Update: Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich vs. iOS 5
With the announcement of iOS 5 at WWDC 2011, the Android vs. iOS war has once again started on most of the online communities and forums. There are some people who strongly believe that Apple has copied most of the iOS 5 features from different versions of Android OS, but Apple fans still think that iOS 5 is much better than recent Android releases.
These mobile operating systems have created lots of confusion for the common man who don’t understand much about the various aspects of an operating system. Apple’s iOS based devices have been considered as the best electronic gadgets where as Android based devices have also gained popularity in recent time. So, which one is better?
Let’s compare iOS 5 with Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread -
| Operating Systems |
iOS 5  |
Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread |
| Advanced Photo Editing
|
Yes | No |
|
Wireless Streaming
|
Yes | No |
| Twitter Integration
|
Yes | No |
| Game Center
|
Yes | No |
| Unified Notification System
|
Yes | Yes |
| One-touch Camera
|
Yes | No |
| Dedicated messaging Service
|
Yes | No |
| Magazine/Newspaper Subscription Service
|
Yes | No |
| Tabbed Browsing
|
Yes | No |
| Wireless Sync
|
Yes | No |
| OTA Updates
|
Yes | Yes |
| Release Date
|
June 6, 2011 (Beta) | May 3, 2011 |
Advanced Photo Editing
Apple has developed and enabled some advanced features in Camera application, which you won’t see in Android OS. However, Android users can still edit their photos with the help of third party apps. Some of these applications provide even more editing options than iOS’s native application.
Wireless Streaming
With Airplay Mirroring, Apple’s iOS 5 has gone one step ahead of Android. Now, iOS devices can wirelessly stream the content on big screens and you don’t have to use any cable to setup or install this service.
Twitter Integration
Not innovative, but it’s still missing from Android OS. Twitter has become an important tool to share news and information. Considering the need of this generation, Google should bring such feature in their next update.
Game Center
Apple’s online gaming community, Game Center, has been growing since the first day of its launch, and it has generated significant amount of revenue for the company. On the other hand, Android users are waiting to experience such service on their devices.
Unified Notification System
One of the most annoying features of iOS, the notifications, have been revamped in fifth generation iOS, and it looks very similar to Android notifications. Apple might have included a couple of changes in graphics, but it’s very much clear that the idea is taken from Google’s Android system.
One-touch Camera
Again, not an unique feature of iOS 5! Windows Phone 7 features lock screen camera, which can be used to click quick snapshots when phone is in locked mode. This WP7 feature is now available in iOS as well. Google Android users can enjoy one-touch camera feature by installing custom ROMs, but it would be beneficial for non-savvy users if Google team implements it in the future update.
Dedicated Messaging Service
BlackBerry’s popular messenger feature is being served with a new name, iMessage, on iOS platform. iMessage is just another improved form of BBM, and will work similarly on iOS devices. Android OS doesn’t have any such facility, and therefore users are relying on conventional messengers like Gtalk and YIM.
Magazine/Newspaper Subscription Service
iOS 5 has got another interesting feature for those who love to keep updated with latest news and updates. Apple’s Newsstand app lets users choose their favorite magazines as well as newspapers, which can be read in offline mode too.
Tabbed Browsing
Finally, we have tabbed browsing on Mobile Safari browser. In earlier versions of iOS Safari, there was no such option available for web surfers. As far as Android is concerned, they don’t have tabbed browsing feature in the default browser. However, it can be achieved by installing Dolphin browser on Android devices.
Wireless Sync
Although similar app was selling hot on Cydia store, non-jailbreakers couldn’t take advantage of its service. Now that Apple has officially brought Wi-Fi sync in iOS 5, all users can wirelessly sync their gadgets with iTunes.
OTA Updates
The long wait is over. OTA updates will be pushed for the later versions of iOS 5. As they said at the WWDC event, these updates will be rolled out in the form of Delta Updates, which means users can download only new features and bug fixes instead of entire iOS.
My Thoughts -
Both Android and iOS are currently standing on equal positions. It’s good to see that users will have two good options while buying a new phone from the market. The competition between these two platforms is actually working in favor of consumers.
Do leave your opinions about iOS 5 and Android 2.3.4 updates.
Update: Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich vs. iOS 5
Ok who was the moron who wrote this comparison?
I’ll take the Samsung Galaxy S2 with Android 2.3.3 against iOS 5. Here’s how it maps out:
Advanced photo editing:
Yea right, “advanced”. But still, I’ll play. Galaxy s2 has all that AND MORE!
Wireless Streaming:
Samsung Galaxy S2, yep!
Twitter Integration:
Seriously?? Android has Facebook, Twitter, and a GAZILLION other apps integrated into the OS through the Share button. And from day 1. I don’t really see what’s Apple doing so new with a measly Twitter integration.
Game Center:
Ok, yes. iOS has that edge. But Tegra Zone, and Sony Ericsson’s XPERIA Play has its own store. Its new, but will fill up sooner than you know.
Unified Notification System:
Hehehe… yea THAT!
