Android Disenchantment...

T^2 · Aug 5, 2012

I've been an Android user for about 2 1/2 years. My previous phone was a Droid X and my current phone is a Galaxy S III (both on Verizon). I'm not a software engineer. However, I am an electrical engineer and consider myself to be a fairly savvy tech gadget user. After over two years or Android use on two devices, I have to say that I've never been too happy with the experience. In fact it's been one of the most frustrating and irritating experiences in my tech toy consuming life.

Why do I say this? Well too much crap doesn't work right that's why. I can understand some 3rd party apps being crap, but too much built-in stuff right out of the box is crap. I had a hell of a time with the Droid X (both Froyo and Gingerbread). I was hoping that the new Galaxy S III - running the latest version of ICS - would be a improvement in the overall user experience. Apparently that's not going to be the case. By the way... How long has this operating system been out now? Anyway... Here are some of my Galaxy S III problems that I discovered so far...

- Automatic brightness doesn't work. Had to get a 3rd party app (Lux) to get this functionality. It didn't work worth a damn with the Droid X either. Whey have this option if you aren't going to put any effort into making it work?

- Smart stay. Not so smart. Only occasionally effective.

- Home screen doesn't rotate. WTH? This seems pretty basic and yet here we are today - after multiple versions - and it still doesn't get-r-done. Another 3rd party app to the rescue - this time Ultimate Rotation.

- The built in alarm clock. Another basic function that should "just work" but doesn't. No matter what I've tried I cannot get the snooze to work on it. Here again another 3rd party app was required - Alarm Clock Extreme.

T^2 · Aug 5, 2012

...

- Wifi settings - Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep... Forget it... doesn't seem to do anything... Tasker to the rescue here...

- LED notification stopped blinking for 3rd party apps about a week after I got the phone. Don't know why and haven't been able to fix it. Now when I get a message in Google Voice - for example - the LED is constantly on (not desirable).

- Tasker can't toggle the GPS on and off anymore. Why? Apparently, the device has to be rooted for this to work. It just seems so basic - put the device in the car mount and have it automatically enable BT and GPS. Nope.

- Music players - both Music Player and Play Music (both Google products) - have multiple issues. Again, this is another item that should just work. They're music players for God's sake. How long have they been around now? Here are a couple of their issues:
1) Music skips often from a music track and mysteriously starts playing a podcast file and 2x speed. Did this on the Droid X. Still doing this on the Galaxy S III.
2) Apparently MusicFX is an extension in Music Player. Fine. But it appears to be causing conflicts with any 3rd party equalizer app you might want to use. Sure you can go into Sounds/Music effects and select Equalizer (Smart Android Apps Equalizer as an example) instead of MusicFX. This will make Equalizer pop up (instead of MusicFX) when "Equalizer" is selected in Play Music's menu, but Equalizer wont' work/have any effect. Of course saved customs EQ presets in Music Player's MusicFX doesn't translate to any other app - Play Music for example - so you aren't going to have "one" EQ for all of your audio source/apps with anything already built in. More 3rd party apps required. This time I'm trying Winamp. I don't like it's GUI, but so far it seems to work and appears to be compatible with Equalizer. So far it doesn't seem to have the skipping issue either.

The list goes on and on...

Soon you will have burnt all of your memory up with 3rd party apps to fix built in functionality that should just work right out of the box.

There were things that I never got to work right on the Droid X. The button lighting at night for one thing. Sometimes they just won't not come on. Only way to get it to work right - reboot. Sometimes the GPS wouldn't lock not matter what. Only way to get it to lock - reboot and then it would lock immediately (happens with the Galaxy S III sometimes too). If fact both of these units have been reboot whores - requiring it way to frequently.

I don't know. I've never been a big fan of Apple's paradigm, but after feeling like I've paid a fair chunk of change the last couple of years to be nothing more than a Google software beta tester, I'm starting to wonder...

jefboyardee · Aug 5, 2012

Not unlike Windows, Android appears to need third-party assistance to be the best it can be. I think that’s ultimately a good thing, as it draws in more brains to develop it. As least it’s preferable -- to me at least -- over having one board of directors make every decision.

