By 
With Google I/O right around the corner and the possibility that we could see an update to the Android operating system, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to see how Google’s devs could look to iOS, their biggest competitor, for inspiration. Having spent a few weeks with iOS 6 and the iPhone 5, I figured numerous items would jump out at me as novel or potentially interesting additions to Android. The problem is, I’m having trouble pinpointing any.
I think it’s safe to say in terms of software functionality Android has surpassed iOS. Google’s operating system allows users to simply do more with what they have. Now, that’s no knock to iOS, necessarily. The iPhone operating system works great for how it is purposed on its hardware, and it definitely operates in a more intuitive manner than Android. Yes, Android allows greater customization and deeper control, but this functionality is not always transparent.
For instance, take a long-standing iOS feature that Android users have clamored for in the past: lockscreen notifications. This is one of the iPhone’s greatest advantages. New messages, app interactions, and alerts compile directly on the lockscreen. Swiping across a notification bounces the user directly into the app of origin.
In comparison, Android doesn’t offer lockscreen notifications out of the box. Some OEMs have attempted to address the issue with UI skins while apps are available to mimic the effect, but it’s not baked into the core of the Android software. In the green guy’s defense, Android’s notification pane is far superior to Apple’s offering, particularly in the latest Jelly Bean releases. Rich, interactive notifications trump the iPhone’s pull-down Notification Center any day.
But what else does iOS offer that you can’t accomplish in one way or another with Android? For a moment I thought I would mention iOS’ Photo Stream feature as a real bonus to the operating system. The feature, which allows you to share a photo album from your phone for others to access, is — again — intuitive and easy, incorporating directly into your iPhone gallery, but it’s far from unique. Consider Google+ auto photo uploads and Android can more or less achieve the same results (with added social networking functionality), though it might not be immediately obvious to users.
Another item to consider is Apple’s messaging app. Based on device and network, messages are smartly toggled between a standard SMS and an iMessage. Google has yet to implement a similar function in their stock messaging app, a service that seems continually neglected in Android updates. However, it sounds like Google is working toward a solution with Babel, an integrated messaging platform that would span several Google services such as Talk and Gmail.
One thing I do admire about iOS is the Settings menu. Android’s Settings menu is a bit cluttered and not always obvious. While the same can be said for certain aspects of Apple’s Settings, one superior feature is consolidated notification settings. On Android, you would need to enter each app individually, navigate to that apps settings, and adjust notifications and alerts there. For iOS, most apps will populate in the main Settings menu allowing you to adjust notifications for all in one central location.
Otherwise, it’s less about what one operating system has that the other needs and more about how each handles the same tasks in different manners. Multi-tasking, uninstalling apps, searching on device and on the web — both platforms do these things, though in their own way. It’s hard to say which is intrinsically better, only that iOS and Android are as different as they are the same, and I like it that way. It will be exciting to see the new functions and features both camps introduce at their upcoming developer conferences.
Longtime Android user and Phandroid blogger Kevin Krause has made the switch to iPhone. Follow his exploits as he navigates the world of Apple over at iSource.com.
You can access your notification slide from the lock screen in Android….
I don’t really understand where you are going with this.
I smell an Apple Fan with OP. Who clearly does not know what he’s talking about.
About The Author
Kevin Krause is a Contributing Editor for Phandroid.com and has posted 5860 articles.
Longtime Android user and Phandroid blogger Kevin Krause has made the switch to iPhone.
Even If that was the case, I don’t see the point of this article.
I mean don’t get me wrong, his articles are awesom , I have read alot of them . But this is just silly.
Krause recently moved over to a sister site of Phandroid, called iSource. He is now an iOS user
But he is an iOS user now…he recently made the switch.
Is “quantity” and same as “quality”?
Did you read the name of this website?
Phandroid? yeah I know .
Yeah, I kinda wish he’d stay on the iOS side of this place now. Just because he had an android phone and switched to iOS doesn’t mean I want to hear him compare crapple to android on this site.
I don’t mind well thought out comparisons. Discussions like these in our comments strengthen our platform.
Why does Phandroid do this? Every time they post an article like this it is met with strong, credible opposition.
Accept it Phandroid, iOS is obsolete, and not by a small margin or that “as soon as a device comes outs it’s obsolete, teehee. Technology moves so fast.” argument either – iOS is truly obsolete and is our enemy; Apple would have obliterated Android from existence if they had a button to do so and they would have held the button down.
F Apple in the A.
Why does Phandroid do this? Every time they post an article like this it is met with strong, credible opposition.
Accept it Phandroid, iOS is obsolete, and not by a small margin or that “as soon as a device comes outs it’s obsolete, teehee. Technology moves so fast.” argument either – iOS is truly obsolete and is our enemy until further notice; Apple would have obliterated Android from existence if they had a button to do so and they would have held the button down.
F Apple in the A.
I probably would have just ignored Apple and let them be if they weren’t into suing the crap out of everything.
well not everyone lives behind the same pair of biased glasses that you do. The majority of this site feels this way, but there are people who have the ability to be objective. I own a Nexus 4 and i love it (exception for the battery life and display being just average and shitty camera), but there are areas that iOS has advantages over android. Achknowledging these advantages and taking them head on in future updates is the only way to keep improving. ignoring everyone else and thinking you are the sh!t is how you end up like blackberry.
Just saying, but I think you misconstrued my post because of your “typical Phan” idea. And you should reserve the word ignorant for those who are truly ignorant; you couldn’t possibly know my ideas from a single post (you take power away from the word when you use it like this).
I’ll admit I was fired up when I wrote that message but I still stand by what I said. My official stance is that if iPhone has any advantages now they are slight and negligible at that (this coming from an-always-Nexus-owner).
Another thing I would like to address about this article is that Phandroid knows these type of articles set people off and they continue to post them, I wish they would stop doing that, really.
Finally, I know all too well about looking at the competition to improve. But iOS steals WAY too much of the spot light. iOS is nothing to awe over anymore and all but that negligible bit I mentioned earlier has already been absorbed into Android. It does make me sad that Android has such dominance and I wish Apple would do something to advance the field. However it is not in Apple’s DNA to do so. I’d like to cite Steve Jobs’ own words in a documentary where he says “good artists copy, great artists steal.” Let’s be realistic, Apple always steals other’s ideas to make their own.
Anyways I won’t be responding to any replies.
What a child you are. Ignorant too, about both android and iOS. Grow up.
You make it sound like he’s some kind of traitor or something. It’s just a phone.
nice try, but unfortunately you are the one out of the loop.
Yeah keep telling yourself that enomele.
I wasnt telling myself anything… I was telling you something.