One-Touch Camera:
WidgetLocker, anyone? One touch Camera, Gmail, whatever. Set up EIGHT one-touch shortcuts right on your lockscreen. Again, old news for Android guys!
Dedicated Messaging Service:
Ok, Google Talk might not be on par with iMessage right now, but its better than nothing. Still, Apple has the edge. But I hear a massive update, or perhaps a totally new app, is coming real soon.
Magazine/Newspaper Subscription:
Zinio, anyone?
Tabbed Browsing:
For God’s sake! Native browser (Menu>Windows) Firefox, Skyfire, Dolphin, Opera, what else you need?
Wireless Sync:
doubleTwist man! Had that ages ago. But if you need native support, you still get that with Galaxy S2.
OTA Updates: From friggin DAY ONE!
Get your facts right, geniuses!
There is a difference between what you can do with your device and what you have (pre-installed) on the phone. Anyway, thanks for your opinion.
I see your point, and your responses to other comments. It certainly is a big plus to have those features added natively to your operating system rather than have to buy apps for the said functionalities. But a part of the reason those apps exist on Android, or for that matter DIDN’T exist on iPhone, was that Apple dictates heavily what can be added to their OS and what cannot. If a user knows how to write a code for something and wants that thing in his phone, why not just let him do it? Yes, yes, very well, a smooth experience for all users, I get it. And its certainly working for Apple so far. But at the pace Android is catching up is a clear indication that Apple left room for these avenues to be explored and that Google is now exploiting them heavily.
Stephen Elop rightfully said in a recent speech that Apple basically helped create Android by leaving those options out and being too controlling about their software.
I am a huge fan of Apple. I happily accept and praise Apple’s role as a great market leader and innovator, and their overall user experience is phenomenal. But the reason I have an Android phone in my hand, is that although the UX is nowhere near as awesome as iOS at the moment, it allows me to make whatever modifications I want to make my handset a perfect companion and a powerful tool connecting me to my digital life.
Overall, I agree with most of the things Apple is doing. I just wanted room to DISAGREE with them if I wanted to. Kind of a bit out there, but isn’t that a little like a software version of Communism? O_o
Yes, I somewhat agree with your points, but again there are very few people who know programming for mobile platforms. And if you’re not a serious developer, I don’t think you will ever consider developing an app for the device, as you might brick your phone while performing some experiments. So as I said, this is not a big issue and won’t have an impact to masses.
Android has an advantage of being an open platform OS. However, we should not forget the other side of the coin. With this open platform advantage, many mobile companies have left their own platforms and have chosen Android to earn some quick profit. These companies are not innovating anything new or useful for users apart from providing Android’s features and I guess it would be unfair to call it as a real competition. AFAIK, replicating “Free OS” in different devices with VAS and other unwanted features is not an innovation!
How this thing affects users? Well, I might go to a shop and buy an Android phone with latest OS version. After a week or two, I come to know that Google has released an update for “my OS”, and it can be downloaded through “OTA” facility. The real problem starts here! First thing, I don’t know when this update is going to arrive for my device. Second thing, my network provider is taking so much time to push this update for unknown reason. In both cases, I will have to wait for at least 3-4 days or maybe a week to receive the update. And guess what? This happens with new phone in the market. If I’ve a phone with Android 2.1 or Android 2.2, it would take ages to see the new features of latest update on my old phone. Again, there is no guarantee that this update will arrive on my phone.
Now, you would say try to install third party ROMs to get those features. Cool, I try some random ROM on my phone. Everything is perfect for few days, but later on I face annoying issues on the phone. I try to find a solution on the internet, but no luck! Last option – Service Center. Most of the time these service center guys don’t even touch the phone if you’ve installed something that is not familiar with their work. And even if they do, I’ll have to pay hefty charges to fix things up. EPIC FAIL?
That’s why I personally prefer iOS over other platforms. You don’t have to worry about updates. When the update is released/announced, you will get it right after the announcement, and that too simultaneously on all iDevices. iOS 5 has OTA feature as well, so you don’t have to download huge files each time. Big plus point for a “closed platform”. I can also fix issues in no time, as same version of iOS is running on large no. of the devices.
Also, you won’t get ‘that’ feeling when your friend receives an update on his phone much before your phone update notification pops up on the screen.
Well again, I would agree. These are valid concerns with Android, and Google needs to make sure that all the major OEM partners are making every effort to get the latest updates on their phones ASAP. On the recent Google I/O event, all these major OEMs (Samsung, HTC, Motorola, LG, Sony Ericsson, and a couple others I think) signed contracts with Google that every handset they make will be guaranteed all the new Android updates released within the next 2 years of that handset’s announcement. Moreover, all new handsets will be released with the latest OS version onboard. So that takes care of the updates. As to WHEN will you get the update, that fragmentation problem is inevitable with an open OS and I guess this is the price you pay for using Android instead of iOS. But currently Gingerbread is pretty much at par with iOS as far as functionalities are concerned so I’m not too concerned about it all.
