4 ms·

There are plenty of Android flavours that don't have Google apps, like https://lineage.microg.org/ https://lineage.microg.org/ In my limited experience so far,

There are plenty of Android flavours that don't have Google apps, like https://lineage.microg.org/ https://lineage.microg.org/ In my limited experience so far, LineageOS works much better than it used to on my HTC Desire. Battery life has been better than any of my iPhones (3G, 4S, 5S, 7 and XS) ever had. That said, if I had to chose between a Google Android phone and an Apple phone, I'd still pick the Apple one. Luckily there are more choices these days.

mylons 5y ago
android is no where near competitive with apple’s user XP. i was a long term android user until 3ish years ago. i’ll never go back to a fragmented device ecosystem again if i can help it.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- alangibson 5y ago
  It's like QWERTY vs Dvorak. The best one is the one you're used to. I personally find Windows and iOS frustrating, but I know it's because I'm used to Linux and Android.
  - mylons 5y ago
    that’s not true. i just gave an example of switching from what i was used to, to something new that i thought was superior.
    - rcMgD2BwE72F 5y ago
      Why would fragmentation be a problem as an Android user?
      - mylons 5y ago
        google doesn't control for device screen sizes, software that other vendors load on, or the CPU/ram/storage on the phone, watch, or tablet. they also allow 3rd party app stores. this creates an experience that is out of google's control and in a lot of cases is sub optimal for the user. it's not as stream lined or polished as it could be.
        rcMgD2BwE72F 5y ago
        Any example? I've been using both iOS and Android devices of all shapes and form factors since both launched (and I work at a mobile app editing co) and have no idea of the inconvenience for end users.
        mylons 5y ago
        pagerduty on a nexus 5 brought the phone completely to it's knees due to low ram, and probably some amount of responsibility on the pagerduty app not doing something gracefully. this was the google flagship phone at the time, pals with the current iphone didin't have that problem so i switched.
- RussianCow 5y ago
  To each their own. I switched to an iPhone early this year after always having used Android before, and I won't be buying another one. Apple nails the big picture stuff, but they have really dropped the ball on some of the details in their UX. Just a few arbitrary gripes off the top of my head: * The Clock app doesn't let you set a snooze length? Seriously?! * Not having a notification LED or some other indicator really sucks. I might set my phone on the counter while I'm doing other things, and with Android, it was nice to be able to look up and see if I've gotten something without walking up to the phone and checking. (I know Apple will likely never implement this because it's a great pitch for their watch.) * Face ID is slow and inconsistent compared to a fingerprint reader (especially during COVID), and I'm bummed that Apple ditched the latter. It works well about 80% of the time, and the other 20% I'm that crazy-looking person that's making faces at his phone trying to get it to unlock. * If you had any sort of media app open previously and then connect some Bluetooth headphones, the media controls for that app open up and take up most of the lock screen, and there is no way to swipe them away; you have to kill the app to get them to disappear. * I miss the inline notification controls. On Android, apps can give their notifications extra buttons, so you can do things like delete an email right from the notifications bar without having to open the app. * My friend and I regularly send each other voice memos. First of all, the built-in voice memo feature in iMessage is atrocious (no seek and you have to restart