11 ms·

Android’s problem is Pixel is the only good one, and it has not been flagship quality since the Pixel 2. The 3 had odd issues, the 4 had a laughable battery li

Android’s problem is Pixel is the only good one, and it has not been flagship quality since the Pixel 2. The 3 had odd issues, the 4 had a laughable battery life, and 5-7 are a weird mix of midrange and flagship capability (trending towards flagship, but not in the club yet). All other Android vendors are on a continuum of crap, between these points: 1. loaded with bloat and customizations that aren’t better than what Google provides, whose main point is to say “but I’m not Google” (Samsung) 2. vanilla-ish Android but missing capabilities that are normal in Pixel If Google would take Pixel seriously, it would be a credible competitor.

FirmwareBurner 3y ago
Hot take: I find recent Samsung flagships far superior to what Google offers, especially the latest S23: small and speedy with longer SW support than a pixel, better CPU/GPU and better cameras, at a decent price. Bloatware and Android implementation is also not too bad. Also Samsung DEX can save your bacon in case your laptop dies and you don't have a spare but need a quick desktop experience for some multitasking productivity task thill your laptop is being fixed.
- throw9away6 3y ago
  Samsung blowtware is a problem though
  - FirmwareBurner 3y ago
    Which bloatware and what problems does it make you? For me, I don't really consider Microsoft Office as bloatware as I can use it, plus, what's bloatware for you might be useful apps for others, and I found it stays out of my way once I push it to the side if I don't need it, so it's existence is a non-issue for usability. Samsung bloatware used to be bad in the past but now it's decent IMHO, and I think people are being overly pedantic and mostly overblow the problem of some bloatware just to win some religious argument of "my choice of phone is better than yours" while ignoring the other useful reasons people buy it. If you wanna see real bloatware, check out Chinese phones.
    - drcongo 3y ago
      If the apps are useful to some people but not others, they could just put them on the Play store, but they don't they force everyone to have them.
      - FirmwareBurner 3y ago
        Sure, each to his own, but personally I and others don't really care about the preexisting apps as they're few and they stay out of my way and don't pester me. I just want a great phone for a decent price, that fits all my needs and I'm not gonna die on this "zero-bloatware" hill for the sake of a philosophical stance, because I'm not letting perfect be the enemy of good. What use to me is a zero bloatware device that doesn't have the HW, features or updates, that I personally need and value?
      - Xeamek 3y ago
        Just like google does with their apps, right? Oh wait...
    - tjoff 3y ago
      ALL OF THEM. It is utterly insane how much crap they have in baked in. Everything tries to connect to you ludicrous samsung account and the best selling point their apps have is that they try to masquerade them as standard android apps and not a cheap samsung knockoff. I have to support friends with samsung a bit and I get a headache even touching them. Great cameras, wouldn't touch one even if I was paid to actually use it. And this is using top-of-line devices. They also have the absolute lowest range too, which is quite impressive hardware/dollar wise but the software situation is of course even worse on such an underpowered device. The telemetry and the dark patterns they utilize gets me in the stomach. The big problem is that for I guess the majority that don't actively fight it they get extremely tied to samsung. Which I guess is a key reason to their success. A big detriment to android though.
      - Xeamek 3y ago
