Personal computing discussed
Moderators: renee, David, mac_h8r1, Nelliesboo
trackerben wrote:It remains the premium smartphone ecosystem and UI standard for a reason.
trackerben wrote:Given your familiarity with the iOS on iPhones, I would think twice about Android on anything smaller than a tablet. Even on fast hardware like that found in the the Galaxy S or LG Optimus multicores, Android lacks Apple's fit and finish, still suffers from a less evolved and convoluted design, and timely updates from non-Google brands can be iffy. The finicky home button on smartphone designs can be an interrupt-driven curse and the system look and feel is not much better than that of Win 9x. However, Android is evolving and may someday become a safe and decent choice, particulary if you get one of Google's flagship Nexus models which are assured of a working update path.
cynan wrote:As a matter of interest, have you tried Jelly Bean? The thing is, recent Android (aka Jelly Bean) coupled with the nicer HD displays on handsets like HTC One X or Samsung Galaxy Nexus or Galaxy SIII is going to give a better overall experience than the iPhone.
cynan wrote:As a matter of interest, have you tried Jelly Bean? The thing is, recent Android (aka Jelly Bean) coupled with the nicer HD displays on handsets like HTC One X or Samsung Galaxy Nexus or Galaxy SIII is going to give a better overall experience than the iPhone. But of course that could all change with the iPhone 5. I don't have any experience with Windows Phone 7.
elmopuddy wrote:I'm in the same boat.. I have an iPhone 4, the wife has a Galaxy S1.. waiting for the new phones to launch to make a decision.
I'm leaning towards the iPhone 5 for both of us. We have quite a few accessories for the iPhone.
trackerben wrote:I've had the most experience with ICS phones and 4.1 tablets, and coming from the standpoint of Nokia S40 blastproofing and Apple iOS fitness and quality, Android seems like a promising beta program you have to pay to join in. It still feels like that because the standard Android smartphone keymap template appears to be cursed with default buttons which cannot be bypassed if you have issues with their implementation or placement. My state-of-the-art 1.5GHz multicore LG LTE /digital TV with a 4.5in 720p screen could play any HD media on its fantastic screen and speakers. And yet it failed as a phone for simple one-handed use, because of the uneasy controls. I had also had to think carefully when choosing new apps for it because of the constant malware threat, which is something I need not even have worried about when using Apple devices.
An Android phone is a work-in-process which needs to be carefully managed and groomed to work nicely, and to me this is not a phone so much as a gadget or hobby, and I have little patience for a gadget which needs to be fixed and managed, I have other more interesting hobbies and systems to administrate. Apparently Apple has patented the more efficient designs and layouts. Which is a base UI burden for smartphones, because with anything so personal that you carry and operate with your hand, each and every detailed operating burden counts.
All that said, the latest Android tablets seem to be far less prone to UI issues as they tend to have fewer if any questionable hardware controls to mess the UI. Which is why I can recommend experimenting with Android 4.1 tablets, in particular the Google Nexus 7. But have nothing impressive to say for now about Android smartphones. I have to try the Nokia Lumia 900 to make a decision about buying it now or waiting for the iPhone 4S price to drop.
cynan wrote:Sounds like your issues with Android stem more from that LG handset than Android Itself. As you said, Android 4.1 on a tablet is fine. And 4.1 on a phone with 720p resolution is a pretty similar experience as far as seamlessness of usability is concerned. All I know is that I've used an iPhone 4/s and Jelly Bean on a Galaxy Nexus provided a nicer experience - yes largely due to the nice screen. But this was also for practical reasons such as easier web surfing, less fatigue when reading text, easier to type on the touch screen keyboard, etc. And unlike the Galaxy Note, the 720p phones in the 4.6-4.8 inch size are perfectly usable one handed (though perhaps not for someone with small hands).
Yes the iOS ecosystem (not necessarily iOS itself any longer - at least not to any large degree) is more polished and still offers much more variety (it's also more restrictive - which, as you say, may not matter if you don't consider your phone a hobby). But that's not the only thing dictating user experience. For core tasks performed on a daily basis, in my opinion, some of the new Android handsets are superior to the current iPhones. The iOS devices are pretty great, but that's no reason to dismiss the newer alternatives just because it was vastly superior to the competition when it first came out. That's how technology works. It evolves. And in this market, it happens quite quickly.
trackerben wrote:Yes Android 4.x on the latest multicore tablets can be fine. But until Google's smartphone guidelines mandate physical buttons which equal Apple's well-designed control placement and feel, the likes of LG and Motorla and HTC will continue to release confusingly dissimilar and frustrating designs.
trackerben wrote:I will have to disagree about the 4.5in plus screens being one-handedly useable since these things are by definition oversized. The Android UI is fragmented because it is purposed as an OEM package differentiated on vendor choice of controls, among other things. That an entire online debate has sprung up about this issue is a telling sign that Google cannot get around Apple's control of the most efficient UI design elements.
