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I'm not sure how competition works in the smartphone world anymore...
Excellent points.

One more point about changing mobile platforms: the Apple / Google duopoly is virtually identical, politically. Leaving the specifics to the politics forum, both companies support most of the same candidates, laws, agendas, etc. The exception of Apple claiming to care more about privacy is somewhat dubious in light of Snowden PRISM documents. This gives further weight to the "inertia" in the ecosystems you described.


I'm all for abandoning old tech, but it's asinine to say wireless headphones are the future and then ship your latest iPhone with wired headphones.
Asinine === "courage".
 
Google today announced the next-generation version of its Android operating system, which is named Oreo.

Though Pixel and Nexus owners can expect to get access to Android Oreo in the near future, owners of other Android-based smartphones will need to wait much longer, if they get the update at all. The previous version of Android, Android Nougat, is still only installed on 13.5 percent of devices despite the fact that it was released a year ago.

googleoperatingsystemdistribution.jpg

The majority of Android devices continue to run Android 5.0 Lollipop and Android 6.0 Marshmallow, released in 2014 and 2015, respectively.
The (only) thing i like in Android is its versions' names, far more humorous that those of macOS since Mavericks.
I guess there are more sweet types than cats.
 
That graph basically exemplifies one of the many reasons I didn’t like Android. Sure, new updates offer some interesting things but it doesn’t help if you can’t get them. Updates are pushed on a per carrier and per model basis so if your carrier decides your model isn’t going to get an update you don’t get it. Doesn’t matter if your device is capable of running it, you aren’t getting it.

The fact that we’re nearing the end of 2017 and the majority of android users are running an OS released in 2015 should be a telling statistic. New features (and more importantly new security updates) should be available to everyone that can run them.

With that said, I don’t care for apple’s policy that seems to be “allow iOS devices to run 1 software version past where their hardware should stop” since that tends to make devices sluggish but at least you get the majority of people running the same 1-2 versions. Gets the features to as many people as possible, makes development easier, and makes the devices more secure. Android’s system is just a nightmare.
 
yes we get years, but I am under no illusion that I would want to upgrade the iPhone for years.
My iPhone 6 is now sluggish for some apps. I have a card app that when I am at a till trying to open a points card takes an age.
Even the phone app, I take a picture,there is a delay before taking and eventually the photo displays in the small rectangle.
Would I want to upgrade again? I'm not so sure even if I could.
But Apple forces you to upgrade for example, if you get the device replaced due to battery issues.
All of my iPhones apart from the 3GS have been replaced by Apple during their lifetime.

Well, unfortunately Apple doesn't really do separate security updates, so if you don't update to the latest iOS, your phone will be vulnerable. In this case Android's model (2 version updates and security updates after that) can be occasionally better than the full iOS minus few hardware-dependent features or nothing model.
 
Actually this is false, it is 3 years from when the device first became available on the Google Store, or at least 18 months from when the Google Store last sold the device, whichever is longer.
Google's support of many Nexus devices was dismal with support ending a couple months after last availability. The amazing thing is how Google fans still push your lie.
 
Well, unfortunately Apple doesn't really do separate security updates, so if you don't update to the latest iOS, your phone will be vulnerable. In this case Android's model (2 version updates and security updates after that) can be occasionally better than the full iOS minus few hardware-dependent features or nothing model.
Apple releases updates for older OS's for a given amount of time. Particularly for older devices that cannot upgrade to a new OS due to minimum spec.
 
Apple releases updates for older OS's for a given amount of time. Particularly for older devices that cannot upgrade to a new OS due to minimum spec.

They sure didn't for the iPhone 4 once it stopped getting full iOS updates. The phone was left with a nasty hole in Safari and the fix was contained in the iOS version it didn't get. That was extra nasty due to the fact that you can't change the default browser.
 
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Fair enough, it's good to see a measured response from someone who owns devices from both platforms. I myself came from an Android background before going to Apple several years ago. I remember how there were things you could do on Android and not iOS (and still can't), and was deep into rooting and manipulating code on those devices.

It's also that experience and insight that let me know more about Android than most consumers. Your defence is actually a valid one, because to most consumers, they don't even know their device is having issues. Because of the level of quality delivered by Android, when the device crashes, freezes, slows down, or shows glitchy behaviour, it's something they accept from cheaper hardware, and don't even realize something is going wrong under the hood. I've had several people come to me with their Android devices complaining of all of the above, and then some, and upon deeper inspection, I discover things are much worse, often finding compromised devices.

A LOT of people buy Android not because of personal preference, or even because they are the cheaper alternative... Many buy them because they are uneducated consumers who get conned into it by unscrupulous sales reps who get OEM spiffs (commissions) from the likes of Samsung, LG, HTC, and their carriers, to push Android as hard as they can to make more $. I've heard sales reps make such insanely asinine claims to people, that I've actually intervened in those situations to tell the customer the truth and call out the sales person's lies.

