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Android or iPhone?

A

AppleFan360

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Jan 26, 2008
2,217
735
What is the appeal of the Android phones?

Has anyone switched from the iPhone to the Android? Why?

I'm really interested in hearing from those who moved away from the iPhone for the Android. I have used the Android phones and am personally not impressed by the interface.

Thanks.
 
The appeal is much like the appeal to windows in the area of personal computing. Customizable, tons of OEMs, more choice overall. Also, not everyone likes AT&T.

They're not for me, personally, but people like android for whatever reason. My logic is, as these phone plans cost essentially the same, that the iPhone is a much better choice if you aren't hampered by obligations to a carrier that doesn't carry it.

I would most definitely have a droid if I wasn't on AT&T. (been on ATT/cingular for at least 7 years now).
 
I don't like Android at all. The UI is not as good as iPhone. I like their notification system better than iPhone, but that's about it.
 
I switched to android and it all boiled down to costs of contracts. For two iPhones, I was paying $210 monthly on att. I'm now paying $145 monthly for two evos on sprint. My wife and I were talking the other day about how we miss the simplicity of the iPhone, especially the availability of car-kits and ease of syncing. But since we don't make the money that we used to, the sacrifice benefits our entire family. Overall, we are happy with our evos, and especially the lower associated cost. When we have more disposable income, I see us coming back, though.
 
^^^^You mean this isn't an original thread?!?:eek:

Chris Blount said:
What is the appeal of the Android phones?

Has anyone switched from the iPhone to the Android? Why?

I'm really interested in hearing from those who moved away from the iPhone for the Android. I have used the Android phones and am personally not impressed by the interface.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Perhaps you'd get a better response from an Android forum? Don't you think that the majority of the people in the iPhone forums are going to be iPhone users?

I don't think that you'll get a fair representation of responses here.

It's like going to New York and wanting to ask Red Sox fans questions..... ;)

:)
 
Chris Blount said:
What is the appeal of the Android phones?

Has anyone switched from the iPhone to the Android? Why?

I'm really interested in hearing from those who moved away from the iPhone for the Android. I have used the Android phones and am personally not impressed by the interface.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

What is the appeal of the Android phones?

Verizon is far better where I moved to. So I'm kind of stuck with Android as it's the best smartphone option on Verizon. To me I prefer the simplicity/UI of the iPhone far more. I feel like Android is a beta product, too many bugs/issues.

Has anyone switched from the iPhone to the Android? Why?

Yes. Because AT&T is horrible in my area and I need reliability.


Things I like:

Notifications
Power widget to have 1 button to press to turn on/off wifi, bluetooth, gps.

Things I don't like:

UI
How every process is preloaded into the background.
Have to root to remove "bloatware/crapware" that is preinstalled by Verizon.
Sluggishness of the UI
Lock Screen
Each handset I've tried felt like terrible build quality (Samsung Fascinate, Droid Incredible, Droid X and Droid 2)


I liked the iPhone because it was simple and just worked. I also like the iTunes integration and the app store. Also how easy the iPhone is to take back to stock after jailbreaking. On Android its not as easy but still doable. So for me, the iPhone is the best device, but unfortunately AT&T just doesn't work very well where I live.

Hope this helps.
 
daneoni said:
...and another one...here we go again...
Click to expand...

Surely said:
^^^^You mean this isn't an original thread?!?:eek:



Perhaps you'd get a better response from an Android forum? Don't you think that the majority of the people in the iPhone forums are going to be iPhone users?

I don't think that you'll get a fair representation of responses here.

It's like going to New York and wanting to ask Red Sox fans questions..... ;)

:)
Click to expand...
I understand but I wanted to ask the educated and most wonderful users here at MacRumors. Not thread killing detractors like on other forums. ;)

timeconsumer said:
What is the appeal of the Android phones?

Verizon is far better where I moved to. So I'm kind of stuck with Android as it's the best smartphone option on Verizon. To me I prefer the simplicity/UI of the iPhone far more. I feel like Android is a beta product, too many bugs/issues.