        >Everything tries to connect to you ludicrous samsung account So, exactly as with google trying to sign into google's account? >the best selling point their apps have is that they try to masquerade them as standard android apps and not a cheap samsung knockoff. Again, same for google's apps which people think "come as a part of android", but in reallity they arent? >The telemetry and the dark patterns they utilize gets me in the stomach. As if google doesn't use telemetry? Not to mention, there are things in which the samsung apps are OBJECTIVELLY better: OneUI's customization is far beyond what stock android offers. Samsung Files has more features then google files, ie. mounting network drives. Sure, those are small differences, but people just default to "samsung bad" without actually giving the altenatives a fair shot
  - yabatopia 3y ago
    How about Google bloatware? Samsung Internet browser is far more superior than Google Chrome, but you can't uninstall Chrome. Of Gmail. Or Play Store. Much of the bloat is coming from Google. After all, it's a Samsung device, not a Google device. I used to be some kind of Androis purist, owner of multiple Nexus and Pixel devices. But for several years now, I'm sticking with Samsung.
  - lurker919 3y ago
    Yes, the only reason that prods me away from a samsung phone. I don't want unnecessary apps on my screens/mindspace.
    - Xeamek 3y ago
      You can hide an app from showing in "apps" screen
- pmontra 3y ago
  It's reasonably small for today's bloated standards. Unfortunately it's heavy even if it's not a 200 g monster. The real problem is that it costs 3 times as much as a phone is worth. Not that I couldn't spend those money, but why?
  - FirmwareBurner 3y ago
    >The real problem is that it costs 3 times as much as a phone is worth. Everyone values things differently. You're just not the target audience. There's other cheaper phones out there of lower specs, but all are much bigger in size though as cheap phones tend to overcompensate with bigger screens. Plus, they're full of spyware and adware, yes, way more than in premium Android phones.
- superfailboat 3y ago
  This. Dex is Samsung's killer feature - but noone seems to know about it!? It's especially relevant to developers. It's now common to see monitors that have an integrated usb hub - so no docking station needed. Just plug your phone in via one cable, it will charge, send video, and use keyboard+mouse. You can have a 4k60 desktop, and then run termux and almost achieve a desktop-equivalent development environment. Unfortunately the newer android kernels are missing certain linux features so you can't run containers without rooting. If you do want to root then you can definitely have it all! Personally I don't want to spend the time tinkering to hide root from the banking apps. It also works great for running things like Geforce Now and streaming games in 4k resolution, with a paired bluetooth controller. To get the higher resolutions you need a newer Samsung flagship, S22/S23. And maybe also need to enable extra stuff via "i love dex" option in multistar.
  - skydhash 3y ago
    Or I can get a proper workstation (which I already have because I need it for proper work) which will run circle around the dex. Have you tried to run Android Studio with a big project? You need some good computing power for indexing the code and building it.
    - superfailboat 3y ago
      That may be the case for your particular bloated use case but it works fine for many others. You can also remote desktop to your main workstation when mobile. Moonlight offers a low-latency self-hosted gamestream similar to geforce now, but also works great for desktop usage.
    - FirmwareBurner 3y ago
      >Or I can get a proper workstation You misunderstood. DEX is not there to replace your workstation, but can be a short-term productivity workstation, in case your laptop is stolen or in for repairs.
      - skydhash 3y ago
rado 3y ago
Samsung's hardware is great and their One UI is a most impressive skin. Saying this as an iPhone user.
- AuthorizedCust 3y ago
  One UI is superfluous. Native Android is great. It’s fixing something that’s not broken just to say “not Google”, in the process creating bloat.
  - Xeamek 3y ago
    You can think of the extra options as unnecessary, but oneui objectively gives you more fine grain controll over styling your phone
dotnet00 3y ago