This is one major reason Android gets pushed so hard, and not because it's a better platform, because other than "openness", there is nothing better about it.
That process you describe is exactly how my dad got pushed into buying a cheap android phone at his local Verizon store. My husband and I had instructed him to get an iPhone 5 when he asked us what to choose but somehow at the store he got talked into some godforsaken Android garbage phone. I don't even remember the model. I was pretty upset with my dad for letting himself get talked into it.

I think the higher cost of the iPhone put him off even though he could afford it. My husband and I wanted him to get an iPhone because we knew we would be constantly be getting calls for support like we do for his Windows PC (he likes to tinker and refused to get a Mac).

It served him well enough until Verizon issued an "update" a few years back that deactivated his GPS navigation app so they could force him to buy their nav service. My husband took a look at what happened and had my dad get an iPhone 5s which got him back a functioning GPS as well as a safer platform and much better hardware. My dad is still using that phone, just fine. I'll be passing him my daughter's SE at some point.
 
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Thrilling... yet another update that I'll never receive. Meanwhile, loving iOS 11.
 
Nice to see those numb nuts over at Google once again ripping off functions we on the iOS side of the pond have been enjoying for years, and with little delay in receiving, unlike many sad souls on the Android pond whom almost no one ever sees any updates for their devices...

Stay classy Google, and keep those photocopiers a rollin'!
[doublepost=1503344814][/doublepost]

And how long do you folks receive updates for? That's right, no more than 18 months from first release of the device, so those who bought a Nexus or Pixel mid way thru it's production run won't even get a year worth of updates!

iPhone's? We get updates for YEARS. Yeah, still a nightmare on Android!

My nexus 5 got updates for about 3 years.

I can still however load current 7.1 roms on my nexus 5 on my own.

However, you are not wrong. if you're someone who likes to use a device for 2+ years and want continued OS updates, iOS is still currently the way to go
 
I'm not sure how competition works in the smartphone world anymore...With people invested deeply into ecosystems, it makes it a major task to switch. For example, I've purchased $300+ on movies & apps (and in app purchases) over the past 6 years. I got lightning cables galore plus I have an AppleTV. So, even if Android was slightly better than iOS, I wouldn't care enough to switch.

It's like with Apple abandoning the headphone-jack*; I want to vote with my dollars and buy a different flagship phone, but I can't because the change-over is too much of a headache. It's just easier to stay.

*I'm all for abandoning old tech, but it's asinine to say wireless headphones are the future and then ship your latest iPhone with wired headphones.

this is one of the old age questions about any closed system. Many people who bought into i-Devices didn't account for this when they entered into Apples proprietary options.

I always recommend to friends / family who are using any device, not to use the in-house programs. Whether it's googles own or Apple's own (with some minor exceptions) and try to only use software, Apps and services that offer cross platform support. This allows moving to be ridiculously easy.

This is the biggest problem with Apple's services and devices. example: if you use iTunes exclusively for movies, and you want to switch, you lose access to those movies. If you use Netflix, or even Google Movies, you can watch and use them regardless of what device you chose.

All my media and apps are cross platform. it might cost me a few extra bucks to rebuy a few apps, but all my content is available any platform. I can use either Android or iOS and not lose a thing
 
I don't see anything in this Android Oreo release that I "gotta have".

My 2-year old Note5 still runs circles around any iPhone I've used, feature-wise. Too many features I use that are non-existent on iPhone, and will remain so for the next iteration.

I'm recently running Nougat, but even it had nothing I missed from Marshmallow (probably due to TouchWiz-specific features built-into the Note5).

As an Android user since 2013, I can say that I've been unaffected by most, if not all, the negatives regarding Android I've read here.

Nothing wrong with loving iOS or iPhone, though.

It's just that I don't; too limited for me still.
 
Google NEEDS to take MANY, MANY steps back, stand at a distance and look at the horrific mess that they have caused. They NEED to drop Java in ALL respects , they NEED to stop this moronic "throw more RAM and CPU at it!" idiocy (do you remember when computers had KILOBYTES of RAM, and you had to craft EVERY SINGLE BYTE with care to fit in some registers? No, you are probably a millennial or "generation X" and you probably think that Javascript and Python in a GUI IDE are "programming" (oh, sorry - I meant "coding" (!CRINGE!) - how VERY misguided you are.)

Meticulous attention to fitting code into a finite space has been replaced with meticulous attention to releasing a product on a set date for the sake of the bottom line, and ANY consideration of optimisation or speed is handled by throwing gobs of CPU and/or RAM at the problem, whitewashing over it, instead of FIXING THE ROOT CAUSE. Rapid development is now dragging a few templates around, pasting in some boilerplate code, compiling it, hoping it (just about) runs (and if bits fall off it, just find some software "glue" and stick them back on so it barely functions)

The so-called "programmers" (sorry again, "coders") nowadays wouldn't know a register if it was ripped off the checkout line at Walmart and smashed over their head... it wouldn't even... REGISTER.

LDA #07
JSR &FF00
hi, 2010 called. they want their talking points back.
 