Mostly Harmless · Aug 5, 2012

I don't know, I owned an iPhone for about 2 years, and now I am on my 2nd year of Android. I can honestly say the past two years have been kept me much more excited then the years I spent with an iPhone. I haven't gotten that "beta" feeling, even when I am running custom roms. Android isn't for everyone, some times it is too tough for people and the iPhone may suit them better, but for me it's much greener on this side.

T^2 · Aug 5, 2012

Mostly Harmless said:
I don't know, I owned an iPhone for about 2 years, and now I am on my 2nd year of Android. I can honestly say the past two years have been kept me much more excited then the years I spent with an iPhone. I haven't gotten that "beta" feeling, even when I am running custom roms. Android isn't for everyone, some times it is too tough for people and the iPhone may suit them better, but for me it's much greener on this side.

It's not a matter of being "too tough". It's a matter of being too irritating. If you buy an Android device to satisfy your techno-tinkering needs, then that's fine. It will "require" plenty of techno-tinkering. Enough to satisfy most I suspect. However, if you buy the device to be a tool to accomplish necessary task and you want it to "just work" without creating a new hobby for yourself, then you may be out of luck (keep in mind this is a general electronic consumer product intended for mass consumption). Don't get me wrong... Being an engineer I like my fair share of techno-tinkering, but I like to have the option of picking which battles I undertake. When it comes to some things, I would prefer that they just work (this smartphone being one of them).

From an engineering point of view - I can't believe this stuff - stuff so not ready for prime time - even manages to get out the door.

damewolf13 · Aug 5, 2012

I agree that Android isn't for everyone.
I have never used Apple products but from what I understand it is a very smooth, controlled, contained experience. There is nothing wrong with that and if that is what you are looking for, then that is probably the right choice for you.
Android is always a work in progress, always forging ahead with new ideas, taking challenges to try new concepts, and constantly in developement.
I think of it as the perfect platform for people who like change, and the tinkerers of the world. Choices, and change, are what makes my world go around.

T^2 · Aug 5, 2012

damewolf13 said:
I agree that Android isn't for everyone.
I have never used Apple products but from what I understand it is a very smooth, controlled, contained experience. There is nothing wrong with that and if that is what you are looking for, than that is probably the right choice for you.
Android is always a work in progress, always forging ahead with new ideas, taking challenges to try new concepts, and constantly in developement.
I think of it as the perfect platform for people who like change, and the tinkerers of the world. Choices, and change, are what makes my world go around.

That's fine if you are marketing these devices as experimentation kits. But that's not what they are marketed as. Android is being used as the platform for one of the most widely marketed and sold general purpose electronics devices out there. These devices are consumed by the masses (all types and backgrounds) and as such should be thoroughly engineered and work as advertised.

Perhaps it sounds like I expect perfection. Not at all. But, when it comes to some things - like those that I listed in my previous post and others - they are so basic an integral that there is just no excuse for them not working (thoroughly tested/debugged before released to the public).

jefboyardee · Aug 5, 2012

That's fine if you are marketing these devices as experimentation kits. But that's not what they are marketed as.

I wasn’t there then, but I suspect that cars went through the same thing in the early 1900s. Progress hurts, especially when your designs are being implemented by a dozen manufacturers and sold through another dozen service providers. It’s too late for Google to turn around and do it all themselves.

But I otherwise agree that some completely basic functions are half-baked. First one I noticed, before I discovered third-party launchers, was having my stock folders completely forget what I had put in them before I restarted.

Rxpert83 · Aug 5, 2012

T^2 said:
I've been an Android user for about 2 1/2 years. My previous phone was a Droid X and my current phone is a Galaxy S III (both on Verizon). I'm not a software engineer. However, I am an electrical engineer and consider myself to be a fairly savvy tech gadget user. After over two years or Android use on two devices, I have to say that I've never been too happy with the experience. In fact it's been one of the most frustrating and irritating experiences in my tech toy consuming life.

