Thinking of switching from iPhone to Android...
 

So, I've been a die-hard iPhone user since day one.
I have been avoiding the android phones for years, but since I heard about the Galaxy S4, I decided I would give it a try and see what the hype was all about....so I bought an S4 :)

Anyways, I've only been using it for 3 days so far and I'm still not really sold...
I am super impressed with all the great features. The Galaxy S4 does so much cool stuff...I could play with it forever and barely scratch the surface.
The problem I have is with some of the basic stuff.
For example, the native email app seems pretty clunky and terrible. I've added my company exchange email along with my gmail and yahoo personal email...but it is so slow and the interface is a bit annoying.
I also don't like that it doesn't have badge notifications. It also seems that some if the native apps and features are a bit redundant...but maybe that's just because I'm not used to it yet.
I did learn that there were some decent third party apps in the Google Play store that could fix some of my little issues, but I would have assumed that Android would have done a better job developing their native apps.

Does anyone out there agree or disagree with me? Could I be doing something wrong or is Android just a clunky operating system with a ton of great bells and whistles??

I'm in the opposite boat - been an Android user for years, but am getting a new phone this week, probably an iPhone.

In my experience your first impressions are correct - Android on paper has tons of great features & apps and many of the phones have impressive specs, but for a lot of the basic stuff it's clunky. Just many many little glitches, nothing that's a deal-breaker but IMO it's just not the smoothest user experience. I'm sure there are fixes for many of them, but I usually don't have the time or inclination to investigate all that stuff.

By contrast, my girlfriend's iPhone does exactly what it's supposed to do smoothly and without the little hiccups that have plagued my Android phones. And I'm not an Apple fanboy by any stretch.

Android is okay, like you I switched from iPhone to Android, it is very clunky though and honestly, in a few months once my contract is up I'm ready to go back to the iPhone... Its just 'easier' to use all round.

Yea...so far it sounds like we are all on the same page :)
The S4 is clearly a better peice of hardware, but for overall functionality the iPhone still takes the lead.
I'll give the Galaxy S4 a try for a few more days, just so I can honestly give it a fair shot...but so far the iPhone is still more favorable.

Try K-9 mail for Android. It's free and pretty full featured. Also download Calendar Pad for Android, a vastly improved front end for the default Android calendar. The color coordinated text month view is the killer feature.

I tried K-9 and it only allowed me to add POP or IMAP emails...but I also need to add my Exchange email, which doesn't seem possible through K-9.
Am I missing something?

Stop thinking and just do it...

Samsung puts out some high quality Android cell phones, TV's and tablets. :thumbsup

I don't use Exchange, but according to what I read online when Googling "K-9 mail exchange", K-9 can be made to work at least with some versions of Exchange.

i just upgraded to the lg optimus g pro, snapdragon 600 with full hd resolution and there is zero clunky. android 4.1.2

different strokes :)

Cool thread.. just broke my phone (droid) last night. I was good 22 months into the contract too. I'll have a new one very soon.

Would be good to hear whats up.

I think that people should really try and take the time to experiment with both Apple and Android phones...just to really get an idea of what some of us mean by "clunkiness".

I played around the some other android phones and the Galaxy S4 was hands down the best one...but when you compare it to the simplicity and 'ease-of-use' of the iPhone, there is no doubt the iPhone iOS operating system is better even though it can't do all the fancy stuff that the newer androids can do.

I was an Android fan boy for a couple of years or so, maybe longer..

I switched to an iPhone 4s last March.. now I have an iPhone 5.

To put it simply, the iPhone just works. I was always fixing this or that on my Android phones.

That.:2 cents:

The iPhone is just way easier to use especially for a Mac, AppleTV, iTunes user. Android has many more options and tricks but checking email, texting, taking a picture and updating Facebook is much easier on the iPhone IMO.

i've spent plenty of time experimenting with an apple iphone.

my android is 1 tap of the screen to email.

or to facebook.

or twitter,

or browse.


either way, i couldn't give 2 shits what phone people use, but my experience with android currently is zero clunky. :)

I love Android, but switched to the iPhone because non of the current Android phones stood up to it build quality wise. At the time the Galaxy S3 was out and it was a plastic piece of crap. Great phone internals, just a shitty outer shell. Figured I'd hold off and switch back when the Galaxy S4 came out and it turns out to be the same exact piece of shit plastic shell.

And Dyna Mo, it takes 1 click to do all those things on an iPhone too :winkwink:

iPhone ALWAYS!

i don't have anything negative to say about the iphone. my point was peeps are saying how easy the iphone is to use, and it is easy, no doubt. but it's also easy to get things done with android os, 1 tap, 2 taps tops.

you bring up another good point that these devices truly are different strokes for different folks, i don't want a metal body phone. i prefer plastic. it's lighter. i almost got the htc one but opted out due to the metal construction.

Android 5.0 is coming out soon, which gonna rock.

On the other hand, Apple hasn't come up with anything cool in a long time. They are done.

Clever move ;)

Wait until that plastic phone takes a nice drop. Thankfully, Samsung will replace those plastic parts. My old Galaxy went through a few of them.

it's not my 1st device. it's closer to my 5th. i've dropped each and every one of them and never had a problem.