from the beginning if you leave the screen), so we use the Voice Memos app to send each other audio files. Except, when you play an audio file inline through either iMessage or Mail, the screen will still turn off and lock, which pauses the file. You have to save it to Files, then open it via the Files app to ensure that it continues playing in the background. How are you supposed to know this?! * If your iCloud storage is close to full, Apple will continually notify you every few days via your phone and email, and there is no way to disable these notifications. * Needing a special charger sucks. Everything else I own is either USB-C or microUSB at this point, but my iPhone needs its own charging cable that nothing else uses. * All of the special treatment that only Apple's apps get is frustrating. For instance, why does only Apple's Clock app get a special timer UX on the lock screen, and everyone else's has to use a notification? Why does only Safari support ad blockers? And why is the camera button on the lock screen limited to the built-in Camera app? They really push their own apps with these artificial benefits, which detracts from the plethora of apps in the App Store. * Syncing files (in both directions) without iCloud is a pain, and I'm not going to pay for an iCloud subscription. There are lots of different ways to achieve this, but none of them are as easy as simply using SyncThing on Android. Even though Android is lacking in certain areas, I find the UX to be a lot more consistent than that of iOS, and I would take the consistency and flexibility of Android over all of Apple's corner cases and attempts to predict how I will use my device. But again, that's my personal preference, and to each their own. (Sorry, this turned out to be much longer than I expected. I guess I'm more frustrated by iOS than I realized!)
ocdtrekkie 5y ago
microG is still sending information to Google in order for apps and services to work. It does NOT free you from Google.
- RealStickman_ 5y ago
  Use Lineage without microG then.
svavs 5y ago
I haven't used Android as a daily phone since the EVO (I know, its been a while). One issue I had with Android and custom firmware was the time involved. Being on a computer all day, and often times at night, having to deal with tech support issues on my device is a hard stop (for me, personally, plenty of people love it). That's the nice part of Apple's ecosystem - its pretty simple and requires minimum intervention.
- RussianCow 5y ago
  To be fair, once you get past the initial setup, everything mostly Just Works™. But still, I completely understand not wanting to deal with installation and the potential consequences if something goes wrong. (I nearly bricked a device from a botched installation once, so I know how stressful that is.)
  - ziml77 5y ago
    I don't doubt that it just works nearly as well as an iPhone, but I want someone else to be responsible if things do go wrong. For similar reasons, I don't self-host important services like email despite having my own domain. If shit goes wrong, I want the company I'm paying to have their people take care of it. I don't want to have to rush to fix it myself.
- blakeinate 5y ago
  As someone who had an Evo with custom FW back in the day, I can attest the process is much simpler in recent years. If you do your research and ensure the device you are purchasing has official lineage support, the entire setup procsss takes less than an hour. Lineage includes built in update support as well, although to upgrade between major versions you still need to use a computer if I remember correctly. I purchased my first iPhone since the 3G this year, and it is currently for sale on swappa. I am willing to compromise on a slightly less polished UI and subpar camera to get the UX of android back; at least for me, iOS was lacking many features I could consider essential.