Why do I say this? Well too much crap doesn't work right that's why. I can understand some 3rd party apps being crap, but too much built-in stuff right out of the box is crap. I had a hell of a time with the Droid X (both Froyo and Gingerbread). I was hoping that the new Galaxy S III - running the latest version of ICS - would be a improvement in the overall user experience. Apparently that's not going to be the case. By the way... How long has this operating system been out now? Anyway... Here are some of my Galaxy S III problems that I discovered so far...

- Automatic brightness doesn't work. Had to get a 3rd party app (Lux) to get this functionality. It didn't work worth a damn with the Droid X either. Whey have this option if you aren't going to put any effort into making it work? works fine here...

- Smart stay. Not so smart. Only occasionally effective. never used it

- Home screen doesn't rotate. WTH? This seems pretty basic and yet here we are today - after multiple versions - and it still doesn't get-r-done. Another 3rd party app to the rescue - this time Ultimate Rotation. rooted phhones easily have this capability

- The built in alarm clock. Another basic function that should "just work" but doesn't. No matter what I've tried I cannot get the snooze to work on it. Here again another 3rd party app was required - Alarm Clock Extreme. works fine here

T^2 said:
...

- Wifi settings - Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep... Forget it... doesn't seem to do anything... Tasker to the rescue here... only one that I've experienced

- LED notification stopped blinking for 3rd party apps about a week after I got the phone. Don't know why and haven't been able to fix it. Now when I get a message in Google Voice - for example - the LED is constantly on (not desirable).
Once again, phone specific issue. Nothing against android
- ] Tasker can't toggle the GPS on and off anymore. Why? Apparently, the device has to be rooted for this to work. It just seems so basic - put the device in the car mount and have it automatically enable BT and GPS. Nope. GPS only drains battery when in USE, IE navigation. Leaving the radio on is fine

- Music players - both Music Player and Play Music (both Google products) - have multiple issues. Again, this is another item that should just work. They're music players for God's sake. How long have they been around now? Here are a couple of their issues:
~~1) Music skips often from a music track and mysteriously starts playing a podcast file and 2x speed. Did this on the Droid X. Still doing this on the Galaxy S III.~~ Never experienced this, and I use google music frequently
2) Apparently MusicFX is an extension in Music Play. Fine. But it appears to be causing conflicts with any 3rd party equalizer app you might want to use. Sure you can go into Sounds/Music effects and select Equalizer (Smart Android Apps Equalizer as an example) instead of MusicFX. This will make Equalizer pop up (instead of MusicFX) when "Equalizer" is selected in Play Music's menu, but Equalizer wont' work/have any effect. Of course saved customs EQ presets in Music Player's MusicFX doesn't translate to any other app - Play Music for example - so you aren't going to have "one" EQ for all of your audio source/apps with anything already built in. More 3rd party apps required. This time I'm trying Winamp. I don't like it's GUI, but so far it seems to work and appears to be compatible with Equalizer. So far it doesn't seem to have the skipping issue either. I don't use, so no comment

The list goes on and on...

Soon you will have burnt all of your memory up with 3rd party apps to fix built in functionality that should just work right out of the box.

There were things that I never got to work right on the Droid X. The button lighting at night for one thing. Sometimes they just won't not come on. Only way to get it to work right - reboot. Sometimes the GPS wouldn't lock not matter what. Only way to get it to lock - reboot and then it would lock immediately (happens with the Galaxy S III sometimes too). If fact both of these units have been reboot whores - requiring it way to frequently.

I don't know. I've never been a big fan of Apple's paradigm, but after feeling like I've paid a fair chunk of change the last couple of years to be nothing more than a Google software beta tester, I'm starting to wonder...

Seems to me like you've just had some bad devices.

Nearly everything you've listed seems to be a device specific problem, and has nothing to do with android as a whole

Caesars · Aug 6, 2012

Buy a iPhone, it's the only way to get a real look at your alternative.

T^2 · Aug 6, 2012

Rxpert83 said:
Seems to me like you've just had some bad devices.

Nearly everything you've listed seems to be a device specific problem, and has nothing to do with android as a whole

You could be right... but then again...

