Second smartphone - torn between iOS and Android

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SuperToast92

Limp Gawd
Joined
Mar 10, 2012
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Hey guys, not trying to rip off the "first smartphone" topic too badly (mainly the thead title)...

So, I'm eligible to upgrade mid next week (on the 12th) and have so many questions left unanswered. I'm currently on an iPhone 4, which, interestingly enough, won me over the HTC Thunderbolt a couple of years ago. This was my first smartphone, and I've been quite satisfied. That's led me to assume I'll just be wanting to grab an iPhone 5, until today. I spent a couple of hours researching and talking to one of my friends who coincidentally is an android fan. Now, the S3 and HTC DNA have caught my attention; I'm now torn.

Lately, my main arguments for staying on iOS have been that it is simple, fast, and it just plain works. I'll be honest - I've used nothing but iOS for the past three years over two devices. I'm used to the OS, and I've gathered quite the library of apps as well, which I am hesitant to let to waste.

But, researching phone [h]ardware specifications has started causing me to double-take and glance over the fence. Having twice the RAM and, in some cases, a quad core CPU really has my attention. The DNA specs are incredible! But the real question is, is the performance difference notable? Is Android able to take advantage of this hardware to the point of outperforming a weaker iOS device in general?

I have two primary fears over Android: OS stability, and app availability. In my research, I haven't been able to find a clear answer for either. I've also heard that there is a good amount of bloatware on the stock Android rom (forgive me if I'm using incorrect terminology, as I have zero android experience), which is turning me away. I know custom OSs are out there, but, even though I'm a computer engineering student, I'd rather fiddle around with the superuser world on a full size pc rather than on a smartphone. Then again, I have played around with jailbreaking before.

What would you guys and gals recommend? I like the idea of customization in Android, but fear there is lack of stability, speed and fluidity like iOS has. Which platform would play games better on? Which would have the better app selection? Would you recommend one of the phones above over all others, or maybe even a different phone?

Thanks in advance!
 
how invested are you in the apple ecosystem? if you have a lot of apps, it's worth going to the ip5.
if not, i'd switch to android. there is no denying the usefulness of a larger screen. that alone is good enough reason for the switch.
about 10 of my friends were on ip4's, all but 3 of them are still on iphones (upgraded to ip5's). they love iOS/apps but have screen envy. the rest are on sgs3, htc 1x, note 1/2, nexuses, etc.

IMO the biggest fear going to android is not OS stability/fluidity (ICS/JB have really taken care of that, although apps do crash, but they also do on iOS) or app availability. it's battery life, although the ip5 users are complaining about poorer battery life (due to LTE they assume).

stock android (AKA AOSP) is only available on nexus devices and has zero bloat. only carrier phones (samsung sgs3, htc one x, motorola droids etc.) have bloat to varying degrees.

the biggest reasons to go android are screen size, customizability and choice of devices (removable batteries, sdcard slots, screens of diff sizes, etc).
tbh, iphone is still more refined, response to touch/motions and screen animations are still better but only slightly so.

app selection, nod goes to iphone but only by a small margin. almost all the popular apps on ip are available on android.

gaming, if you choose a flagship android device, it's no contest. android by a landslide due to larger screen, possibly better internal hardware (cpu/ram).
 
Well on the issue of bloatware Android has the ability to freeze and hide apps, however if you do wish to uninstall them completely you can do so with root (which you will want to do eventually ;). I'd say apps are on par between iOS and Android, in fact there are apps that you would never find on iOS (e.g. Swiftkey Flow http://www.androidpolice.com/2012/12/06/swiftkey-flow-beta-now-avaialble-to-vip-members/)

As always I suggest going into the store and checking them out in person, but if I were on verizon I'd go for the Droid DNA or Galaxy Note II. They're both packing a serious technological punch. Let's also not forget they both sport NFC which the iPhone 5 lacks.
 
Thanks for the replies!

I wouldn't say I'm terribly invested into Apple's world of apps. Enough to keep me satisfied if I stick with an iPhone 5, but not enough that I would be overly disappointed if I went with Android. I had no idea about Android's app market size, but if they do have most of the popular apps that are on iOS, that's a plus in my book. I do know that developers go for iOS first, as iOS users tend to be more willing to throw their money at developers (I'm guilty as charged). I've been neglecting the gaming market on my ip4 right now, due to many of the games coming out now are not performing as well on a two year old device as I'd wish. That's expected, though. I guess what I'm ultimately looking for is the best balance between responsiveness, sleekness, and power (gaming capability).

