Android reaches 500 million installs

Half of those installs are mine, trying to find a ROM for my SGS2 that doesn't come with horrifying bugs and glitches

How many of those Android phones are really 'smartphones' though? There are lots of low-end Android phones with only very basic features. I have a Nokia (Symbian) phone which is supposedly a smartphone but doesn't even have wi-fi - I use it for making phone calls. Set a reasonable threshold for what constitutes a 'smart' phone and Apple still outsell all other manufacturers combined. The iphone5 will overtake the record-breaking Galaxy s3 within a couple of weeks.

Undoubtedly there's probably room to doubt the specifics of the numbers but the overall direction & pace of change is plain as day.

Android has won and by some margin.

This is to be applauded as Android is a genuinely open source OS.

@ SeventhSon

Give it up.
You can try & skew the numbers to favour Apple as much as you like but the Android sales numbers prove the future is one where the Android snowball is gathering pace & size at a rate Apple can't hope to match.
No matter how many US based court cases they try to win.

The fact is (as smartphones are largely, when looked at in global terms, a 'westen' luxury) the numbers right now in fact favour Apple disporportionately.
Think about it & its obvious.

That can only decline as inexpensive Android phones take-off world-wide.
Phones like the Huawei G300 show exactly where this is going amongst those unwilling or unable to even look at iPhone type pricing.
And it can only get better and better for Android as prices fall and specs rise.

Interestx,

I agree with you. Android will grow and dominate the lower end of the market. That is not a back-handed compliment. As, I said, I have a (very) low end nokia smart phone which I use for making phone calls. I might upgrade to Iphone4 if they are going to be free on contract but I don't see why people feel the need to upgrade every year for very little extra functionality.

Apple has chosen to only have one current phone model and to aim at the top end of the market. Seems obvious that they would aim for the top end but in the music player market they have products across the board. I guess they feel a low end iPhone would put pressure on their profit margins.

At the top end Apple do dominate. The new iPhone will oursell all it's direct competitors many times over. At the top end people will pay for the best and, it terms of what you can do with it, iPhone is the best by a country mile. Android is not a threat. Windows phones may make inroads with business users sick of blackberry but it will take a while. We'll see.

@ SeventhSon

The thing is, as much as Apple try to position themselves as 'the top-end of the market' they aren't really.

The top-end Android phones easily match the spec - and manage to do it while beating the iPhone on price too.

The most common thing I've seen about the new iPhone 5 is 'disappointing'.
The Galaxy S3, the HTC One X, the new Windows 8 Nokias and the latest Motorola Razors are all better spec'd phones.

Apple will keep their fans of course but the thinking consumer more interested in the best specs - as well as those going for the best price/spec equation - will go Android everytime.

Originally posted by Interestx:

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@ SeventhSon

The thing is, as much as Apple try to position themselves as 'the top-end of the market' they aren't really.

The top-end Android phones easily match the spec - and manage to do it while beating the iPhone on price too.

The most common thing I've seen about the new iPhone 5 is 'disappointing'.
The Galaxy S3, the HTC One X, the new Windows 8 Nokias and the latest Motorola Razors are all better spec'd phones.

Apple will keep their fans of course but the thinking consumer more interested in the best specs - as well as those going for the best price/spec equation - will go Android everytime.

---

Specs shmecs,

I said the iPhone is the best in terms of what you can do with it. That is how we judge most consumer products. I have no idea what processor my blu ray player has. Picture quality is great.

So. I'm going to give my old Nokia to a street beggar. I'm thinking of getting an iPhone 4 which I assume will be free (on contract) in a couple of weeks. I shall be able to make Skype video calls, watch premier league football on Sky Go and download Bbc programs for watching later offline. The first two of these are possible on some android phones, the third one is not available on android at all.

Ignoring the fact that apple are supposedly evil, somebody please tell me why I should go for an Andoid phone instead. Regardless of specs, what Is it that I can do with an android phone that I can't do with the iPhone?

I'm happy to pay for content and have no interest in porn.

But specs do count.
Things like being able to expand the memory to 64gb is necessary, or even the mundane like replacing the battery (most of them have a weedy one).

I get all that stuff you mentioned on my Galaxy 2.

As for why go Android?
Well the prime one for me is Android is open source.
This means vast firmware & app support - with huge additional growth potential - and not everyting in the hands of one closed propriatary system.

Top of the range Androids are simply better than any iPhone out there, they can do more, have better cameras and best of all aren't cashing in on a label & gouging the fashion-victims.

Besides, a mobile phone as a supposedly impressive accessory?
How very chav.

Originally posted by Interestx:

---

But specs do count.
Things like being able to expand the memory to 64gb is necessary, or even the mundane like replacing the battery (most of them have a weedy one).

I get all that stuff you mentioned on my Galaxy 2.