About many companies leaving their own OSes in favor of Android, I dont think thats a bad option, since its the consumer who is winning eventually. But all these manufacturers are adding their own tweaks and improvements on top of Android to add value to their phones. HTC’s Sense is totally different from Samsung’s TouchWiz, which is way different than LG’s UI, which again is a departure from AOSP stock interface. So every company is adding spice and cherry on top of Android. And the result, I get to CHOOSE which kind of UI suits me best, while still staying within the Android ecosystem and reaping all the benefits of it.
And custom ROMs, well that is obviously a techie option and not EVERYONE should be tinkering with their phone this way. Stick to the UI that came with the phone if ur not sure what ur doing. You can hardly blame Apple if an idiot bricks an iPhone while jailbreaking it, and same works for Google and Android.
And coming to the first paragraph of ur post, i gotta disagree here. I am not a developer. I barely know basic HTML and haven’t really finished my first web page yet. But still, I have made plenty tweaks to Android, rooted it, and even made a couple of basic apps myself using Google App Inventor.
But all this is not everybody’s cuppa tea. If you want Android, go into the market, see which stock UI suits you best, buy it, and get apps from the Market. There’s plenty to do even without a single hack to the OS. But if you’re confident that you’re CAPABLE of tinkering with the OS, there is an option and it gives you plenty flexibility to tweak it to suit exactly your own needs. Its not restrictive to tweaking and modifications unlike iOS.
There are plus points to both ecosystems and both have their downsides as well. End of the day, its all upto you which one suits you best.
If you want the best user experience out of the box, get an iOS device (though can’t say that with all honesty after seeing Samsung Galaxy S2). It will be EXACTLY like those millions upon millions of handsets out there, and you can’t really deviate from that experience too much if you feel like.
But if you want a gadget that has a better-than-good UX out of the box, and it allows you to build on top of that and tweak the crap out of it til you make a unique experience that is EXACTLY according to your needs and requirements, then Android is the way to go. Suit yourselves
not sure I agree with that…..am in Nigeria and got an xperia x10 in April, after just 4 months and with no previous Linux knowledge I’ve got my phone overclocking, undervolting, heavily modded, with an uncapped fps running android 2.3.4 basically EXACTLY d way I want it! all this as an extremely busy veterinary medical 5th year student……..seriously, are android phones that hard to juice?????
What if i can’t afford an iPhone… 0_o
apple has like one device; sure android phones sometimes lack in performance at the bottom end budget devices, but hey, there is an android out there that graphs beautifully for even the cheaper/ more affordable options of android handset/smartphone.
so unless you Rockafella and a little 1track minded(no offense)then go ahead and support an over priced manufacturer. How do you know someone owns an i device?… he tells you!
that’s absolutely CORRECT …………..
and one more, android’s 2.4 ICE CREAM will freeze the iOS 5………
…………really? you had to put that in there?…….
Ice Cream Sandwich is 4.x. Not 2.4. And yes, it is cause for Apple to invest in Depends…Cause they’re going to be evacuating their bowels.
to add Wireless sync umm Music by Google! Take up to 20,000 songs with you so who needs to sync..
wireless streaming? really? really? really!?… I stream from my mytouch 4g daily to my DLNA compliant Sony TV or Sony Playstation. More fun to watch on tv then having my wife huddle over my phone…
Twitter…seriously own a android first. next…
and my last Advanced Camera…Camera 360. nuff said.
I don’t see your point here.
This comparison simply states what iOS 5 includes, that Gingerbread does not.
Yes, Gingerbread does include Facebook/Twitter integration. As can iOS 5.
The difference between your other points. You have to actually DOWNLOAD those functions.
Wireless Sync, you first have to download doubleTwist.
OTA updates, all OS’s do that.
Tabbed browsing, you still need to download an external browser. It isn’t implemented into the stock browser as of yet.
One-touch Camera, again, you must download Widgetlocker. Even worse, you actually have to PAY for it! Free with the iOS update.
Gaming centre, all platforms have this. But it is richer on the iOS.
Advanced photo editing, again, all platforms have this. But they do not have ADVANCED. They are simple. (e.g. Crop, rotate) To get more features you must download extensions for it.
Basically, if you were to buy an iPad/iPod/iPhone when this new update airs, you will get EVERYTHING in the one package. No need to download extras, no need to connect to a computer to sync.
But, I see where you are coming from. Android does allow these features. They just have to step up their game and put them into their OS. (We will see when 3.1/Ice Cream Sandwich)
U R JEALOUS……………………everybody noes…that ios 5 is d best ………….there r a more no..pre-installed apps in ios 5 den in android 2.3.4
i guess you are one of those “android fans eh? ”
guess the age old proverb is right : Neither can you argue with a village idiot nor a android fan
I guess iGOD is an Apple fanboy?
