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You really can't imagine why anyone might prefer the Samsung Galaxy S II (for example) to an iPhone? How about (straight off the top of my head) Better Linux

You really can't imagine why anyone might prefer the Samsung Galaxy S II (for example) to an iPhone? How about (straight off the top of my head) Better Linux connectivity. Ability to easily copy files on and off the phone. Ability to sync podcasts directly on the phone, without having to connect to a computer with iTunes (not used an iPhone for a while, they might have finally fixed this). Ability to run software Apple doesn't like (emulators). We haven't really seen the AI yet, I remain to be convinced, and I don't care about the camera. Also, you mention price point. The iPhone (particularly the 4S) is about the most expensive phone around at the moment. In general of course the most expensive phone with have the fastest processor, that's hardly suprising.

kaylarose 15y ago
All of those are things regular people - i.e. not hacker news readers - don't give a toss about.
- thatjoshguy 15y ago
  But 'regular' people are loving the Galaxy S 2, I guess because of it's large and vibrant screen, and it's thinner (to hold) compared to the iPhone 4[1]. I really like the Galaxy S 2 and I wish so hard that Android was actually polished to the degree that iOS is. My iPhone bores and I love the screen on the Galaxy S, yet I know I will miss out on OS updates and being able to smoothly rotate the screen. The day android is as polished as iOS is is the day I switch. [1] I'm not sure if it is actually thinner than the iPhone 4, but it feels thinner, much in the same way the 2nd gen iPod touch was thinner than the previous gen)
  - eren-tantekin 15y ago
    It is about a milimeter thinner than iPhone.
    - masklinn 15y ago
      0.6mm at its thinnest point, and 0.5mm thicker at its thickest point (the latter being a sticking point, UK's Advertising Standards Authority ruled against Samsung's claim of thinnest smartphone on the market on these grounds)
  - jstedfast 15y ago
    > But 'regular' people are loving the Galaxy S 2 Are you sure of that? I can't imagine it's true, or there would be a hell of a lot more sales of it than there are...
    - smackfu 15y ago
      The Galaxy S2 sold 10 million phones worldwide even before it went on sale in the US. It's pretty much the bestselling Android phone. So this is a pretty silly comment, although fairly typical for iPhone users who aren't up to date on Android phones.
      - nirvana 15y ago
        I found one article about the sales of the S2 from an "android news" site, that indicated it was selling 2-3 million a month. I'm sure it is the best selling android phone, and I say anything that sells more than a million units in a year is a "hit", but that's not a lot of sales compared to the iPhone. It certainly hasn't broken out into the mainstream like the iPhone has.
        smackfu 15y ago
        Look at the comment I was responding to, that people must not be loving the Galaxy S2 because "there would be a hell of a lot more sales of it than there are..."
        mistermann 15y ago
        If there were essentially no alternatives, as with apple, sales would undoubtedly be much higher, wouldn't you agree?
    - thatjoshguy 15y ago
      In my experience, yes. I a lot of people I work with (shifty at KFC) and live in my dorm get more excited about the Galaxy as apposed to the iPhone. Those who have the GS2 love and live by it.
    - FireBeyond 15y ago
  - dongsheng 15y ago
    > But 'regular' people are loving the Galaxy S 2 Did Galaxy S2 break iPhone 4's sale record?
    - zonkee 15y ago
      That's not really a fair comparison since there is only one iPhone 4 and countless Android manufacturers.
      - mietek 15y ago
        Countless Galaxy S2 manufacturers, you mean?...
        zonkee 15y ago
        No, I meant Android models. People who want the latest iOS, get the latest iPhone. People who want latest Android won't necessarily get a Galaxy S2 because there are are many other new Android phones. So I'm saying comparing the iPhone sales to the Galaxy S2 sales isn't fair.
      - dongsheng 15y ago
        You mean not fair to iPhone 4 right?
    - MaysonL 15y ago
      Heck, did it break the iPhone 3GS sales record? If I remember correctly, the 3GS has been the second best-selling phone in the US for the past year.
  - shinratdr 15y ago
    > The day android is as polished as iOS is is the day I switch. I look forward to having you in the iOS community for a long, long time then.
  - jodrellblank 15y ago
    The day android is as polished as iOS is is the day I switch. You ... and everybody else! That rather undermines your defense of the S2.
- zyb09 15y ago
  I am so fucking tired of this argument. "Users don't care" - well you know what? I AM a user. And if a phone can't do X it does matter for me, even if you or your grandma might not care. It's downright insulting saying that I am somehow different from regular people, because I have flaws with Apple products.
king_magic 15y ago
My mom could care less about better Linux connectivity. My girlfriend doesn't care about copying files on/off the phone. My aunt doesn't care about running emulators. You know what they do care about? A nice camera. An easier way of interacting with the phone (Siri).
- runjake 15y ago
  I think what he is trying to say is that some people would prefer what he's talking about, and that the iPhone isn't one size fits all.
  - llii 15y ago
