# iPhone or Android? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 28, 2010, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854 "2010-06-28T22:23:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/21 "2010-06-29T13:48:36Z")
> [@MacTech](#): > > I say this as an iPhone-owning-AT&T customer… > > If you think you’re going to use a lot of data (streaming music/video/YouTube) or do a lot of web surfing on your new smartphone, the biggest reason to _stay away_ from AT&T is the fact that they discontinued the “unlimited” data plan and replaced it with two tiered plans (200MB/$15 Mo. 2GB/$25 Mo.), go over your cap, and you get dinged with overage charges There’s an AT&T data usage calculator [here](http://www.att.com/standalone/data-calculator/index.html). You’ve got to do a LOT of data usage to get above the 2GB limit - like streaming videos/music every day, sending a lot of pictures, etc. Sending 90 emails a day (including 20 with a photo), streaming an hour of music, and viewing 100 web pages every day only gets you to 1.63 GB. Video seems to be the real issue - streaming 35 minutes of video a day gets you to the 2GB limit. And remember, this is all via the cell link. If you’re hooked to wi-fi, no usage limits apply. For me, and a lot of people, the non-unlimited plan is just fine. You’d have to be someone who spends a lot of time outside of wi-fi range and who streams a lot of music & video to go above the 2GB plan. ---
**Author:** ![Todderbob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@Todderbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Todderbob)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/22 "2010-06-29T15:29:32Z")
> [@sevenwood](#): > > My wife and I are facing the same quandary, so I will be watching this thread closely. > > We want to replace our simple cellphones with smartphones, and our current (Verizon) 2-year contract is about to expire so we’re free to select any carrier. I primarily want web and email (either POP3 or web-based) access in the US; she primarily needs email access (to a Microsoft Exchange server) and a phone that works both in the US and the UK. > > My personal preference would be for an Android-based phone because of its more open architecture; my wife is totally OS-neutral. > > I have heard (but don’t know for sure) that the iPhone works in the UK. At least in terms of Verizon’s offerings, none of their android-based phones seem to. I could easily be wrong on both of those statements and if so I need to be corrected. > > We’re currently on a “family plan” where both phones are from the same provider and the total monthly cost is less, and I suspect that we want to use the same provider (whatever that turns out to be) in the future for similar savings. Youll want a phone with GSM capability, either AT&T, tmobile or a blackberry “world phone”, with a GSM card slot. If you get an iPhone, be warned you’ll need to unlock it (for use with any carrier) if you want to pop any sim card that’s not from AT&T (to save money over seas). Its a quick, 3 minute process, that – in theory – voids your iPhone warranty, but in reality no one really cares if it’s jail broken or unlocked. Just wipe it before you take it into the store. Hell, I bricked my iPhone jailbreaking it, took it inand told them “donno what happened,” they smiled, laughed and said, “yeah, uh hu… Here’s a new one.” ---
**Author:** ![Ursine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9de053/32.png) [@Ursine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ursine)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/23 "2010-06-29T15:39:43Z")
I’m the owner and user of an iPod touch and iPad, which run the same OS as the iPhone, and I use a Motorola Droid on Verizon for my actual cell phone/mobile life. It’s funny how Android vs. iPhone almost perfectly reflects the PC vs. Mac user experience; Android is completely open and flexible, but this often leads to inconsistent performance, whereas Apple’s dictatorial approach more often than not leads to “happiness in slavery” - they may call the shots, but everything always works exactly right as a result. I do love how ridiculously flexible Android is for phone customization - installing desktop widgets to control things like wifi on/off instead of having to go into a menu, and so on - but then it can be easy to accidentally “break” your phone (well, destroy the performance) by installing the wrong live walllpaper or widget that hogs memory and eats battery. Likewise with the Android market - it may be way open compared to Apple’s board of censorship, but that means that you have to wade through hundreds (and I mean hundreds per category) of total horseshit apps just to find the diamonds in the rough. There may be some turkeys in the Apple app store, but the ratio is significantly lower than in the Android market, which is like some sort of “[Shareware.com](http://Shareware.com)” circa 1996. For me, the inconsistent performance on Android is the biggest drawback compared to iOS. The Droid is a powerful phone, and yet it seems like it never behaves the same way twice; an app like Swype (a total game-changer when it comes to text input on mobile devices) will run flawlessly in one usage, but will lag behind and slow to a crawl the next time I try to use it quickly. I constantly have to use Advanced Task Killer (kind of like doing ctrl-alt-delete on a windows machine, then manually closing programs) just to get the phone to perform the way I expect it to. I think that this is probably due to the multitasking more than anything; it’s absolutely baffling what you’ll find running in the background (“Corporate Calendar? I’ve never even used that!”) when you open something like Advanced Task Killer. I also find that I have to restart the phone once a day (I’ve gotten into the habit of doing it when I plug it in to charge) or else it gets sluggish and weird. Kind of reminds me of using Windows PC’s. :dubious: That said, the integration of google services, facebook, the voice control, the built in google maps navigation, the open nature - all good reasons to use Android. But the second the iPhone goes to Verizon, I’ll switch over to it. ---
