Mobile OSs Android is more amazing than I thought

[TechRunner]

As someone who used Android for a decade before coming back to iOS late last year, I do see why the Apple ecosystem is such a draw for people. Having said that, I had no issues using Macs and iPads and having an Android phone and a Garmin watch. There were apps that gave me the connectivity between platforms I needed.

The biggest issue for me today is being stuck with one vendor for my phone as Apple has slowed innovation in that space to a crawl in the last few years. Hopefully things will get a bit more lively starting with the 17 Air.

 

[Andy_2341]

It isn’t flawless. For example, visited links don’t synchronize between devices on Safari, which has been bugging me since forever. And whenever I want to use iCloud tabs, they haven’t synchronized yet, and I have to wait some indefinite amount of time. (Non-)Synchronization of Apple Mail status has been a running joke for many years.

I jump between my iPhone and my Macbook Air all day using iCloud tabs so I can pick things up no matter which device is with me. Visited links show up in history on both of my devices for safari and everything syncs just fine. I can change it on the mac and then open my phone to the same tab group and it instantly looks the same. I don't know what you mean by mail status though.

 

[kp98077]

is there a way on android, to not have green bubles show up on an iphone??

 

[bige12]

I say the Samsung galaxy phones are ok, I just don’t like the keyboard on the android phone, to just seem too small and harder to type.

For android beta they only allow certain amount of people join - and once that sign up period is close you are out of luck

Apple beta- they allow anyone to try beta software

 

[bige12]

I think Apple is quicker on security updates then android

 

[Ghost31]

I’m a huge Apple fan boy and I’m not offended one bit if someone here likes android. Why? If you’re a lover of technology, you like everything

I haven’t used android since the early days probably like 2011 but as far as I’ve heard, they really stepped it up and I’m glad they did. And from what I hear, it’s not as hard as people think to switch over to android from iPhone and still be able to use your stuff. They have an Apple Music app and the Apple TV app and migration tools for your photos and stuff.

 

[Mcrumors David]

My iPhone 7's battery kept expanding and I got it replaced twice already (with fake batteries, as it turns out, because the battery health was 140% when I checked according to iMazing) and I need to use a Nano sim with this number that I use, so I bought a phone I've never even heard of, which is Samsung Galaxy 20e and it's on Android 11 (released 5 years ago) and well, they already had dynamic wallpapers etc. Anyway, I need this phone for calling only, but anyway, I played around and I discovered you can make secure folders and hide those from view and you can set it so the folder would be only opened with a different PIN code, pattern or with a password and once again, you can HIDE IT completely + you can share it between multiple users in your phone.

Android 9 on Motorola was the newest OS I've tried before and it didn't have such feature. I think it's amazing and mind-blowing and Apple would need such feature tbh. You can literally put any files, notes, photos, apps in those folders.

So much better than this "Hidden" thing on the iPhone. And I'm surprised by how fast the phone is and how snappy it is (I bought it a week ago with a new battery. It was $35 which was cheaper than replacing iPhone 7's battery yet again).

I am honestly just blown away. I made this thread, because I know most people haven't really tried Androids on here for a long time. Now Android 11 is the newest version I've ever used and it still has more features than iOS 18. I've always dreamt of having such hidden folder and I think it's absolutely needed. Especially if you have a jealous partner for example or are in an abusive relationship.

I use an iPhone 2G for calling

 

[iHorseHead]

I think Apple is quicker on security updates then android

Not really. Google is pretty fast too + many updates come from the Play Store and Android is more secure imo.
You can even choose the icons for your folders and rename them 😨
Just created a folder called "Document Viewer" and added an icon for it and when I tap on it it asks for a pattern that I set for it (can also choose PIN code or password).
Why hasn't Apple done this?

 

[iHorseHead]

Sending you best wishes to someday find a less jealous or abusive relationship, to where you are excited about other Features beyond this one. 🫣

This is less about me and more about millions of women and men that are in such relationships with no escape. This is a real thing and Android does much better job by helping such people than iOS.
I am honestly disappointed by how far behind Apple is.

 

[star-affinity]

You mentioned FaceTime, thus you must be an American. I have never ever used FaceTime or messages. In Europe we just use WhatsApp. Even if both people have iPhones.