Yeah just keep yourself that comment in your head. Clearly it seems youre the one “out of the loop” by millions light years away…
Clearly. I mean where have you been, it should be obvious.
uggh *facepalm
I’m with Thomas, I like that I can pull down my notifications but that they are otherwise hidden. I’ve seen some iOS notifications with co-workers that they probably wish hadn’t been so public. If this is THE ONE iOS feature you want on Android then you must really think iOS is worthless lol
I am with you dude. I was that guy with my 3GS a couple of times. Android Notifications > iOS
I remember when I got my 3GS, it was the bee’s knees.
You could argue both ways saying that it takes an extra step in Android to look at notifications. In any case you can hide certain notifications from the lock screen notifications.
Exactly, I like how iOS now gets the “Now, that’s no knock to iOS, necessarily.” Line. Hahaha. The nail in the coffin for iOS was Android 2.2 Frozen Yogurt. I always knew though, even in Cupcake that Android would surpass iOS; iOS had a factor of time on it’s side, but alas to some, no more.
I’m with you guys. A week ago I had shown my phone to a colleague, and they were able to see my calendar for a few days, right on my homescreen. Showing personal information where no one even has to know your unlock code is stupid, and not an advantage but rather a privacy issue. If you live a lonely miserable geek’s life at your mom’s house, than yeah, go right ahead. But not when you have a family or a GF.
I agree. I do wish sometimes that Android would have something like “you have a text”, or “missed call”. But I really don’t want the message contents displayed to the world. Android could do a little better in this respect but I definitely hope to not see iOS style notifications if that’s where it would be going.
I think he means the notification pop-ups that iOS has. I think it looks good on iOS, but I’d prefer the cleaner, un-cluttered look for my lock screen.
No, I think most of us may agree with that. He’s talking about the notifications pictured above on the lockscreen.
Not with secure lock screen. (which I guess makes iOS less secure in a way)
Kevin, oh thank God your back. Its been a mess w/o you. ;)
trollolololol!
It’s called dashclock
And the customization options make it superior to what iOS offers imo.
The messaging thing is the only feature I want to see in android (though I hardly use anything besides whatsapp and haven’t texted anyone in quite some time (can;t remember when the last time was)….but even that will hopefully come with Babel)
He specifically stated he is talking about baked-in features, not third party apps.
That caveat is there simply because iOS doesn’t allow the same level of customisation through apps that Android does. Of course you’re not allowed to mention widgets.
he clearly stated built into android without the need of 3rd party apps
I’d rather Android stay lean and I’ll add my own apps to customize, not having to go through the system and uninstall a bunch of added “features” I won’t ever use and dont want on my phone. If I wanted something iOS offers chances are its already available in the play store.
Yea but the only problem with that is Google has to trust that other people will bring features that it wants itself. It also brings uniformity in design and improves android on all handsets not just the techies who know what to look for. A lot of people don’t know what’s out there. I wouldn’t want to hold back the entire OS because you don’t want to toggle things off lol. I also wouldn’t exactly call android lean. Super smooth Scrolling seems to skill be an issue for whatever reason that is.
ASOP is lean, skinned is what I’m talking about, but I get your point.
TLDR: What iOS has that android needs: Nothing
GAME CENTER!
iMessage equivalent.
Game Center, option to control notifications for each app the first time they’re installed so that users don’t get confused by every damn app showing a notification (instead of needing to go into each app’s info to disable its notification), a do not disturb feature, etc, these are nice on iOS and would be nice if integrated into Android. But yeah, these are basic things that need to be improved, Android doesn’t exactly immediately need them. :-P
a “gamecenter” type system is rumored to be announced at IO and the do not disturb has been around for years on android, maybe not outta the box on all phones but with a few taps
I have an iPad, and its do not disturb is great. It’s about being available out of the box, and there is no such thing on my Nexus where I can just set a time for not getting any notifications, instead of having to put my phone on silent or disconnect the network. Android is awesome with all the options you have to customize it, but when it comes to being out of the box ready, it falls behind in some areas, areas that I hope Google will address.
I think they address these issues regularly.
yes everything is app away but built in features is the point of thearticle
I was pretty sure that there was a Do Not Disturb feature on my EVO 4G and EVO LTE. That feature is on the Note 2 though, so I guess I always thought it was a built in feature for Android and not a UI feature.
I would say smoother scrolling
One feature I do miss is the Apple lockscreen. I was able to see each individul text, I could even see all of my planned events for the day (thanks for lockinfo). All in all though, imo, android is far superior and do not see myself going back IOS anytime soon.
You can get that on android through apps. I agree it should be within the system, but I’d like the option to deactivate it too, personally it would be nice to have tasker be able to deactivate these at work and reactivate it after work again.
lock screen notification is bad idea because there is not privacy for device owner.
speaking from a corporate user standpoint, there is a horrific imbalance in Android/Enterprise world to deal with this. I know that my company chooses to enable PIN for EVERY time the device locks and to disable ALL notifications on screen and from pulling down the menu bar. there’s got to be an answer to make this better.
I use WidgetLocker and NILS. Pin has tobe entered after screen is unlocked.
works great but is insecure.
Cheers,
Andreas
So throw on Pattern, Pin, or Face unlock, and a customizable app like Lightflow so you know what kind of notification you have, but no idea to its content, without even turning on the screen. Done.
not everyone cares about privacy. and privacy shouldn’t be of a concern on things that can be disabled
Native integration of tasks within the calendar app?
So are you going to regularly post about iOS on this Android blog?
idk why this post is even here in the first place if it is about iOS…
The great thing about Android is that it’s open-source nature allows Android to take and improve features from other operating systems….
Exactly! I’m always fascinated of what new things Android can Do.. There is a ton of things and tons of new stuff coming out, and seriously thinking of buying the OUYA game console or wait for new improvements of it…
Wished they show in the I/O Conference a new Android version , but I heard that its going to be 4.3 instead of 5.0
I agree, I’m going to make a YouTube video about this article and comments lol
Like Paranoid Android using Facebook chat heads for notifications?! GENIUS!
I wish that someone would make a chat head app not just for faceboook…. but for contacts, email and any other app that the Android User finds useful as a chathead! that would hit very high on the Playstore!
Heads!
lol , I wish I was living in San Francisco right now.
you have to know what the competition is offering if you want to continue to grow
I don’t know if you heard, Android doesn’t have competition, and neither does iOS. They are both successful and cater to two different groups. Android keeps its market share steady, iOS keeps its market share steady. The only ones competing are the little guys at the bottom that don’t matter.
couldn’t disagree more. When companies think they have no competition and don’t need to grow that’s when they fall. Also Google improving core features in android helps the product of the non Samsung oems who are trying to steal customers from ios/Samsung.. Google would prefer a balance of power add opposed to just Samsung dominating
You obviously haven’t been around to see Apple go from the dominant mobile OS everybody wanted, to the OS people use to use. Look at Samsung, they have no competition in the Android space, what did they do for their next flagship phone? They did what Apple does, make a few minor improvements here and there: Improved camera, better screen, improved processor, more ram, and a little infrared blaster. Now look at what HTC did going from their HTC One X to the HTC One. They are completely different phones, something Samsung use to do, but because their isn’t any competition they felt they’d take it easy. The company that innovates wins, it has nothing to do with competition as their is no competition when you hold near 20% more market share.