This "Pixel is the only good Android" sentiment is so bizarre to see. Similarly the point about Samsung devices being loaded with bloat and customizations that aren't better. That second argument was valid like 5 years ago, but definitely not today. Samsung devices do still have a lot of customization, but most of it is actually pretty useful in my experience. Lots of little features that I hadn't realized would be nice to have and similarly to Apple, lots of cross-device integration conveniences, except that unlike Apple, they don't lock you in anywhere near as strongly. The S23U and Tab S8U are amazing devices both in hardware and software. And then there are other pretty great devices from Sony, Motorola, OnePlus etc.
- wilsonnb3 3y ago
  Indeed, Samsung is still dealing with the bloat reputation from the TouchWiz days, which is a shame because some of their features like multitasking are way better than stock/pixel android.
- JohnFen 3y ago
  > That second argument was valid like 5 years ago, but definitely not today. I disagree. It's still valid. > Samsung devices do still have a lot of customization, but most of it is actually pretty useful in my experience. Ahh, that may be why we have different experiences. You consider their stuff to be useful -- which is a totally fair opinion -- but I consider it all to be worthless bloat -- which is another totally fair opinion. I don't mind that it's there. I do mind that I can't delete it.
  - BLKNSLVR 3y ago
    > I don't mind that it's there. I do mind that I can't delete it. This is the key point. Not giving the user the choice. Yes, they can install a different program that does the same thing, but the manufacturer-dictated programs are still there, taking up space in storage, the app list, and possibly memory if they're doing potentially user-hostile shit in the background.
bitsandboots 3y ago
Sony's phones seem best to me. Vanilla android with headphone jacks and microsd slots. They're just expensive. Nobody ever talks about Sony's phones for some reason but I think that's great because I wouldn't want them to get an ego and start ruining a good thing. Overall though, what's killing Android is Android (through Google) Every release gets more limited & restrictive, as does the Play store & framework. If they want to downgrade android to be iOS, while iOS is improving, at some point I might as well just buy iOS. I think Android reached its peak around 4.4 Kitkat. I'm still sitting on 9 knowing that things get even worse on 10 & 11. Who knows what Android 12 has? Who cares?
- trd716 3y ago
  As soon as Sony supports GCam, then I would personally buy. As of now, I'm using a Pixel 6a
- selimthegrim 3y ago
  Sony makes you send your phone to the same service center in Laredo that does all the PlayStation stuff, so warranty service can take a while.
sliken 3y ago
Well the pixel is generally about the newest android that's the flagship software experience, with a decent camera, running on 1-2 year older hardware. But in my experience the lack of crapware and gaming benchmarks means it feels pretty snappy compared to Samsung. I tried Samsung a few times, even with more ram it was vicious about killing tasks in the background so switching apps always did a splash screen and relaunch. Some apps do that well, others not so much. I tracked it down and apparently that behavior helps it win benchmarks. Even on a generation older hardware the pixel felt much snappier, I could multitask with 3-4 apps going, and the home button was MUCH snappier. I verified it wasn't hardware by installing Cyanogen on the samsung, and suddenly everything felt fast again. I switched to GrapheneOS, it's only for Pixels. The seem to have moved the needle on making it your phone, not just Google's phone that they let you use. You can remove every app, even the play store. Play has to ask permission to install things. I think of GrapheneOS as a leaner Pixel that's more secure.
- AuthorizedCust 3y ago
  Pixel software + Samsung hardware #FTW
  - sliken 3y ago
    How?
kyriakos 3y ago
Just got an S23U 2 weeks ago. Its an impressive device both hardware and software. I was expecting a lot of bloat but looks like only MS Office apps where Non-Samsung apps pre-installed and I was going to install them myself either way.
