I've had an Android G2 for almost 2 years now. I also inherited the family iPad 2 since nobody used it (parents bought it, found it couldn't use Flash, ditched it for an HP Touchpad). I find the iPad 2 much harder to use because there is only one freaking button. There's no back button, so if another app pops up, I have to go to the home screen and reload the app I was in. If I want to access a menu, I have to touch the pad first, then a menu button appears that I have to tap. That's annoying and a big reason why I dislike Apple products. It's not as practical.
When do apps just "pop up" If you wanna go back to the previous app you double click and tap the icon desired
No I buy current technology. Apples products are current technology. It's not like I'm buying some fossil. Sure, it doesn't have 2gb RAM, no NFC, among other things that I know you will bring up in defense of an android phone. The fact is that Phone technology has plateaued. Every boost now in processor speed and memory yields diminishing improvements. Apple realizes this and doesn't need to shove crazy amounts of power in there. They keep up, but they don't do cutting edge every time. Simply because it's unnecessary. I never said android is DIFFICULT. I just said apple is intuitively simple. At a human level. Oh but wait, there I go sounding like an apple ad.
The double tap of the home button will open the tray at the bottom to allow you to jump to another app. In addition, on the iPad, you can swipe up for the bottom with four fingers to do the same. You can also swipe to the left or right to jump back and forth between the last used apps.
You say you buy current technology, yet you then dismiss a lot of "current technology" that Apple eschews. Does not compute. Disagree. Phone tech is continuing to develop. You're just seeing it at a slower rate because your using a device that doesn't incorporate new developments. ...for you. It's unnecessary FOR YOU. Me? I use NFC constantly. I have NFC tags setup in my car, on my desk at work, on my nightstand. I rarely have to go into the settings menu to adjust anything: I just set my phone down on the tag and it does it's thing. For example, I set my phone down on my nightstand, and it sets my alarm for the morning, pairs with my bluetooth speakers, starts up my music app (I listen to music when I sleep), adjusts the volume to 10%, and sets the screen brightness to 20%. Automatically. Sorry to say this, but yeah, you kinda do. To me, nothing is more intuitively simple than to have widgets that give you live data on your desktop so you don't have to pull up an app. Apple doesn't give you that. I actually agree with you to a certain extent: some things about the iOS platform are very, very well designed and intuitive. But the restrictions Apple puts in place to maintain their interface are too constricting, IMHO. You end up with a very powerful device that doesn't do anything more than the device they produced last year. And the year before. And the year before...
Here are some things I like about my Android and they may or may not be available on iPhone these days: - My battery lasts 36 hours. 90% brightness + constant useage/syncing + 2 widgets. - My screens look EXACTLY the way I want them to, and does not look like anyone else's. - I drag and drop files into and out of my phone. Never ever have to use iTunes. - I can replace any native app, including the lockscreen, dialer, contacts manager, sms, etc. - All the accessories for my phone cost less than Apple accessories and last longer. - I can go to 4 apps directly from the lock screen. - I have widgets (i.e. floating objects on my screens) which show my inbox and calendar. - I am always more likely to have signal/reception than Blackberries or Apple phones. - I'm a heavy WhatsApp user, and it looks/works great on Android. Crappy on iPhone. - Google won't ruin my life if I decide to jail break my phone. - Native task manager for checking useage and killing apps, may be available on iPhone? OP, if you've already decided to move away from iPhone, no question Android is the only viable alternative at the moment. Though the future Nokias look like great.
Add live wallpapers and floating apps: <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/0JwzSZFRcyc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
So I've got a dumb GS3 question I'll post here. I've imported all my music to Google Play. I'm going camping this weekend and I'd like to listen to some music at night. Do I need a network connection to access Play?
Woah, was there some kind of instruction sheet for all these "shortcuts"? I thought iOS was supposed to be intuitive and simple. How are these shortcuts more intuitive than a "Back" button?
That's super cool. No doubt. When I say phones are plateauing I mean that what the phone can do by itself is getting limited. The next wave is gonna involve what phones can do to further integrate into average activities of everyday life. Think 'day in glass'. You already do this with your phone but most people aren't going to go through the trouble of doing all that. It is what it is. It may not be hard but they just won't. When apple does it then that means its ready for mainstream.
Does anyone have any Android tablet recommendations? I'm probably going to wait and see if there are any black friday deals, but I'm curious what people are using. I was thinking about a Nexus 7 but I kinda want a 10 inch tab. iPad isn't an option as I'm already invested with play store purchases. (plus I'd like to go cheaper than that)
There is a back button in the app. You are asking about two different things. a 'back button' isnt a way to jump between apps. both Android and ios have seperate functions than the Back button for that. The simplest function is the home button. If you want something more and access to app switching, you go with the tray. If you want more than that, you can go with the gestures. And yes, these gestures are listed in the settings. You can turn them off if you desire to.
If you want a 10 inch tab, it's either the Asus Transformer Prime or the Galaxy Note 10.1 (which is more expensive). The Nexus 7 is a great tablet though. I plan to get one as soon as the 3G version is released.
Now that it has JellyBean, I strongly recommend the Asus Transformer Infinity. It has the absolute best display of any Android tablet, very near Retina specs (gotta give Apple credit: they have nice displays). With ICS, it was a bit laggy, but now that JellyBean has been released, it is the best 10" Android table, hands down. But it ain't cheap, especially if you get the keyboard dock (which is HIGHLY recommended, as it adds extra batter life in addition to a full size USB port and touchpad). The Nexus 7 is nice (I have one for my classroom), but the 7" form factor is just too small for me. It doesn't feel significantly bigger than my Galaxy Nexus.
Well, if you're like me and you're constantly surfing while watching TV/movies, I think it is. Of course, you could also go the other direction and have a floating video window while surfing with Dolphine, Chrome, etc. <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/7-ViwFC_VtQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<br> They have 3 mobile devices brah. I mentioned it in my last post <br> Like I said the only viable option atm is the S3. And that phone is just too big. Aesthetically the iphone just looks amazing. Jellybean is nice and I still really like android. Ultimately, I think Apple's limitations on well....pretty much everything will be their downfall. But anyways, to answer your question: I personally don't really give a **** about cell phones. As long as I can use the basic functions of one and it has good battery life, it is whatever. The iPhone is just nice b/c it's not cluttered with widgets; it has a nice sleek look; and quite frankly there's just not too much going on. That's what I mean by minimalist.
Windows 7 and 8 phones are/will be awesome. They have a very cool and fresh design as opposed to just flipping pages full of icons. They just need to get up to speed with key apps. What do iPhone and iPad users do when they they have a lot of related icons (i. e. games)? They group them in folders so now the UI is back to looking like Windows 3.1 Program Manager!