Apple has converted their brand in a Religion. Maybe Steve Jobs is your iGod and your prophets are the iPad, iPhone and iPod…
I have an iPad and an iPod, I think that are great products but you have to respect the people who prefer Android OS. Why all the people convert all in a war? I hate when I look prepotent attitude like Steve Jobs! Apple and Android are great Operating Systems with pro’s and disadvantages.
yep AFTAB bro ur right….
i hv xperia arc
i agree wid d all points u hv raised
and also aftr updatng 2.3.3 to 2.3.4 i can get facebook inside XPERIA
Harshad,
All that you written above is old an news from android, I’m using Samsung Galaxy S..
1.Photo Editing – no big deal about this.. you can download tons of application on android marketplace.. beside that GS can edit with any 3rd party apps. (crop.. etc.)
2. Wireless streaming, its native to galaxy S.. you can stream your photo or video via ALLShare.. since android 2.1
3. Twitter integration – another useless apps.. again you can download it from android market.
4. Game Center – Try to look with Samsung Galaxy S II, game hub and Readers hub is already included..
5. Unified Notification System – android?????
6. one touch camera – (3rd aprty apps – lockmenu, you may assign any application to 8 different lockscreen…
a lot of apps available at marketplace.. either you want to unlock by your hand gesture.. (just wave at your phone).. also in Galaxy s 2 you can unlock by face recognition.. motorola atrex by fingerprint.. name it..
7 .Magazine/ Newspaper – again apple copied it from Galaxy S II (Readers Hub)
8. Tab Browsing – normal 3rd application for android.. name it!!! (also native apps for android 3.0 +)
9. My phone can sync to PC or any TV.. (bluetooth/ allshare.)
10. OTA – read from comments above..
Beside IOS 5, previous features that IOS copied from android.
1. multitasking –
2. folder – since day 1 from android
3. wifi teethering
4. wallpaper – (even my old nokia can do this..)
5. etc.. cant remember
Features that IOS don’t have
1. live wallpaper
2. Homescreen (for apps shortcut and widgets)
3. widgets
4. customization.
5. open platform
6. NFC
7… etc.. cant remember
8.
I guess you haven’t followed WWDC 2011 keynote thoroughly. I’m not saying Apple is innovating everything, but Google is doing the same thing for Android, or rather all the mobile companies are directly/indirectly copying from their competitors.
Live wallpaper, Homescreen and widgets can easily be achieved with the jailbreak, which also brings customization for iDevices. As far as open platform is concerned, Apple don’t want fragmentation in the business and it’s always great to have one good phone instead of thousands of crap devices. Samsung might have gained popularity with Galaxy S series phones, but we can’t deny the fact that most of the mobile companies are still struggling to develop a successful phone for users.
NFC feature is not a big deal in all the countries, except US. So, who really cares whether you have this feature or not? And just for your information, Apple is testing this feature in labs and I’m sure it will be available soon.
So you bash custom roms and rooting, but mention the benefits of jailbreaking? Most iPhone users don’t even change their default ringtone. So like using custom roms, how many people will do that? That list is wrong. Have you owned an android? There is a lot of no answers that should be yes. Isn’t ios 4 fragmented at the moment to. I don’t believe Verizon is at 4.3. So i guess it happens. I love the iPhone. Left droid and got a white iPhone 4 but had to return it because of one major flaw. The need to how 100% of the internet. Yes i mean flash. Most people say who needs it, it kills battery … etc. But I can always uninstall it. Is a choice. And 75% of the internet was viewable for me. Had to go back to Android. I wish Apple would give me the option forflash and widgets. All in all you should fix that list.
When did I say something bad about Custom ROMs and rooting? I actually love the way all third party developers are providing support to these major platforms and I’m not against any of them as far as they are helping the end users.
Looking at your comment, you seemed to have faced some issues with Verizon iPhone, but that’s your own problem. Why do you blame the entire OS? If you want to surf internet with full satisfaction, get a desktop PC or a tablet device.
As far as fragmentation is concerned, you need to understand that Apple is providing iOS 4 on Verizon devices, which is a major update. When we talk about fragmentation in Android, it’s much different than what you think.
And oh, I do own a couple of Android devices.
Why did you even write this article?
You may have a couple of android devices, but you are totally biased towards apple both in the article and your responses..
Someone who is this biased has no place in writing comparison articles, it’s sorta like a conflict of interest.
Toddle off and write reviews about iOS rather than comparing it to android.
Haha Why don’t you accept that Android still needs improvement?
Could you please point me to somewhere in my response where I even so much as implied that android needs no more improvement?
And I would point out to you where you have mentioned that iOS needs improvement but, over these couple thousand words you have written above, you failed to mention a single negative aspect of IOS.
I understand that you like Apple and don’t want to give android fans ammunition, but like my year ten english teacher said: “no one can draw a conclusion if you don’t give them both sides of the story”. So be a good chap, and allow me to draw a conclusion?
Well, you didn’t mention anything about improvements, but your previous comment suggests that you’re happy with what you are using, and probably don’t want new things in the OS.
Just to make things clear, I’m not a biased person (Though I don’t know why you felt that) and Apple, Google or any other company doesn’t pay me to write biased articles about their products. So, I don’t really care who is no.1 or no.2 in the competition. I write because I like their work.