DancinJack wrote:There will be no mandate. That's one of the good things about Android. It's open source and you aren't locked into using one particular feature one particular way. Also, Motorola has already released a phone with the three standard virtual buttons in ICS and they have another on the way in the coming weeks.
What definition are you using here? Just one you made up? A 4.5" phone being over-sized is quite obviously an opinion. Also if by definition they are over-sized, why did you buy a 4.5" Android device?
trackerben wrote:Why did I really buy a state-of-the-art, supersized smartphone? It was one of the few droids with a path to 4.1, and at that time I mistakenly thought that Jelly Bean would resolve Android's remaining UI issues.
trackerben wrote:"...world’s first AH-IPS LCD display on it’s monstrous 4.5-inch 1280 x 720 pixel resolution screen..." (Optimus LTE - slashgear), or
"...boasts a massive 4.5-inch display with a native 720p HD..." (Optimus LTE - mobileburn), or
"... Its 5.27-inch height, on the other hand, is huge any way you slice it..." (Nitro HD - theverge), or
"...Make no mistake, though: this is still a huge phone..." (Optimus 4X - theverge), or
"...For a lot of you, it will feel large — maybe too large..." (Optimus 4x - digitaltrends), or
"...how much bigger the SGS3 is compared to other phones..." (Galaxy S3 - anandtech), or
"...Sure 3.7-inches is not big when you place it against mammoth devices like the Galaxy S III..." (HTC One V - neowin).
DancinJack wrote:I honestly can't agree with that statement that it was one of the few with a path to 4.1. LG has been pretty bad about updating it's phones with newer revisions of Android.
As for phones being too big, I guess that's just a matter of opinion. I think the Galaxy Nexus, with it's 4.65" screen and on-screen software keys is just about right for my hands. Obviously everyone is going to have a different experience, but for me it fits just right.
trackerben wrote:Official ICS had just been announced in June when I came across the Optimus LTE/Nitro HD, and there was talk in the forums of one further upgrade cycle since it wasn't a year yet. Agreed, LG is pretty slow on updates especially on their cheaper models, some of which they still release with Android 2.3.x
You must have large hands because I find the big Optimus a two-handed affair where I'm shuffling it between thumbs at times and worried about it dropping.
cynan wrote:I'm not sure what quoting what is basically tantamount to marketing hyperbole is doing for your argument that the newer HD Android handsets are oversized. Your argument is is akin to saying that Apple and Dell obviously should have known better than to come out with 30" monitors when they first did about half a dozen years ago as these, relative to what was available at the time to the vast majority of desktop users, were vastly oversized. And you can find just as much hyperbole about how big they were from the first websites reviewing them as well (but I'm not about to look for quotes to link here). When I first got my Dell 30", I though it was rather large and that maybe I'd wasted money on a screen that was obviously larger than it was practical. That sentiment lasted about a week. I had a similar experience with my Galaxy Nexus.
To each there own - which is why an alternative like Android (and I suppose Windows Phone) will always be at least somewhat compelling - it offers more choice. If I want an iOS device, I have very little choice. Yes, the downside to this, as you've pointed out is a bit too much fragmentation - especially when hardware OEMs and carriers fill said handsets with superficial layers of GUI garbage and other bloatware. But I'd rather have the choice of hardware config/handset that will best fit my specific usage/preference than to simply be told what works best for me. Which is about what you are stuck with with Apple, regardless of how good those implementations were when they were first conceived. I'm glad I have the option to choose a ~4.6" HD Android handset as I value this more than any dwindling OS superiority that iOS may still have over Android in their latest incarnations.
riviera74 wrote:Well, that last paragraph would explain why Samsung has a large marketshare in Android. My question is (excluding iOS), does Samsung make the best Android phones?
riviera74 wrote:Well, that last paragraph would explain why Samsung has a large marketshare in Android. My question is (excluding iOS), does Samsung make the best Android phones?
DancinJack wrote:Sometimes we pay to be early adopters I guess. Ouch. No one should be releasing phones today without 4.0 and up. You do always have the option to root and install a custom ROM if the development community is alive and well for your device. CM is a great choice. It appears there is a stable version for the Nitro as well. http://get.cm/?type=stable