Back to iOS after years of Android use

31 December 2021


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Hmm i could smell the hatred comes. Come on guys, you know how to respect others' opinion, right?

    Tonberry, 31 Dec 2021Please give me a good Tachiyomi equivalent app for Apple devicesNone. I try many alternatives including paid one after extensive googling. The best feature of tachiyomi is tons of extensions, too much choices for free.

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      • Buzz12chris
      • HK8
      • 31 Dec 2021

      I changed from Android to iPhone after starting out with HTC. I always thought Android was a bit of a mess with files and photos….different albums uploading and storing etc. iOS all in one place….I can view on an ipad….Mac and TV when I like. The biggest point is Apple products retain value and updates for many years I feel my money is an investment….not a change after 2 years and lack of updates like Android

        If I can plug my iPhone to computer and transferring files back and forth as simple as Android phone then I might switch or else never. That piece of crap iTunes slow down my laptop.

          my gripe with iphones is not that they are bad or something. mobile phones are 15 year old at this point, its hard to find many bad things in them, even in 150 euro price range. the problem is that not everybody has iphone money. for example most people will be more then happy with an A52S, for 300 euros. in my country 13 pro is 1100 euros, for a western audience that not a big deal, but why pay more since all you gonna do with your phone is the usual social media, browsing and watching stuff.

            • o
            • oko
            • pY{
            • 31 Dec 2021

            I have been using iphones for 4 years now and I don’t want android anymore, you can like or dislike ios but it is the most stable system so far, last time I restarted my phone during update, so you can still use android, I don’t care 😊

              • R
              • Rekt
              • Jfm
              • 31 Dec 2021

              I am creeped by the fact that the pros you gave to iPhone are mostly about photography, in-hand feeling and Superiority feeling compared to other brands.

              I get the fact that you won't necessarily change your phone soon when you paid that much for it...

                • k
                • kek
                • GBh
                • 31 Dec 2021

                so, as everyone expected, iOS is still a hidrance to iPhones.

                Maybe one day they will revamp a lot of annoying decisions they have made, starting by that keyboard, which sounds terrible to use. Judging by that screenshot, it wastes a lot of space

                  I have been in exactly the same boat as you and can totally relate to this article. I'm not as privileged as you working at GSMarena but that hasn't stopped me from switching Android phones on a regular basis. The habit has gotten ridiculous to the point that it has become very farcical and financially costly.

                  I've been carrying around a S21 Ultra for most of the year but have briefly switched over to the Google 6 Pro but jumped back to the S21 Ultra due to connectivity issues and other bugs that have been plaguing the 6 Pro.

                  I even tried the Zenfone 8 but found that the Snapdragon 888 that powers the phone overheated it so much I literally had to tinker with the settings to keep the temperature down just enough so it wouldn't eat through the battery, the camera wasn't that great IMO coming from the S21 Ultra.

                  The S21 Ultra is a great phone don't get me wrong and OneUI 4.0 is IMO the best Android skin out there HOWEVER the phone is too big and heavy for me. I cycle a lot and the phone is impractical to carry around and was being placed in my rucksack.

                  I've been an Android user from the days of the T Mobile G1 I briefly tried iOS back with the iPhone 11 Pro Max but hated my experience and ran back to Android. However in my quest to find a phone that is not too small or too big and just works I too have bought an iPhone 13 Pro and this time around despite iOS quirks and issues I am getting on with it a lot better however there have been times that I have wanted to go back to my beloved S21 Ultra. I almost send the phone back to Apple but have decided to stick with it despite iOS quirks and am very slowly getting used to it.
                  I totally get where you are coming from and appreciate you taking the time out to write such a timely and accurate article. I am a month behind you however will just find a way to plough through the idiosyncrasies of iOS and get used to it.

                  Good luck Dude!

                    • B
                    • Bailey
                    • p%4
                    • 31 Dec 2021

                    I like both Android and iOS and I have made my peace that I can't decide which one I like more as they both have pros and cons. For me, the iPad is the best tablet available. but when it comes to phones I rock and iPhone and Pixel 6.

                      Interesting comments and I agree with a lot of android users out there.

                      I've been an android user for many years. Changing back and forth between iPhone and Samsungs but I always go back to the good old android phones and usually always a Samsung.

                      I use to change my phone every 6 Months to have the latest model. I use to work at Vodafone and Phones4U back in the day too so was always into the technology.

                      But now I'm not so, but love a phone that does what it's suppose to do with ease and sense.

                      I really don't understand the hypes of iphone. The pros I found with them is that using the apple pay is quick and easy. Love typing on the keyboard but do not like the keyboard display (yes you can download a different keyboard like SwiftKey)
                      Face id is very quick on ios which is good.
                      Everything else is there and it's a phone I would recommend to first time smartphone users and to the elderly when I use to sell phones. The interface is very basic and you won't get lost.. Lol.

                      Compared to an android where you can do so so much more. Customise it and use as a little computer in your pocket. When I was an iPhone user back in the day I would have to jailbreak it just to do what an android is already built to do.
                      Jailbreaking is not the same these days.
                      Everyone is hyping now about having widgets on iphone but have you seen how long it takes to do it? Yeah it looks good after, but the whole process is ridiculously long.
                      It's like iPhone is constantly playing catchup to Samsung.