Getting back to the point, I know that both operating systems require lots of improvements, and I’m sure these companies will do their best to bring new features to the users. The whole point of writing this post was to compare some of the announced features of iOS 5 with Android 2.3.4. Apple has included around 250 new features in iOS 5, and it would take ages for any author to compare all these features and improvements with its competitors. I just highlighted few features, which Apple team discussed at the event. However, this doesn’t mean that Android is a bad OS. Also, I’m not forcing anyone to purchase an iPhone or iPod Touch. After all, it’s important to know your needs and budget.
Everyone has right to share their opinions and views. You might have different opinions about iOS as well as Android and I respect your opinions. Anyway, you could have said all these things in polite manner, but I guess your school teacher forgot to teach this lesson. No hard feelings.
Frankly, I also felt this was a hugely biased article towards iOS…..
So very politely I will only mention as someone has commented above that a lot of the above No’s mentioned for Android should have been Yes’s ….
I have had a couple of android devices (desire and galaxy s2) by now after very seriously first thinking about an iPhone back when 3GS was launched….but then a lot of research on the net and a bit of hands on experience with both OS’s I chose Android….(and I am an apple fan from the days of the iPod…they make brilliant devices….I am just waiting for a brilliant phone)
Also, I am an absolute non-techie when it comes to rooting or any custom ROM installation but yet I can safely say that any layman android user wouldnt agree with a lot of the NO’s you mentioned for android…
Yes, I have an Android. And the UI is so inconsistent. I miss the elegance of iOS. But I like the openness of Android.
That’s what he’s talking about, in iOS you’ll get these features right out of the box, whereas android can do them IF you download apps or tweaks.
Whit IF i don’t want twitter? stupid sync and crapy iTunes… nuff said.
least with android market, most is free and i can keep my phone more streamline and clean and only customize and install of my choosing.
If you don’t want Twitter don’t put your Twitter account into the phone and you don’t even need iTunes or syncing with iCloud you don’t even need a computer + there are tons of free apps on the app store-probably more than Android.
hey I really likes ur comments but pl can u tell me I want to purchase an andriod phone firstly I want to know wheather I have to purchase galaxy s2 or note. another problem is that after reading lots of reviews lots of people says the apple applications is superior than andriod is true?
It is not about who took what from the other o.s lets take the notifications yes it’s pretty much the same but who cares, at least apple makes it look good . And by the way I’m typing this on my crappy HTC desire so fuck android.
I have a HTC Inspire as well. Its not that bad, I found typing on it easier than I did on my iphone 4. HTC’s twist on top of Android’s OS nearly won me, but I still like iOS better. But lets keep in mind that what it took Apple four years to do with iOS, Android was doing right off the bat. Having owned an Android phone, I see why people are flocking to it. But it is the user friendly experience that I get from my iOS devices that makes me choose iOS over Android. It now has like features with more battery life. But even that depends on what model phone you get when you by an Android. I still wish iOS were more open.
Do you have a Facebook page or Twitter? Would love to follow you there, I’m on my iPhone and love reading your stuff!
You can find our Facebook page here – http://www.facebook.com/TechExclusiveFans and here’s our Twitter account @TechExclusive
[...] September this year. In this year’s WWDC event, Apple team focused on software products such as iOS 5 and Mac OS X [...]
I think the guy who wrote this blog, is himself trying to neglect iOS he is appreciating only android, nd every thing iOS do he is trying to create a bad impression on readers mind…which is not good
I don’t know about my post, but your comment will definitely create confusion in people’s mind. Anyway, I appreciate your views and will try to improve next time.
As an iPhone user who has not downloaded the iOS5 beta, I am very excited for the new release and can’t wait to update in September. There are a lot of features that I am anticipating and looking forward to, most notably the redesigned notifications. The current system I am just tolerating for now, and is my most hated iPhone feature in iOS4.x. I realize that a lot of the iPhone features have been inspired by features in other OSes and even jailbroken iOS apps. This is not new in the technology world. The idea is to improve with each new iteration. I’m sure Android will feel some pressure from iOS5 and answer with all new features for Android… which is ultimately a WIN for Android users and iPhone users alike. The smartphone market is an interesting one right now, because I still feel that it is in its infancy. One day, all cellphones will be replaced with these smartphone devices, but right now there are feature requests coming left and right and the developers are trying to make sense of it and develop a platform that is easy to use, yet extremely powerful. It is not an easy feat, and that’s why some people might find what they consider a simple feature completely missing from the OS, and perhaps only halfway met through third party solutions. Over time, it will improve and become more streamlined, yet powerful. I have faith in that for both (all) OS.
However, I just had the occasion to play with a Samsung Galaxy S (not sure if it was I or II). One of my co-workers upgraded her “regular” phone and was having some difficulty getting her contacts set up and just using the phone. I would consider myself a very tech-savvy person, especially when it comes to cell phones. Every time I get a new phone I go through every setting, feature, option to learn it inside and out from my very first Nokia to my recently acquired iPhone, so I was up for the challenge.
