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0000757

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Dec 16, 2011
3,894
850
Hardly any Android phones appeal to me the way the iPhone does, but one device, the LG G2, I'm almost in love with it the same way I am the iPhone.

My upgrade is in April (which is somewhat far, but still close enough), and maybe I'll change my mind or something nicer will come around, but I'm curious. I've been in the Apple Ecosystem for a LOOOONG time. I've always had iPods, including a Nano, 2 touches, and now 2 different iPhone models. I've only had 2 other android devices before, a Nexus 7 and Motorola Droid (off-contract). Here are my questions:

Most of my friends have iPhones and therefore use iMessage. With the new share everything plans I guess texting plans aren't a major concern, but how are people getting on without using iMessage?

As far as iTunes, how is everyone syncing their music library? How well does Google Music play with iTunes? I would still plan to use iTunes as my main music service.

Is there anything from iOS you miss?
 

Fanaticalism

macrumors 6502a
Apr 16, 2013
908
158
Hardly any Android phones appeal to me the way the iPhone does, but one device, the LG G2, I'm almost in love with it the same way I am the iPhone.

My upgrade is in April (which is somewhat far, but still close enough), and maybe I'll change my mind or something nicer will come around, but I'm curious. I've been in the Apple Ecosystem for a LOOOONG time. I've always had iPods, including a Nano, 2 touches, and now 2 different iPhone models. I've only had 2 other android devices before, a Nexus 7 and Motorola Droid (off-contract). Here are my questions:

Most of my friends have iPhones and therefore use iMessage. With the new share everything plans I guess texting plans aren't a major concern, but how are people getting on without using iMessage?

As far as iTunes, how is everyone syncing their music library? How well does Google Music play with iTunes? I would still plan to use iTunes as my main music service.

Is there anything from iOS you miss?

Group messaging can be a pain, but if that isn't something you do on the norm, you won't see an impact. If you do, most people use Whatsap

I use dropbox for my photo sharing, I know others use google drive.

If you use itunes for music, iSyncr and Doubletwist are good options.

Ipad for apple tv

That's pretty much it.

Do I miss my iPhone? Nope, not really.

My house consists of an iphone5, 2 ipad minis, a few apple tv's and a couple macs. I went from an iphone 5 to a galaxy s4
 

nd3eb

macrumors member
Jun 15, 2011
53
0
I just got the lg g2, my first ever android phone. I have had iPhones for 5+ years.

The phone is a beast. The switch to android takes time to get used to. Group messaging IS a pain, but other than that I'm liking it more every day.

I highly recommend the lg g2, it's a powerful and beautiful phone.
 

tbayrgs

macrumors 604
Jul 5, 2009
7,343
4,867
Hardly any Android phones appeal to me the way the iPhone does, but one device, the LG G2, I'm almost in love with it the same way I am the iPhone.

My upgrade is in April (which is somewhat far, but still close enough), and maybe I'll change my mind or something nicer will come around, but I'm curious. I've been in the Apple Ecosystem for a LOOOONG time. I've always had iPods, including a Nano, 2 touches, and now 2 different iPhone models. I've only had 2 other android devices before, a Nexus 7 and Motorola Droid (off-contract). Here are my questions:

Most of my friends have iPhones and therefore use iMessage. With the new share everything plans I guess texting plans aren't a major concern, but how are people getting on without using iMessage?

I do have unlimited text messaging so I'm getting along just fine without iMessage. The stock messaging in Android is barebones and limits the size of MMS messages but just use any of the third party offerings (my personal favorite is Textra) and you're good to go. My primary concern was regarding texting my kids as they use iMessage on their iPads when they want to text me but since ditching all of my iOS devices, I just have them use Hangouts (can use it as a FaceTime replacement as well).

As far as iTunes, how is everyone syncing their music library? How well does Google Music play with iTunes? I would still plan to use iTunes as my main music service.

I still use iTunes to manage all of my media (music and video) but do not purchase video as the DRM won't allow playback on non-Apple gear, just make digital copies on my own. For music, I keep my entire library store locally on my HTC One (just drag and drop from my iTunes folder to the music folder on my phone) but also have uploaded my entire library to Google Play Music, so it's readily available anywhere/anytime. Just install the Google Music Manager onto your computer and you can set it up to automatically upload to Google Music anything newly added to your iTunes library. I don't generally do playlists so I don't need to sync, but as Fanaticalism mentioned, iSyncr and DoubleTwist are good options to mimic that functionality as iTunes does with the iPhone. I also subscribe to Google Play Music All Access so I all of my music listening is available via a single app (Google Play Music).