There is a big difference between killing the competition and not being any competition. And you just said it yourself, companies that ease up and get too comfortable on top(like apple) tend to find themselves declining shortly after. Allthough i think you overstate their decline in popularity by saying the OS “people us to use.” It still makes up a huge chunk of the mobile space and they are still recording more n more users year over year, its just that android grows way more quickly. Anyway, Samsung didnt change the UI or look of their gs4 because they wanted to maintain their brand recognition with the general public. Hopefully HTC will start to do that with the One. Not that i dont love a new design, but HTC needs a clear yearly flagship device.
also, just because you are both doing extremely well doesn’t mean you aren’t competing. Pepsi and coke are doing great but they still are competitors and compete for more dominance
As I said before, when you’re as far ahead of your opponent as Google is, you don’t compete. The only thing that can bring you down is yourself. You must innovate, improve your product, give users what they want. You’re working to keep your current position by bringing features better than the features YOU already have, not dominate the companies you’re already dominating, that bring less to the table than what you’re bringing to begin with. If you still want to use the word competition, Google is competing with themselves.
That’s a very nice pitch you just gave. Something a manager might give to his team, however this is a theory is slightly removed from reality. Yes Android is winning the market share but you speak as if Android has 90% of all mobile devices sold. In fact, especially in america “dominating” is a very strong word. Isn’t it something like Android 49% and iOS 41%? That hardly means Google has no competition. And its getting better, a lot better thanks to Samsung, but iPhone is still the first choice go to OS when it comes to many accessories and apps. It’s great to look at yourself and improve on yourself, but keeping yourself in an isolated bubble ignoring everyone else in the industry is how you end up like blackberry. Beleive it or not iOS does have features that users do want. I dont understand why its so difficult for people on these sites to admit that their phone or OS isnt perfect.
I have noticed that apps are just more put together on iOS. I have a Galaxy S4 and an iPhone 5 (for work, I really don’t like it, but I have to have it) and the same app on both phones is just more wonky on Android. Take Twitter for example, iOS, when you click a link or a tweet with a picture in it it opens the picture EVERY TIME in Twitter. On Android it might show the picture if you click the tweet, it might not. If it doesn’t you have to click the link and it will open in a browser. An articl will NEVER open in the official Twitter app. Games that are on both just look better on iPhone, and I hate it. I think the dev tools are subpar on Android, at least that is my only explanation.
App devs fault not an Android fault.
Definitely wrong. They just have so much hardware to work with when it comes to android. So much different hardware means that it is difficult to optimize the game. When it comes to iOS there really is just one to six depending on how far back the developer wishes to go back.
That’s because Apples developer environment is top notch X Code is easy to use and looks very nice. Eclipse on the other hand is very good, but still lagging behind x code when it comes to designing apps.
The same can be said the other way around. Just look at Dropbox for Android.
One thing I wish my Android tablet had that my iPad does… the four-finger swipe up gesture. I find it much easier to use than the multi-window touch screen button on my Nexus 10.
Oh, and being able to control notifications/sounds/badges from one area in Settings (like on the iPad). Not the per app settings area, just notifications. Per-app settings in the Settings area is broken I think on iOS, I always have to end up checking that area AND the app itself (apps seem to pick one area or the other).
There’s an app for the gesture thing, but yeah it would be nice if it was built in. Apple may have a patent on it though.
Face it. All Apple products are superior. So is Steve Jobs even while dead.
WHo ever voted my comment down……Well Steve is not going to like that!
Now your comment is just so silly. replying to your own comment lol
In the same vein as the centralized notification settings, centralized location settings are nice too. I like that in iOS, I can disable location access on a per-app basis. Of course, there’s PDroid if you really wanna disable any permission on a per app basis, but Pdroid isn’t stock :)
Android settings should be location and network aware.
“lockscreen notifications. This is one of the iPhone’s greatest advantages. New messages, app interactions, and alerts compile directly on the lockscreen. Swiping across a notification bounces the user directly into the app of origin.”
My only interaction with the apple os is through an ipod touch that is used mainly by my daughter. But don’t the notifications stay stagnant? I have noticed that I will go through her gmail and delete messages for her (on her phone or laptop) and the ipod will still have the lockscreen notification for those emails well over an hour later.
Complete disagree about the lock screen notifications. Last thing i want is something that one of my friends texts me to be seen by a coworker because it pops up on my phones lock screen.
Oh yeah and gTalk > iMessage
Using Android since the beginning and I can tell you right now GTalk is not better than imessage (no MMS, and it’s not integrated into the stock messaging experience so it’s extra clicks to get to it). I’m a Android fan like you but somethings you’ve just got to admit to and hope Google fixes it soon, but I’m still waiting for Google to allow the Gmail app to permanently delete trash or the ability to select all without individually selecting them one at a time.
I actually do think Google Talk is better.
I have Google Talk on my three pc’s and my phone. It has a history which is easily accessible from the cloud, and I can do file transfers much easier than a MMS message.
They are different technologies, and I wouldn’t expect them to be merged. MMS is not IM.
I like Google Talk, but sadly both Talk and iMessage are losing out rapidly to WhatsApp worldwide, so the argument might be moot. Bundling free messaging with all the major carriers doesn’t matter if it doesn’t happen everywhere. I’m fine pay per-text if it’s only one in a while to a dumb phone or senior citizen … still won’t add up to the cost of an texting plan
People still use MMS? I can’t stand it. For some reason it is always slow and it also shrinks the quality if the pic. I don’t know, maybe it is useful to someone else. That’s one of the things that I actually agreed with apple about when they omitted it.
There is a privacy option for the iOS lock screen. Just choose for the notifications to show the app it’s from and who is sending. Swipe like normal to see the message. I still wish we saw more consistency in firmware updates. It’s a year since google said this was a priority and gingerbread is still on the highest percentage of android devices. I hate that my biggest concern when buying a phone is “will it get upgrades”
I don’t want to hear that google has no say in this…..apple has had that control from day 1.
I have an iphone 4s for work and I absolutley hate using it. The screen is too small, the keyboard is a POS. When I saw the title of this article I tried to think of one nice thing about IOS I would want or didnt have on my Galaxy Nexus and couldn’t think of a single one.