    Why does this post got downvoted? Does it violate any rules on hacker news? Or just because here is a big Apple circle-jerk going on? (written on my macbook)
saturdaysaint 15y ago
I'm sure the S II is great, but some of these problems are pretty trivial in iOS. Dropbox, for example, handles all of my file transfer needs pretty easily and iCloud looks like it will make anything difficult now (photo/video transfer, which required that horrible sync process) automatic. There are great podcast apps on iOS - I stream all of my podcast subscriptions using Instacast (.99).
DannoHung 15y ago
> Ability to sync podcasts directly on the phone, without having to connect to a computer with iTunes (not used an iPhone for a while, they might have finally fixed this). Yeah, this has been fixed for about 2 years. Has to be over wifi though because of the 3G download limits (most podcasts are over 20mb).
jakemcgraw 15y ago
> Better Linux connectivity. Doesn't matter. No one uses Linux. > Ability to easily copy files on and off the phone. Doesn't matter. Everyone uses email for a file store. > Ability to sync podcasts directly on the phone, without having to connect to a computer with iTunes (not used an iPhone for a while, they might have finally fixed this). They fixed this, also, doesn't matter, no one listens to podcasts. > Ability to run software Apple doesn't like (emulators). Doesn't matter. If you want to make an argument that Android is a better purchase option for mass market consumers, you'll need an argument that actually represents the mass market. I can't think of any argument, as Apple alternatives are always better: better media library, better app library, better product lifetime support (both in terms of software updates, product maintenance), better hardware, better (consistent) software, better branding. These are the things that matter to people.
- jarek 15y ago
  > If you want to make an argument that Android is a better purchase option for mass market consumers, you'll need an argument that actually represents the mass market. Who wants to do that? The thread parent post said "it is beyond me how anyone can argue that this is not the best smartphone on the market." That is very, very far from arguing which phone is the best option for mass market consumers. For someone running Linux, it is very easy to argue this is not the best smartphone on the market.
- cormullion 15y ago
  Resale value is also good for Apple kit.
jstedfast 15y ago
> Better Linux connectivity. Very few people actually run Linux on their desktops. If you are one of those people, then yes, I can see this being an advantage. Otherwise... not so much. I'm a Linux guy and when I had an iPhone, I used to just reboot to my Windows partition to sync my phone. I'd do it ~once per week or so (to sync up with the latest podcasts). > Ability to easily copy files on and off the phone. To be honest, I have found this to be more problematic on Android. iTunes synced my music/photos/etc and it Just Worked (tm). On my Android phone, when I rsync my music/photos/etc from my Linux partition to my phone's SD card, it clobbers everything due to the FS being FAT32 (case insensitive). It's a nightmare to keep things in sync and it takes longer. > Ability to sync podcasts directly on the phone, without having to connect to a computer with iTunes (not used an iPhone for a while, they might have finally fixed this). Yes, iPhone has this now. It can both sync with your desktop wirelessly and download the latest podcasts via the iTunes app on your phone if you aren't anywhere near your desktop w/ iTunes. > Ability to run software Apple doesn't like (emulators). Jailbreak? I mean, ya gotta do that with Android too... > We haven't really seen the AI yet, I remain to be convinced, and I don't care about the camera. I'm skeptical as well, but if it works anywhere near as well as advertised, it will be awesome. Packing more pixels into such a tiny sensor isn't really going to improve the quality of the photos. However, more sensitivity might... From what I understand, they've done both... so maybe it'll help or maybe it won't. The HDR photography that iPhone 4 supported was awesome and makes me regret getting a Samsung Galaxy S which, quite frankly, sucks hardcore in every way. But I'm a Linux guy so I got an Android... won't be making that mistake again :-\ > Also, you mention price point. The iPhone (particularly the 4S) is about the most expensive phone around at the moment. In general of course the most expensive phone with have the fastest processor, that's hardly suprising. Equivalent Android's aren't typically much (if at all) cheaper, though (if you buy them outright, at least). Of course, the carriers do seem to subsidize Android phones a lot more than iPhones (which is how you can get most Android phones for cheap-cheap with a 2 year contract).
- rdtsc 15y ago
  > Very few people actually run Linux on their desktops. But you forgot, the original post rhetorically questioned why the 'technocrati' pick another phone. There is a disproportional number of technocrati that run Linux on their Desktop perhaps?
dongsheng 15y ago
Do you know half of iPhone users never connect to computer once activated, that means iPhone works totally fine without iTunes for ordinary people. Not to mention iOS5 now support wifi sync and iCloud backup. You may don't care camera, but one of my friend have 12G pictures and videos on iPod touch, it's crucial to users. Ordinary people don't need Linux connectivity, file copying, emulators, they need a Phone which just works.

