Life after iPhone....

leeb-1977

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Hi all, the contract for my 3GS is about to expire and I'm looking to move away from the iPhone.

I should point out that there's nothing wrong with the iPhone in my eyes - but my last three phones have all been iPhones (2g,3G,3GS) and I don't want just another evolution of what I already have. The iPhone 4 isn't enough of a jump for me to want to enter into a new contract with and the 5 is potentially months away (and I'm eager for a new toy!).

I've tried Andriod in the past and found it to be clunky at best - although this was with a very early version (htc magic) and I've been thinking it may be time to give it another go.

I use my phone for net browsing, YouTube, a lot of texting, ebaying, twitter, the odd bit of facebook and a little casual gaming.

I'm hoping someone can advise me on what's latest and what's due out within the next six weeks or so.

The galaxy s2 looks nice, but you've only got to spend a few mins on the web to see that samsung users to be very divided on the way software is handled. Apart from that I don't know what's out there - I've been iPhone biased for years.

The next mobile I have has to have a decent camera - with flash, has to be easy to type on for those of us with fat fingers, has to be dual core (I plan on keeping the set for 18-24 months so I want it to be as future proof as possible), and has to have a high quality responsive screen.

3d would be nice but I don't fancy the LG optimus (bad experience with lg's in the past), and I can't find a release date for the htc evo 3d. So I'm guessing 3d may have to wait until the next upgrade.

So - with that lot in mind, which phones should I be considering at the moment? And what's due out in the near future?

Thanks in advance for your advice :)

Ps - can you get emoji keyboard on android phones?

Edit: I should also point out that storage is an issue I'm looking at - can apps be run from an sd card? If so does this hinder performance? If it isn't possible then I need something with 5gb as a minimum.
 
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Anyone?

Also - is it still the case that windows 7 mobile can't actually view flash via the browser or has this now been addressed?
 
There are 3 phones that I would recommend you look at

Galaxy S2 - This has just been released and has very good feedback thus far. It's got 16GB internal storage (about 14GB available) and reviews have been very positive. Some deem this to be the best smartphone available at the moment and with good reason. However take note it was announced that the phone will have NFC but as UK owners took delivery it was noted theirs didn't, and when queried, Samsung confirmed UK phones won't have it yet. That raises the possibility that Samsung may release a variation or completely new superior model with the feature in the near future.

HTC Sensation - Same screen size as the S2 but HTC have more experience with android phones and produce a better software interface and addons than Samsung. The downside is that the bootloader of this phone will be locked so you may not have the option of installing non-official/customised ROMS on it unlike the Samsung, basically you're stuck with what you get but then there's still a lot of room for customisation.

Blackberry 9900 - Newly announced and untested, but looks interesting.

Rizza
 
The s2 and sensation do both look really nice tbh, the thing that's putting me off android at the moment though is the seemingly complete lack of polish on the app store and apps themselves.

I know the more open nature of the platform will always mean that not all apps will look great, but after playing this week even the premium apps look poorer than the iPhone versions. I don't know if that's something I could over look to be honest - I'm a sucker for eye candy!

I've decided I'm going to wait for a month and see what happens at apples summer press event to see what's happening with ios and the iPhone going forward. I'm not writing android off, but at least after the apple event I can make a more informed descision.

Mind you..... Large screens and flash on android sets are very tempted.
 
I agree the iPhone is more polished but I much appreciate how much more flexible Android is, and tbh if you want a flashy phone then Android is a much better choice if you're willing to tinker even slightly.
 
I haven't wrote andriod off yet to be honest - the large screen sizes and flash integrated browser are massive plus points for me.

I'm one of those who constantly tinker with my jailbroken iPhone and the customisation of andriod also appeals.
 
I haven't wrote andriod off yet to be honest - the large screen sizes and flash integrated browser are massive plus points for me.

I'm one of those who constantly tinker with my jailbroken iPhone and the customisation of andriod also appeals.

I wouldn't write off Android; I've just got my Galaxy S II today, well, if you've ever followed my posts on here then you'll know I've had lots of phones in the last 12 months... 7 to be precise, including 5 Android handsets and 2 iphones!

To be honest, I've always really liked Android, more so than the iOS, but it never seemed as stable or polished.