Consistency, Game Center, Unified messaging, no lag (yes my Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 7 lag)
I agree. Especially the lag issue.
I’m afraid no OS can be as lag-free as iOS and Windows Phone unless they limit things like background multitasking. Granted, Android does have more lag than other multitasking OS, but still, to provide a completely smooth experience things like that have to limited, which I’d never want.
But you’re right, Android needs more performance and smoothness improvements, which I was hoping would come with 5.0 (along with battery life improvements), but too bad 4.3 is next and might not be that major.
EDIT: and actually, unless Google redesigns the core and removes that virtual machine and Java, I’d say Android will always remain the most resource heavy OS out there. Which is sad..
My brother has the iPhone 4s and it is definitely
not smooth all of the time and it has quite a few hiccups.
Have a friend and a girlfriend with the iPhone 4. Both are extremely slow and laggy, and crash apps a decent bit. iOS has a lot of lag too.
I hate to admit it, but I’m jealous of the smoothness of the UI in iOS. I know Big G tried to emulate this feature in JellyBean, but I still have my reservations on Android’s UI smoothness compared to iOS’s.
Don’t get me wrong, I still love android, but the topic is “what does android need that iOS have” and i have to tip my hat to the big evil fruit on this one.
There was a time that I’d agree with you, but I really think that 4.2 on my Nexus 4 is just as smooth as iOS. Just my opinion though.
I agree, GS3 with nova launcher here, buttery smooth.
I agree even my nexus 4 has lag once in awhile, it’s not really bothersome or interrupting productivity, but it makes iOS feel more polished in this regard.
Rather have a game center, and it’s COMING!
Agree with you!
Two things of the top of my head. Nice looking menus and notification drop down menu. And integrated video chat service in the android os.
I don’t want a feature like iMessage with android, I would hate for people to know I looked at their text and just don’t want to to text them back
Too true lol
What iOS has that Android needs: Nothing.
-.-
a little more fluidity
wish these two companies would just work together…think of the innovation that would come and all the great technology they could create!
Google and Apple work together? might as well be asking for world peace. Also not much innovation because Apple doesn’t like change If it wasn’t for Android it wouldn’t even be different it would be the same thing from last year
Really?… Apple is getting pretty desperate if they have to promote lock screen notifications. LOL I just unlock it in 1 second on my Note 2. I prefer it that way. R.I.P. iPhone
You can pull down the notification tray on the lockscreen anyway. No need to even unlock.
Delayed pin lock with lockscreen in AOSP, more native code, security, per-app permissions
I love my Android devices and the level of freedom compared to Apple OS, but Apple OS is more efficient. Though never would happen, if Apple OS was more free, I think it would be a better overall OS.
Every year Android becomes more efficient and Apple remains just as closed. Eventually, Android will have all the benefits of Apple but the reverse won’t be true.
See, the thing is, if iOS was more free and open, it would not be as efficient and smooth as it is now, same for Windows Phone. It is only after all those limitations on things like multitasking that these two OS manage to be so smooth. And frankly, I don’t want smoothness at the expense of making the OS stupid. Like I said in another comment, Android does have more lag than other OS with proper multitasking (thanks to that Java and virtual machine underneath), it’s still miles better than what you have to live with on iOS and WP. I always hope to see a more efficient flexible OS than Android come up, which it might some day (and could have if Nokia didn’t kill MeeGo), but for now, Android is the best choice.
of coarse it’s gonna give you the illusion that it runs efficient, it’s the exact same ui with added features, cosmetically polished ui and an extra row for apps. But ultimately it’s the same, it’s like installing Windows 98 on a core i7 laptop since its an old ass os that virtually takes up any resources of coarse it’s gonna run smooth. a polished turd is still a turd.
oh and fyi smoothness doesn’t equal efficiernt, in Apple’s case it eating it taco without any meat. ide sacrifice a split second more that an app has to load and get boatloads of more versatility, options, intuitiveness, innovation than for crapple to tell me what what the limits to my phone’s capabilities should be
Sister site the other way Kevin.
Wow. That iOS UI is ugly. I had forgotten how much 2007 it is.
agreed. on my android lock screen notifications when i have appointments or messages, i can view them or directly perform actions like ‘reply’, ‘dismiss’, ‘archive’, etc. all from the lock screen. i have to perform fewer steps to accomplish the same workflows i use frequently. its really useful.
on the screenshot the op shows, it seems they have to click on each notification which would open up the corresponding application where they could then perform an action (like reply, dismiss, etc)
so not only looks like 2007 but functions like 2007 as well. seems the software design is in need of refactoring.
Clearly he doesn’t realise that you can change your lock screen on Android and put weekday every widget notification or shortcut you want on the lock screen
I think he means the entire notification shade in one widget. NiLS (Notification Lockscreen Widget) on Google Play does what he’s asking, but he qualified it with “out of the box,” so technically he’s right since this is 3rd party.
I don’t think it’s really necessary.
I don’t know how it is for other brands, but on Samsung phones you can just open the notification drawer from your lockscreen.
no clutter on your lockscreen, but you have all notifications easily accessible.
You fearing what Android needs from Apple is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate.. leads to suffering! I sense much fear in you Kevin..
If I wanted iPhone features I would just buy one lol I’m cool with my Nexus 4
Amen, brutha. This site consists of Android enthusiasts, all of whom know about the customizations to give our favorite OS any of the very few tweaks that iOS has that we don’t (yet).
I got an iphone at work because I’m tech support. I also own a Galaxy Note ll. My customers who have stupidly switched from ios to android are calling tech support and asking where certain features are. Such as call blocking (which Galaxy and others has built in). Or how to turn on SMS delivery notifications (ios can’t). There are all these little features customers want that iphone doesn’t support.
iOS has garbage, Android doesn’t.
O_o
Things like being asked if you want a notification from an app and being able to disable them simply from the settings menu are a nice feature of iOS. Sure, we geeks can open the app info for each app and disable its notification since 4.1, but for the average user it becomes irritating and confusing seeing any app they install showing a notification, including ad notifications which are the worst. That’s where Google has taken a casual stance – making things simple for the average user, like not giving an option to enable what can and cannot run in the background, meaning noobs install stuff that starts a process in the background then wonder why battery life took a hit.
I love Android, but Google needs to focus on the extremely simple-minded user going forward. We geeks have all we need, now it’s time to make things simple for our parents and grandparents. :P
“…and it definitely operates in a more intuitive manner than Android.”
Go install one of the many wallpaper apps for iOS and explain to me how that can be remotely considered intuitive.
