Comparing iOS and Android

Someone asked me to give some insight in to switching to iOS from Android on a forum I participate in. These were my thoughts.

I've done stints with both iOS and Android and genuinely like both of them in different ways. I do always end up back on my iPhone though. Rather than tell you what's great about being on the iPhone I'll tell you what I miss about Android. If these things matter to you it could be more of a pain to switch than it is worth.

1. No file manager/everything in a silo
I'm still annoyed that if I want to email a document I can't do that easily without going to the app the document lives in and emailing it from there. With Android it is far easier to get files you need in the apps you want when you want them. On the flip side it is pretty annoying to have to go through a dozen or more different items on a phone or tablet just to get where you want to be.

2. Apps are powerful, but not free (and I don't mean $)
The app situation on iOS is better than Android. Rene Richie summed it up well in this article: The difference between iOS and Android developers and why it's not just a numbers game | iMore. The quality and inventiveness of the iOS app developer is currently better. That can always change but for now it's an iOS advantage. BUT, your apps will not roam free on your device. Because everything is kept in it's own sandbox the ability of apps to take root and become pervasive (think Google Now) is basically non-existent. Even something like auto-upload from Dropbox won't work well because it isn't allowed to keep going after a certain time. This could very well be changing in iOS 7 with it's new multitasking rules, but we'll need to see what happens.

3. Notifications
Android notifications - sweet, sweet Android notifications. You know what really kills me? Having a notification take up part of my screen when I'm watching a video or playing a game. Android just got this RIGHT. Not only is how the notification is presented better, but so is the management of multiple alerts. Android's notification center is incredibly powerful and is a wonderful task management system in and of itself. Yes, it can get overwhelming at times, but it is just so easy to get rid of individual items. You can pop over to the iOS 7 forums and see Apple's new take on the pull down and notifications in general, but it is just a slight improvement. (Warning: Android feels better in this regard, but sometimes iOS actually feels more efficient for me because I'm so annoyed by the system that it compels me to answer alerts quicker. Take that for what you will.)

Now, with all of that said, I still prefer iOS. This is just a different way of looking at it.