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wow why 12%? android folks don't like to update?
There's a massive difference in sold units between Android and iOS. It's the budget phones that can't update to the latest versions and makes these numbers so remarkable. The flagships though, the ones most people are aware of from Samsung, Google, HTC and so on are updated to the latest version, well not Pie yet but Oreo.
 
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IOS11 caused me to sell my iPhone. When released it was touted as the most unfinished, bug ridden OS they had ever released and with every fix it got worse until my phone was more annoying to use than I could handle. Look at my join date..... I bought the first iphone and every iphone, ipad, imac and macbook that has existed since. I know how to restore, I know how to wipe clean and start over, I know how to use an iphone. Nothing I did ever solved the bugs. My iPhone 7 Plus went from the best phone I'd had to making me want to trade it in every single day until I finally did. Camera.... would default to live photos no matter what. Safari, can't even begin to list the bugs and annoyances. IOS10 worked so well, IOS11.....not so much. I'm enjoying my Note 8, and looking forward to the next IOS. I want to able to use the phone I've had for a decade again...... a new iphone.
 
IOS11 caused me to sell my iPhone. When released it was touted as the most unfinished, bug ridden OS they had ever released and with every fix it got worse until my phone was more annoying to use than I could handle. Look at my join date..... I bought the first iphone and every iphone, ipad, imac and macbook that has existed since. I know how to restore, I know how to wipe clean and start over, I know how to use an iphone. Nothing I did ever solved the bugs. My iPhone 7 Plus went from the best phone I'd had to making me want to trade it in every single day until I finally did. Camera.... would default to live photos no matter what. Safari, can't even begin to list the bugs and annoyances. IOS10 worked so well, IOS11.....not so much. I'm enjoying my Note 8, and looking forward to the next IOS. I want to able to use the phone I've had for a decade again...... a new iphone.

iOS 11 did have a lot of issues at launch but has stabilized now after many updates. You stated you are enjoying the Note but want to switch back to iPhone. Can you tell us why? I'm curious and want to hear your story.
 
When it comes to Android, even if your phone supports updates, most people never bother, and frankly, since the lifetime of a phone is about 2 years, do you really need the update?

Many iPhone users keep their phones more than two years, their device continues to perform, receives iOS updates the day the new iOS is released, not any reason for upgrading. My first iPhone was 3GS, kept using it even after it was unable to accept updates. Have my present iPhone going on four years, same with my iPad Air2, both perform as new; chasing hardware is not a good use of my money.

In my life I do not upgrade my refridgerator, washer and dryer, dishwasher, power tools, car, home, stove, and the like every two years. Other than bragging rights for less than one year, there is nothing gained upgrading the hardware. It is the software that is worth upgrading, security updates, new whistles and bells, and the like. Yet most Android phones do not receive the latest OS. Those that do it is many months to over a year after the release of that OS. Some Android vendors are crass enough to say “you want the latest Android OS, purchase a new phone”.

When my iPhone gives up the ghost, that is when I will purchase a new phone; not before. As I stated, mine is going on four years, has three-D touch, big screen, is fast, will receive iOS 12.
 
The critical flaw in your rather nice list, is the fact that everything you've listed for android only applies to a phone from google. And it has to be unlocked. If you're a sucker and got a verizon Pixel, you're still stuck behind their validation testing.

The unlocked HTC U12 Plus that I bought 2-ish months ago while supporting Treble, is only on 8.0. 9.0 was released yesterday and it's not available to me. It won't be, likely for at least 3 months, because while HTC's Sense overlay is light, it's still not as simple as just say, upgrading Windows 8.1 to Windows 10 due to all of the underlying changes HTC has made to support (arguably) the best android phone available currently.

On the flip side of that, my girlfriend's Essential PH-1 has had 9.0 available since yesterday (day 0). Essential's take on android is so stock that some claim it to be boring.
I specifically state that manufacturers are pretty bad at it and sum it up with caveats so not sure if you mean my comment or something else?
 