I have both the Samsung Galaxy and the iPhone 5. I have always used the android until I got my iphone. While I like both I am addicted to my iPhone so I doubt I will go back to the android.

armorsuit military shield for those concerned about breakage.

http://carbonfiberwarehouse.com/wp-c...1ue100WXcL.jpg

I've been an iPhone user for over 4 years now, just got iPhone5 last year, I'm switching to Android in the next few days, just as soon as my wife decides what phone she wants (probably Android too). I'm tired of Apple and their bs, they haven't innovated anything in years for the phones and all my friends on Android can't stop raving about it. Time for me to make the switch and get away from Apple for good. I took a loot at the HTC 1 and the S4 yesterday, I think the S4 is what I'll get.

My two year old son dropped galaxy fit more 30 times. Still it is working good. So i feel build quality is some what ok.

+ there are many custom roms made for the best/popular devices. i had 5-6 different roms i could select from on my previous device and there will be at least that many for my new one.

cm10, aosp, aokp, debloated stock roms, tweaked kernels. the list is endless. the customization opportunities to dial-in an android phone to be exactly like you want it are tremendous.

that's not taking away from the benefits of the iphone, there are many, but it is different and that is appealing and beneficial to many.

I just use the native Gmail app. Works great.

Once again, we had problems with our family iphone. Screen cracked and stopped working. Wonderful.

the end of a religion

more and more Iphone users I know are speaking of or actually trying out Androids, never heard that when Jobs was still alive

The iPhone 5 may be pretty but as a phone it is shit compared to many alternatives. I'd take a "cheap plastic" (last I checked polycarbonate actually cost more than aluminum) phone over an iPhone.
I know a couple of people who need to have an extra phone simple because of the bad iPhone design. Else just try to Google 'iPhone 5 reception'.

just got the Note II next to my S3, i'm impressed.

I love my htc one its super quick and works perfect

ive had a
htc magic
htc legend
htc wildfire
htc desire
htc one x
htc one

all good phones with a great operating system

Informative thread. I've considered switching too once I feel I'm due for a new phone.
I have a Nexus7 that, not a phone I know but it still gets me playing with the Android OS.

I dunno. I think that those who switch to Galaxy S4 now will regret it when the iPhone6 is released. Maybe.

You just picked it up one day and while you were sleeping the screen cracked on its own?

You should have sent a report to the media, I'm pretty sure iPhones cracking their own screens would have been something they would run as a story.

There must be 1000's of instances of iPhones breaking their own screens while the users are sleeping.

For me the issue is one of the Android apps constantly locking up and having to turn the phone off constantly to 'reset' them, even on the Gmail app.

I don't think I ever had to do that with my iPhone.

Another problem I am having with the Droid presently is when it goes to update the apps it constantly tells me I don't have enough memory space, despite having a 8GB card inserted.

Also, on the email app, once you delete an email, it gets moved to trash... Where it stays until you go in an MANUALLY remove every single email permanently, there is no 'bulk' delete for email that is already in the trash folder, do you have any idea how long it takes to manually remove 500 emails from trash a month by hand? lol

When you just come back to basics, its a PHONE not a lifestyle, I love my Galaxy, I don't want a Crapple.

I've heard they are going to increase the screen size once more. This time it will have an extra column of icons.

Yeah I won't go back to Iphone after using it for 5+yrs, happy with Droids.

:winkwink: I hear what you're saying.

I didn't go get the 5. I felt it was rushed out. The next one should be more than just extra space for icons.

You can't go wrong either way. A phone is a phone. I have used both in the past, and currently have the Droid Razr Maxx due to the fact I can get a full day of heavy use out of it (GPS, Wi-Fi, streaming, etc) without having to run to a charger every 3 hours.

another thing to consider. if you want an iphone, you get the iphone 5

with android you have 100s of choices.

the iphone is certainy well-thought out but you have to go with their screen size, form factor, body construction, display technology, ui, movie player, music source, etc.

on the android you get to choose those. different strokes. neither is necc. better than the other.

Yea. I am on my Samsung Galaxy S2, still waiting for a real good reason to buy a new phone :-)

First iPhone 3GS, then Android and next time might try a WP just to try something different.

the only issue I can see for you is having the android fall in with you ipad, ipod, iboughteverythingmacmakesevenwhenIdidn'tneedit etc.. android is a better phone though

well the next iphone come out with a small button that doesn't do shit... but it will be an iphone.. . and better than that last iphone

let me ask you this: apple is ANTI adult... why do support them?

Who cares if they are anti porn, what bearing does that have to do with anything.

Millions of companies are anti-porn and I guarantee you still use their products or services.

Android is designed to be customized by each user for their needs so the native apps might seem less then Apple but luckily you can find custom apps and widgets to solve just about any need you have. Learn to Swipe which isn't hard, also voice recognition is far better then Siri which seems like retarded drunk in her responses.

Probably going to go pickup a new S4 myself today. :pimp

for technical idiots like me the Iphone is best..its just so easy to use...it just always works...and I have the 4s and its 2 years old and works great...No reason to get the 5 or 5s for me...I am waiting for the 6