- AuthorizedCust 3y ago
  The bloat is mainly in two forms: -All the pointless OS customizations. -Samsung-developed apps that do the same thing as extant, better Google apps.
  - pyrophane 3y ago
    As a counterpoint: > -All the pointless OS customizations. I actually like Samsung's OS customizations and missed them when I switched to a Pixel. > -Samsung-developed apps that do the same thing as extant, better Google apps. Some of them are nice, though! I wish they would make their Notes app available on more platforms. I actually really like it!
  - rjh29 3y ago
    I like their OS customizations, particularly for the Fold their taskbar and window split is great.
  - wilsonnb3 3y ago
    Bloat isn't just things that you don't like. It is not uncommon for a "pointless" Samsung OS customization to make its way into stock/pixel android a few years later, at which time it will receive much praise and be considered revolutionary.
wing-_-nuts 3y ago
>Android’s problem is Pixel is the only good one Lol ok. I have a pixel 5a and honestly, I regret getting it over a $200 moto g power. Those phones are fantastic and you can slap a third party rom like lineage on there and use it basically forever.
macintosh-hd 3y ago
Meanwhile, Google steps on the rake of not putting enough battery in the phone every single time. I swear I've not seen a single flagship pixel review that hasn't mentioned bad battery. If it's bad out of the box, how bad will it be in 2 years?
- bagacrap 3y ago
  My pixel 5 is still going strong and has plenty of battery. I have noticed degradation, but it's still enough to get through a day or more depending on use. The one thing that eats the battery alive is Instagram, which is great as it gives me one more reason to avoid it.
jansan 3y ago
> Android’s problem is Pixel is the only good one, and it has not been flagship quality since the Pixel 2. You should have added that this only applies if you exclued non-US products.
- AuthorizedCust 3y ago
  Huh? Samsung is South Korean.
  - jansan 3y ago
    Yes, and they are good. So Pixel is not the only good one.
fluidcruft 3y ago
I think Motorola phones are OK. I personally will never buy a Motorola after an early experience with them prior to Google buying and re-rolling them. But my wife used them and liked them and they seem less shitty than they once were. I've had a series of Nexus and Pixel phones. I had a Pixel 3 for a long long time and really, really loved it. It was such a perfect phone. I'm on Pixel 7 now and it's... alright. Compared to Pixel 3 it's big and heavy and the fingerprint scanner is on Pixel 3 was so much better. Pixel 3 was just about perfect. I just cannot stand iPhone. Everything about them is so annoying. My kids have them. Apple's parental controls are a complete joke. I just cannot understand why anyone thinks iPhone doesn't suck. The parental controls are constantly breaking whenever one phone upgrades and etc. Screen Time settings are the most infuriating and dumb as hell stupidity ever. On the other side Google's Digital Wellbeing is also useless trash (Seriously... only per-app time limits? Does anyone at all dog food that bullshit?). But on Android you just swap it out for something that doesn't suck.
- p1mrx 3y ago
  > the fingerprint scanner is on Pixel 4 was so much better Are you sure you're talking about the right phone? Pixel 4 doesn't have a fingerprint scanner.
  - fluidcruft 3y ago
    Doh. I meant Pixel 3.
kmac_ 3y ago
I have an old Samsung flagship with a 120Hz display, snappy and clean UI that never lags. It has survived several drops without a scratch. I was on the edge of moving to Apple but decided back then to give Android one more chance, and it was a good decision. What bothers me is the very mediocre ecosystem that stopped developing some time ago. That’s the place of the actual battle between Apple and Google. Apple moves forward, and Google doesn’t know what to do.
garaetjjte 3y ago
They really need to fab their SoC on something better than crappy Samsung 5nm process.