As for the OS software itself, I was not overly impressed with Android two years ago. But, after watching some reviews online, Jellybean really has my mind changed about Android's stability and responsiveness - it seems pretty darn close to iOS.
 
Current multi core CP use on Android phones are more than enough for a smooth running operating system. As far as which device to to choose, both the DNA and the s3 are very nice hardware platforms. Myself I like Samsung's stock operating system quite a bit whereas the DNA and HTC Sense are very much showing their age and have not really gone anywhere in a long time. Issues such as screen size and resolution are a personal thing, however I'd be surprised if a person could tell the difference or appreciate the difference between a5 inch 1080 p screen and a 720 p screen.

The catch with the s3 is the pentile screen. Look at a Note2 and an s3 at the store side by side...screen size aside the image quality differential is quite big simply due to the different screen techs in play.
 
SuperToast92 said:
Thanks for the replies!

I wouldn't say I'm terribly invested into Apple's world of apps. Enough to keep me satisfied if I stick with an iPhone 5, but not enough that I would be overly disappointed if I went with Android. I had no idea about Android's app market size, but if they do have most of the popular apps that are on iOS, that's a plus in my book. I do know that developers go for iOS first, as iOS users tend to be more willing to throw their money at developers (I'm guilty as charged). I've been neglecting the gaming market on my ip4 right now, due to many of the games coming out now are not performing as well on a two year old device as I'd wish. That's expected, though. I guess what I'm ultimately looking for is the best balance between responsiveness, sleekness, and power (gaming capability).

As for the OS software itself, I was not overly impressed with Android two years ago. But, after watching some reviews online, Jellybean really has my mind changed about Android's stability and responsiveness - it seems pretty darn close to iOS.
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If gaming is important to you, get the iPhone. There are more and better games on iOS compared to what you can get on Android. Also the games typically run better because iOS devs have so few target devices to develop for.
 
You may even want to check out the Galaxy Note 2. Otherwise if you aren't too invested in the Apple world you may want to take the Galaxy S3 for a spin - Android has come a long, *long* way from the Thunderbolt days. Although personally I think TouchWiz is rather ugly - I much prefer the look of stock Android. But your choices there are pretty much limited to the Nexus 4, and I don't think that fits your needs.
 
What do you mean invested in apps, I mean what apps do you need, or are you not able to find on android? Now days the problem is there are too many apps, apps that are just apps to be apps. They add no value it is clear that the important things to be done have all been done on phones and developers are just running dry on ideas. All the really useful apps are pretty cross platform IMO or at least have good alternatives on android.

Being invested in the apple ecosystem would be more like you have a mac, and apple tv etc.... Remember most of the great stuff on android is just free.

As others mentioned the note 2 is great check it out, once you get a big nice screen you realize you can do alot more on a phone. There are other reasons to go android, once you go android your hardware and phone options open right up, you now are no longer stuck with that 1 phone apple tells you is right for you, and in addition we are reaching the tipping point where androids market dominance is going to start resulting in control in alot of areas including app development.
 
Well, there isn't any app in particular that I would "need" persay, at least that I know of. I've never seen the Google Play store, so I didn't have an idea of the app availability until now. I guess gaming wouldn't be my main concern, but I would still like to enjoy games on the device. A larger screen would definitely help with that. As long as the performance is substantial. I'd rather have a smaller screen on a device that could play games with better fluidity and detail than a larger screen device if necessary.
 
I just recently moved from an iPhone 4 (and before that the og iPhone) to the Note 2. I will not be going back to iOS - the expereince has been amazing. The ability to mount usb drives with an OTG cable, drag and drop files w/o any pc software (no iTunes!), pop a 64GB sd card in, actually multitask, etc, etc. Not to mention the battery life has been great (that said, the relatively smaller battery on the DNA would worry me). Honestly I rarely use my iPad now... The only things that I miss are airplay compatibility and asymmetrical multi player games.
 
