WWDC 2011 announced, oh… just a few new features to iOS that may or may not completely crush RIM’s hopes of making a comeback, 1Uped Android and made your PC almost useless. How?
1. Notifications
No more pop ups! Now there will be a drop down notification windowshade like Android, called Notification Center. If you know like I know, this is one of the most important update features to come.
2. iMessage
Blackberries are beloved for BBM. But the OS on a whole is still a bit stale in some people’s eyes. Added to the fact that they are losing market share to iPhone and Android, BBM was the last great thing that you couldn’t get anywhere else…. until now. I have heard on several occasions people say they will stick with Blackberry because of BBM even though iPhone is very attractive to them. Now what stands in their way?
3. PC-less Syncing and Updates
Finally No More frustrating syncing from PC to PC. iCloud pushes all your content to all of your devices. So you can cut the cord pretty much for good! Also with OTA updates, you may see your Computer less and less.
There was plenty of other things but these were the Big 3 for me. I can’t wait to see what else Apple has in store.
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Isn’t it painfully obvious that Apple is now playing catch-up with Android? Its about to become to mobile devices what AOL has become to the internet.
As obtrusive as apples notifications are, the current setup is exactly why I planned on going back to apple. If they change to an android style notification system, I might as well just stay witty my android phone. I would sure hope that apple would allow the user to choose which notification system they would prefer but I digress. The problem I have with the android style notifications is that without that annoying popup I tend to forget to look at that top bar and I’m not forced to close/view the message the popup is warning about, they usually go unchecked!
Please apple, give the users the choice while still allowing for the other great features that an os5 upgrade brings!
Signed
Another user feeling alienated
That may be quite a far reaching statement. And yes in some areas iPhone is playing catch up but in other ways Android is FAR FAR FAR behind. I got one big word for you; FRAGMENTATION. Until Google can figure that out which i doubt they will be able to unless they set a standard like Microsoft is doing, they won’t be able to have a universal experience. When i comes to game, music, movies, netflix, hulu plus, and just overall quality in applications, Android is not there yet. They are getting much, much better though. But like I said, I don’t think Android will be everyone’s favorite OS in about another year.
A wide selection of music on demand is free on Android via TinyShark. Netflix is available, officially or unofficially, for many of the top android phones now and I only assume that availability will improve over the next year. In my opinion, JetFlicks has better content than Hulu Plus and is cheaper (Hulu Plus will come to Android at some point as well). For the time being, PlayOn can be used as a work-around to get all of the streaming content one could possibly want on a phone. The Itunes advantage (if one sees it as such) will likely be diminished even further when Amazon On Demand or another provider gets fully up to speed on Android (Playon Access to Amazon VOD works great now).
Personally, I’d rather deal with the few FRAGMENTATION issues that truly remain with android, rather than pay, pay, pay for the “universal” experience that Apple provides. What the “universal” experience doesn’t provide, though, is selection. Do you want a 3″, 3.5″, 4″, or 4.3″ screen? Iphone gives you no choice. Do you want a physical keyboard? Not if you want an iphone. Do you want the top apps/games for free? Better avoid iphone. Do you want free on-demand hit music? Apple will block any such app on iphone.
I don’t mean to disparage the iphone, as it is a great device and it’s super easy to use out of the box. However, if you like customization, tinkering, or bargains (when it comes to content/apps and the hardware itself), then the iphone might not be your best option.
You see that’s my point exactly, that YOU don’t mind dealing with the Fragmentation because you aren’t experiencing it. But tell that to some Android users who are and ask him/her if that’s cool. There will always be a work around but how many people will actually do it? Not many on a whole. And eventually getting something is never as good as having it right now. As far as screen size options that is great and I love that, but what about processor and screen resolution, what about memory and bloatware from each carrier? What about the fact that there are still handsets that are being shipped with 2.2! With the idea that Eventually you get 2.3 (maybe)
There are some loyal Android users out there and they can ignore the problems so as long as it is not bothering them personally, but in my eyes there has be standards for hardware and Google hasn’t really forced that. Only that Manufacturers use certain things Google wants.(check the Motorola Lawsuit for details.)
You’ve pointed out a lot of the differences between buying a cheap android phone and buying one that is comparable to an iphone. Processor, screen resolution, memory and bloatware are all things you can take into consideration when buying an android device, but can’t with iphone’s one-size-fits-all approach.