I don't think the issue is about running new(er) apps, it is how secure the devices are. Are the older OS versions actually receiving security patches? If not, this fragmentation should be worrisome (and has been pointed out since the very early days of Android).

Yes, they are receiving security updates much longer.

Fragmentation is just pain in the ass for us who actually know what's the newest out there is.
 
Many iPhone users keep their phones more than two years, their device continues to perform, receives iOS updates the day the new iOS is released, not any reason for upgrading. My first iPhone was 3GS, kept using it even after it was unable to accept updates. Have my present iPhone going on four years, same with my iPad Air2, both perform as new; chasing hardware is not a good use of my money.

In my life I do not upgrade my refridgerator, washer and dryer, dishwasher, power tools, car, home, stove, and the like every two years. Other than bragging rights for less than one year, there is nothing gained upgrading the hardware. It is the software that is worth upgrading, security updates, new whistles and bells, and the like. Yet most Android phones do not receive the latest OS. Those that do it is many months to over a year after the release of that OS. Some Android vendors are crass enough to say “you want the latest Android OS, purchase a new phone”.

When my iPhone gives up the ghost, that is when I will purchase a new phone; not before. As I stated, mine is going on four years, has three-D touch, big screen, is fast, will receive iOS 12.
Indeed and the best Apple devices to date continue to be the iPhone 4s and the iPad 2.
 
THIS is why I have an iPhone X (and previously an iPhone 6). I went from iOS 8.0 to 11.1 on my iPhone 6 and from iOS 11.2 to 11.4.1 on my iPhone X all seamlessly.

By the way, it should be noted I am now in the market for a new iPad to replace my now-aging iPad Air (32 GB White). I'm thinking of getting the current iPad Pro 10.6" (256 GB Space Gray WiFi) but might consider the next-generation iPad Pro (256 GB Space Gray WiFi with Face ID).
 
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Starting this month, any new Play Store apps need to be at least API level 26 (Android 8.0 Oreo), and starting November, that applies to updates to existing apps as well.

So good luck with Android 5.
Good luck why? It doesn't limit the use of older API levels. Any decent Android app is compatible with multiple Android versions anyway.
 
https://www.androidauthority.com/android-8-0-update-784308/

That isn't exactly what I'd call timely updates.
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I wouldn't call a budget phone great. Hell, I have a hard time calling something with an 835 (last year) or an 845 (this year), great.

And there is no trade off for datamining. Period.

1. My S7 is on its third OS update in 2 years, that's same as my iPhone 7.
2. Why are you so hung up on OS updates? Google are updating throughout the year so you get the latest app features anyway.
3. Why are you Americans so hung up on data collection? The fact that Android is on 85.9% market share should tell you the rest of the world just don't care. When we hear you banging on about privacy/data mining we just say.......and?
 
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To me it’s all about security

I am managing more of my sensitive data on my phone than I do on my PC

And no, that ain’t porn

So I do want the most secure phone os for my needs over a longer period of time

And that is not Android

I still do own one android phone, it came with version 5, it stayed with version 5 ...

Use it for navigation, that is all it is still good for

Fair enough. The problem I have really is blanketing it over all Android devices, when support differs greatly manufacturer to manufacturer. My mother still gets security updates from time to time on her LG G3, but I havent seen an update for my newer ASUS Android tablet.
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Patently false. Android manufacturers drop support for their older android handsets earlier than Apple does. Even google did this with their phones. iPhones have the longest useful lifespan and thus enjoy the highest resale values.

They stop releasing new OS updates sure, but that doesn't immediately make the phone obsolete is my point. Older versions of Android keep on working for a long time without the latest and greatest updates.
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Android 5 Lollipop was released in 2014.
iOS 5 was released in 2011.
How is that a fair comparison?

Android 5 was released in the same time period as iOS 8 and I can assure you that iOS 8 runs perfectly well til this day and is compatible with most apps on the AppStore.

Ah well then I've got my timeline of iOS releases way off then. My mistake.
 