Well, the Galaxy S2 takes everything thats good about Android and iOS, and merges it together onto a device that would embarass most netbooks in terms of raw power, and gives it a screen that simply demolishes the opposition.

This is the first Android phone I've had where I honestly already feel its a keeper. Amazing device. Its not perfect, but nothing is, and this is as close to perfection as I've seen on an Android phone. To be picky, there are things that I would change here and there, but they've put quite a bit of thought into it. I'm not so keen on some of the bloatware, but you just shove it into a folder and forget about it.

Its the first android phone that feels as fluid to use as an iphone... however, it just smashes it into the ground for sheer speed. Its also the first android phone I've used whose battery life can actually compete with the iphone too.

If you like customisation, you'll love android. I've spent all day getting mine just how I want it, and I'm still not finished. I'm loving it!! :D

And this praise comes from someone who was probably one of the most vocal criticisers of the original Galaxy S - a phone which showed much promise, but was too riddled with bugs and felt too much like an unfinished product to be truly great. That was Samsung's first Android phone, but with the SGSII I honestly think they are showing what they can do.
 
I've been to my local best buy and had an extended play, I must say I'm
Very Impressed.

Unfortunatley the guys at best buy were pushing the xperia arc and suggesting it was a better set - but then they also told me that 3d phones will never become a reality!! So I'm not paying much attention to thier opinion!

The ui felt slick, the only thing holding me back now is the imminent arrival
Of the optimus 3d. I'm sure the 3d thing would only be an occasional use feature for me - but that FEELS like evolution of some description, because I'm struggling to find something that genuinely excites me at the moment. The only issue is that all the reviews of the optimus 3d and evo 3d I find tend to be (understandably so) very much based in the 3D performance of the phone and don't tend to put it too task as a 2d set (which is the mode most users would be in for the majority of the time). If they can stand up against the galaxy s2 as a 2d unit then I may consider one of those.

The xperia play also looks interesting - but completely underpowered for what it is. If it had the power of the s2 I'd buy it in a heart beat.

It's the 17th May before I can upgrade, so I've got a few days to give this some thought - at the moment the s2 is leading the pack though.

Can you answer me a question though - is there an app that displays text messages on a splash screen with an option for quick reply instead of having to quit out of your current app? (something like bite SMS on the iPhone).
 
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What's a splash screen? handcent has the option of a popup that interrupts whatever you're doing like the iPhone, although on Android you just drag the notification bar down to reply to a text which is much less intrusive
 
Chompsms for Android is made by the folks who make Bitesms for Iphone.

So I would say Chomp is the better choice for you.

neuty
 
OooooOoooo didn't know chompsms existed - that's an unexpected bonus.

The galaxy s2 is looking more and more likely to be 'the one' just got see what o2 are offering on a 12 month contract basis now before I commit 
 
Is it true that you don't get the emoji keyboard on andriod?
 
Handcent (which looks identical to chomp has emojji)

What apps would you be using that don't look as polished. I've found al the main 'commercial' apps identical or a little better, but running faster and more fluid eg Facebook, Twitter, IMDb, grindr, fat booth, angry birds, etc all identical but faster
 
Also, IMO the BBC news app for android (which is a third party one) is better than the official BBC news app for the iphone, much faster and nicer to use.

Some apps don't look as polished, but for the most part, there isn't all that much difference. I think the problem some people have is the apps don't always work exactly the same way from app to app, whereas iphone apps always behave in a certain way.
 
Handcent (which looks identical to chomp has emojji)

What apps would you be using that don't look as polished. I've found al the main 'commercial' apps identical or a little better, but running faster and more fluid eg Facebook, Twitter, IMDb, grindr, fat booth, angry birds, etc all identical but faster

might be true for others (i used echofon for twitter on my ip4) but for facebook it aint true at all lol

its proper buggy on the android phone and doesnt have the same amount of functionality

but apart from that im liking the android system. ive had an iphone since the 2G and upgraded every year. this is my first time trying out android with the galaxy S2 and im liking it so far.