Not my experience at all. I see a lot of iMessage and FaceTime usage, and I’m in Europe. Of course people use WhatsApp and so on, but it’s not like FaceTime and iMessage is uncommon.

 

[myWatch]

is there a way on android, to not have green bubles show up on an iphone??

BlueBubbles - iMessage on Android, Windows, and Linux

BlueBubbles is an open-source, community-driven ecosystem of apps used to get iMessage on Android, Windows, and Linux.

bluebubbles.app

 

[Moonlight]

I just switched from a iPhone 2G to Palm OS and honestly it is amazing! tbh I never would have thought that Palm had such a great app switching environment. imho Apple is toast... in all honesty, honestly

 

[iHorseHead]

Not my experience at all. I see a lot of iMessage and FaceTime usage, and I’m in Europe. Of course people use WhatsApp and so on, but it’s not like FaceTime and iMessage is uncommon.

I've lived in 4 different EU countries. People barely use iPhones… Why would I start arguing with facts? I've lived in the EU my entire life. Even Facebook Messenger is more common than iMessage.

 

[iHorseHead]

I just switched from a iPhone 2G to Palm OS and honestly it is amazing! tbh I never would have thought that Palm had such a great app switching environment. imho Apple is toast... in all honesty, honestly

What upsets me is that people are missing the point:
I am not going to buy a brand new phone for a SIM card that I barely use. I was stunned how much BEHIND Apple is from Android 11 even when we compare it to the current iOS.

 

[iHorseHead]

I’m still stuck on the iPhone 7 thing in 2025 with a couple of knock off batteries thrown in. Of course the Galaxy runs better.lol
It’s kinda like complaining your Game Boy Color doesn’t play Switch games, then bragging that you found a $30 used Wii that does more. Cool discovery, but… maybe just, you know, upgrade the iPhone past iOS 15 first? 🤣

I am not buying a brand new phone for a SIM card that I use couple times a year. Why would I do that? My main phone is iPhone 14 with the latest version of iOS and is very behind from Android 11 that was released back in 2020, I think. Apple should be embarrassed on how they lack of basic features and basic security that could've helped a lot of people.
What I want Apple to do is to step up their game, not keep adding more pride wallpapers.

why are people missing the point? And iOS 15 was the last good and usable version. Even compared to Android 2 Apple is missing some of the features that should be there but aren't.

I was just stunned by how amazing Android is. That's it, since I also have been stuck with iOS for a long time and really hadn't tried any newer Androids.

 

[ndouglas]

I am not buying a brand new phone for a SIM card that I use couple times a year. Why would I do that? My main phone is iPhone 14 with the latest version of iOS and is very behind from Android 11 that was released back in 2020, I think. Apple should be embarrassed on how they lack of basic features and basic security that could've helped a lot of people.
What I want Apple to do is to step up their game, not keep adding more pride wallpapers.

why are people missing the point? And iOS 15 was the last good and usable version. Even compared to Android 2 Apple is missing some of the features that should be there but aren't.

I was just stunned by how amazing Android is. That's it, since I also have been stuck with iOS for a long time and really hadn't tried any newer Androids.

So… fair enough, you found an amazing feature of the hidden or passworded folders… since i posted about that I did think more about how it could indeed be useful in various ways so I’m not knocking that at all…
…
at the same time it’s a little confusing, your original post made it seem like you had gone from an iphone7 to an android / samsung newer device. (newer than iphone 7 but still semi-older)… but now you suddenly have an iphone 14 as your “main phone”?
Anyway, good point that yes android has a few (or a lot, arguably) of stuff iphone doesn’t, but it’s interesting to learn after your OP that you don’t use your amazing — older but new to you and newer than iPhone 7— android phone as your main device. why not? something doesn’t add up.

just curious… maybe people are “missing the point” since it’s unclear what your point is, or at least what your day to day scenario is, i.e. why you need a separate phone “for calling only.” most people as far as i know don’t have such usage…

Partly this subject interests me because i spent about a week with a broken iphone 13 mini and semi-seriously looked into samsung and motorola phones for ~$100, $150, $200… what struck me as “amazing” was the low cost, but then it’s hard to measure a price for aspects like mandatory use of Google software at so many levels, which is in my view not trustworthy for my personal or financial data.
After that week i decided the daily cost to me of losing icloud for my yellow Notes app files, apple pay convenience, imessage sync across laptop-tablet-phone-watch, and other reasons too numerous to recall immediately…was worth $400 to just replace my same phone.