I know that I did not spend enough time with the device to get used to all of the differences between the two operating systems, but my initial impression is that Android is a little cumbersome in comparison. It was not as easy for me to find my way around. I felt like I was stuck in a loop with the messaging app. I expected that when tapping on it, I would see a list of all of the current messages like an inbox, however I was stuck on contacts. I am not even sure what I did to get back to the inbox-style screen. My friend was growing increasingly frustrated with it. She uses a lot of group texts, which was a feature she often used with her LG Lotus. Her contacts are synced with Google, which is great but she was not able to create groups on the phone and use the synced contacts. I downloaded a free app in the Android Market that allowed her to create and modify groups right in gmail, and that worked, but she still found the process a bit clunky. Right now she’s at Sprint, and I’m not sure if she’s going to come back with the same phone or not. That said, iPhone does not come with any groups aside from phone contacts, computer contacts, synced contacts without a third party app as well. I, however, have not needed this feature because I don’t have any reason to contact people in groups, and if I did, they are not more than a handful of people which I don’t mind adding to a text message. However, I can see how this is a feature some people would use often and in that case Android and iOS may want to consider adding this functionality.
If I had more time, I think I would become more familiar and comfortable with it, but I really have no desire to switch over to Android, especially after fiddling with it a bit today. I think that the iPhone works great for people who may not be as tech-savvy, but in general I don’t think smartphones are “there yet” for the general population. I know a lot of people who are even on iPhone and only use a small fraction of the functionality available because they really don’t need a smartphone. Those who are tech savvy enough will figure out iPhone or Android depending on their tastes. That said, if my mother-in-law wanted to get a smart phone, I would introduce her to the iPhone first. My husband on the other hand might go for an Android simply because he has a bias against Apple. He still has a basic phone, but when our plan is up for renewal I have a feeling he might go for a smartphone
I don’t see why people get so worked up over this matter. Everyone has their preference, and not everyone has to agree with everyone. If that was the case, then we would only have one iOS, and that’s bad for consumers. Perhaps that’s just the laissez faire capitalist in me though.
Rakel my first encounter with Android was tricky as well. With the iphone things was made so simple, there are less steps involved with completing a task. Android on the other hand takes some getting use to unless its the first OS you start with. I think Android in many ways have better feature sets, but Apple is slowly catching on. Even if they copy a feature and put a twist on it and call it an improvement. Bottom line iOS is simpler and looks better to me.
However Android is doing some really good things to the OS, like the revamped Android Market mobile app. It looks great! It jus takes to long to get the firmware updates though. Gingerbread came out in May, I still don’t have it.
As other people have already mentioned. This article is very biased towards iOS5.
It seems to me the author has barely ever used an android device, definitely not an top new android device like Samsung galaxy S2.
Because if he had used devices like Galaxy S2, he would know better. Some of the points mentioned are just simple wrong. There is wireless streaming / syncing, tabbed browsing, “advanced photosharing”, magazin/news subscription etc preinstalled on your phone. And for everything else you have the android market.
Instead trying to list out what functionality apple has and android doesnt have, the author should have pointed out the apple has all those functionality well worked out and well integrated into a nice apple ecosystem. For those who likes to be dependent on apple products. iOS is a great enhancement. For everyone else, Android already offers those functionality with its open platform.
I moved from one carrier to another and used the opportunity to get a smartphone, HTC Sensation, running Gingerbread.
This is in response to the iPhone user /Android experience. I have never owned a smart phone before, barely even touched one, except for the ever-present iPhones of my friends. I’m a middle aged man, technically proficient – built my own networks, modded my own computers, etc., but not particularly interested in ‘Tech’ per se – and get this: I had about 2 hours of initial confusion with the device, but once I was past that (the quick getting up to speed may be attributed to a very skilled sales person and HTC’s Sense skin), I’ve pretty much got this device doing everything I want including custom ringtones, custom organization, although I’m really not that finicky about that stuff, and have found a very simple way of viewing the use of this device: It is a computer with a phone attached. Once I grokked that, I was fine, and now I’m mostly concerned with running it as lean as practicible so I maximize battery life. (also: as a dedicated motorcycle rider, I carry a spare battery for emergencies). I use the phone for talk, email, social networking, various apps and photos (I prefer a dedicated device for video like the good old Flip, unless I know I’m shooting something for less than a minute). After feeling ripped off by every Apple product I ever owned (I ran my bike over my last iPod in frustration) I am very happy with my device, and living in the home of iPhones, San Francisco, all I can say is it’s great not to be part of the Apple cashflow.
Wow. This is concernly an interesting forum.
I have owned both devices, and I really like both. iOS is an overall much better user friendly experience. All of my media (movie, videos, pictures, games, etc) is consolidated. Its all in one place. The apps appear better on iOS, as a matter of fact iOS is ther first choice for app development. Duh iOS was before Android. And the battery life on iOS devices is way much better.