Some of the android workarounds are actually better than their iphone alternatives. Take TinyShark, for example. I know many iphone users who have spent hundreds of dollars on music that they could get for free on demand from TinyShark. Another example is PlayOn. Many iphone users don’t even know it’s available to them, but it allows for free Hulu access from your phone, saving you the cost of a Hulu Plus subscription.
I agree with you that the iphone is the better choice for the typical naive user. My point is that there is a large market of reasonably tech savvy users out there who want to choose there processor, screen size, screen resolution, and keyboard type, while also having options like removable/expandable memory, simple battery replacement, and rooting. To each their own.
Jeff,
There is fragmentation in the iOS world as well. My iPod 2G has stopped receiving upgrades…including security patches. There are some iPod/iPhone apps that are not compatible with the iPad. My Android based phone is running 2.2 and will be upgraded to 2.3. This is no big deal to me because…just like in the iOS world I only see the apps that will work on my phone and OS version.
I often hear iOS people say…well your device is 2 years old…you should replace it. Maybe that’s okay with subsidized phones, but makes no sense with the iPod touch or iPad. I understand that older devices may not be capable of running new features, but they shouldn’t be starved off from security fixes or bug fixes. Can you imagine the screams if Microsoft had stopped security patches for xp after two years?
Apple might say they don’t have fragmentation, but they do…and there’s no method of support even available…in effect they should just lease the iPod touch and iPad because that’s what they’re going to force thir customers into.
It’s not naivety, it’s just simply not wanting to deal with the hassle of getting the phone to work with everything else. Is that so wrong?
No it is not wrong, at this point thats exactly what we all should expect. You can’t say that its ok to have all these options when the OS isn’t made well for those options. That’s why some apps work on one phone and that same app doesn’t work on another one. and sometimes its the more powerful phones that it doesn’t work on! How does that make any sense? I like Android, I don’t like a thousand different (yet the same) Android phones. They allow these horrible skins (minus HTC Sense) and think, thats how you make them unique? It’s sad. Add to the fact that Google are acting like Tyrants with Android to the Manufacturers don’t believe me? Ask Motorola. You see how many and how fast they are pumping out Androids… its because they dont really have another OS to build on. But what happens when WP7 catches on, and i think it will. and what if WebOS comes to Samsung? Do you think they will suffer the same fragmentation issues that in my eyes are eating Android? i doubt it.
I like the pc less syncing which is consumer friendly. Otherwise, when I was handing iPad over to my grandparent, it was difficult to maintain. Over the air syncing is not new to the industry. Steve Jobs know the timing probably.
I think it definitely is timing. Like the first iPhone wasn’t even 3G but it changed the industry. It’s not so much how much you can do. Sometimes it’s how well you do what you can do. So they may not have reinvented the wheel with this update but they certainly will make sure that the experience is spot on. What you have grown to expect from them. I’m not an Apple Fanboy, in fact I don’t own a single Apple product (anymore) but I certainly would like to think I know something good when I see it. Not taking anything away from Android but there is a reason behind why the iphone is and will continue to be so successful.
Actually, it IS either naivete or possession of the financial means to have no concern about paying for free content. I’m not anti-Iphone or anti-Apple. I admit the iphone is a good product. If there are really certain features you must have that an iphone provides and and Android phone doesn’t, then by all means get an iphone. For me, the opposite is true. There are must have features that I can’t get on an iphone.
1) Screen size. It doesn’t matter how much content is available if I can only watch it on a 3.5″ (yes, very high resolution) screen. This one is an absolute deal breaker for me as a frequent traveler who likes to watch streaming content. In addition, as a man with man-sized hands, navigation is much easier for me on a larger screen.
2) Free Music (TinyShark). I don’t like paying $1 per song and would rather get my music on-demand for free.
3) Free Apps. A lot of the apps I get for free from the multiple Android app markets I’d have to pay for from the one Apple app store.
4) Free Tethering. I can tether my laptop/netbook for free on Android. There may still be some iphone workarounds out there for this, but they’re harder to find and more risky IMO.
5) Cheaper Hardware. Due to competition (from both manufacturers and retailers), Android handsets are more competitively priced…premium phones can often be found for free after 6-12 months on the market. Given that phones these days (either Android or iphone) run out of steam in 2 to 4 years max, this is a big deal.