-Sn1PeR- said:
I just recently moved from an iPhone 4 (and before that the og iPhone) to the Note 2. I will not be going back to iOS - the expereince has been amazing. The ability to mount usb drives with an OTG cable, drag and drop files w/o any pc software (no iTunes!), pop a 64GB sd card in, actually multitask, etc, etc. Not to mention the battery life has been great (that said, the relatively smaller battery on the DNA would worry me). Honestly I rarely use my iPad now... The only things that I miss are airplay compatibility and asymmetrical multi player games.
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The only thing that concerns me with the Note 2 is its size, what do you think of it? Does it fit in your hand comfortably?
 
SuperToast92 said:
The only thing that concerns me with the Note 2 is its size, what do you think of it? Does it fit in your hand comfortably?
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It took me about a week to get completely used to, but yes it fits in both my hand and pockets fine. Granted I'm 6'4" ~180lbs. I can just barely palm a basketball, and can wrap my thumb/middle finger completely around the note 2. It's roughly 0.57in taller and 0.39in wider than the S3, and the same thickness as my iPhone 4. It fits just fine in both my daily slacks, khakis and jeans.

There are some comparison pictures here:
http://blog.gadgethelpline.com/samsung-galaxy-note-ii-pictures-hands-comparised-s3-original-note/

Dimensions from wikipedia:
Galaxy S3 Dimensions:
H: 5.38in
W: 2.78in
D: 0.34in

Galaxy Note 2 Dimensions:
H: 5.95in (+0.57in from S3)
W: 3.17in (+0.39in from S3)
D: 0.37in

iPhone 4:
H: 4.54in
W: 2.309in
D: 0.37in

iPhone 5:
H: 4.87in (-1.08in from Note 2)
W: 2.31in (-0.86in from Note 2)
D: 0.30in
 
After reading various reviews and comparisons, as well as watching such in video form, and taking a quick trip to a Verizon store, I've narrowed it down to the DNA. The battery and memory should be substantial enough for my use, considering I have nearly 4GB free on my 16GB ip4, with roughly 750 songs, 300 pics and a handful of apps.
 
Michaelius said:
It's not like you can go wrong with any of current high end phones ;)
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You can definitely go wrong when the OEM and mod community abandon the phone in nine months and you are stuck running old firmware and missing out on new features/power saving improvements/security updates.
 
SuperToast92 said:
Well, there isn't any app in particular that I would "need" persay, at least that I know of. I've never seen the Google Play store, so I didn't have an idea of the app availability until now. I guess gaming wouldn't be my main concern, but I would still like to enjoy games on the device. A larger screen would definitely help with that. As long as the performance is substantial. I'd rather have a smaller screen on a device that could play games with better fluidity and detail than a larger screen device if necessary.
Click to expand...

You need to balance having more (and often better) games on iOS against having the bigger screen on Android. iOS is more frequently the lead development platform for mobile developers.

I wouldn't have a problem with the hardware going from my iPhone 5 to a S3, however just a quick look through the Play Store shows that very few of the games I am currently playing on iOS are on Android right now.
 
If you're deep in Apple's ecosystem, I think you might find Android not as appealing. iOS is very well developed, very sophisticated software that is incredibly efficient and parrallel to Apple's hardware, everything from the smoothness to the interface is going to work seamlessly, I'm sure you know that from first hand experience.

Android has nice specs of its own, but will have its small qualms here and there with the OS. You have to customize, tweak, and adjust just to get it "right" and then even then, you'll find something that nags you. But Androids open choice of equipment, widgets, and open development nature make it a very nice experience in its own.

I'm like you, I've been on iPhones majority of the time. Every time I have switched to Android I always ended up coming back to my iPhone. And I've switched to high end Androids too, you name it, Samsung Galaxy Nexus, GS3, Droid RAZR brand, Thunderbolt, I've had all the top line Android phones at one point, I always go back.

But, I do have a well established iTunes library and my car has a integrated iPod cable so I have full syncing in my car. I also have a iPad, so I'm a little deeper into the ecosystem then you are, but my general rule if anyone has used iOS for more then a year, they're going to have a more of a adjustment period.

Take it as you will, my prediction is you'll go Android and never go back, or, you'll be like me, and want to keep trying to switch, but always go back to your iPhone.
 