kaylarose 15y ago

All of those are things regular people - i.e. not hacker news readers - don't give a toss about.

thatjoshguy 15y ago
But 'regular' people are loving the Galaxy S 2, I guess because of it's large and vibrant screen, and it's thinner (to hold) compared to the iPhone 4[1]. I really like the Galaxy S 2 and I wish so hard that Android was actually polished to the degree that iOS is. My iPhone bores and I love the screen on the Galaxy S, yet I know I will miss out on OS updates and being able to smoothly rotate the screen. The day android is as polished as iOS is is the day I switch. [1] I'm not sure if it is actually thinner than the iPhone 4, but it feels thinner, much in the same way the 2nd gen iPod touch was thinner than the previous gen)
- eren-tantekin 15y ago
  It is about a milimeter thinner than iPhone.
  - masklinn 15y ago
    0.6mm at its thinnest point, and 0.5mm thicker at its thickest point (the latter being a sticking point, UK's Advertising Standards Authority ruled against Samsung's claim of thinnest smartphone on the market on these grounds)
- jstedfast 15y ago
  > But 'regular' people are loving the Galaxy S 2 Are you sure of that? I can't imagine it's true, or there would be a hell of a lot more sales of it than there are...
  - smackfu 15y ago
    The Galaxy S2 sold 10 million phones worldwide even before it went on sale in the US. It's pretty much the bestselling Android phone. So this is a pretty silly comment, although fairly typical for iPhone users who aren't up to date on Android phones.
    - nirvana 15y ago
      I found one article about the sales of the S2 from an "android news" site, that indicated it was selling 2-3 million a month. I'm sure it is the best selling android phone, and I say anything that sells more than a million units in a year is a "hit", but that's not a lot of sales compared to the iPhone. It certainly hasn't broken out into the mainstream like the iPhone has.
      - smackfu 15y ago
        Look at the comment I was responding to, that people must not be loving the Galaxy S2 because "there would be a hell of a lot more sales of it than there are..."
      - mistermann 15y ago
        If there were essentially no alternatives, as with apple, sales would undoubtedly be much higher, wouldn't you agree?
  - thatjoshguy 15y ago
    In my experience, yes. I a lot of people I work with (shifty at KFC) and live in my dorm get more excited about the Galaxy as apposed to the iPhone. Those who have the GS2 love and live by it.
  - FireBeyond 15y ago
- dongsheng 15y ago
  > But 'regular' people are loving the Galaxy S 2 Did Galaxy S2 break iPhone 4's sale record?
  - zonkee 15y ago
    That's not really a fair comparison since there is only one iPhone 4 and countless Android manufacturers.
    - mietek 15y ago
      Countless Galaxy S2 manufacturers, you mean?...
      - zonkee 15y ago
        No, I meant Android models. People who want the latest iOS, get the latest iPhone. People who want latest Android won't necessarily get a Galaxy S2 because there are are many other new Android phones. So I'm saying comparing the iPhone sales to the Galaxy S2 sales isn't fair.
    - dongsheng 15y ago
      You mean not fair to iPhone 4 right?
  - MaysonL 15y ago
    Heck, did it break the iPhone 3GS sales record? If I remember correctly, the 3GS has been the second best-selling phone in the US for the past year.
- shinratdr 15y ago
  > The day android is as polished as iOS is is the day I switch. I look forward to having you in the iOS community for a long, long time then.
- jodrellblank 15y ago
  The day android is as polished as iOS is is the day I switch. You ... and everybody else! That rather undermines your defense of the S2.
zyb09 15y ago
I am so fucking tired of this argument. "Users don't care" - well you know what? I AM a user. And if a phone can't do X it does matter for me, even if you or your grandma might not care. It's downright insulting saying that I am somehow different from regular people, because I have flaws with Apple products.

king_magic 15y ago

My mom could care less about better Linux connectivity. My girlfriend doesn't care about copying files on/off the phone. My aunt doesn't care about running emulators. You know what they do care about? A nice camera. An easier way of interacting with the phone (Siri).

runjake 15y ago
I think what he is trying to say is that some people would prefer what he's talking about, and that the iPhone isn't one size fits all.
- llii 15y ago
  Why does this post got downvoted? Does it violate any rules on hacker news? Or just because here is a big Apple circle-jerk going on? (written on my macbook)

saturdaysaint 15y ago

I'm sure the S II is great, but some of these problems are pretty trivial in iOS. Dropbox, for example, handles all of my file transfer needs pretty easily and iCloud looks like it will make anything difficult now (photo/video transfer, which required that horrible sync process) automatic. There are great podcast apps on iOS - I stream all of my podcast subscriptions using Instacast (.99).