Has anyone switched from the iPhone to the Android? Why?

Yes. Because AT&T is horrible in my area and I need reliability.


Things I like:

Notifications
Power widget to have 1 button to press to turn on/off wifi, bluetooth, gps.

Things I don't like:

UI
How every process is preloaded into the background.
Have to root to remove "bloatware/crapware" that is preinstalled by Verizon.
Sluggishness of the UI
Lock Screen
Each handset I've tried felt like terrible build quality (Samsung Fascinate, Droid Incredible, Droid X and Droid 2)


I liked the iPhone because it was simple and just worked. I also like the iTunes integration and the app store. Also how easy the iPhone is to take back to stock after jailbreaking. On Android its not as easy but still doable. So for me, the iPhone is the best device, but unfortunately AT&T just doesn't work very well where I live.

Hope this helps.
Click to expand...
Excellent comments. Thank you.
 
I have used iPhone since it's release. I switched to android once to see what the hype was About. Less then a week later I went back to iPhone. Nothing can beat the ease and simplicity of it.
 
i have a 3gs and it has served me well as a multimedia device, not as well as a phone. i actually went from my g1 to the 3gs back to the g1.

i dont know if it really is at&t but my 3gs didnt live up to the duties of a phone and i found myself using wifi more than anything. thus i stopped paying the extra fees to use it and went back to android. i still use my 3gs just not as a phone.

the android marketplace is functional and provides many useful apps similar to itunes ones so you need not worry about that.

would i recommend switching? only if you are at the end of your contract. on the media side of things, the android doesnt do anything the iphone cant after you jailbreak. if you only use your iphone the way steve jobs intended then the androids look very attractive. if you arent above customizing your iphone the way you want, the androids dont offer much.
 
I like how the iPhone just works when I need it. Everyone I know with Android is always changing something then having to set it back. It is kind of like when I had a windows computer, I wanted to change everything but always messed up something. Since going to Mac, a few issues that I created but always super easy to use and reset.
 
i am a Verizon customer. i had the iphone on AT&T but being AT&T is the worst service in NYC i had to switch to VZ. I started with the droid and i thought i was king it was great. but after a while of using the phone and making the nice backgrounds u get tired and wish u had something simple stupid. I now have the BB 9650 its simple stupid i cant wait for the iphone to come to VZ then i will be happy. androids are great because they are open to the world but u also get a lot of junk with that. Iphone has a much better quality and is simple what do u want the phone to do for you then go out and get what is good for u.
 
Used both iPhone and Android phone extensively.

If you're a newbie, and you just want a phone for simplicity, go for iPhone.

If you want a phone for expanded functionality, go Android. (ex: replaceable battery, replaceable SD card, etc)

Benefits with Android
- You can choose from a myraid of devices from all 4 carriers in the US
- Notification system
- Widgets (believe me, this goes a long way)
- True multitasking
- Native navigation application

Benefits with iPhone
- Mature application support, as well as games
- Easy to use
- Superior camera than any other smartphone out there thus far
- Sleek design (but made of glass, your call if you want all glass phone)

Personally, I got tired of iOS, and went for a more a tweakable OS, which happens to be Android OS.
 
actually what is difficult about android? i know nothing of the programming sides of the two OSes but if one is harder to program for then thats an entirely different issue than what a normal user will do.
 
I switched from the iPhone 3G to the htc EVO 4G and love it. I switched for two reasons: AT&T service is terrible where I live (main reason) and I was bored with the iPhone after two years (secondary reason).

I agree with others about Android's notifications being (far) superior and about the iPhone's UI being a little more polished. My favorite thing about Android is the one-touch toggles for WiFi, 4G, Airplane Mode, etc. My second-favorite thing is widgets. I don't use a ton of them, but it's nice to have stuff right on the screen instead of needing to go into an app.

I don't miss the iPhone at all right now but I do expect to go back at some point in the future when I get bored with Android and can choose a carrier other than AT&T.
 