FirmwareBurner 3y ago

Hot take: I find recent Samsung flagships far superior to what Google offers, especially the latest S23: small and speedy with longer SW support than a pixel, better CPU/GPU and better cameras, at a decent price. Bloatware and Android implementation is also not too bad. Also Samsung DEX can save your bacon in case your laptop dies and you don't have a spare but need a quick desktop experience for some multitasking productivity task thill your laptop is being fixed.

throw9away6 3y ago
Samsung blowtware is a problem though
- FirmwareBurner 3y ago
  Which bloatware and what problems does it make you? For me, I don't really consider Microsoft Office as bloatware as I can use it, plus, what's bloatware for you might be useful apps for others, and I found it stays out of my way once I push it to the side if I don't need it, so it's existence is a non-issue for usability. Samsung bloatware used to be bad in the past but now it's decent IMHO, and I think people are being overly pedantic and mostly overblow the problem of some bloatware just to win some religious argument of "my choice of phone is better than yours" while ignoring the other useful reasons people buy it. If you wanna see real bloatware, check out Chinese phones.
  - drcongo 3y ago
    If the apps are useful to some people but not others, they could just put them on the Play store, but they don't they force everyone to have them.
    - FirmwareBurner 3y ago
      Sure, each to his own, but personally I and others don't really care about the preexisting apps as they're few and they stay out of my way and don't pester me. I just want a great phone for a decent price, that fits all my needs and I'm not gonna die on this "zero-bloatware" hill for the sake of a philosophical stance, because I'm not letting perfect be the enemy of good. What use to me is a zero bloatware device that doesn't have the HW, features or updates, that I personally need and value?
    - Xeamek 3y ago
      Just like google does with their apps, right? Oh wait...
  - tjoff 3y ago
    ALL OF THEM. It is utterly insane how much crap they have in baked in. Everything tries to connect to you ludicrous samsung account and the best selling point their apps have is that they try to masquerade them as standard android apps and not a cheap samsung knockoff. I have to support friends with samsung a bit and I get a headache even touching them. Great cameras, wouldn't touch one even if I was paid to actually use it. And this is using top-of-line devices. They also have the absolute lowest range too, which is quite impressive hardware/dollar wise but the software situation is of course even worse on such an underpowered device. The telemetry and the dark patterns they utilize gets me in the stomach. The big problem is that for I guess the majority that don't actively fight it they get extremely tied to samsung. Which I guess is a key reason to their success. A big detriment to android though.
    - Xeamek 3y ago
      >Everything tries to connect to you ludicrous samsung account So, exactly as with google trying to sign into google's account? >the best selling point their apps have is that they try to masquerade them as standard android apps and not a cheap samsung knockoff. Again, same for google's apps which people think "come as a part of android", but in reallity they arent? >The telemetry and the dark patterns they utilize gets me in the stomach. As if google doesn't use telemetry? Not to mention, there are things in which the samsung apps are OBJECTIVELLY better: OneUI's customization is far beyond what stock android offers. Samsung Files has more features then google files, ie. mounting network drives. Sure, those are small differences, but people just default to "samsung bad" without actually giving the altenatives a fair shot
- yabatopia 3y ago
  How about Google bloatware? Samsung Internet browser is far more superior than Google Chrome, but you can't uninstall Chrome. Of Gmail. Or Play Store. Much of the bloat is coming from Google. After all, it's a Samsung device, not a Google device. I used to be some kind of Androis purist, owner of multiple Nexus and Pixel devices. But for several years now, I'm sticking with Samsung.
- lurker919 3y ago
  Yes, the only reason that prods me away from a samsung phone. I don't want unnecessary apps on my screens/mindspace.
  - Xeamek 3y ago
    You can hide an app from showing in "apps" screen
pmontra 3y ago
It's reasonably small for today's bloated standards. Unfortunately it's heavy even if it's not a 200 g monster. The real problem is that it costs 3 times as much as a phone is worth. Not that I couldn't spend those money, but why?
- FirmwareBurner 3y ago
  >The real problem is that it costs 3 times as much as a phone is worth. Everyone values things differently. You're just not the target audience. There's other cheaper phones out there of lower specs, but all are much bigger in size though as cheap phones tend to overcompensate with bigger screens. Plus, they're full of spyware and adware, yes, way more than in premium Android phones.
superfailboat 3y ago
This. Dex is Samsung's killer feature - but noone seems to know about it!? It's especially relevant to developers. It's now common to see monitors that have an integrated usb hub - so no docking station needed. Just plug your phone in via one cable, it will charge, send video, and use keyboard+mouse. You can have a 4k60 desktop, and then run termux and almost achieve a desktop-equivalent development environment. Unfortunately the newer android kernels are missing certain linux features so you can't run containers without rooting. If you do want to root then you can definitely have it all! Personally I don't want to spend the time tinkering to hide root from the banking apps. It also works great for running things like Geforce Now and streaming games in 4k resolution, with a paired bluetooth controller. To get the higher resolutions you need a newer Samsung flagship, S22/S23. And maybe also need to enable extra stuff via "i love dex" option in multistar.
- skydhash 3y ago
  Or I can get a proper workstation (which I already have because I need it for proper work) which will run circle around the dex. Have you tried to run Android Studio with a big project? You need some good computing power for indexing the code and building it.
  - superfailboat 3y ago
    That may be the case for your particular bloated use case but it works fine for many others. You can also remote desktop to your main workstation when mobile. Moonlight offers a low-latency self-hosted gamestream similar to geforce now, but also works great for desktop usage.
  - FirmwareBurner 3y ago
    >Or I can get a proper workstation You misunderstood. DEX is not there to replace your workstation, but can be a short-term productivity workstation, in case your laptop is stolen or in for repairs.
    - skydhash 3y ago

rado 3y ago

Samsung's hardware is great and their One UI is a most impressive skin. Saying this as an iPhone user.