DannoHung 15y ago

> Ability to sync podcasts directly on the phone, without having to connect to a computer with iTunes (not used an iPhone for a while, they might have finally fixed this). Yeah, this has been fixed for about 2 years. Has to be over wifi though because of the 3G download limits (most podcasts are over 20mb).

jakemcgraw 15y ago

> Better Linux connectivity. Doesn't matter. No one uses Linux. > Ability to easily copy files on and off the phone. Doesn't matter. Everyone uses email for a file store. > Ability to sync podcasts directly on the phone, without having to connect to a computer with iTunes (not used an iPhone for a while, they might have finally fixed this). They fixed this, also, doesn't matter, no one listens to podcasts. > Ability to run software Apple doesn't like (emulators). Doesn't matter. If you want to make an argument that Android is a better purchase option for mass market consumers, you'll need an argument that actually represents the mass market. I can't think of any argument, as Apple alternatives are always better: better media library, better app library, better product lifetime support (both in terms of software updates, product maintenance), better hardware, better (consistent) software, better branding. These are the things that matter to people.

jarek 15y ago
> If you want to make an argument that Android is a better purchase option for mass market consumers, you'll need an argument that actually represents the mass market. Who wants to do that? The thread parent post said "it is beyond me how anyone can argue that this is not the best smartphone on the market." That is very, very far from arguing which phone is the best option for mass market consumers. For someone running Linux, it is very easy to argue this is not the best smartphone on the market.
cormullion 15y ago
Resale value is also good for Apple kit.

jstedfast 15y ago

> Better Linux connectivity. Very few people actually run Linux on their desktops. If you are one of those people, then yes, I can see this being an advantage. Otherwise... not so much. I'm a Linux guy and when I had an iPhone, I used to just reboot to my Windows partition to sync my phone. I'd do it ~once per week or so (to sync up with the latest podcasts). > Ability to easily copy files on and off the phone. To be honest, I have found this to be more problematic on Android. iTunes synced my music/photos/etc and it Just Worked (tm). On my Android phone, when I rsync my music/photos/etc from my Linux partition to my phone's SD card, it clobbers everything due to the FS being FAT32 (case insensitive). It's a nightmare to keep things in sync and it takes longer. > Ability to sync podcasts directly on the phone, without having to connect to a computer with iTunes (not used an iPhone for a while, they might have finally fixed this). Yes, iPhone has this now. It can both sync with your desktop wirelessly and download the latest podcasts via the iTunes app on your phone if you aren't anywhere near your desktop w/ iTunes. > Ability to run software Apple doesn't like (emulators). Jailbreak? I mean, ya gotta do that with Android too... > We haven't really seen the AI yet, I remain to be convinced, and I don't care about the camera. I'm skeptical as well, but if it works anywhere near as well as advertised, it will be awesome. Packing more pixels into such a tiny sensor isn't really going to improve the quality of the photos. However, more sensitivity might... From what I understand, they've done both... so maybe it'll help or maybe it won't. The HDR photography that iPhone 4 supported was awesome and makes me regret getting a Samsung Galaxy S which, quite frankly, sucks hardcore in every way. But I'm a Linux guy so I got an Android... won't be making that mistake again :-\ > Also, you mention price point. The iPhone (particularly the 4S) is about the most expensive phone around at the moment. In general of course the most expensive phone with have the fastest processor, that's hardly suprising. Equivalent Android's aren't typically much (if at all) cheaper, though (if you buy them outright, at least). Of course, the carriers do seem to subsidize Android phones a lot more than iPhones (which is how you can get most Android phones for cheap-cheap with a 2 year contract).

rdtsc 15y ago
> Very few people actually run Linux on their desktops. But you forgot, the original post rhetorically questioned why the 'technocrati' pick another phone. There is a disproportional number of technocrati that run Linux on their Desktop perhaps?

dongsheng 15y ago

Do you know half of iPhone users never connect to computer once activated, that means iPhone works totally fine without iTunes for ordinary people. Not to mention iOS5 now support wifi sync and iCloud backup. You may don't care camera, but one of my friend have 12G pictures and videos on iPod touch, it's crucial to users. Ordinary people don't need Linux connectivity, file copying, emulators, they need a Phone which just works.