Is there anything from iOS you miss?
Integration with my iPhoto library. Getting photos from my HTC One to my photo library is a snap, actually works better than Photostream (automatically upload photos to Dropbox when I'm on Wifi, then a simple Automator script on my Mac imports any new photos into my iPhoto library.) The problem is where I could easily browse recent photos via Photostream and easily sync any other photos from my library to my iDevice, I have to manually move any photos that I want to see either into Dropbox or locally onto my Android phone. My photo library is far too large to keep a copy on Dropbox or any cloud solution. This was something I liked about iOS on my iPad, still working on a feasible solution for my Nexus 7.
 

JackieInCo

Suspended
Jul 18, 2013
5,178
1,601
Colorado
I guess when all is said and done, I just use my Nexus 4 as a phone and my iPad Mini, 4S and Nexus 7 for everything else.

I have nearly all of my music on Google Music now except for about 200 songs that I bought on iTunes that were never available in iTunes + so the DRM was never stripped out. A few days ago on my Nexus 7, I was using bluetooth to stream music from Google Music to my car stereo while out driving. Works good.

As far as what I miss in iOS on my Androids: I miss a lot of the actual tablet versions that I have on my iPad that simply are not available on my Nexus 7. Apps such as SiriusXM, Fizz Weather, 9News, and several others, apps where there are no alternative apps to use.

I have thousands of TV shows purchased in iTunes and over 200 HD movies purchased in iTunes so I will always have Apple in my life.
 

Zplit

macrumors member
Aug 28, 2011
64
0
I try every iPhone's and try few androids. Gs2,HTC one,gs3,gs4 and always go back to iPhone's till I got my hands on my LG g2 ohhh man best phone I have ever try. Im in love with this phone. For the 1st time I can say I love my android phone. Only thing I miss about my iPhone is how smooth the phone runs. But im not going back. Way to happy with my LG g2.
 

Brazzan

macrumors member
Jul 11, 2009
86
18
I've just got an LG G2. It's only a few days old, so I'm hardly an android expert, but these are my experiences so far (some of which are fairly minor) :
-it's light and fits in my pocket really easily
-the screen is fabulous
-from my limited testing so far, the camera seems better than my wife's iPhone 5, although I haven't compared to a 5s
-using SwiftKey for swipe typing is a revelation - I find it easier than the iPhone keyboard
- I used doubletwist to as air sync with iTunes on my mac. It works, but it is clunky and inelegant. For example, it keeps trying to find music on my time machine backup drive.
-other apps have similar minor annoyances. For example, typing this reply via tapatalk was greatly complicated by the app not going back to where I left it when I switched apps, which made it look like the reply had gone missing. Overall, there just isn't that feeling that the developers care about usability that you get with the iPhone.
- another example: on a couple of apps, the pop - up keyboard obscures the OK button to enter the thing you've just typed. Really? Have you tested this thing at all?
-I'm still getting used to the back buttons, so I'll suspend judgement on those
- a minor gotcha that isn't really android's fault: if (like me) you live in an iThing heavy house, make sure you turn off imessage on all your other machines, or any attempts to message you from an iPhone will get imessaged to them, rather than sent to your phone by sms
-it will take you a couple of days to de-stupid the default settings on your apps
-most of the basics (contacts, calendar) carried over well, but then I used Google for those anyway
-battery life is good: I still had 22% left after 24 hours of heavy use on my first test day
-the notification light is annoying when you're trying to sleep!

Update:

- I really miss Mailbox. Boomerang, which is the nearest Android equivalent has been quite flakey for me.
 
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Tsuchiya

macrumors 68020
Jun 7, 2008
2,310
372
Hardly any Android phones appeal to me the way the iPhone does, but one device, the LG G2, I'm almost in love with it the same way I am the iPhone.

My upgrade is in April (which is somewhat far, but still close enough), and maybe I'll change my mind or something nicer will come around, but I'm curious. I've been in the Apple Ecosystem for a LOOOONG time. I've always had iPods, including a Nano, 2 touches, and now 2 different iPhone models. I've only had 2 other android devices before, a Nexus 7 and Motorola Droid (off-contract). Here are my questions:

Most of my friends have iPhones and therefore use iMessage. With the new share everything plans I guess texting plans aren't a major concern, but how are people getting on without using iMessage?

As far as iTunes, how is everyone syncing their music library? How well does Google Music play with iTunes? I would still plan to use iTunes as my main music service.

Is there anything from iOS you miss?

I mostly use Whatsapp and Spotify so couldn't really comment on your first two questions, but as to what I miss about iOS?

Email

Calendar

iCloud in general

iOS aesthetics

Out of box readiness. Android takes a lot of messing with to get "right".