**Author:** ![CrimeThink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90db22/32.png) [@CrimeThink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrimeThink)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/24 "2010-06-29T15:42:52Z")
Another vote for the iPhone, although I only have limited experience playing with my friends Droid. I have been very pleased with my 3GS. It runs smooth as butter compared to the Android phones I’ve tried. As an Anecdote, at parties I always find the answer on the internet or the videos or the Facebook pages faster than when my friends are looking for the same thing on their Droids. I’ve had no problems with AT&T’s network and when I was comparison shopping last time the plans for Verizon were more expensive for the amount of minutes. I am definitely not a fan of some of the decision’s Apple has made and would love to see Android beat out Apple eventually, but it just does not look like they are there quite yet. ---
**Author:** ![Todderbob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@Todderbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Todderbob)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/25 "2010-06-29T15:45:01Z")
> [@CrimeThink](#): > > Another vote for the iPhone, although I only have limited experience playing with my friends Droid. I have been very pleased with my 3GS. It runs smooth as butter compared to the Android phones I’ve tried. As an Anecdote, at parties I always find the answer on the internet or the videos or the Facebook pages faster than when my friends are looking for the same thing on their Droids. I’ve had no problems with AT&T’s network and when I was comparison shopping last time the plans for Verizon were more expensive for the amount of minutes. > > I am definitely not a fan of some of the decision’s Apple has made and would love to see Android beat out Apple eventually, but it just does not look like they are there quite yet. Swype, or something similar, is downloadable if you have a jailbroken iPhone. I had it for a while, but didn’t particularly like it. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/26 "2010-06-29T15:46:36Z")
It seems odd that the main outcome for AT&T with the iPhone is that many people now have a real bad opinion of their network. What they thought was a great idea may in the long run be bad for them. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/27 "2010-06-29T15:51:25Z")
> [@Todderbob](#): > > Swype, or something similar, is downloadable if you have a jailbroken iPhone. I had it for a while, but didn’t particularly like it. Is it on Cydia? Swype, I mean? I would love to have it. ---
**Author:** ![ElectricZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58f4c7/32.png) [@ElectricZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElectricZ)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/28 "2010-06-29T16:10:15Z")
Android owner here. Hands down, the iPhone user experience, the interface and performance is better than the current Droid models. (I can’t compare to the new stuff that just came out, the Evo/Incredible/HD2, etc.) I was stuck in a Sprint contract last October though, and planned to jump ship to AT&T to get the iphone, but I wanted an Android to replace my flip phone which had just died an ugly death. So I picked up the HTC Hero. I have to say, the Hero is keeping me on Sprint, and has turned me into an Android fan. I have no desire to jump over to the iPhone anymore. As Ursine pointed out above, it’s a PC vs Mac sort of desire. I love the fact that my phone is almost like a little PC in the palm of my hand that I can customize to my heart’s content. I LOVE the multitasking - switching between apps is a snap, and in spite of what people say about task killers and apps killing battery life I can go a full day without recharging. Some of it’s common sense – if you keep the GPS on all day, or have your facebook app sync every 15 minutes life will suffer. Android’s multitasking nature also gives it one of its best features. The “Windowshade” which Apple could take a page from. It’s a menu bar that gives status updates about incoming texts, application status, downloads, etc. It’s always visible at the top, and if you want to read the detail you just slide it down with your finger for an annotated list. What that means is if you’re sending a text, looking up directions, or entering data on a web page form and someone texts or emails you, you don’t get a popup that wrecks what you’re doing. You can look at the status line, and if it looks important, pull down the shade to read the info, then go right back to what you were doing without missing a beat. No annoying popup you have to clear, unless you want it. And I love, love, LOVE Google navigation on my phone. It blows away my Garmin Nuvi, has free map updates, has voice search, and I carry it in my pocket wherever I go. Ursine also brought up the widgets. These are icons that you put on your home screen to let you make setting changes or activate programs. For example, if I want to turn my GPS on and off, I just touch the GPS icon on the desktop instead of having to dig through three screens of menus to get to it. Controls are available for all kinds of settings and apps. Very handy. Though my phone won’t support it, the 2.2 Android update will allow you to use your phone as a mobile hotspot. You and friends/coworkers in an airport without free Wifi? No problem, turn your phone on and everyone can share the network connection. On 3G it might not be too fast but it’s better than nothing. As a 2.1 user I can only just tether to my own but it’s great to have a net connection when I need it. I (heart) my Android! ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/29 "2010-06-29T16:23:48Z")
