Sorry it took me a bit getting to this, been a bit busy and the forum has been sluggish...
NOTICE: THE FOLLOWING IS MY THOUGHTS ONLY, it is not meant to cause a riot or what not. This is a friendly chat of why I feel I am not into android as much as I was. No. I have not been brainwashed by Apple, though if I was, I would not say so anyway
Please read at your discretion
Ready?
Here goes...
- Updates: The bloat (aside from a select few phones) this along with different carrier frequencies and the "openness" of android (why are the damn boot loaders locked?) means a sporadic and infrequent update and some phones may not even get the update(s). How many phones are still stuck on gingerbread?
- Device integration. I do hate to admit it because iTunes blows, but I think Apple has the bees knees with this. All the devices are part of a family. Trying to plug my nexus into my PC (and Xoom) which use a MTP transfer protocol that for some reason, windows does not like is just annoying. Its like trying to fit two puzzle pieces together that don't fit.
- Android is starting to become the "windows" of smart phones. They are cheap and quick to make, just like prebuilt computers you buy off the shelf. They are loaded with windows, made with cheap parts and bloated down. Now, granted, not all android devices are cheaply made. I am actually glad my nexus is plastic, err, excuse me, polycarbonate as it should absorb shock better if dropped. Device manufacturers seem keen on putting out quantity over quality. Come on, a "flagship device" with radio issues!? Whisky Tango Foxtrot. And then not 6 months later, a new flagship device is hitting the street. I am tired of this leapfrogging.
- Rooting. This is really starting to become a moot point for me. I unlocked my nexus and rooted it. I have done NOTHING with it. My Droid x, is rooted, I have a custom rom on it. I can't even use the phone anymore because its to the point the apps require more power then the phone can dish out. Not quite androids fault, but still. I have a phone eating data charges for sitting on my nightstand dead. The only thing I need root access for now is to back up my phone. But, since I really don't root or rom, this is a moot point too. Its becoming a PITA to do any changes to my device anyway.
- Being led on. Yes. I feel this. My Xoom was suppose to be a "developer device" It was the argument I made to myself to justify buying the thing. The wifi version is getting more love, but it seems the GSM version is getting even more love then that. The verizon nexus was sold to us as a developer device and even GOOGLE put a stop to that, at least for the CDMA devices. Guess if you want something to play with you need a GSM phone. I can kind of see this since GSM has a larger network then CDMA.
- My own personal music collection. How irritating it is to have my music split up into separate albums. It is just a complete fail.
- Google is a bit annoying. Like with passwords. Look. I love how its integrated but I forgot my password once and was locked out of my account and it SUCKED trying to get signed in. (this is personal preference and don't have much to do with android)
- App selection. Yeah, android has some good apps, but many that I have paid for, I don't even use now. iOS seems to have its stuff more together. (this is a personal observation! Not everyone here will have the same niche I do, photography and weather).
- Accessories. My Xoom has a 20$ USB pigtail to plug my camera into, or mouse or keyboard, but the device is not designed the way it should be. If I dock the Xoom, I cannot use the pigtail OTG cable. Whisky Tango Foxtrot!? Now, if they made USB passthrough, then it would be a few points for this little OTG cable. But they did not. Worse yet, when I did get the cable, I plugged my camera in and found out, it don't support RAW files. When I had the iPad 1, it supported raw files and my Xoom don't.
There are TONS of accessories for iDevices (I guess that is to be expected from the brute force that is Apple, not to mention the monopoly they have.)
Look, seriously, I abhor the legal garbage and iron fist that Apple has. I know I talk smack about Apple and hate the way they operate. I know iTunes frustrated me beyond belief because my legally ripped music library had to be moved to a different hard drive, but its good to know my purchased TV shows and apps are still in the cloud. I also find Apples devices are built solid. My MBPs are solid, The iPod I had, solid. The iPad, Solid. Everything seems to be so well thought out and built. When one iPhone has an update, they all do. Regular updates are refreshing. No this, "Some devices will get the update, depending on carrier"
To me, Apple seems like an ecosystem. Android, just a bunch of haphazardly pushed out devices, some with radio issues, and some that don't play well, or, at least to me, logically, with my computer. And here comes a long-awaited update for my device, and I get to play the game all over again if I take the OTA because it will break root. Then I need to fight with windows to make the drivers work and then restore and download my stuff. I don't think I want to mess with that anymore. I guess that is one reason I have been put off from hacking my phone.
Now, I will say android has gotten good in some key areas. ICS. I really like ICS, I like swiping away my windows and notifications and recent apps. Its fun and a logical way of doing things. gingerbread, umm... well, perhaps if I put rubber gloves on, yeah, I could use gingerbread again (sorry GB users
)
I have used android phones since the very first. The t-mobile G1, or HTC dream Perhaps its time for a change.
I got two lines not really being used, one for another 18 months and that is my droid x. I can upgrade at full price and go month to month, or pay a 300+ dollar ETF. The droid x is not getting used.
So, there you have it. I have a pros and cons list sitting next to me featuring most of these bullet points. Right now the pros for my nexus has only two entries....
Screen size. And ICS. And 8 cons...
As you can see, this was not a quick haste decision. This has been brewing for a while and after I started to write things down, well... yeah
Now, don't get me wrong here. I do believe each system has their place and there should be room for both operating system (I am leaving RIM and windows out because I don't even know about them) and I do wish the bickering and elitism would stop.