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ocellaris said:
You need to balance having more (and often better) games on iOS against having the bigger screen on Android. iOS is more frequently the lead development platform for mobile developers.

I wouldn't have a problem with the hardware going from my iPhone 5 to a S3, however just a quick look through the Play Store shows that very few of the games I am currently playing on iOS are on Android right now.
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I think you should take a deeper look. lots of games I see on iOS are chinese rip off games of an existing game often from the PC and flash based games. And of course they are ripped off on android as well. Like I said pretty much everything is out there just might be a different name. So unless you are hardcore into a specific game it is unlikley to be an issue.
 
ocellaris said:
You can definitely go wrong when the OEM and mod community abandon the phone in nine months and you are stuck running old firmware and missing out on new features/power saving improvements/security updates.
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It's a freaking phone - it will still browse net, play shitty mobile games and whatever else even if you are not runing Android 66.6 Carrot Bannana shaken coctail CM1337 mod.
 
rudy said:
I think you should take a deeper look. lots of games I see on iOS are chinese rip off games of an existing game often from the PC and flash based games. And of course they are ripped off on android as well. Like I said pretty much everything is out there just might be a different name. So unless you are hardcore into a specific game it is unlikley to be an issue.
Click to expand...

I'll bite... Here are the games on my iPhone that get regular action, and if they exist on the Play Store:

Rayman Run - Both
Word Trick - Both
Bike Baron - iOS exlusive with a fake on Play Store
Punch Quest - iOS exlusive with a fake on Play Store
Lili - iOS exclusive
Clash of Clans - iOS exclusive with a fake on Play Store. Play Store screen shots lifted right from the iPhone App Store as well, Google just leaves it up...
Minigore 2: Zombies - iOS exclusive
Final Fantasy Dimensions - iOS exclusive
Infinity Blade 2 - iOS exclusive
ARC Squadron - iOS exclusive
10000000 - iOS exclusive
Tiny Wings - iOS exclusive with many fakes on Play Store
Temple Run - Both
Skylanders Lost Islands - iOS exclusive
Skylanders Cloud Patrol - iOS exclusive
My Horse - Both

12 of the 16 games I play are iOS exclusive. I don't want fake shit from the Play Store. Also with all of these games, I have had literally zero compatibility or performance issues. I can't say the same about my time on Android.

//Updated since Punch Quest on Play Store is a fake.
 
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fake shit from the play store, how do you know that your iOS game is not the fake shit? That's the point. Its not like the world of gaming suddenly came into existence the day the iPhone was materialized. My point is sure if you are dead set on running some game that you became used to on iOS and simply cannot accept any alternative you are stuck go ahead and stick with iOS which I pointed out earlier, but that's like saying must have COD, when tons of realistic shooters of similar or better quality exist as alternatives.

If you had started on android and played those games you could probably find a list just like that reversed. I can say without compiling a list probably my favorite application on android is not on iOS but it does not mean I cant find something that will work well enough on iOS. And if my mind is open I might even realize that my attachment to a specific game is mostly to do with the fact I already played. If I give something else a fair chance I could become equally attached.
 
rudy said:
fake shit from the play store, how do you know that your iOS game is not the fake shit? That's the point. Its not like the world of gaming suddenly came into existence the day the iPhone was materialized. My point is sure if you are dead set on running some game that you became used to on iOS and simply cannot accept any alternative you are stuck go ahead and stick with iOS which I pointed out earlier, but that's like saying must have COD, when tons of realistic shooters of similar or better quality exist as alternatives.

If you had started on android and played those games you could probably find a list just like that reversed. I can say without compiling a list probably my favorite application on android is not on iOS but it does not mean I cant find something that will work well enough on iOS. And if my mind is open I might even realize that my attachment to a specific game is mostly to do with the fact I already played. If I give something else a fair chance I could become equally attached.
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I did start on Android and I still have an Android tablet. The game selection on the Play Store is shit compared to iOS.
 
Don't let being locked into an eco system dictate what hardware you choose. If you switch to android you can install blackmart and download and install any app you want for free without rooting.
 
-Sn1PeR- said:
Just FYI for anyone else who ran to the Play store to grab Punch Quest - don't. It's fake.
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Oh jeez, my bad!
/list updated

Alright so 75% of the games I play are iOS exclusive, and Android can't even manage to keep blatant rip offs off popular titles off their own store...
 