                      At the moment I am only using an Samsung a52 5g but even feel that's better than ios. My son has the iPhone 12 and gave me his XR to use. Used it for about a day and there is no way I could use this as my daily main phone.
                      Sharing is a joke on iPhone. You can share anything with android and download anything. Download apks etc.
                      I don't even like the layout of iPhone pictures. It's like you have folders but your pictures don't move to the folder created, it stays in all pics as well. So you would have to remember which pics you have added. Theres a lot more I don't like about ios but won't go into it all. It's just a very basic phone in my opinion which makes the build probably nicer as the money and brains go into the build I imagine lol.

                      So for now I use Samsung a52 5g as my main phone. (it's not even the S range but specs are great and functionally for the more advance user works great).

                      I use the iPhone 7 as my backup work phone. Just for taking calls, text, what apps and a few pics if I need too. Don't do anything more really on ios.

                      Android all the way I say.... 100%

                        • ?
                        • Anonymous
                        • 70d
                        • 31 Dec 2021

                        "and I now live a better life, not knowing precisely how much battery I've got left"
                        LOL. A lack of a feature makes your life better? Yes, you should use an iPhone.

                          • W
                          • Wipex
                          • spH
                          • 31 Dec 2021

                          No matter, 31 Dec 2021Thank you for this article. After iPhone 13 showed up, I fe... moreMy man, when iPhone 12 showed up there was the sheel design change. This is at least one year old. Do your research :). Happy new year!

                            • V
                            • Viv
                            • 4nH
                            • 31 Dec 2021

                            I never understand articles like these...is it just that you felt the need to make your opinions public?

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                              • Viv
                              • 4nH
                              • 31 Dec 2021

                              You spoke about screenshots, I have you weren't using Android 12.

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                                • AMUK
                                • swC
                                • 31 Dec 2021

                                I don't use an alarm to wake up so I was curious. I couldn't see a slider control, my next thought was simply to use a quieter alarm sound - which works fine. I didn't realise you can rename the alarm on iOS. I had a quick check for apps and there are iOS apps which allow for alarm snooze periods to be changed, use sliders etc- this was after a few minutes searching.
                                I use Microsoft's SwiftKey on iOS of I expect to use a number row, though I don't use a number row on phones, I prefer the real estate. I use the simple slide over the 123  button or long press to retain it. I do use the number row on the iOS keyboard on the iPad from time to time.
                                Using Android and iOS I found the cursor positioning on iOS one of the key advantages over my android phones (and key features in Microsoft Onenote that are in iOS but not Android)
                                It's definitely worth spending a few mins checking out toutibe videos on what can be done on iOS. It's not always the same approach as on Android, but there's a lot that can be done for anyone wanting to explore.

                                  I logged in because I wanted to thank you for how beautifully written your piece is. I can’t remember ever reading anything like it before on here. And that’s years of readership. Well done!

                                    • ?
                                    • Anonymous
                                    • 6c6
                                    • 31 Dec 2021

                                    I'm using iPhone 13 mini after using SE 2020 and S21 Plus. The effect of using small and light phone is making me too relaxed, aside from the display and battery. 13 mini perfected it.

                                    I would want GSMArena to make survey of how much people prefer phone weighted from 140-300 gram.

                                      • B
                                      • Buzz12chris
                                      • 39x
                                      • 31 Dec 2021

                                      I changed from Android to iPhone after starting out with HTC. I always thought Android was a bit of a mess with files and photos….different albums uploading and storing etc. iOS all in one place….I can view on an ipad….Mac and TV when I like. The biggest point is Apple products retain value and updates for many years I feel my money is an investment….not a change after 2 years and lack of updates like Android

                                        I just got my first ever iPhone. The same as shown here, a 13 Pro as I found a big appeal in small-ish phones.
                                        I come from Android, an Xperia to be precise.

                                        The first days were nice, new phone, new ecosystem. But after a few days, it was it. There's not a lot of features. And things started to feel boring while I discovered that some things are missing:
                                        Why can't I keep the screen turned off when I receive a notification ?
                                        Why does it switch to the wide angle in low light when I want a zoomed shot (I thought all phones were good enough to compensate for that) ?
                                        Why can't I really change the power button behavior ?
                                        Where's the haptic feedback on the keyboard (by the way, it's a very basic one, not good at all) ?
                                        Why is everything so messy (going back, the settings, the camera app, etc) ?

                                        I also noticed some bugs here and there, with the keyboard, Facebook lagging like running at 30, 24 FPS and the sound has this high-ish tone that makes audio uncomfortable to hear.

                                        The biggest letdown though is the camera... Coming from an Xperia I knew it wouldn't be the same, but it still surprised me. This processed way of doing things and thinking they know better what I want is not for me.
                                        I bought an app to have better control, but it still doesn't correct some features.
                                        I'm starting to manage the phone on the camera side though, but the Sony will be missed for sure !

                                        And finally, the hype around iPhones. I don't understand. Yes it's a cool piece of hardware, but there's nothing astonishing about it.
                                        And people still talk about it like it's on another level. But I also noticed a lot of these same people don't know a lot about their phones.

                                        To sum up, a nice piece of hardware not worthy of its "Pro" name (but don't a lot feel the same ?)