a few bad points are the crappier music integration and syncing with kies, the battery life hasnt been as good but i have been playing around with it alot, the push notification system of the iphone i miss too

not sure about the emoji keyboard in normal apps but its there in whatsapp lol, in go sms pro theres an app in the market where you can add emoji to the app, its free, ive just installed it and it works perfectly with the go sms app!

whats really neat is kies air, you can view everything from your phone wirelessly and i just installed a font from my macbook to my phone using it, just opened up kies air and used firefox to browse to the galaxy s and uploaded a tif font file, used an explorer on the android to add the font to the system folder! how easy was that
 
What can you do on the iphone facebook that you can't on the android one? I personally don't find the android one that bad, in some ways its better as you get notifications in the same place as your emails and texts... and I certainly don't find it unstable or particularly buggy. Speaking of notifications, that IMO is one area where Android truly beats iOS, the ones in iOS are rubbish and intrusive IMO.
 
Three apps instantly jump to mind which are facebook, sickepedia and I'm struggling to find a twitter client that's as good as echofon. Obviously as I dont actually HAVE the S2 yet I'm going off screen grabs, YouTube videos and apps on my sons xperia x10.

The other apps I use on a daily basis on my iPhone are sky news, sky sports soccer app, ifooty, eBay, amazon, and that's about it. Othersare occasional use and I'm sure there are apps around with similar functionality.

Are there any twitter apps with built in emoji?
 
Also, glad to hear the positives from yus786 as I also started on the 2g iPhone and have upgraded every year.

Andriod is going to be on my next phone - just waiting to see a few review on the optimus 3d before I'm finally sold on the s2!!
 
What can you do on the iphone facebook that you can't on the android one? I personally don't find the android one that bad, in some ways its better as you get notifications in the same place as your emails and texts... and I certainly don't find it unstable or particularly buggy. Speaking of notifications, that IMO is one area where Android truly beats iOS, the ones in iOS are rubbish and intrusive IMO.

not that much different but it seems more polished on the iphone, you can like peoples comments on statuses and you can see a non-friends pic without leaving the app

plus the notifications on the app is buggy as it doesnt show the latest notifications if you refresh sometimes and when you do get a notification and click on the link it doesnt show the updated status or whatever

yeah notifications wise it is better but why hasnt android got push yet? thats one thing i miss on android, instant football, twitter, facebook etc notifications
 
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Three apps instantly jump to mind which are facebook, sickepedia and I'm struggling to find a twitter client that's as good as echofon. Obviously as I dont actually HAVE the S2 yet I'm going off screen grabs, YouTube videos and apps on my sons xperia x10.

The other apps I use on a daily basis on my iPhone are sky news, sky sports soccer app, ifooty, eBay, amazon, and that's about it. Othersare occasional use and I'm sure there are apps around with similar functionality.

Are there any twitter apps with built in emoji?

there is a decent sickipedia app on the market althought not as polished as the ios version its still good

i have yet to find a good twitter app but twitter for android has kinda been ok for me. i havent really downloaded many to test though. tweetdeck is also available for it and it seems alright too

not sure about emoji for twitter, there doesnt seem to be an app that has it

Also, glad to hear the positives from yus786 as I also started on the 2g iPhone and have upgraded every year.

Andriod is going to be on my next phone - just waiting to see a few review on the optimus 3d before I'm finally sold on the s2!!

it has defo made me reconsider going back to the iphone, im sticking with it for another week and if the battery life remains ok and i can sync my music onto it then i could be staying with android!
 
yeah notifications wise it is better but why hasnt android got push yet? thats one thing i miss on android, instant football, twitter, facebook etc notifications

It does have Push Notificaitons, but it doesn't seem as widely supported on Android as on iOS (same applies to lots of things though). Soccer Scores Pro pushes Footy results to me quite happily every time, so check that out if you're missing a Footy fix.

Twitter and Facebook are far superior on iOS, with Push Notifications being just one example of why.
 
Facebook notification on the official Android app is broken and Tweetdeck's a bit flimsy.

Rizza
 
Twitter and Facebook are far superior on iOS, with Push Notifications being just one example of why.

Having used it a fair bit on both, I really don't see how the iOS is "far superior", they're almost the same!

I've never had a problem with receiving notifications from the android one either. I have had various problems with both the android and iOS versions from time to time.

What is so superior about the iOS version in your view?
 

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