AuthorizedCust 3y ago
One UI is superfluous. Native Android is great. It’s fixing something that’s not broken just to say “not Google”, in the process creating bloat.
- Xeamek 3y ago
  You can think of the extra options as unnecessary, but oneui objectively gives you more fine grain controll over styling your phone

dotnet00 3y ago

This "Pixel is the only good Android" sentiment is so bizarre to see. Similarly the point about Samsung devices being loaded with bloat and customizations that aren't better. That second argument was valid like 5 years ago, but definitely not today. Samsung devices do still have a lot of customization, but most of it is actually pretty useful in my experience. Lots of little features that I hadn't realized would be nice to have and similarly to Apple, lots of cross-device integration conveniences, except that unlike Apple, they don't lock you in anywhere near as strongly. The S23U and Tab S8U are amazing devices both in hardware and software. And then there are other pretty great devices from Sony, Motorola, OnePlus etc.

wilsonnb3 3y ago
Indeed, Samsung is still dealing with the bloat reputation from the TouchWiz days, which is a shame because some of their features like multitasking are way better than stock/pixel android.
JohnFen 3y ago
> That second argument was valid like 5 years ago, but definitely not today. I disagree. It's still valid. > Samsung devices do still have a lot of customization, but most of it is actually pretty useful in my experience. Ahh, that may be why we have different experiences. You consider their stuff to be useful -- which is a totally fair opinion -- but I consider it all to be worthless bloat -- which is another totally fair opinion. I don't mind that it's there. I do mind that I can't delete it.
- BLKNSLVR 3y ago
  > I don't mind that it's there. I do mind that I can't delete it. This is the key point. Not giving the user the choice. Yes, they can install a different program that does the same thing, but the manufacturer-dictated programs are still there, taking up space in storage, the app list, and possibly memory if they're doing potentially user-hostile shit in the background.

bitsandboots 3y ago

Sony's phones seem best to me. Vanilla android with headphone jacks and microsd slots. They're just expensive. Nobody ever talks about Sony's phones for some reason but I think that's great because I wouldn't want them to get an ego and start ruining a good thing. Overall though, what's killing Android is Android (through Google) Every release gets more limited & restrictive, as does the Play store & framework. If they want to downgrade android to be iOS, while iOS is improving, at some point I might as well just buy iOS. I think Android reached its peak around 4.4 Kitkat. I'm still sitting on 9 knowing that things get even worse on 10 & 11. Who knows what Android 12 has? Who cares?

trd716 3y ago
As soon as Sony supports GCam, then I would personally buy. As of now, I'm using a Pixel 6a
selimthegrim 3y ago
Sony makes you send your phone to the same service center in Laredo that does all the PlayStation stuff, so warranty service can take a while.

sliken 3y ago

Well the pixel is generally about the newest android that's the flagship software experience, with a decent camera, running on 1-2 year older hardware. But in my experience the lack of crapware and gaming benchmarks means it feels pretty snappy compared to Samsung. I tried Samsung a few times, even with more ram it was vicious about killing tasks in the background so switching apps always did a splash screen and relaunch. Some apps do that well, others not so much. I tracked it down and apparently that behavior helps it win benchmarks. Even on a generation older hardware the pixel felt much snappier, I could multitask with 3-4 apps going, and the home button was MUCH snappier. I verified it wasn't hardware by installing Cyanogen on the samsung, and suddenly everything felt fast again. I switched to GrapheneOS, it's only for Pixels. The seem to have moved the needle on making it your phone, not just Google's phone that they let you use. You can remove every app, even the play store. Play has to ask permission to install things. I think of GrapheneOS as a leaner Pixel that's more secure.