Harry1969 said:
Don't let being locked into an eco system dictate what hardware you choose. If you switch to android you can install blackmart and download and install any app you want for free without rooting.
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Which certainly doesn't help developers looking to put out titles on iOS...
 
ocellaris said:
Which certainly doesn't help developers looking to put out titles on iOS...
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This argument can be used either way. We all know that Installous exists on iOS for the exact same purpose.

On a side note, having used Android for a few weeks now, the only thing I miss about iOS is the asynchronous multiplayer games like Ascension. Well that, and foolproof airplay support.
 
-Sn1PeR- said:
This argument can be used either way. We all know that Installous exists on iOS for the exact same purpose.

On a side note, having used Android for a few weeks now, the only thing I miss about iOS is the asynchronous multiplayer games like Ascension.
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iOS already has developer support and Apple seems to do a better job of protecting their own ecosystem and attempt to prevent jailbreaking.

Unless I am missing some huge array of Android exclusive games, I am just not seeing where Google is competing with Apple for gaming support.
 
ocellaris said:
iOS already has developer support and Apple seems to do a better job of protecting their own ecosystem and attempt to prevent jailbreaking.
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I guess.. but having said that, if there were a jailbreak for iOS 6 then I would have purchased an iPhone 5 day 1. I can't live on an iOS device without being able to change my default mail client, browser, and enabling small things like SBSettings and Activator for swipe to access multi-tasking. With those tweaks my iPhone 4 was near perfect from a software standpoint -- it was just too slow and the screen was too small. Everything is a compromise.
 
Rash said:
This!

Android gaming with Emulators and wireless dualshock 3 without voiding warranty> ios gaming
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Yes, because playing SNES ROMs and old arcade games with a console controller is something you can't do on any other platform like an actual console or a PC :)

And everyone surely wants to lug around a PS3 controller in their pocket. "Oh don't worry about that massive bulge honey, its just my Dualshock 3 so I can finish playing Secret of Mana" :p
 
ocellaris said:
Yes, because playing SNES ROMs and old arcade games with a console controller is something you can't do on any other platform like an actual console or a PC :)

And everyone surely wants to lug around a PS3 controller in their pocket. "Oh don't worry about that massive bulge honey, its just my Dualshock 3 so I can finish playing Secret of Mana" :p
Click to expand...

lol nice strawman, how about the fact that Android as active ports of PSP, and Nintendo DS emulators under development not to mention a great PS One emulation. Sure you can do that on a PC, but one is way more portable in the other. Combine that with HDMI out or miracast and you have a portable console station that can play an innumerable number of games. I like how you focus on the dualshock controller when we have way more options out there like the moga, icontrolpad, and phonejoy play http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/phonejoy/phonejoy-play-turn-your-phone-into-a-console

I get it, you're on iOS, you're not used to having so much choice ;)
 
Psych2l said:
lol nice strawman, how about the fact that Android as active ports of PSP, and Nintendo DS emulators under development not to mention a great PS One emulation. Sure you can do that on a PC, but one is way more portable in the other. Combine that with HDMI out or miracast and you have a portable console station that can play an innumerable number of games. I like how you focus on the dualshock controller when we have way more options out there like the moga, icontrolpad, and phonejoy play http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/phonejoy/phonejoy-play-turn-your-phone-into-a-console

I get it, you're on iOS, you're not used to having so much choice ;)
Click to expand...

If someone's primary reason for buying a phone platform is to play games they didn't purchase on it, it is not too hard to imagine why developers focus their new and original content on iOS :)
 
ocellaris said:
Android can't even manage to keep blatant rip offs off popular titles off their own store...
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Nor should it...

Clones aren't necessarily a bad thing, nor are they necessarily worse than the original.

ocellaris said:
The game selection on the Play Store is shit compared to iOS.
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Yeah, pretty much. Although I don't game on my phone much at all so I don't really care, but YMMV.

ocellaris said:
If someone's primary reason for buying a phone platform is to play games they didn't purchase on it, it is not too hard to imagine why developers focus their new and original content on iOS :)
Click to expand...

"new": Yes

"original": hahahahaha, no.
 
I don't play games on phones because it makes you looked like an idiot but that's just my opinion from a PC gamer background.
 
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