Android OS, brought to you by the processed sugar industry or America.

Sign up now and get a sneak peak preview of our next major release - Android 9.0 "High Fructose Corn Syrup."
 
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Second worst. Worst feature is that the user agrees to have each and every bit of information on their Android device become the property of Google, et. al. to sell, slice, dice, and concatenate. Zero privacy.

you can actually opt out on android devices (it's required by law in many countries that the provide this)

in addition, google has also had to provide a full history of the data they've collected on you, with the ability to delete that data easily.

however: Apple is doing the same thing. They are using an ID number to track and understand usage patterns. This is common behaviour across the industry now for all platforms.

at somepoint you have to realize this is happening and the only real options are to either disconnect completely, or jump through hoops to stop it.

And, when companies start changing their privacy policies to something you don't like, you have to yell and scream at them (like Plex tried to do this weekend)
[doublepost=1503420601][/doublepost]
Android OS, brought to you by the processed sugar industry or America.

Sign up now and get a sneak peak preview of our next major release - Android 9.0 "High Fructose Corn Syrup."

Does'nt start with P...
[doublepost=1503420714][/doublepost]
yes we get years, but I am under no illusion that I would want to upgrade the iPhone for years.
My iPhone 6 is now sluggish for some apps. I have a card app that when I am at a till trying to open a points card takes an age.
Even the phone app, I take a picture,there is a delay before taking and eventually the photo displays in the small rectangle.
Would I want to upgrade again? I'm not so sure even if I could.
But Apple forces you to upgrade for example, if you get the device replaced due to battery issues.
All of my iPhones apart from the 3GS have been replaced by Apple during their lifetime.

yes. Running the iOS 10.3.3 beta right now o my iPad AIR and it has NOTICABLY worse battery life and performance launching programs. Programs like Slack now take up to 10 seconds before it's usable. Safari is CONSTANTLY reloading pages.

I like what iOS11 looks like it'll bring. But i'm terrified of how it's going to perform on the anaemic RAM that Apple provided at the time.
 
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i too feel the android os fragmentation is a bit out of control, but i don't know if apple's way of doing it is necessarily better. i have an SE, and while i did get all the updates so far, the phone got sluggish with each one.
recently i got an android device, partly because i grew tired of the sluggishness and partly because the price was better than i could ever hope to get on an iPhone. is it better to spend less but switch a phone every year, or spend a lot and switch every 2-3 years? honestly, i have no idea.
my only issue is that getting out of the apple ecosystem is very, very hard.
 
Up until recently this was true, most iOS updates did cause reduced performance on the older hardware, but that is to be logically expected, as the new versions come with more features, larger amounts of code to process, and thus put greater demands on older SoC's. This is something that occurs not just mobile devices, but on Mac's and PC's as well.

Though as of iOS 10.3, with the introduction of AFPS, and going forward with iOS 11 with the expansion of Metal GPU API's to core components of the OS, performance has actually seen an INCREASE on older hardware, which is a welcome change, and hopefully one Apple will continue with going forward.

I've NEVER been able to say the same for Android, and only slightly so with Windows on the PC side...
The difference is once I have updated iOS and find it is now slow....I can't go back. Android however....
 
Thankfully my job allows me to migrate to any phone at will. Even if I couldn't I would stick with Android.

Google shoots themselves in the foot with this a lot and it is literally my only axe to grind. Because the AOSP is open source it can be stuffed on anything that will run it. It is the boon and bane of open source OS's in general. A lot of that pie is OEMs not wanting to update the devices they have sold. I can tell you that the large OEMs are and have been working on quicker lead times and more frequent patches.

Will it ever come to parity with Apple? Really depends on when Google puts its foot down and sets guidelines on support length. Stop allowing versions of Android to access the playstore after two years and do not allow developers to sign applications that do not have a minimum of 'X' version of Android.
 
Not if you have a Nexus or Pixel.
Exactly why Android was only briefly my first smartphone. Updates were pretty much non-existant. I only chose Android at the time because Apple was slow to take up Verizon's new LTE service. However, I quickly jumped to iPhone 5 once they did. Never looked back ever since :)
 
Stop allowing versions of Android to access the playstore after two years and do not allow developers to sign applications that do not have a minimum of 'X' version of Android.

Interesting contrast... as a current iPhone 4 user, I still access the App Store after 6 years with a device that is still running iOS7. There are not as many apps for me to download and run these days, but it still works perfectly well for my purposes.

If Apple shut down the App Store after a few versions of iOS updates, I would jailbreak and side-load apps, if needed. I suspect, for Android users, that is pretty much exactly what they would do if the Google Play store became unavailable to them AND they didn't want to buy a new phone, with the exception that they wouldn't have to jail-break/root their devices to get an alternate store for apps.

I know I'm an extreme outlier for iPhone users (probably), but it shows how challenging Google's situation is with manufacturers who may not support updates to devices for longer than it takes to sell a few rounds of production on those devices.
 
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