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I had used Android Nexus devices starting from Nexus S up to 6P and finally switched to iPhone 8 this year. Android has better UX and has some nice features bu

by Jnr 8y ago

I had used Android Nexus devices starting from Nexus S up to 6P and finally switched to iPhone 8 this year. Android has better UX and has some nice features but there are no real privacy settings, Android apps have no proper inspection before being released on the market and too frequently some 0day RCE exploits are released publicly for Android. Privacy features were the biggest reason I switched and even though it is not as convenient to use it, I'm going to stick with it for the foreseeable future. Oh, and the hardware build quality "feel" seems much much better than any Android phone I have held as well.

clairity 8y ago
> "Android has better UX..." ruhr? </scooby-doo_voice> i have both an android and an ios phone, and i'm comparatively amazed at how bone-headed android UX can be. it's also a hot bed of paralysis-of-choice (in both apps and in settings/configuration). sure, ios has issues here and there, but (to me) ios is generally more intuitive (==better UX).
- Nerdfest 8y ago
  Perhaps you have a Samsung? Some of the changes that vendors make are aggressively stupid, in the name of being different.
- ambicapter 8y ago
  The only caveat I have on that is the iPhone's Settings. Its chaotic in there.
- nikofeyn 8y ago
  you didn't exactly give any counterexamples. yes, android's settings menus have a lot and are relatively poorly organized, but so are ios settings. but in terms of apps, i find android much more intuitive than ios. on android, there is basically a universal back button, in position and in behavior, that always seems to just work. not so on ios, where i am constantly wondering how do i go backwards from where i'm at. the heavy gesture language on ios is very non-intuitive. for example, closing apps. on android, there is a two button press to close all apps or just a one button press plus swipe to close a single app. or there's a double-tap to return to the previous app immediately. on ios, it's a weird swipe up and right, then a ridiculously long hold, and then a one by one swipe. on lg android phones at least, there is serious multitasking. so i can have youtube playing in the top or bottom of the screen and then be browsing the web or on some other app in the other half. this is really, really useful. not to mention android can more frequently have an overlay of apps, such as video chat or youtube in a picture in picture type of situation. android's clip tray is also very useful, especially when composing e-mails that contain copied information from multiple places. on ios, i am constantly annoyed by editing the address bar. the tap, then wait, and then hit the little x is a constant annoyance because there is a mandatory wait after the first tap, and it's very finicky, as well as the little x. yes, ios is very clean, but that doesn't mean it has good ux. i am constantly befuddled by ios design choices in how to do something. and the gesture language is extremely non-intuitive. the gestures on android or far more nature and less overbearing.
  - clairity 8y ago
    don't get me wrong, there are some things i like about android, like the am/fm radio chip being accessible and having a wireless router built in (i have an LG phone). but the radio is a good example of the frustrating UX -- you can't use the radio without wired headphones to act as the antenna. you can't even plug in the wired headphones and then used wireless headphones for output. apple actually makes sure the common use cases are well designed (and chooses to preclude less common ones to reduce that paralysis of choice problem), while android seems to be trying to check as many boxes as possible on a spec sheet. closing apps on ios is a double-tap and a swipe or two swipes, depending on your phone. on my android, it's hitting a small, unintuitive square symbol and then hitting a small 'x' icon--both of which require more precision than on ios. the lack of a youtube overlay in ios is a limitation imposed by google. ios has picture-in-picture mode but google won't implement it for ios for competitive reasons. as for gestures, both android and ios have non-discoverable gestures, but i think ios's gestures are more intuitive overall. as in, once you find the gesture, you go "oh right, that's exactly what i would have expected that gesture to do there." i don't always have that satisfaction on android. this, of course, is how i experience the two operating systems, so i'm not trying to discount your experience.
