Other since every member of my family finally all converted to iPhones 2 years ago, I forgot that Android phones even existed... :(

[beerseagulls]

I was the first one to convert to iPhone 4 or 5 years ago... by 2 years ago, I finally convinced everybody in my family(9 people, 3 generations) to all switch to iPhones.

Well... something weird just happened to me yesterday.

I was reading the Macrumors article about that "Nothing" phone... and it was like a lightning bolt had hit me... I was like "wow, I completely forgot that Android phones still exists... or had ever existed...." The closest analogy that I can make is when I broke up with my college girlfriend, I was devastated....(despite the fact that I was the one who asked to break up with her) For the next couple of years, I was still thinking about her constantly. However, after I met the next girlfriend, I somehow didn't think about my previous girlfriend even once for almost 5 years, as if she never existed.... until I bumped into her at the airport where she worked.

 

[eyoungren]

Okay.

I have a Pixel 3a XL that I used from May 2019 to February 2021. This was the phone I got between my 6s+ and my 11 Pro Max. It's on my desk every day and has the max upgrade of Android 12.

Still a great phone……



6s+, Pixel 3a XL, 11 Pro Max.

Windows PCs exist too. I have a Thinkpad amongst all my Macs. Awesome laptop running Windows 7.

 

[zarmanto]

Totally get this. Remember netbooks? I still have one sitting in a drawer; it hasn't been touched in years, and I hadn't even thought about it in quite some time until I read your comment.

The past is sometimes easy to forget, it seems... especially when much better things are introduced into our lives.

 

[Heindijs]

Okay.

I have a Pixel 3a XL that I used from May 2019 to February 2021. This was the phone I got between my 6s+ and my 11 Pro Max. It's on my desk every day and has the max upgrade of Android 12.

Still a great phone……

View attachment 2032149

6s+, Pixel 3a XL, 11 Pro Max.

Windows PCs exist too. I have a Thinkpad amongst all my Macs. Awesome laptop running Windows 7.

I really enjoy the customisation Google has done to Android for their Pixel phones. It's so close to stock Android but just better. Especially the 'material you' stuff looks really good.

I totally do not care about my phone though, it's some cheap Motorola from 2017. As long as it makes calls and WhatsApp keeps working, I'm happy. Although I do wish someone could make a custom Android 12 rom for it... 7.1 is starting to get a bit old!

 

[eyoungren]

I really enjoy the customisation Google has done to Android for their Pixel phones. It's so close to stock Android but just better. Especially the 'material you' stuff looks really good.

I totally do not care about my phone though, it's some cheap Motorola from 2017. As long as it makes calls and WhatsApp keeps working, I'm happy. Although I do wish someone could make a custom Android 12 rom for it... 7.1 is starting to get a bit old!

In 2019 I was tired of waiting for Apple to get rid of the camera bump and each new model was making it larger. I was also seeing real improvement in Android. So, we (my wife and I) took a shot with the Pixels. I went with the Pixel because I wanted to experience 'pure' Android as it came from Google.

I got the experience and there's a lot I like about it and some things I do not. But in the greater scheme of things, iOS seems more polished (still) to me so we came back to iPhone. I still object to the camera bump but I do stay for iOS.

For the longest, my wife's directive has been 'same, same.' Meaning, whatever I upgrade to, she's supposed to get the exact same thing with the exception of her color choice. However, lately she has been gravitating towards Samsung phones. She's already back to using her Pixel for her secondary line while still using her 11 PM for her primary line. So flipping back and forth between Android and iOS isn't a problem for her. So, I see a divergence the next time we upgrade. She's already expressed the willingness to depart on her own track. I suppose that's because she has finally become familiar enough with phones and computers that she now feels comfortable using anything.

That's okay as the household is a mix of Mac/PC/Android/iPhone and all of us are comfortable with all of it. I think my wife is really wanting the foldable Samsung phone though. Probably by the time we upgrade they'll have that down.

 

[beerseagulls]

Totally get this. Remember netbooks? I still have one sitting in a drawer; it hasn't been touched in years, and I hadn't even thought about it in quite some time until I read your comment.

The past is sometimes easy to forget, it seems... especially when much better things are introduced into our lives.

oh my god... yes, I also totally forgot about netbooks until I read your reply.

I may be going the rabbit hole too much, but I just thinking and trying to remember the things that I used to love but have basically forgotten about....

Oldsmobile(lost my virginity in one), Roy Rogers(fast food), eMachines, LaserDiscs, 99-cent gasoline, full-service gas station, access to airside of airport even when not flying, smoking seats on 747s(not that I ever smoked).....

 

[MisterSavage]

Totally get this. Remember netbooks? I still have one sitting in a drawer; it hasn't been touched in years, and I hadn't even thought about it in quite some time until I read your comment.

I loved my itty bitty Asus!

 

[Motionblurrr]

Imagine the day Apple becomes irrelevant the day the real next best thing comes into existence 😂 Of course, Apple is probably hard at work trying to not let that happen and be first to the race with their buckets of money behind them.