Chris Blount said:
I understand but I wanted to ask the educated and most wonderful users here at MacRumors. Not thread killing detractors like on other forums. ;)

Excellent comments. Thank you.
Click to expand...
I'd watch yourself though. We've got trolls around these parts, and I'm willing to bet that Tarzanman will show up in the next couple hours. You were warned. :D
 
I think Android and iOS are both good choices. I wish the iPhone would have that one widget that offered quick access to wi-fi, screen brightness, etc, and also Android has a much better notification system. However, it really is up to one's personal preference. :)
 
surely said:
^^^^you mean this isn't an original thread?!?:eek:



Perhaps you'd get a better response from an android forum? Don't you think that the majority of the people in the iphone forums are going to be iphone users?

I don't think that you'll get a fair representation of responses here.

It's like going to new york and wanting to ask red sox fans questions..... ;)

:)
Click to expand...

go redsox!!:d
 
Chris Blount said:
What is the appeal of the Android phones?

Has anyone switched from the iPhone to the Android? Why?

I'm really interested in hearing from those who moved away from the iPhone for the Android. I have used the Android phones and am personally not impressed by the interface.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

There numerous threads on this. But since it is being answered, yet again....
I switched from iPhone to Android. Mainly because i have T-Mobile and im not switching to AT&T and not switching to Verizon when they get it.

Loved my iPhone but was tired of being on EDGE when the phones were getting faster and better so i decided to get an Android and i got to say....i LOVE my Android phone. It has been around two years and is making huge strides and within the next year, i believe it will be just a awesome device as it is a very good device now.
Some say iPhone is easy to use as if Android isnt, but i think both are easy to use and that includes getting Apps, getting music, email, etc... Hell my notifications are far better than iPhones. No comparison there. I like my bigger screen and the phone itself is a little bigger but dont want it to get any bigger.

Will i ever get another iPhone? Dont know! Maybe. Cant say yes, cant say no.
If it comes to T-Mobile, perhaps, but it depends on how Android is doing and what Stevie has done to make iPhone better. He has some things to do while Android keeps pressing forward.
 
Last edited:
I would have been switched to an Android phone if Jailbreaking didn't exist. With Jailbreak, the iPhone is just as functional as any android phone with the exception of bluetooth file transfers(still don't understand why :mad: )

So if you plan to Jailbreak, then I would recommend the iPhone over any Android device.
 
LIVEFRMNYC said:
I would have been switched to an Android phone if Jailbreaking didn't exist. With Jailbreak, the iPhone is just as functional as any android phone with the exception of bluetooth file transfers(still don't understand why :mad: )

So if you plan to Jailbreak, then I would recommend the iPhone over any Android device.
Click to expand...

and rooting (jailbreaking equivalent) the Android would give the Android even more expanded functionality. 3G Hotspot on the fly, customize every aspect of the Android OS and its UI, tweak existing applications, overclock your phone, or underVOLT your phone for even better battery life. The undervolting/overclocking cannot be done with any iPhone, past and present. In essence, I am able to overclock my Droid X to 1.35 Ghz, with AMPLE battery life to support that speed increase.

If one is all about enhanced tweaking, Android is clearly the way to go.
 
timeconsumer said:
Things I don't like:
How every process is preloaded into the background.
Click to expand...

Eh? Are you talking about services such as weather on startup?

Have to root to remove "bloatware/crapware" that is preinstalled by Verizon.
Click to expand...

Why would you even bother to remove anything? Just don't put those apps on your homescreen.

Heck, even in the Android master app list they're all down in the V for Verizon section. It's not like they're all named starting with an A for ATT :)

At least you can choose what you see on Android homescreens, unlike iOS where we cannot remove factory apps like Stocks, but only hide them in a folder or back homepage.

Sluggishness of the UI
Click to expand...

I've never had that on my Incredible.

Lock Screen
Click to expand...

I've turned my lock screen off entirely using an app called "No Lock". Now I can turn on the screen straight to my home widgets.

Cheers!
 
How about windows phone 7, that looks better than android to me right now. Although there are a lot of missing apps right now.
 
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