- Jnr 8y ago
  A few things that come to my mind that are better on Android: On Stock Android you can edit quick access settings; It stacks notifications (but it is coming in the new iOS) and allows quickly replying from notification screen; * Better structured settings menu; * Having shortcuts for frequently used apps or actions and having widgets for notes/calendar on the home-screen save multiple taps and swipes and provides all that info at a glance without opening specific app; * Android Phone app with contacts is also easier to use since search is available on all of the tabs and it provides grid view with most commonly contacted contacts. It also searches in company contact directory, a setting that is hidden under multiple clicks on iOS. This is a bit funny, everyone said how intuitive iPhone is, but on the first day I accidentally opened magnifier and was unable to close it without getting to my computer and googling. None of my friends who had iPhone knew what that square was and how to remove it from the screen. It is not intuitive in any way to do 3 finger double tap. And even custom keyboards are too limited by iOS SDK. For typing in languages where symbols with accents or diacritics are used it is inconvenient that the long tap doesn't bring the wanted symbol in focus and you have to swipe as well. That is not a problem on Android. And you have to know when and where to swipe left or right to bring up some other menu or to go back one step. On Android you just click the OS back button on the bottom of the screen. For app switching - there is a button for that. Overall it requires more clicks and swipes on iOS to get around. I am not sure what Android version You used but the stock Google Android was a lot better in many ways. Sure, there are cool iOS features as well that are not available on Android but there are very few of those.
Grazester 8y ago
I am all with you on the UX thing. Hell sometimes I dont even know how to go back in an app. Sometimes there is a back arrow on the top left, sometimes there isn't. I just give my wife back her phone and tell her I can't use it out of frustration and she needs to do it. The back button is always at my fingers reach on my Android phone and despite hearing complaints about not knowing how it would function I have found it reliably functions the way I predicted in 99% of the uses
craftyguy 8y ago
> Android apps have no proper inspection before being released on the market Apple isn't all that much better.[0] Moral of the story is, you shouldn't expect app store maintainers (google, apple, fdroid, whatever) to be effective at protecting you. The task is almost certainly automated, and error-prone, or dependent upon a small group, and error-prone. 0. https://gizmodo.com/top-apple-mac-app-secretly-sends-your-browser-history-t-1828881137 https://gizmodo.com/top-apple-mac-app-secretly-sends-your-br...
- brandonjm 8y ago
  Apple is better overall for app quality because they do actually check apps have a purpose and aren't pretending to be something else. I have watched colleagues get apps approved and it is probably automated to a degree then definitely reviewed by a human if anything suspicious comes up. They were using the camera with explicit permission from the user, but the user couldn't see the camera feed, so Apple asked that an indicator be added whenever it was actively in use. Some things may slip through the cracks, but the Google Play store allows almost anything to be published with little to no checks at all.