Also, instead of notifications on lockscreen, what Android should take from iOS (and Windows Phone’s tiles) is showing no of notifications on an app’s icon. That’s quick glance-able info so that you don’t need to open the status bar every time. Yes, Android’s notifications are amazingly superior to other OS, but adding badge notifications on icons would be awesome. Windows Phone comes close with at a glance info on its tiles, but again, lack of notifications like Android’s mean it’s not as good.
some launchers already offer a functionality like that.
Kinda weird points man..
Android is crap. If you think otherwise you either never used ios or you’re just lying to yourself.
Trolls will be trolls.
You should see ios blogs with Android trolls. Even the mascot looks like a troll.
wow… I just went into isource and Its like a ghost town.. not sure where you’re getting this from…
wow…as if isource is the only ios blog that exists….
Seems like it , since you guys are posting just here (:
Like I said, Android fans are all over iOS blogs as well.
So you are justifying your post? so If somebody jumps off a cliff you’ll do the same? I guess not.
Why does he have to justify it??? It’s the First Amendment….
are you even reading? as What I can first ammendment is void when you start ranting stuff that doesn’t give out anything back.. at all..
What????
lol w/e dude. People self-centered like you will never understand what I’m trying to say, I said enough now. Now I will feel dumb trying to make you understand something so simple..
Your grammar and poor sentence structure is what ought to make you feel dumb…
like the reply I posted above! keep wondering little grass-hopper! (:
I rest my case…
Lol , don’t feed this troll, hes in almost every phandroid post commenting instead of going to isource xD seems like an every day iphone grudge apparently lol .
So if everyone was jump off a bridge hanging themselves you would do it too?
Yes
GENIUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUS
so you’re fighting stupidity with more stupidity. thats great.
be that as it may, this articles doesnt present anything for IOS that i dont already have on my android phone. at best, you could say IOS is more user friendly.
It’s called the First Amendment sir…..something that fandroids are all too familiar with when they comment on iOS blogs. Btw, I have no problem with that whatsoever. I, unlike some extremely insecure fandroids here, can handle a difference of opinion :-)
really? wow, well , I respect that sir. Even I don’t know what blogs are you talking about… :-P
MacDailyNews, CultOfMac, iDownload Blog, iMore, AppleInsider….need I go on?
I never asked you to tell me what blogs or did I? which brings me to the same ol question, why comment here in the first place ? dont give me that first ammendment stuff, not really valid….
I comment here because I choose to, plain and simple. Of course the first amendment is not valid to you, because you would rather I NOT comment here….so ANY reason I state will be invalid in your mind
I would respect your comment , but you need to know what to comment in an Android fan site. especially if you’re starting off with “Android is crap” “Iphone is better” “You dont know cause you dont own one” , and so on..
I can comment whatever I want on an Android site…if I feel like Android is “crap”, which btw I NEVER said, then I will say so. I don’t try to censor fandroids when they comment on Apple blogs, and I won’t be censored here. But you know what? You have the option of simply IGNORING my posts, something that you refuse to do…I wonder why??? :-)
lol I guess your name “DroidDoesnt_2” says it all troll. keep WONDERING stuff , thats what you Iphone users are best at ! :-)
Translation: I really don’t have a valid response as to why I won’t ignore him
The goes same for you little Iphone troll. Well I’ll stop here. no more feeding the trolls from the iphone blogs xD
Point proven yet again…thank you
Lol , don’t feed this troll, hes in almost every phandroid post commenting instead of going to isource xD proves yet again the troll you are, just watch his newsfeed, such an Iphone lover you are posting in many phandroid posts !!! hahaha just sad! ;) .
Lol! Now he’s investigating my news feed! Can you say “obsession”??? Point proven YET again!
You’re making this too easy :-)
trololololololololololol
IMO, I don’t see why you guys are commenting on Android(and hating which is really sad) in an Android fan site! are you guys that desperate on bringing your message to the community?
The same thing has been said on iOS blogs and vice-versa. I purchased the One a few weeks ago and have been visiting android blogs to stay in the loop. After using the One for a while it doesn’t appeal to me like iOS. While there are a few drawbacks to iOS, the overall experience is much better than Android.
OK, So why didn’t you start your comment saying that? why say “Android is crap” ? why say that people are lying to themselves or even used iOS for that matter?? I personally don’t like iOS but that doesn’t mean I’ll go nuts and start saying “iOS is crap! and blah blah blah you lie to yourselves.. )
I’ve visited iOS blogs (for the face palms and lol’s) and very rarely do I see fandroids trolling it. Still, that’s no excuse for you to come here to glorify iOS on an Android fan site and expect people to agree with you
exactly! , even when they say ” crap” ” dont know iOS” and they expect people to respect their argument…
…other blogs apparently.
YUP , seems like it .
you’re crap.
Troller..
Sure, if you want a locked down OS that doesn’t let you do anything and even with jailbreaking it doesn’t even come close to providing the same level of customisation as a stock Android device. But whatever helps you sleep at night.
You can have your customization. Ill keep my fast, optimized, intuitive, clean, and functional OS over your crapdroid any day.
Bleh typical iSheep resonse. It’s cute that you try to use terms that you don’t actually understand, your argument might have had some merit 2 years (even that it was arguable) ago but trying to list those things as advantages now is no longer relevant. Enjoy your pseudo smartphone.
you guys weren’t even the first one’s to put your own music store in your phones. The first phone with iTunes was the Motorola Rokr release in 2006 after the RAZR
What does that have to do with anything?
Anyway, customization and functionality is built into
Android and severely hobbled in iOS.
Apple created a simple device for simple people. The iPhone is for people who have a hard time
doing more than one task at a time. Don’t
get me wrong it’s an extremely fluid device compared to most Android phones but the phone is a dumb-down smartphone.
Another pointless article from Krause. Who’da thunk it?
Skeuomorphs! I kid, I kid.
Fragmantation, wish I was kidding.
iOS is fragmented as well, your argument is invalid.
Its a lot easier to develop apps on iOS as opposed to Android. 12 screens sizes vs infinite = horrible coding and apps experience on android.
I would suggest Widget Locker to anyone looking for lockscreen notifications (plus infinite customizations, widgets, custom sliders, etc.). It is one of the few apps I have paid for and worth every penny and more.
I personally am not a fan of the way the iPhone displays notifications. The screen turns on and all that info is starting at you on the lock screen. To me that is in no way intuitive no privacy or security from wondering eyes. I very much prefer my notification light and little icon in my notification panel until I am ready to view my notification and from what I hear from the people I work with that have iphones they hate the way notifications show up and the screen turns on.
Expect you can go into settings and edit the way it notifies you. If you want more privacy just disable details from showing up on the screen. You still have the notification show up as “new message” on the screen with more privacy.