Midrange and budget phones may not get updated, but you get what you pay for afterall. All android flagship phones will get at least 2 years if OS updates and 3 years ot security updates.
My 200$ Mi A1 was updated to Android 8.0 and 8.1 and it will receive Android 9 as well.
Not bad for the price.
 
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Ahahahah!

What you are basically saying is hat Android developers are FORCED to work with older APIs because of all the obsolete devices out there.

Still easier to develop for Android than iOS.

Also, not forced at all. Android devkit lets you pick which APIs to support.
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It's not about being able to run it. Obviously, this is an Android kind of philosophy, be able to do anything. It is about how well do they run. And please don't get me started because even though I tend to stick with iOS, I have tried all sort of Android phones. Unless you running some sort of powerful flagship or one of Googles pure Android, the experience is still rubbish. But hey, apparently good enough for some.

Mid level phones have gotten a lot better hardware wise, and Android has gotten better software wise. My own experience has been that unless you buy a no-name phone of ebay for 40$ Android runs well enough.

"Well-enough" is highly variable though based on what a person wants or expects. I personally wouldn't expect a cheap plastic-fantastic Android phone to be blazing fast, and lower my expectations of it, but I understand some people aren't willing to accept that.
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Their little cutesy names for their software updates is insulting to anyone with an IQ over fifteen.

The same can be said about Apples "animojis". Cutesy crap designed for children.
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Useable, but vulnerable.

Depends on the manufacturer of the phone. Some companies continue pushing security patches for years to older devices, some companies don't. Its something to take into consideration when choosing an Android phone.
 
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Yeah except my mothers phone running Android 5 can still run pretty much any App on Google Play. Can iOS 5 run 90% of the App Store?

This whole dig against Android is pointless unless you're obsessed with always having the latest and greatest. Older versions of Android are still good and completely usable. Probably more usable than older versions of iOS.

This is a meaningless question followed by a circular argument...
Developers of Android apps are no different to developers of apps for Windows, macOS or iOS - they develop their apps to reach the largest addressable user base on the target platform. On android that means making sure that one's app runs on at least Android 4.4, while on iOS that means making sure that one's app runs on at least iOS 10.

On Android developers often still have to test their apps on devices running Jelly Bean (version 4.1 - 4.3) (particularly if they are targeting emerging markets) and KitKat (version 4.4) whose combined market share of 12.7% is greater than that of Oreo (version 8.0 - 8.1) (see https://developer.android.com/about/dashboards/)

On iOS developers seeking to maximise the reach of their apps only need to go as far back as iOS 9 and iOS 10. The market share of anything earlier is vanishingly small.

The market share of Android 5 (Lollipop) is still a meaningful 20.4% of the entire Android user base, so of course developers are going to target it and make sure that their apps run on it; while the market share of iOS 5 is virtually non-existent, so of course no developers are going to invest resources in making sure that their apps run on it.
 
You sound like you really aren't a fan of Apple. Now we are back to "Apple is doomed" comments after they just broke the trillion dollar mark? You do realize that Apple offers several different phones at various pricing tiers? Come on.

I'm curious as to why an Android fan would devote so much time on an Apple fan site when there are tons of Android sites to accommodate you? I'm guessing those sites fall short just like the phones. ;)

Woah, those are some fighting words with a mix of crazy talk :D

Doomed is a little on the extreme side, I would say stagnation (reference Mac hardware, some pro software). Too much choice in several price categories is what landed Apple in trouble in the 90’s to begin with. Though their have a freight full of cash, this time around. The company created excitement with a CEO who had a vision, not so with Cook. It just feels like another tech company, at least there is excitement with Tesla/Space X.
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I think that's a pretty big assumption on your part. People have been saying the same for years, yet here we are.

Doomed was an extreme, stagnation chips away slowly eroding confidence. This company was built/founded by two visionaries, Cook is not.

Can anyone honestly say their were excited by a Cook keynote compared to Jobs.
 