Although I'm quite content with my S4, I won't deny that I'm craving another iPhone...
 

flybub

macrumors regular
Sep 17, 2011
182
43
I mostly use Whatsapp and Spotify so couldn't really comment on your first two questions, but as to what I miss about iOS?

Email

Calendar

iCloud in general

iOS aesthetics

Out of box readiness. Android takes a lot of messing with to get "right".

Although I'm quite content with my S4, I won't deny that I'm craving another iPhone...

I agree with every word you posted
 

spinedoc77

macrumors G4
Jun 11, 2009
11,394
5,257
Hardly any Android phones appeal to me the way the iPhone does, but one device, the LG G2, I'm almost in love with it the same way I am the iPhone.

My upgrade is in April (which is somewhat far, but still close enough), and maybe I'll change my mind or something nicer will come around, but I'm curious. I've been in the Apple Ecosystem for a LOOOONG time. I've always had iPods, including a Nano, 2 touches, and now 2 different iPhone models. I've only had 2 other android devices before, a Nexus 7 and Motorola Droid (off-contract). Here are my questions:

Most of my friends have iPhones and therefore use iMessage. With the new share everything plans I guess texting plans aren't a major concern, but how are people getting on without using iMessage?

As far as iTunes, how is everyone syncing their music library? How well does Google Music play with iTunes? I would still plan to use iTunes as my main music service.

Is there anything from iOS you miss?

I have the LG G2, I ditched my iphone 5 after the atrocity that is iOS7 came out. It's decent, beautiful screen, but a bit laggy, the knock on feature doesn't work at times, and the proximity sensor is wonky. I'm also beginning to dislike the rear placed buttons. My biggest regret is losing Siri, I can't function anywhere near as efficient without a personal assistant.

I got it for cheap on CL though, so I may just Gazelle it and pick up the Nexus 5, now that they say it will have an upgrade option to a 3000mah battery. Hopefully that will last me until next year when hopefully Apple releases a bigger iphone.
 

Sounds Good

macrumors 68000
Jul 8, 2007
1,692
57
How do you guys feel about "auto correct" on Android vs iPhone? I like the iPhone auto correct since it allows me to type very quickly, almost without looking at the keyboard. I tried typing just as quickly on an Android phone and I could barely read what I had typed.
 

flybub

macrumors regular
Sep 17, 2011
182
43
How do you guys feel about "auto correct" on Android vs iPhone? I like the iPhone auto correct since it allows me to type very quickly, almost without looking at the keyboard. I tried typing just as quickly on an Android phone and I could barely read what I had typed.

For me the iPhone auto correct is far greater than any android keyboard. I can remember typing out emails on my iPhone while having a conversation with my wife and usually never have to proof read what I typed. I honestly think that it had to do with how crammed the keyboard was. It did not require much movement with my thumbs where as with my s4 my thumbs have to move much further and I'm not as accurate. It's very strange but the iPhone was far more accurate for me.
 

nooaah

macrumors 68000
Sep 3, 2009
1,600
165
Philadelphia, PA
Picked up the Note 3 today as my business travel phone (leave the iPhone at home, go on the road with the N3...And when I'm home, the N3 goes in a drawer and the iP5s goes in the pocket).

As much as I griped about the shortcomings of the Ip5s as a travel companion and business tool is how much I'm singing the praises for the N3 without having really set up much of anything. The battery is awesome, the screen gives me way more information at a glance, and the multitasking is better (more of a byproduct of the big screen).

iPhone is still king TO ME for taking pics, organizing pics, portability, RELIABILITY, simplicity, management of music, music quality, integration, app quality, and SIMPLICITY.

Moving over my contacts and bookmarks to the N3 was easy. The OS obviously isn't as intuitive as iOS, but you can do a lot more with it if you take the time to read up and learn. Just don't use any of Samsung's software or LG's to move your data over. Take the time and do manually what Google can't do for you. Trust me.
 

macrem

macrumors 65816
Mar 11, 2008
1,433
100
I have nearly all of my music on Google Music now except for about 200 songs that I bought on iTunes that were never available in iTunes + so the DRM was never stripped out.
Have you tried using Match? Match should be able to match the vast majority of your DRM songs, then in theory after these songs are matched, you could delete them locally then re-download non-DRM versions of the same songs. I used this method to upgrade my library of songs with a bitrate below 256kbps.
 