6) Removable/Upgradable Memory. What’s that iphone user, no more memory? Better start deleting files or buy a new phone. Personally, I’d rather just replace the sd card.
7) JetFlicks. I don’t think this is available for iphone yet (I haven’t looked for it on my ipod touch in months). I received a subscription as a gift and must say, it blows away Hulu Plus in terms of price and content.
For me it’s worth it (even entertaining) to spend maybe an hour a month trying to find new free content and functionality that I’d either have to pay for on the iphone or would be completely blocked by Apple. Not taking anything away from iphone, but there is a reason behind why android phones are and will continue to be so successful.
I have considered switching to Android out of slight boredom with the iPhone, but after playing with a couple coworkers’ Thunderbolt and Droid X2, I will probably stick with iOS. Android is much improved since a year ago, but it’s still a little clunky compared to iOS (also, the Thunderbolt kickstand preventing USB charging would irritate me to no end).
As far as Jason’s list goes, anyone can make a list of reasons why they choose one platform over another, but everything he cited as a reason to get Android either doesn’t matter to me or is actually a reason I prefer the iPone:
1) Larger screens are appealing, but extra heft and footprint aren’t. I really don’t want to carry a device heavier than 5.0 ounces or as wide and tall as the models with 4.3″ screens (that’s not important to some, but it is to me).
2) I like Grooveshark now and then, so this is definitely a plus for Android, but I already have a large collection of music on CD that I have encoded, so this is a non-issue for me. Also, I don’t generally like to rely on streaming for music for long periods of time: constant 3G use goes through the data plan.
3) There are oodles of free iOS apps. I also don’t at all mind paying the price of a candy bar to support developers… Most of the apps that aren’t free are only $0.80 + tax (I always buy iTune gifts cards when they’re 20% off). Also, given that the cost of my cell phone plan over a couple years is approx $1500, paying another $40 for quality apps over that period simply doesn’t matter to me.
4) After paying $8 an app, I’ve had free tethering on iOS (there are various ways to do this… As long as you don’t go overboard with usage, carriers don’t bother you).
5) The top of the line Android models I’ve considered are not free and are about the same as an iPhone (or within $50 of the price once on sale). Again, if I pay $1500 over 2 years for a cell plan, paying another $50 up front doesn’t matter to me.
6) I disliked carrying and swapping extra memory cards with my PDAs; I just get the 32GB model and don’t worry about running out of room.
7) Sounds cool. But I don’t use Hulu anyway… Netflix is enough for me.
On the other side of things, I’m not sure there are Android equivalents for Things, 1Password (they sync with my laptop versions), Pages, Numbers (quality offline office apps), TopoMaps, Panascope, RecklessRacing, Ra, and Carcassonne. And since so many of my relatives have iPhone4s and iPod4s (while none have Android phones), losing FaceTime compatibility would be a bummer. The upcoming free iOS messaging sounds nice too.
To each his own.
I think the updates are great. I find it funny that Android enthusiasts tend to put down IOS (I suppose that may be true on the other side too). If you’re satisfied with your choice then why see the need to “educate” the “naive”? Choice is wonderful and Android certainly benefited from the iPhone debut. Google’s phone product would certainly look a lot different without the influence of Apple’s product. Both companies have changed the landscape for consumers for the better IMO.
@deslock
1) Everyone has a perfect screen size…my point is android comes in various sizes while iphone comes in one. If 3.5″ is perfect for you, I guess you’ll be dumping iphone when 5 comes out if the screen gets bigger? What a coincidence that the iphone is 4.8 ounces and you don’t want a phone over 5 ounces?!?!
2) You can download songs through Grooveshark to Android, so streaming isn’t necessary. Saves hundreds of dollars a year for music lovers like me. Funny how iphone users don’t want to spend a few hours a month tinkering with a droid, but they’ll spend hours moving music from CD’s to iTunes.
3) I have an ipod touch and a lot of apps that are free for android are pay apps from Apple. Obviously you and other Iphone users don’t mind paying…that’s my point. You are constantly nickeled and dimed with an iphone for content that is free from android. I make a comfortable living, but I still don’t like getting ripped off.