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Woah, those are some fighting words with a mix of crazy talk :D

Doomed is a little on the extreme side, I would say stagnation (reference Mac hardware, some pro software). Too much choice in several price categories is what landed Apple in trouble in the 90’s to begin with. Though their have a freight full of cash, this time around. The company created excitement with a CEO who had a vision, not so with Cook. It just feels like another tech company, at least there is excitement with Tesla/Space X.
[doublepost=1533679935][/doublepost]

Doomed was an extreme, stagnation chips away slowly eroding confidence. This company was built/founded by two visionaries, Cook is not.

Can anyone honestly say their were excited by a Cook keynote compared to Jobs.

Many folks are waiting to purchase new products next month. Customer loyalty is at an all time high I would imagine considering folks are now buying $1000 phones. Steve Jobs passed the torch on and now they are printing money at this point. Regardless of how you feel as an armchair CEO, Apple is riding high and will continue to do so. You will continue to post on every website you can that Apple is failing which is counterproductive and fake news. Haters gonna hate!
 
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Many folks are waiting to purchase new products next month. Customer loyalty is at an all time high I would imagine considering folks are now buying $1000 phones. Steve Jobs passed the torch on and now they are printing money at this point. Regardless of how you feel as an armchair CEO, Apple is riding high and will continue to do so. You will continue to post on every website you can that Apple is failing which is counterproductive and fake news. Haters gonna hate!

Every “great” civilization falls at some point, unless you disagree with history. Hate is a strong word, nothing I have said bears any resemblance to hate (however I respect your opinion). Armchair CEO, I guess others cannot stray away from labels for having a differing opinion/view/belief (this says something about oneself).

Many (subjective) are waiting (keyword here) for new products next month, from a company who has neglected the Mac hardware, yet the hopeful still holds on to possibilities. Apple has placed its bet on iOS and Services, however I am being informed otherwise by Cooks muse.

People are buying $1000 phones similarly to people who are buying $100k vehicles, artwork, etc. Jobs passed the torch, however how long was that decision in the making no one knows (cancer has an effect on ones cognition, someone near and dear to me passed away, and I can attest to their questionable cognition).

The money system is in over supply, once inflation hits how many customers do you believe will be able to afford those $1000 phones, when wage increases are not keeping up. When did I say that Apple is failing, I mentioned that their lack vision and there is no excitement.

Counterproductive, are you an employee of Apple. You are on a rumour site, are you here getting work done unless I am mistaken and you are a MR employee. Ah fake news the new catch phrase to throw around when someone does not agree with your opinion. I am a realist not a hater, if a tech company may it be Apple releases a quality product like the iPad Pro, I will promote it, and when their don’t I will call them out. Do not mistaken me for a brown-noser. :p
 
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IOS11 caused me to sell my iPhone. When released it was touted as the most unfinished, bug ridden OS they had ever released and with every fix it got worse until my phone was more annoying to use than I could handle.

I sometimes wonder how people have such divergent experiences with these things. I have been thrilled with 11 since the day it was released and haven't encountered any bugs or issues. In fact, I would go so far as to say it has been one of the best updates to iOS ever. A lot of the UI improvements were a welcomed change, especially the slide-up controls that were a mess in iOS 10. The tweaks and improvements have all been fantastic and it ran like a dream on my 6S (although I've since upgraded to an 8 where it's also great.) I have three other iPhones in my house and everyone else is doing great with 11.
 
My reasons are different:

iPhone 5s was also unusable after iOS11, iOS12 is not increasing speed, it is restoring part of the performance Apple took away. On every new iOS release Apple slowed down old phones, with iOS12 they are trying to go easy on old devices for the last time.

I have a S8, it has Android N, then it was updated to O and was faster (something never happened with iOS). I hope Samsung updates S8 with P, 8 months is fine for me since is also the same amount of months you should wait to install a new iOS until is stable.

blah blah blah blah blah blah blah, I'm calling you a BSer bud.
 