I fully expected to see a blank page.
hahahahahaha loving this comment!!!!
So essentially you made this post to tell us something we all really knew? iOs has no advantage over Androids software because for every plus on the iOs side there is an app that gives similar functionality. The reason everything is so intuitive on iOs is simply because its only 1 device that gets coded for Android has a wide variety of flavors like baskin robins you can get your Ice cream however you want or you can go to your local ice cream parlor that been serving the same plain old vanilla just with different cones and sprinkles here and there.
Great analogy except I would say android is like that ice cream parlor that serves ice cream that no one likes but because its the only cheap option and the closes parlor, people buy it. iOS on the other hand is like that ice cream parlor that might have a few recipes but because of experience and years of perfecting the ingredients many people buy it, even though it might be a bit more expensive.
Android is great if you want to buy a phone and then have to put hours of work just to make it a decent experience.
Are you retarded? I put maybe 5 minutes into setting up my phone how I like it. All about CHOICES fanboi.
Sure, installing roms, setting up keyboards, deleting bloatware, setting up apps and settings that accompany it….that takes a lot more than 5 min
that would be the same for the iOS if you would tinker with it …. your argument is out of place…
For you maybe. Though a wide majority of people don”t really know about root and roms and the ones that do know how to do it in less than 5 minutes. I could switch roms entirely within a 5 minute time frame.
Yeah , we know you like to throw your money at Apple products. Move on with your life out of Phandroid man..
You have obviously haven’t used Android. My HTC One S is the same setup essentially out of the box with a few changes that took less than 5 minutes to rework. My Nexus 4 is out of the box unrooted definitely haven’t done any roms or software tweaks to either of the devices absolutely decent experience on both devices. Those argument might have been true before 2.1 Android but since then( which was more than 3 years ago now I do believe) its been a decent outstanding experience that surpassed iOs in terms of functionality though I do believe even just the first iteration of android did that haha. If you aren’t a complete noob its not going to take you hours to figure out android is useable out of the box.
If you want to remove bloatware, increase battery life, and free up resources, you have to root and install a custom rom. Many people opt for the cyanogenMod Rom that creates a near-stock experience on non-stock android devices which is why it has become so popular. Android may have more functionality but it comes at the cost of fragmentation which leads to clunky apps and a horrible experience. Don’t get me wrong, I would love to see some of the functionally of Android on iOS but I would much rather have functiona and greatly designed apps before having the option to add widgets to the homescreen or some of the other options that android has over iOS. I would also love to see android push the limit on app design and overall OS experience like they do with iOS apps but until then, iOS will have the upper hand for a lot of people. I’m sure you will say android is already beating iOS in activations and numbers sold but if you realize that android is being given away and is sold on a large set of devices while iOS is pretty much 1OS on 3 devices you notice that it is not so popular. I’ve personally tried wp8, android, and ios and from my experience android is horrible. If google would just grow some balls and put in place some rules, like microsoft for wp8, we could see a huge improvement in app development, experience, and overall reliability. There is a reason most developers chose to develop for iOS first and these are the main but huge reasons why.
No more Kevin Krause. Its just sad and annoying you trying to justify your leaving Android.
I really need decent proxy support, and better VPN implementation. iOS has both of them…
This article really doesn’t belong here. All of us already have our solutions to the few things that iOS has that Android doesn’t. Your article sounds like it belongs on an overall tech blog, something comparing the two OSes. Not here. None of us want to switch.
NO on all counts, I don’t want my notifications out on my lockscreen, I want them in the notification center where it is totally our of my way and I address them when I want
And the idea of having to go to Settings to deal with apps is preposterous, individual app settings belong inside the app, how can it be better to be in the app, then I have to leave the app to adjust its notification, I mean, think about it
If we’re talking about the stock rom, what about iOS’s ‘do not disturb mode’? I’ve seen several apps in the Play store that advertise being able to do this, but reviews on these are sketchy. I’m just not sure I trust a 3rd party app to do something like this, esp when upgrading to a new version of Android. Also, most of them are schedule-based, rather than allowing you to do it via a toggle.
One other thing… I believe that iOS can stream audio via its lightning connection. Is it possible to do this in Android via USB?
meh, i want their app store. thats it. i dont want no features from apple.
I think their app store is disgusting. Unless you just mean you want some of their apps and games that we don’t have?
Krause, are you leaving Phandroid or not??? You said you had left already. If you cant be trusted on that, how can we trust what you say on other things (eeeespecially when you have already admitted to being a closet iOS lover trapped in an Android closet.)
the one feature of ios i want in android is iCloud. the ability to fully backup a system image without the hassle of rooting
Lol @ Slaby. You trolls can do so much better.
I have to agree with my fellow Android users, there’s nothing Apple has that we can’t get on our OS or that is better overall on it’s OS. Sure it’s simpler to use for many but what’s the point of owning a smartphone if you aren’t going to wise up and utilize it? The device is only as useful as the user’s knowledge of it capabilities is.
What iOS has that android needs…..
Patent lawyers, PR dept and insane user base willing to buy anything..even if the same item is already sitting on their desk and they are staring at it while clicking “buy” furiously.
On the second (lockscreen) screenshot, the person clearly has a scheduling conflict. Also, who schedules meetings and doctors appointments for 51 minutes past the hour???
Seems like a typical iPhone user…
LMAO
My video comment to this article and the commenters.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpFiVVrhEH0
My video comment to this article and comments
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpFiVVrhEH0
There is one thing that has irked me since day one of owning the moto cliq, NO TRUE audioline level out. I think this feature along with a standardized quality mic with true gain control would really open up a new layer of creative apps for Android.
Plus everytime I have tried to record a friends band, the mic (now on a Note 2) clips so badly it makes the hi quality video seem worthless.
So I guess one thing turned into one giant thing, more or less the on board audio features of most android devices.
And going in that direction, even the speaker on the note 2 while MUCH improved over the htc G2 and previously mentioned cliq, still seems weak compared to iphone and ipad’s speaker.
Thats it, oh and native screen mirroring with a quality device, yes samsung, im looking at you allshare wireless hub. Pfft!
Stock Android lacks any mechanism to conveniently *sync* photo albums/folders/directories from a PC/Mac. The iTunes ecosystem has this (though it has problems).
Also, Stock Android’s Gallery doesn’t allow for pulling out photos (taken on the phone) into different albums. This requires downloading a separate file manager. Also, it would be nice if it allowed you to easily *ignore* photos albums that are really just pictures used by an app that lack the magic ignore file.
Overall though, the file manager capability of Android is completely superior to iTunes file management, even if it doesn’t come natively. A Google sponsored file manager app (that didn’t come installed by default) would be nice for *power users* (dont needlessly clutter the phone, even if it’s a Google app).
very intuitive.