Yes, the Android Google Maps app is _awesome._ It seems much more accurate in finding locations than either typical standalone GPS units or the iPhone and Blackberry apps. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/30 "2010-06-29T17:25:19Z")
No widgets on the iPhone? That’s a big plus for Android, widgets are quite useful (although they can make the home screen slow to come up). There a Pandora widget that lets you play your station(s) right from widget without loading up the Pandora app. ---
**Author:** ![Todderbob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@Todderbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Todderbob)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/31 "2010-06-29T17:45:48Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > No widgets on the iPhone? That’s a big plus for Android, widgets are quite useful (although they can make the home screen slow to come up). There a Pandora widget that lets you play your station(s) right from widget without loading up the Pandora app. If you jailbreak the iPhone, which is piss easy, you can use sbssettings, which makes widgets available from any screen, not just the home screen, by swiping your finger horizontally across the top of the screen. It also doesn’t slow the phone down at all. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/32 "2010-06-29T17:49:57Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > No widgets on the iPhone? That’s a big plus for Android, widgets are quite useful (although they can make the home screen slow to come up). There a Pandora widget that lets you play your station(s) right from widget without loading up the Pandora app. My guess is that widgets will be one of the main features of the next major iPhone OS update. That said, the iPhone 4 is so fast that Pandora loads almost instantly now. To answer an earlier question posed by someone else upthread. If you want a phone that will work outside of the US, you need to use a GSM carrier which limits you to AT&T or TMobile. There won’t be a CDMA version of iPhone for a couple of years or so. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/33 "2010-06-29T18:00:54Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Yes, the Android Google Maps app is _awesome._ It seems much more accurate in finding locations than either typical standalone GPS units or the iPhone and Blackberry apps. How can that be? They all use the same database. ETA: not the standalone units. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/34 "2010-06-29T18:02:39Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > How can that be? > They all use the same database. I wondered the same thing but reports are that the iPhone 4 is more accurate than the 3GS which seems even more bizarre. ---
**Author:** ![Todderbob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@Todderbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Todderbob)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/35 "2010-06-29T18:04:24Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > Is it on Cydia? Swype, I mean? I would love to have it. Its either in Cydia or Rock. It might be on both. I don’t know if it’s call swype or not. But it’s there. A friend of mine highly recommended it. And i tried it… I jut didnt like it. It might be a for pay app, and I just didn’t think it was worth it. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/36 "2010-06-29T19:16:50Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > I wondered the same thing but reports are that the iPhone 4 is more accurate than the 3GS which seems even more bizarre. Well, GPS accuracy is one thing, but “finding” locations is completely different. AFAIK, all the Google apps use the same search engine. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/37 "2010-06-29T19:20:27Z")
I’m talking about GPS accuracy. My Android phone can tell which lane I’m in on a highway, without fail. I’ve seen both standalone GPS units and iPhones and Blackberries try to recalculate their routes because they thought the vehicle was on the other side of the highway. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/38 "2010-06-29T19:25:12Z")
I’d be interested in how it compares to the new iPhone. [These guys](http://www.iphonehacks.com/2010/06/iphone-4-vs-iphone-3gs-improved-gps-accuracy-and-speed.html) claim a huge improvement from the 3GS to the 4. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/39 "2010-06-29T19:28:02Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > I’m talking about GPS accuracy. My Android phone can tell which lane I’m in on a highway, without fail. I’ve seen both standalone GPS units and iPhones and Blackberries try to recalculate their routes because they thought the vehicle was on the other side of the highway. The 3GS is just as accurate. ---
**Author:** ![smoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@smoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smoke)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854/40 "2010-06-29T19:33:48Z")
I have the Motorola Droid, and the two biggest drawbacks are: the voice quality (going both ways)-I can’t hear or be heard well from inside my house. Never a problem with my old KRAZR. Also, and this is mind-boggling, it’s useless as a hands-free device while driving. It doesn’t support bluetooth initiated dialing, and its Voice Dial functionality (which still required several screen presses) is touchy at best. If you Google “Droid Voice Dial”, you’ll see. Mine worked fine up until two weeks ago, when it just stopped. Now, it only searched Google, ignoring my contacts list. It is rumored that Android 2.2, which has begun rolling out to Nexus One customers (Droid is supposedly getting it in July), will enable bluetooth dialing. I took it as a no-brainer that basic 2004 functionality would be included on this phone, but had I known ten what I know now, I would have stuck with my old crappy phone for a few more months while waiting for the kinks to be ironed out. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-or-android/544854.md?page=3)