Keep in mind the "current install base" chart is world wide. US installs are MUCH higher. I have 20k users on my app and 64.1% are on Oreo and 26% are on Nougat.
What a joke. So fragmented. Android is like windows for mobile phones. A lot of different hardware with scattere operating systems. It’s a messy disaster.
 
This is a meaningless question followed by a circular argument...
Developers of Android apps are no different to developers of apps for Windows, macOS or iOS - they develop their apps to reach the largest addressable user base on the target platform. On android that means making sure that one's app runs on at least Android 4.4, while on iOS that means making sure that one's app runs on at least iOS 10.

On Android developers often still have to test their apps on devices running Jelly Bean (version 4.1 - 4.3) (particularly if they are targeting emerging markets) and KitKat (version 4.4) whose combined market share of 12.7% is greater than that of Oreo (version 8.0 - 8.1) (see https://developer.android.com/about/dashboards/)

On iOS developers seeking to maximise the reach of their apps only need to go as far back as iOS 9 and iOS 10. The market share of anything earlier is vanishingly small.

The market share of Android 5 (Lollipop) is still a meaningful 20.4% of the entire Android user base, so of course developers are going to target it and make sure that their apps run on it; while the market share of iOS 5 is virtually non-existent, so of course no developers are going to invest resources in making sure that their apps run on it.

In Android adoption for the new OS is very slow this gives ample time for the developers to test their apps.

Amplifying the above point further, with fragmented OS, the Android user base relatively stable hence developers need not rush to implement something due to major OS upgrade and massive adoptions by the user base (as in iOS).

App developers wouldn't waste time testing them in older versions unless their customer base (WhatsApp or Facebook) heavily using older versions.
 
iOS 11 did have a lot of issues at launch but has stabilized now after many updates. You stated you are enjoying the Note but want to switch back to iPhone. Can you tell us why? I'm curious and want to hear your story.

LOVE my note, but syncing through google between my Note and my iMAC and Macbook Pro isn't fun. I take a lot of pics and it has to go up to google photos and back down to the macs and manually entered into Photos. The Note is a hardware monster and I have no complaints about current software on it, I just like the integration all other iphone users enjoy.
 
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LOVE my note, but syncing through google between my Note and my iMAC and Macbook Pro isn't fun. I take a lot of pics and it has to go up to google photos and back down to the macs and manually entered into Photos. The Note is a hardware monster and I have no complaints about current software on it, I just like the integration all other iphone users enjoy.
I had the note 8 last year and the S9 + this year. I still had my iPhone as my daily driver both times. I think both are really great phones and I’ve no complaints about them but I have a MacBook, Two iPads, an Apple Watch and a HomePod so neither phone could integrate with my other Apple devices.
 
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LOVE my note, but syncing through google between my Note and my iMAC and Macbook Pro isn't fun. I take a lot of pics and it has to go up to google photos and back down to the macs and manually entered into Photos. The Note is a hardware monster and I have no complaints about current software on it, I just like the integration all other iphone users enjoy.
Why on earth do you not use Google Photos on your Mac too? If you have Chrome then you will get the suite of Google apps with that and the synchronisation is seamless. Plus the photos won't count against your Drive storage. That's what I do.
 
What a joke. So fragmented. Android is like windows for mobile phones. A lot of different hardware with scattere operating systems. It’s a messy disaster.

Actually it's not. Android is a fundamentally different product to iOS. The whole point is that manufacturers from all over the world use it and modify it to their liking rather than develop a platform from scratch. Google wants all those end users to use its Play Store and other Google services. The point has never been for Google to domineer over manufacturers and demand that they ship vanilla Android.

Anyone who cares about timely updates knows which devices to buy - OnePlus, Pixel, Nokia etc. If you're buying a Samsung you're accepting extremely slow or non-existent firmware support.

Even then, Google is trying to help with Project Treble. It remains to be seen if manufacturers care if updates are easier than before as they may simply not want to dedicate any resources at all to updates beyond 2 years or even less for certain devices.
 
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