by Jnr 8y ago

clairity 8y ago

> "Android has better UX..." ruhr? </scooby-doo_voice> i have both an android and an ios phone, and i'm comparatively amazed at how bone-headed android UX can be. it's also a hot bed of paralysis-of-choice (in both apps and in settings/configuration). sure, ios has issues here and there, but (to me) ios is generally more intuitive (==better UX).

Nerdfest 8y ago
Perhaps you have a Samsung? Some of the changes that vendors make are aggressively stupid, in the name of being different.
ambicapter 8y ago
The only caveat I have on that is the iPhone's Settings. Its chaotic in there.
nikofeyn 8y ago
you didn't exactly give any counterexamples. yes, android's settings menus have a lot and are relatively poorly organized, but so are ios settings. but in terms of apps, i find android much more intuitive than ios. on android, there is basically a universal back button, in position and in behavior, that always seems to just work. not so on ios, where i am constantly wondering how do i go backwards from where i'm at. the heavy gesture language on ios is very non-intuitive. for example, closing apps. on android, there is a two button press to close all apps or just a one button press plus swipe to close a single app. or there's a double-tap to return to the previous app immediately. on ios, it's a weird swipe up and right, then a ridiculously long hold, and then a one by one swipe. on lg android phones at least, there is serious multitasking. so i can have youtube playing in the top or bottom of the screen and then be browsing the web or on some other app in the other half. this is really, really useful. not to mention android can more frequently have an overlay of apps, such as video chat or youtube in a picture in picture type of situation. android's clip tray is also very useful, especially when composing e-mails that contain copied information from multiple places. on ios, i am constantly annoyed by editing the address bar. the tap, then wait, and then hit the little x is a constant annoyance because there is a mandatory wait after the first tap, and it's very finicky, as well as the little x. yes, ios is very clean, but that doesn't mean it has good ux. i am constantly befuddled by ios design choices in how to do something. and the gesture language is extremely non-intuitive. the gestures on android or far more nature and less overbearing.
- clairity 8y ago
  don't get me wrong, there are some things i like about android, like the am/fm radio chip being accessible and having a wireless router built in (i have an LG phone). but the radio is a good example of the frustrating UX -- you can't use the radio without wired headphones to act as the antenna. you can't even plug in the wired headphones and then used wireless headphones for output. apple actually makes sure the common use cases are well designed (and chooses to preclude less common ones to reduce that paralysis of choice problem), while android seems to be trying to check as many boxes as possible on a spec sheet. closing apps on ios is a double-tap and a swipe or two swipes, depending on your phone. on my android, it's hitting a small, unintuitive square symbol and then hitting a small 'x' icon--both of which require more precision than on ios. the lack of a youtube overlay in ios is a limitation imposed by google. ios has picture-in-picture mode but google won't implement it for ios for competitive reasons. as for gestures, both android and ios have non-discoverable gestures, but i think ios's gestures are more intuitive overall. as in, once you find the gesture, you go "oh right, that's exactly what i would have expected that gesture to do there." i don't always have that satisfaction on android. this, of course, is how i experience the two operating systems, so i'm not trying to discount your experience.
Jnr 8y ago
A few things that come to my mind that are better on Android: On Stock Android you can edit quick access settings; It stacks notifications (but it is coming in the new iOS) and allows quickly replying from notification screen; * Better structured settings menu; * Having shortcuts for frequently used apps or actions and having widgets for notes/calendar on the home-screen save multiple taps and swipes and provides all that info at a glance without opening specific app; * Android Phone app with contacts is also easier to use since search is available on all of the tabs and it provides grid view with most commonly contacted contacts. It also searches in company contact directory, a setting that is hidden under multiple clicks on iOS. This is a bit funny, everyone said how intuitive iPhone is, but on the first day I accidentally opened magnifier and was unable to close it without getting to my computer and googling. None of my friends who had iPhone knew what that square was and how to remove it from the screen. It is not intuitive in any way to do 3 finger double tap. And even custom keyboards are too limited by iOS SDK. For typing in languages where symbols with accents or diacritics are used it is inconvenient that the long tap doesn't bring the wanted symbol in focus and you have to swipe as well. That is not a problem on Android. And you have to know when and where to swipe left or right to bring up some other menu or to go back one step. On Android you just click the OS back button on the bottom of the screen. For app switching - there is a button for that. Overall it requires more clicks and swipes on iOS to get around. I am not sure what Android version You used but the stock Google Android was a lot better in many ways. Sure, there are cool iOS features as well that are not available on Android but there are very few of those.

Grazester 8y ago

I am all with you on the UX thing. Hell sometimes I dont even know how to go back in an app. Sometimes there is a back arrow on the top left, sometimes there isn't. I just give my wife back her phone and tell her I can't use it out of frustration and she needs to do it. The back button is always at my fingers reach on my Android phone and despite hearing complaints about not knowing how it would function I have found it reliably functions the way I predicted in 99% of the uses

craftyguy 8y ago

> Android apps have no proper inspection before being released on the market Apple isn't all that much better.[0] Moral of the story is, you shouldn't expect app store maintainers (google, apple, fdroid, whatever) to be effective at protecting you. The task is almost certainly automated, and error-prone, or dependent upon a small group, and error-prone. 0. https://gizmodo.com/top-apple-mac-app-secretly-sends-your-browser-history-t-1828881137 https://gizmodo.com/top-apple-mac-app-secretly-sends-your-br...

brandonjm 8y ago
Apple is better overall for app quality because they do actually check apps have a purpose and aren't pretending to be something else. I have watched colleagues get apps approved and it is probably automated to a degree then definitely reviewed by a human if anything suspicious comes up. They were using the camera with explicit permission from the user, but the user couldn't see the camera feed, so Apple asked that an indicator be added whenever it was actively in use. Some things may slip through the cracks, but the Google Play store allows almost anything to be published with little to no checks at all.