I'm currently deciding whether to buy an iPhone or a Galaxy Nexus. Any advice on which is better? I don't care about games but useful apps would be nice. I literally just sat down with a coffee and started researching tonight.
I'm pretty familiar with the iOS UI because I have an iPod Touch already. It's nice of course, but I don't like how "locked down" Apple products feel. On the other hand, the interface is lovely and it feels great to use. And i-Stuff has all the nicest accessories I'm kidding, that's not important. I'd like to know in partocular, is it a pain to sync Android devices with your PC? My music library has become quite embedded in iTunes over the years (I've rated almost all of my songs and almost exlusively use Smart Playlists) so is it possible to sync an iTunes list with an Android device?
I'm on my third iphone since apple replaces it whenever I say I have a problem. ha!
Including when I cracked the screen, it was just a single fracture though.
A friend of mine bought an android with a $100 replacement fee. Cracked the screen and they wouldn't replace it for free.
Also If you bought an iphone you could develop for it. The apple app store makes more money than the android app store. Obvious choice there.
I've never owned an android though, so I can't say much for that.
Android, if you want a phone that does more than look pretty and doesn't restrict you to using the bulky iTunes software just to sync material to it.
Basically - if you're a power user, tech enthusiast, or just want a phone that's going to give you a lot of flexibility and features at the sacrifice of needing a little common knowledge for how to operate a computer, you can't go wrong with Android.
A better way to say is, if you're a Mac user... there's a very good chance you're going to hate Android.
If you're a PC user (Windows or Linux) and you know why you prefer PC over Mac, there's a good chance Android will appeal to you, because Android offers the same level of flexibility as a PC does, compared to iOS which is like a match made in heaven for Mac (for obvious reasons).
Thanks for the comments guys. After a night of reading up about the devices, they appear to be pretty similar in terms of hardware specs, ease of use and available apps. It mostly comes down to personal preference.
What Silveraura said reflects how I feel about it too. I do enjoy tinkering with PCs and enjoy the flexibility they offer, but I just don't know if I have the time anymore to go hunting around Android forums for advice on what the best File Manager app is. But despite that, I'm still gearing up to get an Android in a couple of days. I'll probably keep the iTouch for music and the few iOS apps I'd miss, and I don't mind carrying a couple of devices around.
I would say get an iPhone. I am an Android user myself (Samsung Galaxy S) but since you said you are using iTunes I would say getting an iPhone is the best option.
The standard music player that comes with Android is a piece of crap. You can get winamp for android but it isn't really good either. It doesn't matter for me because all the audio that comes out of my Galaxy S sounds like garbage.
The audio that comes out of the iPhone sounds always just great.
Also you have more apps on iPhone- way more. If you want to fiddle around with your phone MAYBE Android is the better option but why would you want to fiddle around with your phone in the first place? I have rooted my phone and I have installed a lot of stuff so that it went from awful shit to just shit.
Seriously get an iphone. Only good thing about Android are the keyboards. They are fast and work and there are a lot of great keyboards out there. The keyboard on iOs is a nightmare if you want to write more than just "hi sup?".
I prefer Android, due the open nature of it (long time linux and windows user), but if you have a lot of music on itunes it probably makes sense to get an iphone.
I generally have decent speaker and amp setups (no audiophoolery, I am an electrical engineer after all - i know half the audio industry's claims are nonsense ), I find the quality of itunes & earbuds as highly suspect. Then again, I only usually listen to music on mobile devices in the gym ( it really helps pass the torture time ) so being tied to a big amp and speaker setup is not a concern for me.
Just on a side note as somebody that designs electronics (albeit for a small nice market I find the idea of putting glass on a mobile device as totally absurd. Is there ANY technical reason to do so? Mac users always give lame reasons why it is cool/great idea (your expected to buy bumpers or a case!).
Originally Posted by ..::hagar::.. Is there ANY technical reason to do so? Mac users always give lame reasons why it is cool/great idea (your expected to buy bumpers or a case!).
Any mobile product that uses glass in the outside structure (especially where longitudinal compression is easily possible during a fall) is a perfect example of extraordinarily stupid design imo.
The tinywatchproductions videos about iphone 4 vs ... and IPad 2 vs Library sums up my thoughts on apple products and their fan base pretty much .
I'm an apple 'fan' (at least of the computers - I find iPods frustrating and I've never used an iPhone). Currently the only time I use a windows PC is to run TGF2, and I have different linuxes on a couple of computers (ones an old macbook - it works very nicely!). I think there are misconceptions - stuff like this:
Basically - if you're a power user, tech enthusiast, or just want a phone that's going to give you a lot of flexibility and features at the sacrifice of needing a little common knowledge for how to operate a computer, you can't go wrong with Android.
A better way to say is, if you're a Mac user... there's a very good chance you're going to hate Android.
If you're a PC user (Windows or Linux) and you know why you prefer PC over Mac, there's a good chance Android will appeal to you, because Android offers the same level of flexibility as a PC does, compared to iOS which is like a match made in heaven for Mac (for obvious reasons).
"Power users" are pretty much the definition of a self-selecting club, and so the term doesn't necessarily mean very much. Mac OS X is a very powerful and flexible OS, and because it's UNIX it has an awful lot in common with linux (seeing as both have a command line that talks directly to the OS and operates in more or less exactly the same way depending on which shell you use, the transition between linux and mac is barely noticeable if you use the terminal a lot). Windows is a terrific headache and nowadays a lot of windows programs will work fine on UNIX systems using Wine (I play most click games on my Mac, and only use the old windows tower for TGF as it keeps me off the internet and thus keeps me focused)
The problem with what you just said is that not every phone even uses the same UI. A phone by verizon and the same phone by at&t can have drastically different UI. Even if the Android Version is the same. My phone recently underwent an update (a phone update not an android version update) and the phone COMPLETELY changed. don't blame android, blame your manufacturer/service provider.
I prefer android, but wouldn't mind it being on a sexy looking device either. My Droid X is just a brick. Still love it though.
Android updates aren't so different that someone is going to complain about it. People go out of their way to download new launchers to make their phones work differently, themes to make them look different, etc. I don't think you're giving the average person enough credit, Urbanmonk.
I have a Droid X on Verizon and got an Ice Cream Sandwich rom, and even lacking Flash, Voice actions, and Chrome compatibility, I think it is the greatest thing to happen to Android. I like it quite a bit.
Also, if I want an iPhone interface, I can download Espier Launcher, and if I want a Windows Phone 7 interface, I can download Launcher 7.
The user should be able to change the UI as they like, but there should be a default standard.
Just like UI/OS fragmentation there is also device fragmentation.
When developing for the droid it's difficult to know what to expect since there are so many variations on the hardware.
There are some pretty darn good droid phones though, as far as hardware goes.
A jailbroken iPhone can do everything droid can do. If you are "power user" then you're more than capable of performing a jailbreak since it's just a click of a button nowadays.
App sales are on average better on the iOS app store too. I suggest buying a device that you might develop for. The choice is obvious.
Advertisement
Post Reply
I'm kidding, that's not important. I'd like to know in partocular, is it a pain to sync Android devices with your PC? My music library has become quite embedded in iTunes over the years (I've rated almost all of my songs and almost exlusively use Smart Playlists) so is it possible to sync an iTunes list with an Android device?
Edited by UrbanMonk
), I find the quality of itunes & earbuds as highly suspect. Then again, I only usually listen to music on mobile devices in the gym ( it really helps pass the torture time ) so being tied to a big amp and speaker setup is not a concern for me.