So yeah it’s a little sad to think i could have had a phone with more “features” for $100 or $150, but ultimately i try to think of it as $400 being half as much as most newer model iphones.

 

[ZZ9pluralZalpha]

The wisdom of Steve Jobs: "We have to let go of this notion that for Apple to win, Microsoft [Android] has to lose. We have to embrace the notion that for Apple to win, Apple has to do a really good job!"

 

[-=Hot|Ice=-]

I'm ditching my S25 Ultra for an iPhone. I'm done with Android.

 

[thebart]

The only thing I don't like about Android is when it comes to customization and creativity. I guess I've never been a creative person, but when I watch videos on Youtube about homescreen customization, there is that one part of the video that gets into something I don't understand and the rest of the video just falls on deaf ears. Bring up that KWPG app and everything else might as well be like speaking in a different language.

Other than that, I pretty much like everything else. I like the open source of it, and it feels less boring than IOS.

You stumbled into the deep end of Android customization. That's for people who want to do a complete makeover of their homescreen and make it look like almost anything you want.

For most people, getting a 3rd party launcher is enough. I like to use that rather than whatever launcher that comes with the device since it's more customizable and it's portable across brands.

 

[VaZ]

Knockoffs are so funny in my home town

 

[macfacts]

I've never tried OnePlus. What features did it have?

They have Android security updates the same month they are released for pixel phones.

 

[Mr_Ed]

Honest question to those with Android experience.
How do you handle backing up your phone?

Apple can apparently create an image of some sort and transfer it to iCloud, but still refuses to show me the courtesy to simply throw that same image on my NAS. I have to use a computer application to make a backup.

I ask as a long time (30-something years) Apple consumer who now spends inordinate amounts of time cursing at things that either don’t work correctly, or are completely illogical in my iOS/iPadOS devices.

 

[AussieStu]

i have a iphone 15 which is the worst iphone release in my opinion. Only iphone I ever regretted.
I use a flagship Android as a work phone. Parts of the android OS has some features I dont exactly need in iOS but do wonder how or why Apple drags its feet for some basic features.

in saying that much of the adroid features are fairly gimmicky. When issues arise it can be a Head F on the android.
iOS is better streamlined. Is Android better than iOS? No. Its a different way to do the same thing. Just some android ways are tedious and unpolished. But see what they are driving to do.

Apples iOS has some stupid limitations but as a product to just get a job done.. Yeah i'll choose the iphone.

For my comment with the iphone 15 being a bad phone.
The used a old processor. limited ram and old screen.
They upgraded the camera but the CPU and RAM struggles to process the photos.
So even from new I would say it was the slowest phone I had experienced.

I did look at changing to a Google Pixel. But the Android OS puts me off. So I might update to the iphone 17 Pro depending if its got anything worthwhile. Otherwise I may swing to android till apple brings out a product worth the price tag.

 

[Astuces iOS]

TEAM IOS here… I don’t really like android… look at their tablets too… iPad wins… iOS works very well with every OS… Android will work well with chromeos but Chromebooks aren’t really good… Macs are good !! Definitely iOS wins !

 

[Heat_Fan89]

i have a iphone 15 which is the worst iphone release in my opinion. Only iphone I ever regretted.
I use a flagship Android as a work phone. Parts of the android OS has some features I dont exactly need in iOS but do wonder how or why Apple drags its feet for some basic features.

That's an easy answer:

1) They are the top global brand in the world for smartphones.
2) If you want iOS that's your only choice.
3) Smartphone technology is well past mature.
4) They now have to drip feed new features and convince their customers they thought of it first.
5) Drip feeding features is the only way to get people to pony up for another purchase.

You know the iPhone has hit peak maturity when the most exciting thing about the new iPhone's the past several years were the excitement of the new colors. That is why the hype surrounds the iPhone Air, "Awe Dropping".

Yeah, it's still a freaking smartphone that makes calls, can receive and send messages, runs apps and takes pictures like every other smartphone.