4) I don’t doubt that “free” tethering is available on iphone. I’m also not surprised that it costs $8 and I won’t be surprised when that app gets shut down and another one pops up for $15 and then another one for $20…
5) Shopping around, you can get any android 2-3 months after release for $150. If you’re buying an iphone 32gb for $300, that’s $150/phone savings. I have 3 users with smartphones on my account (many people who pay the bills have 2 or more). My wife and little sister aren’t as picky about their phones, so they have a Droid X and Droid Pro that I found for free in December (I paid $120 for my Droid X in July). That’s $780 I saved over buying three iphone 4 32gb.
6) No need to carry your memory cards with you. Just nice to have the option to switch out a memory card if one is full rather than buying a new phone or having to deal with deleting/moving files.
7) JetFlicks is very cool. I’ve re-watched almost the complete series of Entourage on my phone in airports that don’t have free wifi. JetFlicks streaming content is arguably better than NetFlix, though NetFlix is improving.
Used facetime, very buggy. I use a laptop or netbook with skype if I want to video chat…also very buggy, but at least I’m not limited to other people with Apple products…everyone has a pc. There are a number of free messaging tools out there. I have cited many reason for choosing android…hardware cost, hardware variety, free music, more free apps, flash player, removable memory, capitalism vs socialism, etc etc etc…
Certainly there are reasons for choosing iphone as well…especially if cost, selection, originality, and freedom are not desired. 🙂
Look Android is Awesome. iOS is Awesome. There are some Lovely Android phones out there and there are some pretty bad ones. I think there are too many Android Phones out there. They are starting to blur together and many of them don’t have an Identity. That’s what I meant by Flagship. AT&T’s Flagship phone is what? iPhone. Verizon’s Flagship phone was what? The Droid. the G1 was T-Mobile’s Flagship Device. Sprint has the EVO. But now… its beginning to be “Yet another Android” and no one is really impressed. Also the iPhone is smoother than most android phones out there and none of them have a better display. Game wise, you can forget it. Jetflicks is cool but, i like netflix better but because of fragmentation, we have yet to get netflix on a lot of android devices. That’s what i am talking about. You never worry is my phone gonna support that if you have an iPhone. it just works.
Jeff,
So variety and competition is a bad thing? C’mon…there are a lot of Android phones coming out and the ones directed at the high end are getting better and better. Some have displays better than the iPhone’s…some have ::gasp:: physical keyboards, others are faster…some have dual screens. Some are unlocked GSM and actually support both GSM carriers in the US.
Sure, there are low-end Android phones….I guess it’s bad to offer pricing levels? I understand in some people’s world it’s just easier to be told what to buy and where they’re allowed to get content from and what content they’re allowed…but I don’t believe that’s the majority.
Also, there is fragmentation in iOS…Apple fans just choose not to recognize that even iOS devices running on the same version of the OS act differently (for instance some devices running 4.2x have multipause and some don’t).
As for Netflix…it’s pretty much available on every Android phone running 2.2 and above. You would be hard pressed to find any phone being sold today with a version less than that. Android is also a newer OS and it’s moving quickly. They’re being competitive…this is a good thing unless you like waiting years for “advanced” features like cut and paste. Eventually, though Android’s release schedule will slow as it matures. The slowing though won’t be based on intentional feature hold-backs.
If you use the Android store there is no question about something working or not…if you can see it…it will work. I have yet to find any app that doesn’t work on my TMobile G2. This is the same way the App store works…they hide apps that are not compatible.
As for “smoother” I dunno…I had to help a friend with an iPhone and I thought it was horrendously slow. Also, any hardware that requires people to use iTunes (especially on the PC) is anything but smooth.
One thing that really shocked me about iOS was that Apple while enforcing all sorts of rules that protect their content sales hasn’t done much to enforce the way app developers create GUIs. So, now some apps have the go back arrow on the bottom, some on the top, some have you flip back, some have you close the window. One of the real strengths of MacOS is that the basic functions within every app work the same way. If an ISV dared to go against those rules they’d meet with such resistance they were almost forced to tow the line or be doomed to low sales. None of that is true on iOS and it’s a real shame. Android is slightly better only because of their 4 fixed buttons, but the advantage is only minimal as the ISVs are constantly practicing NIH (Not Invented Here) when it comes to UI development.
