a projector and need to stand near the screen for a presentation a mouse is very handy. Or if I'm in a hotel I can plug the tablet into an hdmi port and lay on the bed with wireless mouse and keyboard. And like you said, games and art.

Pretty much every time I have it connected too a tv I don't want to be looking at the screen. If I'm doing that what's the point? Watching YouTube videos? That's not productive.

NbinHD said:

Personally I believe it is because of the Android tablet app fragmentation. Most of the tablet apps on Android are just up-sized phone apps, and they look all warped and stretched. And the fact that generally the iPad is lot nicer of tablet.

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The problem with Android apps on tablets is that Android phones are generally used in portrait orientation. Android tablets seemed to be designed to be used in landscape orientation. It's such a pain when I launch an app and it defaults to portrait orientation with no option to set it to landscape. You see, I use an Asus Transformer tablet with a keyboard dock. I generally always have it docked and it docks in landscape orientation only. When an app only launches in portrait, it's not worth using because you either have to turn the tablet and have no access to the keyboard or you have to strain your neck looking at the screen.

When I bought my tablet last year, I chose the Transformer only because there is no keyboard dock for the iPad that comes anywhere close to being as good as the keyboard dock for the Transformer. There was absolutely no comparison. I do a lot of typing while using my tablet and the keyboard dock for the Transformer just blew me away. I use my tablet as a near replacement for my laptop. It does about 75% of what I want to do with my laptop. I would say that I use my Transformer tablet 75% of the time and my laptop only 25% of the time. I doubt the iPad would be as useful and be such a good near replacement for my PC with the lack of a decent keyboard dock.

LIVEFRMNYC said:

My guess is that people don't use their tablets as much as their phones. But I have yet to hear this as a explanation from anyone.

Just hearing mutiple reasons one ditched an iPhone, I'm just curious as why they would want to deal with those same reasons on an iPad.

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Because they want a good PHONE and would rather leave apps running on a bigger screen (iPad). The iPhone excels with apps but lets face it it's nicer running them on a larger screen, some people think the iPhone sucks at being a phone though, take away the apps and it's not great (poor reception is just one reason - since I switched I can hold calls much better in places that the iPhone would leave me constantly redialing in as just one example).

Now my phone is crystal clear even in weak signal areas, I have fewer apps (it's not Android) but I have the ones I really would miss on a phone and I can understand why then I may want an iPad at home for handy app-goodness.

P.S. Skype strangely also has much clearer voice calls with far less breakup than was the case on my old iPhone4.

Stuntman06 said:

The problem with Android apps on tablets is that Android phones are generally used in portrait orientation. Android tablets seemed to be designed to be used in landscape orientation. It's such a pain when I launch an app and it defaults to portrait orientation with no option to set it to landscape. You see, I use an Asus Transformer tablet with a keyboard dock. I generally always have it docked and it docks in landscape orientation only. When an app only launches in portrait, it's not worth using because you either have to turn the tablet and have no access to the keyboard or you have to strain your neck looking at the screen.

When I bought my tablet last year, I chose the Transformer only because there is no keyboard dock for the iPad that comes anywhere close to being as good as the keyboard dock for the Transformer. There was absolutely no comparison. I do a lot of typing while using my tablet and the keyboard dock for the Transformer just blew me away. I use my tablet as a near replacement for my laptop. It does about 75% of what I want to do with my laptop. I would say that I use my Transformer tablet 75% of the time and my laptop only 25% of the time. I doubt the iPad would be as useful and be such a good near replacement for my PC with the lack of a decent keyboard dock.

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True, I guess it all depends of everyone's needs.

The main reason is poor app quality and selection as most Android tablet apps are upsized phone apps.
Also poor build quality, reliability, and support.
Inferior screens.
No LTE except for one that I can think of.
Terrible interface that is different for the sake of being different.

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Stuntman06 said:

I doubt the iPad would be as useful and be such a good near replacement for my PC with the lack of a decent keyboard dock.

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If only there were a zillion keyboard solutions for the iPad.