Kevin do even know what android is what its capabilities are dude stop trolling
You’ve caused quite the $hitstorm Kevin haha
A user commented that Android never gets updates, but IOS is always pushed out regularly. Remember tho. Apple has one UI, one OS, and it does not change from carrier. Android depending on the carrier and the OEM, has different UI’s and there are paranoid, cyanogen, and Vanilla forms of Android. So yes. Google has no say in it. Android in it’s purity is updated regularly. The carriers overlays and added fluff, are what takes upgrades so long.
3 FINGER TAP TO ZOOM ACCEPTABILITY OPTION!
ITunes! Similar program, get with the program Google! Why not?
Really? iTunes is awful.
^This^ Not to mention we do have Google Music on Android, I’ve used it more than I ever did iTunes
Hi.. I was just checking my brother’s browser history, I think we need an iTunes-like program for android!
Lol
Oh and also the transition animation of ios.. Way better and cooler than android.. We need that.. And iTunes similar program! Lol
More comedy gold from Slaby.
Since you can pull down Android’s notification pane, while the phone is locked, Android’s notifications are functionally similar to iOS. You do have the added step of pulling down the notification pane, but as you stated, “… Android’s notification pane is far superior to Apple’s offering, particularly in the latest Jelly Bean releases. Rich, interactive notifications trump the iPhone’s pull-down Notification Center any day.”
What iOS has that Android needs!
Two words! Fuckn, nothn! Lol
1)Android already has better notifications as explained by Thomas schwartz in another comment
2)Google will release Hangouts/Babel which will equal to or better than iMessage .
Like this ?
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/14558015/LockScreen%20Note.png
hhahahaha “Whatever” , made my day xD
incorrect title to the article… please stay on your iPhone site unless you have something constructive to add to this site which this article did not have.
What I envy about Apple that Android doesn’t have is not related to the O.S. but to the phones. Accessories:
Apple users can enter any tech shop and find a ton of different accessories for their phones. With Android is a nightmare, mainly because there are so many options that accessories manufacturers don’t know where to focus. And phone manufacturers themselves are always thinking on the next phone they are going to sell to you that they don’t give the proper care to previous models in the way of a good line of accessories…
But, as my wife always says, you can’t get it all…
Yes, post 4.1 notification screen is accessible from lockscreen. Which renders this whole article rather pointless. I fail to understand this sudden soft corner for iOS on a site called PHANDROID. It’s good to keep the competition in check and the world doesn’t end on Android (in reality it does, though :-)), but at least the articles should be based on research and mention features that are actually missing
I agree…..articles here are increasingly obtuse & speculative than they used to be. I still like the site for the most part, plus it’s still an “Android Base” site so I’ll let’em slide for now lol
I can honestly say I don’t agree with any of your points. Like many here I am definitely not interested I anyone being able to see my notifications when my screen is locked. It in addition I honestly don’t care about sharing my photos and on the are occasion I do facebook and google plus are way more efficient than ios. When is the most likely take for me to want to adjust a setting for an app, notification or otherwise? When I am in the app of course. As for the the messaging, I definitely don’t want my phone choosing which service to use to send my message, that’s for me to choose. So I would have to say honestly none of these features you’ve mentioned are really of any importance whatsoever. In fact I think I would have to go so far as to say this article is looking a lot like clickbait
Some people are so touchy lol.
I have a Samsung Galaxy Note 2 and an iPhone 4. No doubt about it, the Note 2 is the better phone, the best phone I’ve owned in fact but, my partner has an iphone and iMessages are great, I can see that she’s read it and when using my Note, I do miss that. And being able to send a photo through iMessages is brill. Otherwise no photo sending as it costs 40p on our network.
iOS had its advantages, I bought a Note 10.1 yesterday off someone who couldn’t use it as it wasn’t as simple as ipad. Likewise my tech minded partner uses an ipad and when she used my note 10.1 she had to really think about what she was doing and how to do it although part of this can be contributed to how I have it set up for me, I know when I used her Note when she had one before I had to work out where she had this etc. For me personally, as someone who had an iphone 4, ipad mini, note 2 and a note 10.1 there are only two things I prefer in ios and that is iMessages and the email app. Effectively my ipad mini is just used for checking my email as it’s clear, checks all email accounts quickly and sends emails quickly (can wait a couple mins to have all email accounts checked on note and have had emails in the out box for half an hour or more, not the case on ios) and if I reply to an email on ipad, it will also show as being replied to on the iphone. Not the case on the two Notes.
The first things that spring to mind for me; which I would like in Android. Are the ability to speak highlighted text with one touch and the ‘better’ way IOS understands which text I want to be selected. Oh and siri is still good and is baked in.
I’m not a fond of the fanboi wars from either side, but the main reason I voted with my wallet for Android is because I value the principles behind open source development. I’m willing to put up with some disadvantages in operational efficiency and fluidity compared to iOS to support open source. Also, I love being able to pick my own keyboard, and I love being able to store MY music and photos on MY external storage card so that I have access when I want it, not when “the cloud” decides I can have it. I use the stock launcher, but I love knowing that I can change the launcher at any time. I’ve never rooted my phone, but I love knowing that I can. Even better, I like finding actual files on my phone, something iOS pretends doesn’t exist. Widgets and the unobtrusive notification bar were Android innovations and they are brilliant. Heck, I adore live wallpapers, they just make me smile. These are things that either are part of iOS in a hobbled form or will never be part of it.
I think open source can be harder to embrace for developers and end users (fragmentation, anyone?) but the effort is well worth it. Awww, nutz, maybe I am a fanboi(girl) after all. ;-)
I completely agree with your argument. Very well put fan girl!
iOS has an acceptability feature where you tap 3 fingers on the screen and it zooms the entire display and allows you to pan across everything while still being able to click and interact with the content. Android has NOTHING like this. Please, some developer, make it and I’ll pay you.
The newer jellybean versions have it. Go to your accessibility settings, you might have it. Quick triple tap and you can pan around the screen with two fingers and click with one.
edit: Found it, its 4.2.2 so Im going to find a ROM that has this. THANK YOU SO MUCH!
Can u give me an example of a phone or what version/rom has that please? It was not on my stock Sprint GN2, and it’s not in the ROM I am currently running.
Sorry I didn’t reply in time. I don’t use it, but I am glad to help.
I can tell you what ios has that android doesnt need, a bunch of hipsters who think the iphone is a status symbol.
Android desperately needs a standard (and reliable) desktop sync solution for both mac and pc!
Phone to PC syncing app… Samsung has Kies, but this is something that should exist from Google itself… on all phones… by all manufacturers… and should be the same for all of them.
drag and drop
…is not syncing…
but does does that same thing..