Look iPhones aren’t bad…they’re similar in many ways to what AOL did early on. AOL made it very easy to get online and use online services in doing so we pretty much controlled everything you saw and could use within the environment.
Android is much more like Windows…it’s a licensed OS…we’re going to see it on a wide variety of devices in different forms and supporting a myriad of hardware and software. That is going to lead to a support challenge…but in the end people will choose choice and pricing over the controlled, more expensive solution. This doesn’t means there shouldn’t be both.
I think there’s still room in the marketplace for another competitor…but they’re going to have attack things in a revolutionary manner…Apple, Google and Microsoft have all shown themselves to be all too willing to copy new features quickly after they’re released by their other major competitors.
Bottom line, Android needs to make a standard for its hardware just like WP7. Can we have a limit to how much Bloatware can be on a phone from the carrier? And Can WE PLEASE HAVE AN OPTION TO SWITCH TO STOCK UI! Can I move all my downloaded apps to the SD card? Why does this App need to access this and access that? Why are there so many absolutely terrible applications available? Look at the comments of each app and count how many times you see someone say that the app doesnt work for them. And these aren’t low end devices either. What is the reason for this? I don’t blame Julie for wanting to switch.
Jeff,
Look in Apple’s app store and you’ll find the same comments. There are plenty of apps that don’t work. Does Apple give you any options on the UI? How about that on-screen keyboard. Hey, if you don’t like any of the Android phones there’s nothing wrong with getting an iPhone.
As for bloatware? Who cares?…hide the icon…you can’t do that with iOS and it’s mandatory apps but it’s easily done on Android. If you want you can also change the whole OS…the large phone guys like HTC have already announced they’re no longer going to lock their ROMS. maybe Apple could open up a permanent method for Cydia to be installed and allow those who choose to Jailbreak their phones without having to wait and depend on finding yet another security exploit in the Apple hardware/OS?
How about Apple frees us from that horrible Mobile Safari as the mandated default browser? They could also dump those toy contacts, mail and calendar apps.
In No shape form or fashion is Apple’s iPhone flawless. And we can go on and on about whats wrong with the Android and whats wrong with iPhone.There is the simple truth that it is all about personal choice. I and Julie both use iPhone and Android devices. There is someone out there who love Blackberry for what it can do and the way it does it. Does that mean we can say you are behind the times? NO. We can point out somethings that aren’t great but that doesn’t mean That person is being foolish to stick with them. I love all of them. Even Symbian. Actually, I would LOVE a N8 right now. It’s about personal choice at the end of the day. I can understand both sides but I would defend both sides too because obviously there are some biased readers to certain platforms which is great. I love these types of things. This is what keep it interesting. Not Android itself but how and what everyone uses and why.
To each their own… I win 🙂
Period.
Jeff,
People treat this stuff as a religion. Companies pay people/bloggers (the pay can be cash, goods or just access) to make big deals about things like “fragmentation” in order to cloud issues…and then the Holy Crusade of device zealots carry forth their message. Companies big and small have been caught putting false reviews up, both positive for themselves and negative about competitors…they can’t be trusted. It took Apple years to finally limit reviews to people that had purchased the Apps…unfortunately, they didn’t bother to clear out the previous “tainted” reviews. I have no doubt the same isn’t occurring in the Android App store.
Of greater concern though is the dangerous trend being pushed by some of these companies. That’s the locking of a device/OS to specific places and methods of content/application purchases. Apple didn’t start this…it really came to prominence with the game console makers, but as it is being rolled into mobile computing and even to the desktop it becomes all the more ominous.
Sure, they can start out by saying it’s to protect our devices from viruses/malware/poor performance…or from adult content, Next they’re removing apps that list sobriety checkpoints at the request of the government. What next? A sponsor requests exclusivity and their competitors stuff goes poof. Perhaps that sponsor is a political party or a news source that doesn’t want competition.
It’s not healthy and consumers should balk.
@Ken Esq Now that I agree with.
Replying to Jason’s numbered comments:
1) I want the biggest screen area and highest resolution possible, but the iPhone’s form factor to be the largest/heaviest I’m willing to live with (years ago, I downgraded from a hx4700 to a X50v to a lowly rx1955 over size). There are Android devices that are about the iPhone’s size so this isn’t an argument for the iPhone; my point was only that the devices with 4.3-4.5″ are too large for some of us.