mylons 5y ago

android is no where near competitive with apple’s user XP. i was a long term android user until 3ish years ago. i’ll never go back to a fragmented device ecosystem again if i can help it.

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
alangibson 5y ago
It's like QWERTY vs Dvorak. The best one is the one you're used to. I personally find Windows and iOS frustrating, but I know it's because I'm used to Linux and Android.
- mylons 5y ago
  that’s not true. i just gave an example of switching from what i was used to, to something new that i thought was superior.
  - rcMgD2BwE72F 5y ago
    Why would fragmentation be a problem as an Android user?
    - mylons 5y ago
      google doesn't control for device screen sizes, software that other vendors load on, or the CPU/ram/storage on the phone, watch, or tablet. they also allow 3rd party app stores. this creates an experience that is out of google's control and in a lot of cases is sub optimal for the user. it's not as stream lined or polished as it could be.
      - rcMgD2BwE72F 5y ago
        Any example? I've been using both iOS and Android devices of all shapes and form factors since both launched (and I work at a mobile app editing co) and have no idea of the inconvenience for end users.
        mylons 5y ago
        pagerduty on a nexus 5 brought the phone completely to it's knees due to low ram, and probably some amount of responsibility on the pagerduty app not doing something gracefully. this was the google flagship phone at the time, pals with the current iphone didin't have that problem so i switched.
RussianCow 5y ago
To each their own. I switched to an iPhone early this year after always having used Android before, and I won't be buying another one. Apple nails the big picture stuff, but they have really dropped the ball on some of the details in their UX. Just a few arbitrary gripes off the top of my head: * The Clock app doesn't let you set a snooze length? Seriously?! * Not having a notification LED or some other indicator really sucks. I might set my phone on the counter while I'm doing other things, and with Android, it was nice to be able to look up and see if I've gotten something without walking up to the phone and checking. (I know Apple will likely never implement this because it's a great pitch for their watch.) * Face ID is slow and inconsistent compared to a fingerprint reader (especially during COVID), and I'm bummed that Apple ditched the latter. It works well about 80% of the time, and the other 20% I'm that crazy-looking person that's making faces at his phone trying to get it to unlock. * If you had any sort of media app open previously and then connect some Bluetooth headphones, the media controls for that app open up and take up most of the lock screen, and there is no way to swipe them away; you have to kill the app to get them to disappear. * I miss the inline notification controls. On Android, apps can give their notifications extra buttons, so you can do things like delete an email right from the notifications bar without having to open the app. * My friend and I regularly send each other voice memos. First of all, the built-in voice memo feature in iMessage is atrocious (no seek and you have to restart from the beginning if you leave the screen), so we use the Voice Memos app to send each other audio files. Except, when you play an audio file inline through either iMessage or Mail, the screen will still turn off and lock, which pauses the file. You have to save it to Files, then open it via the Files app to ensure that it continues playing in the background. How are you supposed to know this?! * If your iCloud storage is close to full, Apple will continually notify you every few days via your phone and email, and there is no way to disable these notifications. * Needing a special charger sucks. Everything else I own is either USB-C or microUSB at this point, but my iPhone needs its own charging cable that nothing else uses. * All of the special treatment that only Apple's apps get is frustrating. For instance, why does only Apple's Clock app get a special timer UX on the lock screen, and everyone else's has to use a notification? Why does only Safari support ad blockers? And why is the camera button on the lock screen limited to the built-in Camera app? They really push their own apps with these artificial benefits, which detracts from the plethora of apps in the App Store. * Syncing files (in both directions) without iCloud is a pain, and I'm not going to pay for an iCloud subscription. There are lots of different ways to achieve this, but none of them are as easy as simply using SyncThing on Android. Even though Android is lacking in certain areas, I find the UX to be a lot more consistent than that of iOS, and I would take the consistency and flexibility of Android over all of Apple's corner cases and attempts to predict how I will use my device. But again, that's my personal preference, and to each their own. (Sorry, this turned out to be much longer than I expected. I guess I'm more frustrated by iOS than I realized!)

ocdtrekkie 5y ago

microG is still sending information to Google in order for apps and services to work. It does NOT free you from Google.

RealStickman_ 5y ago
Use Lineage without microG then.

svavs 5y ago

I haven't used Android as a daily phone since the EVO (I know, its been a while). One issue I had with Android and custom firmware was the time involved. Being on a computer all day, and often times at night, having to deal with tech support issues on my device is a hard stop (for me, personally, plenty of people love it). That's the nice part of Apple's ecosystem - its pretty simple and requires minimum intervention.

RussianCow 5y ago
To be fair, once you get past the initial setup, everything mostly Just Works™. But still, I completely understand not wanting to deal with installation and the potential consequences if something goes wrong. (I nearly bricked a device from a botched installation once, so I know how stressful that is.)
- ziml77 5y ago
  I don't doubt that it just works nearly as well as an iPhone, but I want someone else to be responsible if things do go wrong. For similar reasons, I don't self-host important services like email despite having my own domain. If shit goes wrong, I want the company I'm paying to have their people take care of it. I don't want to have to rush to fix it myself.
blakeinate 5y ago
As someone who had an Evo with custom FW back in the day, I can attest the process is much simpler in recent years. If you do your research and ensure the device you are purchasing has official lineage support, the entire setup procsss takes less than an hour. Lineage includes built in update support as well, although to upgrade between major versions you still need to use a computer if I remember correctly. I purchased my first iPhone since the 3G this year, and it is currently for sale on swappa. I am willing to compromise on a slightly less polished UI and subpar camera to get the UX of android back; at least for me, iOS was lacking many features I could consider essential.