Some problems are common between the Droid X and Galaxy S III. Others are not. However, both devices were the company "flag ships" at the time of their release. With that being the case, you would think that they would want these devices to well represent the company and therefore do due diligence before they go out the door. But, as another coined it, they have a multitude of fundamental functions that appear to be "half baked".

Ultimately, I don't care where the blame resides - operating system or manufacturer - I just want these damn things to work (at least the fundamental integral functionality). However you slice it, Google does control their paradigm - or should. Apple has always seemed a little heavy handed in that respect, but lately I'm beginning to wonder if that doesn't have more merit than I originally gave it credit for.

I can't even rely on the built in alarm clock for God's sake. I guess I should be thankful that it rings the phone when a call comes in. At least I think it does...

chanchan05 · Aug 6, 2012

My guess is you got a lemon altered with carrier designed firmware. I got two Samsung devices

1. Auto brightness works. Works well in fact
2. Can't comment.
3. TouchWiz was not designed to rotate in the first place. This is a Samsung UI design concept, that the homescreens do not rotate. Its not an Android limitation, because Android has this capability. Samsung just decided they don't want it on their phones. Its not an Android issue.
4. Alarm clock snooze works perfectly fine in my case, stock Samsung clock app.
5. Did you even disable Samsung's power saver feature? If you don't this would keep on happening. Again this is not an Android issue, its a Samsung enabled feature you can turn off if you want.
6. No comment. My devices don't have LED
7. Toggling GPS on and off is useless anyway. An enabled GPS isn't actively using battery, its just open for other apps to access it immediately. BT complaint I can understand.
8. No problems on stock music player on both my phone and tablet.

So yeah, you probably got lemons. Especially considering since carriers alter manufacturer firmware to their own likings which may add bugs not present in international versions of devices.

zerocool79346 · Aug 6, 2012

YNot to knock you, but I've literally never experienced any of those problems save for the WiFi issue and that was back when I had an Eris. I popped my Nexus out of the box and used it as it was for 3 weeks with no issue before my tinkering desire got the best of it, but even on half baked 3rd party ROMs and kernels I've never had near the gambit of problems you seem to have had. I'm sorry about the luck man.

Rxpert83 · Aug 6, 2012

If those are in fact issues your experiencing, either take the phone back and get a replacement or root it and get a custom rom on there.

Motorhead1991 · Aug 6, 2012

Also keep in mind that the SIII is still a 1st gen device with what I'm betting is new hardware, so bugs should be expected. On my Samsung Rugby Smart, Samsung neglected to include the switch for auto brightness, and I had to use a 3rd party app to shut it off. (By the way, turn it off and swipe your notification bar

). This has been out since February, so I'm on 1st gen firmware as well.

omnius · Aug 6, 2012

It strikes me as a bit apologist to chalk up the OP's problems as being bad luck with lemons. I've run across some of the items on his list too so count me out as someone who will reply with a "works fine for me" response.

One big item was left out of his list: 4.0 was released Oct 2011. It is now Aug 2012 and 84% of devices still don't have it, while we're now on jellybean with 5.0 looming on the horizon.

nigsy · Aug 6, 2012

The trouble with Android unlike the Iphone OS is that it is not released to one one phone with the same hardware - Look how many manufacturers there are and how many variants of these phones per manufacturer exist. Add to that unrealistic expectations of Users (Why doesn't Jelly bean give me a smooth experience on my 4/5 year old Hero?) and you get the issues the OP describes.
Then each manufacturer has it's own take on 'User Experience' so we get Sense UI, Samsungs UI etc, it's no wonder some of the core Android features that would work on a pure Android phone with no tinkering don't work!!

What I do agree with is though - When a device is released it should work! Wehter it's 1st generation or not.

Rxpert83 · Aug 6, 2012

omnius said:
It strikes me as a bit apologist to chalk up the OP's problems as being bad luck with lemons. I've run across some of the items on his list too so count me out as someone who will reply with a "works fine for me" response.

One big item was left out of his list: 4.0 was released Oct 2011. It is now Aug 2012 and 84% of devices still don't have it, while we're now on jellybean with 5.0 looming on the horizon.

Many devices running gingerbread either simply can't run ics, or its not worth it for manufacturers to upgrade you to it.