2) I encoded most of my CD collection long ago (via a simple batch process that I let run in the background). I think it’s completely fair to pay reasonable prices for music. Also, Grooveshark exists on the iPhone via Cydia.
3) I’m frugal and run mostly freeware, but don’t understand the aversion to supporting developers by paying for quality software, especially when most of it is the cost of a candy bar.
4) Been running the same program for years.
5) I’m on a family plan and each year I buy a new subsidized phone, give my wife my 1 year old old phone, and sell her 2 year old unlocked phone (for more than the cost of the new one). My wife likes the iPhone, so my current upgrade cycle wouldn’t work if I go Android. At the very least it would be more complicated and it might also cost me because some Android phones don’t have as good of a resale value.
6) I had many PDAs with removable cards. It was a PITA anytime I needed to swap them out, so I’m completely indifferent to this (ie for some this is an advantage, but not for me).
7) Good to know in case I ever do switch to Android.
Jason wrote: “Used facetime, very buggy.”
I use it all the time with my kids and extended family. Only once did I have a problem (one idevice wasn’t transmitting video), which restarting the app fixed.
Jason wrote: “I have cited many reason for choosing android…hardware cost, hardware variety, free music, more free apps, flash player, removable memory, capitalism vs socialism, etc etc etc…”
Is Android (given your focus on free apps and music) the socialist or capitalist platform in your comparison? Anyway, you’re treating this in terms of absolutes and rights-and our-wrongs, but your listed reasons for switching to Android simply aren’t applicable to everyone. The reality is that each platform has tangible pros and cons; which one makes the most sense depends ones needs. WebOS is pretty slick too.
Jason wrote: “Certainly there are reasons for choosing iphone as well…especially if cost, selection, originality, and freedom are not desired.”
Responding one at a time:
Cost: The cost difference as a percentage of what you spend overall (voice and data plan) is not necessarily different (not for my situation, anyway).
Selection: Agreed as far as hardware goes. As far as software goes, it’s a wash (I’ve found apps that exist in one or the other but not both). In terms of accessories, the iPhone still has more selection.
Originality: The iPhone is the most original and innovative pocket computer since the Pilot 1000. There were many things that Apple brought to the smartphone market, but the most noteworthy was replacing the widely used stylus and resistive screen convention with a capacitive screen and finger input UI (multi-touch, gesture-based). That innovation was revolutionary for smartphones; every good one since the iPhone has been derivative. The combination of a dynamic scaling webkit browser, smooth and gentle-on-battery-life multimedia playback, and large HVGA screen in a flat tablet form factor was new for phones too. And there wasn’t a central store for downloading apps. Android also deserves credit for several notable advances such as multitasking, video output, better notifications, larger screens, higher resolution, etc. But that stuff is minor compared to what the iPhone brought to the table.
Freedom: Totally agreed. With Apple, you either have to accept their authoritarian approach or jailbreak.
BTW, Jason, it may surprise you, but I am considering a Motorola Atrix for my next phone because:
– I’m slightly bored with the iPhone
– Bigger screen
– Apple has gone overboard a few times with their control
But in my case, there are some disadvantages with such a switch against:
– We have several iOS devices on the same account in my household; I buy an app once and use it on all of them and many apps work well together (games with kids, etc)
– My car stereo uses built-in iPhone dock
– We own a couple iPod/iPhone speaker docks
– My upgrade cycle would be screwed up and possible cost more (as detailed above)
– I regularly use several iOS apps that don’t exist on Android (TopoMaps, Panascope, Reckless Racing, Ra, Carcassonne)
– I’m not keen on the crap apps many carriers bundle with Android
– QuickOffice isn’t as slick as Pages/Numbers (before Apple added them to the iPhone, QuickOffice had been on my pros list for switching)
– I would need to setup my family and relatives with an alternative to FaceTime
– Battery life concerns
– Lower resolution (only slightly for some models)
– Screen quality is acceptable, but not quite as nice (based on playing with several Android phones, including the Atrix, side-by-side with the iPhone4… tried changing brightness on all of them but the colors on the iPhone look a bit better to me)
Some of those are pretty minor concerns, and I am not saying I wont switch, or that anyone shouldn’t switch; that’s just a cons list for my situation.