 

[zarmanto]

... Of course, Apple is probably hard at work trying to ... be first to the race ...

Seems to me that both Apple and Facebook think VR/AR is that next technological evolutionary step. Personally, while I like the idea of VR/AR, and think it has some pretty interesting entertainment applications, I'm not yet convinced that it's truly the next killer app. Ready Player One and similar movies are certainly fun to watch... but reality doesn't always imitate art.

We shall see.

 

[beerseagulls]

Imagine the day Apple becomes irrelevant the day the real next best thing comes into existence 😂 Of course, Apple is probably hard at work trying to not let that happen and be first to the race with their buckets of money behind them.

hold on while I make a note of that in my Palm Pilot.

 

[eyoungren]

Seems to me that both Apple and Facebook think VR/AR is that next technological evolutionary step. Personally, while I like the idea of VR/AR, and think it has some pretty interesting entertainment applications, I'm not yet convinced that it's truly the next killer app. Ready Player One and similar movies are certainly fun to watch... but reality doesn't always imitate art.

We shall see.

In my opinion, it's going to come differently than we are seeing it or thinking about right now. Mojo Vision has a functioning LCD screen on a contact lense. It's being tested.

Ultimately, I believe the end result is wetware. Some sort of chip in your brain that feeds visible data to your cornea and interprets your response into action. If Star Trek sci-fi theories can enter reality, why not William Gibson and cybernetics?

 

[macsound1]

Honest question - can Android users get sms messages when only connected to Wifii, not cellular?
I’ve worked in too many brick buildings and vacationed on islands with only wifi realizing that cellular isn’t something I can truly count on.

 

[eyoungren]

Honest question - can Android users get sms messages when only connected to Wifii, not cellular?
I’ve worked in too many brick buildings and vacationed on islands with only wifi realizing that cellular isn’t something I can truly count on.

I can't say for sure, but I'd guess that if WiFi calling was enabled (or whatever its called on Android) it should be possible.

I know for a fact you can use iMessage (over WiFi only too) as I've done it on my Pixel. You just need some set up for that which involves third party software and a dedicated Mac that can use iMessage.

 

[compwiz1202]

Honest question - can Android users get sms messages when only connected to Wifii, not cellular?
I’ve worked in too many brick buildings and vacationed on islands with only wifi realizing that cellular isn’t something I can truly count on.

Don't think so unless they have some equivalent to iMessage. Would need to use FBM or Whatsapp etc..

 

[eyoungren]

Don't think so unless they have some equivalent to iMessage. Would need to use FBM or Whatsapp etc..

Equivalent to iMessage.

How about actual iMessage?

AirMessage - iMessage for Android and the web

AirMessage enables iMessage on your Android phone, Windows PC, Linux computer, or Chromebook.

airmessage.org

 

[MisterSavage]

Don't think so unless they have some equivalent to iMessage. Would need to use FBM or Whatsapp etc..

Honestly I loathe sms and would be using an alternative like you mentioned (Signal especially) if I was on an Android device.

 

[zarmanto]

In my opinion, it's going to come differently than we are seeing it or thinking about right now. Mojo Vision has a functioning LCD screen on a contact lense. It's being tested.

Ultimately, I believe the end result is wetware. Some sort of chip in your brain that feeds visible data to your cornea and interprets your response into action. If Star Trek sci-fi theories can enter reality, why not William Gibson and cybernetics?

Yeah; I read about that a few weeks ago on Ars Technica. Really interesting stuff, even if it is a few years out yet. The first thought that entered my mind when I saw that was a particular scene from Futurama... if you remember the show, I'm sure I don't have to tell you which scene.

Spoiler

But regarding wetware... maybe someday, but not soon.

 

[teknikal90]

in 2022 I find phones to be incredibly boring. theyre all converging to be the same phones.
i have a 12 pro. which worked all the same way as the Xs before it (minus the ultrawide camera).
In fact, save for the camera, i would say all phones, iOS and android, are the same things.

the excitement of tech, for me, has shifted to laptops and tablets. It's a lot more interesting to me how the tablet is growing into the laptop space and how the laptop is adopting the hardware (ultra portable form factors, ARM processors) typically reserved for tablets. How that dynamic will evolve going forward is much more interesting to me. It's like the iPod vs. Mac battle towards the iPhone all over again.

 

[zarmanto]

... the excitement of tech, for me, has shifted to laptops and tablets.

Ha... an ironic statement. More interestingly though, I think Apple might agree with you.

 

[teknikal90]

Ha... an ironic statement. More interestingly though, I think Apple might agree with you.

I'm playing around with switching between an M1 Air and an M1 iPad + magic keyboard with iOS 16 beta.
Honestly neither are perfect devices on their own. But I would always come away with a "wow" on something or other on each device. I wish they would converge somehow..
In contrast, I never had a "wow" moment with any recent iPhone. The 12 Pro seemed "perfect" but nothing new.