AuthorizedCust 3y ago
Pixel software + Samsung hardware #FTW
- sliken 3y ago
  How?

kyriakos 3y ago

Just got an S23U 2 weeks ago. Its an impressive device both hardware and software. I was expecting a lot of bloat but looks like only MS Office apps where Non-Samsung apps pre-installed and I was going to install them myself either way.

AuthorizedCust 3y ago
The bloat is mainly in two forms: -All the pointless OS customizations. -Samsung-developed apps that do the same thing as extant, better Google apps.
- pyrophane 3y ago
  As a counterpoint: > -All the pointless OS customizations. I actually like Samsung's OS customizations and missed them when I switched to a Pixel. > -Samsung-developed apps that do the same thing as extant, better Google apps. Some of them are nice, though! I wish they would make their Notes app available on more platforms. I actually really like it!
- rjh29 3y ago
  I like their OS customizations, particularly for the Fold their taskbar and window split is great.
- wilsonnb3 3y ago
  Bloat isn't just things that you don't like. It is not uncommon for a "pointless" Samsung OS customization to make its way into stock/pixel android a few years later, at which time it will receive much praise and be considered revolutionary.

wing-_-nuts 3y ago

>Android’s problem is Pixel is the only good one Lol ok. I have a pixel 5a and honestly, I regret getting it over a $200 moto g power. Those phones are fantastic and you can slap a third party rom like lineage on there and use it basically forever.

macintosh-hd 3y ago

Meanwhile, Google steps on the rake of not putting enough battery in the phone every single time. I swear I've not seen a single flagship pixel review that hasn't mentioned bad battery. If it's bad out of the box, how bad will it be in 2 years?

bagacrap 3y ago
My pixel 5 is still going strong and has plenty of battery. I have noticed degradation, but it's still enough to get through a day or more depending on use. The one thing that eats the battery alive is Instagram, which is great as it gives me one more reason to avoid it.

jansan 3y ago

> Android’s problem is Pixel is the only good one, and it has not been flagship quality since the Pixel 2. You should have added that this only applies if you exclued non-US products.

AuthorizedCust 3y ago
Huh? Samsung is South Korean.
- jansan 3y ago
  Yes, and they are good. So Pixel is not the only good one.

fluidcruft 3y ago

I think Motorola phones are OK. I personally will never buy a Motorola after an early experience with them prior to Google buying and re-rolling them. But my wife used them and liked them and they seem less shitty than they once were. I've had a series of Nexus and Pixel phones. I had a Pixel 3 for a long long time and really, really loved it. It was such a perfect phone. I'm on Pixel 7 now and it's... alright. Compared to Pixel 3 it's big and heavy and the fingerprint scanner is on Pixel 3 was so much better. Pixel 3 was just about perfect. I just cannot stand iPhone. Everything about them is so annoying. My kids have them. Apple's parental controls are a complete joke. I just cannot understand why anyone thinks iPhone doesn't suck. The parental controls are constantly breaking whenever one phone upgrades and etc. Screen Time settings are the most infuriating and dumb as hell stupidity ever. On the other side Google's Digital Wellbeing is also useless trash (Seriously... only per-app time limits? Does anyone at all dog food that bullshit?). But on Android you just swap it out for something that doesn't suck.

p1mrx 3y ago
> the fingerprint scanner is on Pixel 4 was so much better Are you sure you're talking about the right phone? Pixel 4 doesn't have a fingerprint scanner.
- fluidcruft 3y ago
  Doh. I meant Pixel 3.

kmac_ 3y ago

I have an old Samsung flagship with a 120Hz display, snappy and clean UI that never lags. It has survived several drops without a scratch. I was on the edge of moving to Apple but decided back then to give Android one more chance, and it was a good decision. What bothers me is the very mediocre ecosystem that stopped developing some time ago. That’s the place of the actual battle between Apple and Google. Apple moves forward, and Google doesn’t know what to do.

garaetjjte 3y ago

They really need to fab their SoC on something better than crappy Samsung 5nm process.