….except it doesn’t. Not even remotely the same.
well i certainly have no problem putting music on my phone without sync. though throw WMP you actually can sync, but i dont care for that when i can just drag and drop.
Um android has that feature, just change your lock screen to productivity and your notifications are on your lock screen smh
I wish Apple would develop an iTunes app for Android. Apple would only benefit from this. I would imagine hell would have to freeze over. I would also like to see better 3-button headphone integration on Android, like the iPhone and iPods have.
I work in an AT&T retail location and I handle both operating systems daily. I understand the fact that no system is perfect or we would all be carrying the same phone. To be quick about this, none of the features mentioned really feel either needed or useful to me. I am glad my phone operates the way it does. Keep my notifications in the shade, I don’t want my games annoying me with notifications everywhere I go. Photo stream is just a gimmick that Apple uses to eat up your iCloud storage, if you really want useful backups of your content… use DropBox, it has he same capabilities and can be accessed from anywhere not just icloud. Settings on the iPhone are actually more of a hassle to me, they are very nondescript and frequently put things where they shouldn’t be (same with Android in that sense though).
Now the feature that really makes no sense to me whatsoever is iMessage. It is by far the worst feature on the platform. Every carrier offers unlimited texting. The service itself is quite unreliable and often gets hung up on sending out a single message. Also by not relying on service, devices that are no longer on a carrier will receive messages. I have seen customers come in asking why their messages were going to the old phone they gave to their child. Deactivating a lost phone is also quite an ordeal in my experience.
Some things I think Android could benefit from would be a more cohesive experience from one phone to another. Provide users with a service more similar to iCloud and prefer it as the default. Make a marketing campaign out of it and send out the usual blast email. Make it a part of the system not just an app. Give companies the tools to update phones faster. Open platforms are not good about regulation, but make a toolkit accessible enough that companies WANT to use it. Expand the functionality of google now even further to rival Siri, better answers and more voice feedback.
I’m surprised no one has mentioned printing. I don’t print much myself but once in a while I need to and iOS definititly makes this an easier task. There are printing apps that I use but they are not very intuitive at all. Also, trying to explain to my family that has android phones/tablets how to print is also not as easy. My grandparents were able to learn how to print on their iPad pretty easily. I would love to see a built in print option for android.
lol. I love how when someone takes a sensible approach to what android might need, the frothing mouths of the silly freaks come out of the walls, screaming with spittle landing every which displaying nothing but contmpt for the messenger.
brilliant!
The things he stated are not necessary especially his first and last gripes. The notification LED and notification shade are far superior in my opinion than what iOS is offering. It would be a step backward to change it. The settings for an app should be in the app. It shouldn’t be anywhere else.
Second, he’s an iPhone user. I’m not sure why he posted this article here and not over at the sister site.
Because the topic of his oped is what he believes android needs?
That’s just a stab in the dark.
The stuff he stated is ridiculous. What he should have done is rename the article “Why I think iOS is better than Android” and post it over at his normal site or he could have just wrote the piece without even iOS.
Why are there continued discussions on Windows/iOS on Android’s page. I SMELL A CONSPIRACY! GO to the iPhone page. Android anywhere? NO! besides apps. Windows page anywhere? NO! besides Apps. If I wanted Apple/Windows news I would go to those pages.
because in iSource page, nobody looks at the posts of iphones and no comments( go to iphone/ipad page and youll see theres no discussions whatsoeverr..)
Kevin, you are spot on when it comes to your thoughts on the horribly neglected Android messaging system.
…cant say I agree with you on either of the other points you attempted to make though
2 words – “Dash Clock”
Ultimately I would like to see Google take a more proactive approach with OS upgrades. There is almost no reason that Froyo and Gingerbread are still being used.
I’ve only ever seen one feature in iOS that I liked that is a bit of a mess in Android and that’s volume control. In iOS if you change the volume in an app using the volume rocker then the app remembers that volume but it doesn’t change the master volume. This would be nice as I generally prefer my volume set to max for music, youtube etc but for some games I prefer to have a lower volume and it would be nice to not have to keep changing media volume all the time between apps.
Nononononooooo. iMessage needs to die! From a support stand point it’s possibly the dumbest implementation Apple could have run with!
In theory it’s great, Apple’s systems decide to use iMessage if the other handset has it enabled. Great. What they forgot is that: 1. Messages fail. Now carrier tech support has no way of supporting it, which results in some b****y customers who think we just don’t want to help them. 2. Tons of iPhone users are swapping to other handsets and not disabling it prior to changing brands, but then trying to explain to people how to disassociate their phone number from iMessage when they no longer have an iPhone? Might as well cure cancer.
3. Average customer is apparently colorblind, can’t tell when it’s iMessage or regular SMS.
Had they implemented it as a stand alone messaging app a la BBM, there would be no issue. Because they think they’re smart, they turned a good product into a PITA.
/rant
iMessage. It it’s the best thing left about iOS in my opinion. Other than that, the insanely smooth and responsive interface still tops Android.
In terms of hardware, a reasonably sized (4.3-4.7″) handset on ALL carriers that receives official and timely updates from Google would be perfect. Basically I just want a subsidized Nexus (not made of all glass) on ALL US carriers like Apple has with the iPhone.
like it says, you can easily get an app to do the stuff in the article, so it’s a non-issue. Personally I’m glad it’s not baked in, but if people want it, they can get it. This article is much ado about nothing
The one thing stock android needs is the lost Iphone function (i forgot what it is called) I know there are apps like Lookout that can help you with this and you can remotely wipe your phone with them. I want a built in function instead of using a third parties app.
You’re an iPhone user, Kevin. All if the things you mentioned you prefer I prefer on Android. It still has notifications on the lock screen, they’re just hidden in the notification bar, which I prefer. I prefer setting options per app, which is less confusing to me than jamming them with all other options, and it’s easier to clear data/uninstall. I also want SMS and other messaging separate; I’m just an Android type of guy!
Android needs Find Me, iMessage equivalent, a better way to turn notifications on/off for each app and notification customization per app. These are really my only complaints with Android and ones that make it hard for me to leave Apple.
Android also needs a decent integrated email app. Gmail is Gmail only, and the Email app doesn’t even contain a simple SEARCH function. No search? Really?
Our phones are communications devices. Email is a huge part of that communication.
Wake me when Google gets serious about Android.
I’ll also add iCloud backup… Android really needs to utilize Drive or something to make this happen. Gotta get a new iPhone? Backup your old one to iCloud, restore the backup to the new iPhone, and you’re up and running EXACTLY as you were before (apps, *app data*, settings, wallpaper, photos, photostreams, EVERYthing) in as long as it takes for you to download everything. It’s pretty nice…