However iOS is closed. I can’t customize it the way I want without jailbreaking. I can however make many customizations on my Android phone. (Big plus!) I can’t video any video on iOS devices, at least until everythings in HTML5 format. With my Android phone I can. (Another big plus!) Can’t not customized my notification the way I like either. But I can with my Android phone. (Another big plus!) I wish the screen on the iPhone were bigger like the Androids standard 4.3 inche screens. However the 5th generation iphone may have a bigger screen. The sound quality on the iphone is mediocore to me. My Android phone has really good sound quality. As a matter of fact I find myself turning it down nearly half way. (Huge plus!) I like being able to take out my battery, but that’s now a major factor as I normally don’t keep a cell phone pass two years. But anyway these are just a few things that came off the top of my head as I read the post in this forum.
All in all though I’m hoping that the 5th generation iphone will take care of the issues I stated above. I like the iphone better, because it has most of the apps that I need and use. But Android is making major improvements, they just need to work on the apps that such battery life, and the firmware updates like many of you stated. If it were not for the battery life of my HTC Inspire, and the apps that I put on it that I used on the iphone. I would definitely stick with Android. Its a tough decision but I have to go with the iPhone.
1. icons stuck in grid you cant change
2. you cant see your wallpaper
3. no live wallpaper
4. voice rec is a joke (android – anywhere you can type, you can talk.
5. no widgets
5. no flash
And I dont have to root an android to get these features
my 3G dont even do video.
Everything you compared with a NO by android should be changed to a YES.
your an iFag who is running scared because you know that android is better and getting better everyday. I will never buy another iPhone and WAIT for the features I want. My S2 will have them all.
John who are you replying to?
dude that camera shit lockscreen was on android since hacking been on march 2009 and window mobile copy that from us hacker and wifi tethering.
this is the most biased artical i have ever read. twitter integration is not something people look for when they are buying a phone. you’ve just got ios5′s new features and compared them to android’s. why dont you get more universal topics, that would be unbiased. my cousin has an iphone 4 i have a htc desire and my other cousin has a desire s. i preffered the desire ans desire s over the iphone. im not being biased. i love iphone. it changed the way we use phones today, but if i had to pick a favorite. its android. more freedom. widgits. if there’s an app on app store, its probably on android market, AND ITS FREE. angry birds? fatbooth? so yeah. and you can get one touch camera on htc sensation. there are some things on ios that i wish android had, but for me, android wins by a long shot
I’ve read the post and all the comments above.
For me, reading the post makes me think the person who wrote it must had been biased. Not only for android fans, but also to apple fans.
Apple fans, would feel this article is not that objective that it has goodies only on iphone device. While android fans would also feel objectiveness due to “no”s on the table that they feel it should be “yes”s.
I think it is better for you to write “no”, as far as the pre-installed features are the concern, with note following. You can write twitter integration : no (enable with …. app) for example, for both apple and google phones if there is “no” in the table.
luckily i have operated both the os enough to find flaws in any of two
. and an ipod touch !
and my apology if i have repeated anything as i have not read all the above comments 
the first and the best thing about apple i like is the density of pixels ! (which i think should be their on every potable device )
iphone – 326
S2 – 233 ( seriously no match ).
Gaming again has no limits ! i download games upto 1gb !!! ( too much for a phone)
and android upto 30 mb
Retina display gaming is just fabulous !
the only android phones i love are of SAMSUNG !
some features like LIVE WALLPAPERS are fantastic of android !
Most android phones with a special feature saying – UNUPGRADEBLE ( crap )
i don’t HATE android ! i have a samsung android
there is no virus till now made for IOS !
most things like slide to unlock, finger gestures like pinch to zoom were invented by @ APPLE and adopted by others.
And if we talk about the game crashing , well as long as i m using , if an app crashes, either u have not updated your ios to the latest verrsion , or the next day there will be an update in the app to fix it
and if you are downloading an app or a game on ios , you know that it is made specially for your screen, for your device .. which is not there in android due to large avalibity of phone of different companies.
thats all from me
Geez.. I really thought this was a joke! This IS a joke, isn’t it? Dude… What’s Up? This is nothing short of an ANDROID Review! Every Single Check that you gave ios is ALL Natively Builtin to Android 2.3.4… Every one. Native. All. Except for Airplay. BUT… “there’s an App for that” (And this is Only for the Tab… the phone won’t get it according to your statements above!) . This, then, will only put IOS5 for iphone on an Almost equal standing with the current ANDROID OS 2.3.4. ahemm, iphone will Once Again Lag Behind ANDROID… and with ICE CREAM SANDWICH being released 2 weeks right after the iphone release… ???… well… Won’t that put apple a YEAR BEHIND GOOGLE in terms of INNOVATION, something apple Used to do before they s**the their pants because their Marketshare is 18% worldwide while GOOGLE has 48.7% ??? HISTORY does seem to be Repeating itself…….
and I Love the way I can use Google Market on my pc to Play With Apps and review them before I buy/download Instantly & Wirelessly to ANY device I have… glad apple ‘borowwed’ This Feature, too…
You left out quite a few 2.3.4 (or older) features – video chat over wireless network, Flash support, widgets and home screen customization, and USB accessory support are just some that I came up with without any searching.