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Sounds Good

macrumors 68000
Jul 8, 2007
1,692
57
For me the iPhone auto correct is far greater than any android keyboard. I can remember typing out emails on my iPhone while having a conversation with my wife and usually never have to proof read what I typed. I honestly think that it had to do with how crammed the keyboard was. It did not require much movement with my thumbs where as with my s4 my thumbs have to move much further and I'm not as accurate. It's very strange but the iPhone was far more accurate for me.
Believe it or not, this is one of the big reasons why I keep holding off from switching to Android (the other big reason is iMessage). I do a lot of typing on my phone, and I love that with the iPhone I can just type away without having to go back to make too many corrections. I feel like with Android I'd have to make A LOT of corrections, and I'd really rather not do that. Are *any* Android keyboards as good as the iPhone in the auto-correct department? Or not really?

----------

Picked up the Note 3 today as my business travel phone (leave the iPhone at home, go on the road with the N3...And when I'm home, the N3 goes in a drawer and the iP5s goes in the pocket).

iPhone is still king TO ME for taking pics...
How much difference is there in picture quality between the two phones? Indoor pics? Outdoor pics?

Thanks!
 

flybub

macrumors regular
Sep 17, 2011
182
43
Believe it or not, this is one of the big reasons why I keep holding off from switching to Android (the other big reason is iMessage). I do a lot of typing on my phone, and I love that with the iPhone I can just type away without having to go back to make too many corrections. I feel like with Android I'd have to make A LOT of corrections, and I'd really rather not do that. Are *any* Android keyboards as good as the iPhone in the auto-correct department? Or not really?

----------


How much difference is there in picture quality between the two phones? Indoor pics? Outdoor pics?

Thanks!

SwiftKey predictions are very good, however, I find myself reading the predictions more instead of typing away on the keyboard. So I may only have to press 10 keys to make a sentence in swiftkey but with my iPhone I was faster to just type it out. SwiftKey is a great keyboard as well as Kii and Swype but the iPhone keyboard is still king (personal preference). I've never found a keyboard on Android to match the iPhone. There are emulators you can download but most of them have their bugs, some even have ads.
 

gizze

macrumors newbie
Apr 13, 2010
10
0
I have been a mac user for the last 10 years, maybe more, iMacs, Macbooks, iPad, appleTVs and Iphone since the 3G, so around 5-6 years.

I thought the iPhone 5 was not worth upgrading to so waited for the next one, the 5S arrived and I just think that is a piss take in regards to 'a new phone' (my wife has one).

Also lightening port annoyed me, dropping video out and the new design meant my Meridian system which cost me serious money, would not work with the 5.
Not a problem as I just dug out an old iPad for that job, but also meant I felt I had the opportunity to break away from the iPhone.

So decided to have a play with the Xperia Z1 and keep my 4s, best of both worlds.

My first week with the Z1 and the iPhone is being sold.

The Z1 makes ios7 seem to restricted and dated imho, all the things I hated about ios7 I can do on the Z1 it seems.
Also, I was really worried about the size, but it is the main reason I love it, doesn't feel bigger in my pocket, but the extra screen real estate makes such a massive difference, I now find my self using the phone because I really enjoy it rather than finding it convenient when out and about.

Also with all the car makers jumping on board with Mirrorlink I can see Android suiting me better, app mode from apple is crap imho, being able to mirror your phone and use the apps you want is much better.


I am sure I will go back to an iPhone, but I want to see apple move things on again, ios8 needs to pick things up, they used to be real innovators and right now ios feels a long way behind imho.
Also, they need a bigger screen now too, even if it is a 4.7" which is thin, it makes a hell if a difference to every day usage.


More than happy to come back, but it has to be better, being 'it's apple' just doesn't cut it anymore.


Still excited about the new Macs on 22nd though, my Air is now 2.5 years old so hoping the 13" retina will have much better battery as I will bite with that.
 

kenknotts

macrumors 6502
Sep 23, 2013
276
0
I am sure I will go back to an iPhone, but I want to see apple move things on again, ios8 needs to pick things up, they used to be real innovators and right now ios feels a long way behind imho.
Also, they need a bigger screen now too, even if it is a 4.7" which is thin, it makes a hell if a difference to every day usage.

Apple is the most valuable company in the world and the 5s has sold somewhere between 32 and 34 MILLION units in under a month. Analysts suggest It would have been well over 37 million if it werent for the shortages. Apple doesnt NEED to do anything. If so many people were dead set on not buying an iPhone until Apple released a larger one, they would speak with their wallets and not buy a 4 inch iPhone. As it stands, the 5s is outselling any other iPhone in the past and no Android phone has come anywhere close to those sales number.

To answer the OP, I have all Apple products in the house. iMac, Macbook Air, iPad mini and Apple TV. Sure, there are apps and workarounds to make your Android phone play nice with your Apple products but its nowhere near as intuitive as it is with an iPhone.
 
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