You gotta remember gb to ics is 2.3 to 4.0
That's a huge upgrade. If the phones nearing its eol its honestly not even worth upgrading it.

They would rather take your money on your next phone upgrade than put man hours upgrading a device so that you will keep your old one longer. Manufacturers aren't a charity. They're in it to make money.

T^2 · Aug 6, 2012

nigsy said:
The trouble with Android unlike the Iphone OS is that it is not released to one one phone with the same hardware - Look how many manufacturers there are and how many variants of these phones per manufacturer exist. Add to that unrealistic expectations of Users (Why doesn't Jelly bean give me a smooth experience on my 4/5 year old Hero?) and you get the issues the OP describes.
Then each manufacturer has it's own take on 'User Experience' so we get Sense UI, Samsungs UI etc, it's no wonder some of the core Android features that would work on a pure Android phone with no tinkering don't work!!

That's no excuse. Google controls their paradigm - or should. Windows phone has multiple manufacturers yet I believe Microsoft is exercising tighter control to guarantee the end user experience is what it should be.

Same goes for apps. I understand that in Androids early days they needed to build up the Marketplace quickly because the number of apps available was a big selling point. But that's hardly an issue today and perhaps it's time to start tightening the standards there as well.

nigsy said:
What I do agree with is though - When a device is released it should work! Wehter it's 1st generation or not.

Now that I can agree with...

omnius · Aug 6, 2012

Rxpert83 said:
Many devices running gingerbread either simply can't run ics, or its not worth it for manufacturers to upgrade you to it.

You gotta remember gb to ics is 2.3 to 4.0
That's a huge upgrade. If the phones nearing its eol its honestly not even worth upgrading it.

They would rather take your money on your next phone upgrade than put man hours upgrading a device so that you will keep your old one longer. Manufacturers aren't a charity. They're in it to make money.

There's a whole bunch of early 2011 phones still waiting for ICS. There are entry level phones just recently released with HALF the specs if those 16 month old phones. They have ICS. So if you want to use profit as your argument go ahead. Don't use specs. As far as profit goes, all the other mobile OS will likely be making their own hardware next year.

I hope Samsung, Motorola, HTC all pay the piper for their greed when that happens.

Omar Days · Aug 6, 2012

Just get an iphone. Sounds like you'd love it.

THE W · Aug 6, 2012

early 2011?

we're past the halfway point of 2012. the way technology updates itself early 2011 is ancient history.

name 3 phones from early 2011 that dont have ICS.

to the OP. you got a lemon. take it back and get another one.

Demache · Aug 6, 2012

T^2 said:
That's no excuse. Google controls their paradigm - or should. Windows phone has multiple manufacturers yet I believe Microsoft is exercising tighter control to guarantee the end user experience is what it should be.

Google doesn't have a death grip on Android. They never intended to. In fact, that's what made it so attractive to so many OEM's and developers. For better or worse, and you seem to be encountering all the downsides to this philosophy which is unfortunate.

Regardless, stuff like the alarm clock or auto brightness are NOT typical issues. I would say these are either device/ROM specific bugs or hardware issues.

The only time I ever had those kinds of issues on both my Nexus and Eris were on VERY early custom ROM builds, where progress is at the "system boots and doesn't crash randomly" stage.

AmneonX · Aug 6, 2012

From my experience, I have enjoyed Android. Like you, my first phone was the Droid X, after that the Xperia Play, and now the Galaxy Nexus(rooted on 4.1.1) I also have the OG Galaxy Tab and the Nexus 7.

The Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 7 really do JUST WORK. I haven't had any major issues that weren't caused by a specific app. No OS is perfect, not even iOS. If you are that unhappy, there is Blackberry, WP7, and iOS. I enjoy Android, and I hope you find ways to enjoy the experience as well.

dden4012 · Aug 6, 2012

Haven't had any of the issues mentioned by the op. I do feel that "beta" phase with android as far as battery life and random reboots in stock trim. But I can't not mess with anything techy in my hands. The IPhone sounds perfect for your expectations. Android will always be a WIP. I wouldn't trade my android for the iPhone.

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