If you want to compare, compare new features from both OS’s. If you want to say why iOS 5 is better in your opinion, rename the article.
One simple basic question….why are people running behind Iphones even when there are bunch of Android phones out there? Why can’t we agree the simplicity of IOS and it’s elegance keeping a common man in mind? Is this all ‘ihatred’ is due to the fact that Apple devices are not readily made available in India..? Or has something to do with Steve..? Or Apple…??? I don’t get it. Anyways, nice article and comments. Got to know a lot after going thru all the comments..!! Waiting for Iphone 5..!!!!
Dear friend,
Its not about iHaters or we do not like Apple. I respect apple and its innovations.
But when it comes to choosing a phone, I will not prefer something worth 34k INR, which can take me to only 75% of web and hiding eye-candy portion of that. esp. Flash based Facebook games (except few like mafiawars having their own app)
Instead I will choose a 28k phone giving everything + larger screen than iPhone, dual-core, with voice commands, better camera, and most, flexibility to modify anything with it.
34k iPhone to 28k SGSII, I think SGSII is a good deal.
Now problem with this article are, Author might have used older android version for reference, which makes the review useless, because many points he posted NO for the android are actually YES, I have never seen a seamless twitter integration than 2.3.5, that too on my milestone, which is almost obsolete in Android smartphones family (600 mhz processor, 256 MB RAM).
The only other conclusion can be, that author is biased, which is pretty common for iFans, and anyways I hardly believe on reviews posted from iPad or Mac. I have found more of emotions there than facts.
Must have been a real early version of Android.
I don’t see how it can say Android doesn’t have wireless sync. Your contacts and calendar are synced with Gmail, and you can even download apps from Android.com straight to your phone without tethering.
Also, there is Chrome to phone, which gives users the ability to continue reading an article (much like this one) from their computer to their phone with the simple press of a button.
I’ve used iphones 1-4 but bought an ipad now I own a EVO 3D and I love android EVO 3d. all I can say is that apple package things up nice and pretty but the performance really isnt all that after couple of updates IOS starts to lag operation gets really slow.
You know I don’t agree with everything you said, but it does get laggy after a while.
I had the iPhone 3g heated what 4.0 does to it and so I didn’t upgrade but eventualy my buttons stoped working guess who has an EVO 3D now.
Wow, Android fanboys need some respect up in here.
Android is open source you can do watever the Fuck you want and we have 1small drag camera or way ever you Wana have there + three others (htc)
Can we give it a rest already. I can’t believe the comments are still rolling in. Android 4.0 is about to be released and iOS 5 is out of beta and the 4S is out. iOS finally embraced things that android, WM and even RIM had before. Added Siri which, in my opinion, is amazing. So it is just about choice. What do you prefer? Figure it out, buy it and be happy. iOS and android are both amazing OS’s. I am sure they both will make you happy. Now close the thread so I stop getting emails about new comments.
Hehe! There must be an unsubscribe link at the end of those emails. You can always click on it to stop receiving the new comments notifications. I hope it helps.
Thanks I know about the unsubscribe link, but I was enjoying the thread until it got vicious between thr Apple and Android fanatics. But I have to say, I got the iPhone 4S on launch preordered. It is amazing. I am curious on how the Nexus Prime will be since the Nexus is my favorite android phones. But I am happy with the 4S and think its a bit more than an incremental upgrade. It is definitely worth the contract renewal. I am sure if Apple changed just changed the design and called it a 5, it would not have gotten the negative BS that it did. No LTE is fine for me because I don’t live in an LTE area.
Apple TV mirroring and Siri rock! But mostly I needed the 64gGB. That was probably the deciding factor.
The nexus prime will be amazing and i plan on playonh with it at the local VZ store. But I am very happy eith my 4S and won’t be changing phones until the 5 comes out.
iOS 5 vs Android 4.0
Facial Recognition Unlock
iOS 5 – No Android 4.0 – Yes
NFC software
iOS 5 – No Android 4.0 – Yes
Widgets
iOS 5 – Still no Android 4.0 – Yes
Customisable
iOS 5 – No Android 4.0 – Yes
And the list continues. You could finish my post if you like Harshad.
Yes, new post is coming soon.
doood u r awesome man keep going, you seem to have so much knowledge about everything under the sky that relates to apple and android, their labs, inside stories, business trends, mobile cariers, jailbreak, rooting, updates, manufacturers. how did u get to know so much. are you born with all this in your head??? i so am jealous and you know thanks for your post man i am now an apple fan boy!!!!
[...] changed after the major updates? Did Android win over iOS? Wait! We don’t want to start another fanboy war here. The following chart will help you understand the clear picture of this ongoing [...]
Iv had both and the Droid is better. Half the stuff u say it doesn’t have, it does.
U can jailbreak
im using iphone4 , and it sucks big time… im gettin a galaxys2 cuz its cheaper , faster, and hell better than the iphone4s even. and ios is useless unless the cell phone lacks a good size screen and a good processor!