As for why go Android?
Well the prime one for me is Android is open source.
This means vast firmware & app support - with huge additional growth potential - and not everyting in the hands of one closed propriatary system.

Top of the range Androids are simply better than any iPhone out there, they can do more, have better cameras and best of all aren't cashing in on a label & gouging the fashion-victims.

Besides, a mobile phone as a supposedly impressive accessory?
How very chav.

---

You can't download BBC program's on the android Iplayer app to watch later - you can only stream. No good for traveling etc.

But you said I can do more on android. What?

A man convinced against his will is of his own opinion still.

Nothing is going to make an apple fanboy be convinced that an android powered device can do every type of function that the iphone can. Ok so {insert favorite app here} can't do something on android. Nothing is stopping you from side loading apps and media on your own instead of using a custom app to download it for you.

Originally posted by SeventhSon:

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How many of those Android phones are really 'smartphones' though? There are lots of low-end Android phones with only very basic features. I have a Nokia (Symbian) phone which is supposedly a smartphone but doesn't even have wi-fi - I use it for making phone calls. Set a reasonable threshold for what constitutes a 'smart' phone and Apple still outsell all other manufacturers combined. The iphone5 will overtake the record-breaking Galaxy s3 within a couple of weeks.

---

Not even close to true, sorry. Your "reasonable threshold" must be pretty damn high, because the numbers simply don't agree with you.

Originally posted by SeventhSon:

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You can't download BBC program's on the android Iplayer app to watch later - you can only stream. No good for traveling etc.

But you said I can do more on android. What?

---

You also can't run iOS on an Android device, to illustrate exactly how silly this nitpick is. Of course, there's quite a few proprietary bits that act differently in each OS. That's why they're different OSes!

Yes, you can do more on Android, simply because more software can be run on Android, and all without having to "jailbreak" your damn phone. Furthermore, a non-jailbroken iDevice cannot run ANYthing that uses the GNU common license (GNU GPL), which is a vast library of free software, and furthermore, except for the Macs themselves, cannot run Linux, unlike Android devices.

Try harder.

Originally posted by Bozobub:

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Originally posted by SeventhSon:

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You can't download BBC program's on the android Iplayer app to watch later - you can only stream. No good for traveling etc.

But you said I can do more on android. What?

---

You also can't run iOS on an Android device, to illustrate exactly how silly this nitpick is. Of course, there's quite a few proprietary bits that act differently in each OS. That's why they're different OSes!

Yes, you can do more on Android, simply because more software can be run on Android, and all without having to "jailbreak" your damn phone. Furthermore, a non-jailbroken iDevice cannot run ANYthing that uses the GNU common license (GNU GPL), which is a vast library of free software, and furthermore, except for the Macs themselves, cannot run Linux, unlike Android devices.

Try harder.

---

IPlayer is not part of the iOS, it is an app and very significant one for uk users. I just gave a few examples of significant functionality that has been available for iOS many months but is unavailable or poorly supported on Android. By poorly supported I mean only available on a handful of devices or with limitations which do not apply to iOS.

Still waiting for similar examples of useful things I can do on Android but not iOS.

Linux? Seriously? I won't be able to watch live football but I will be able to run Linux?

Try harder.

Originally posted by SeventhSon:

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IPlayer is not part of the iOS, it is an app and very significant one for uk users.

I just gave a few examples of significant functionality that has been available for iOS many months but is unavailable or poorly supported on Android.

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Er, what poor BBC iPlayer support?
It works perfectly on my SGS2 and my Android tablet.

Originally posted by Interestx:

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Originally posted by SeventhSon:

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IPlayer is not part of the iOS, it is an app and very significant one for uk users.

I just gave a few examples of significant functionality that has been available for iOS many months but is unavailable or poorly supported on Android.

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Er, what poor BBC iPlayer support?
It works perfectly on my SGS2 and my Android tablet.

---

Already answered that question twice. How about somebody answers mine?

I've already answered.

3 excellent critical selling points for me when I was buying

- 1) micro SD card slot (64gbs of data on top of the built-in 16gbs is essential to me) and
- 2) batteries you can replace and
- 3) Android is an open source OS with outstanding (and growing support)

.....oh and a 4th and 5th one would be better progressive spec/pricing structure for a wide choice of various Android models way better than anything Apple can supply and the fact that Apple offers nothing Android doesn't for less cost.

Quote:

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Already answered that question twice. How about somebody answers mine?

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Sure.

1) You gave ONE example, not "a few", SeventhSon. One example is not a priori evidence for anything at all.

2) You miss the point: Of course there will be specific features each OS has that the other doesn't; that's why they aren't the same OS, silly, as I already mentioned. Or were you ignorant of the lawsuits already extant on both sides..?

3) I can play quite a few formats on my 3vo, using MX Player (free version, in my case), that your iPhone simply cannot touch (at least without jailbreaking), including support for flawless decoding of unconverted/unresized 10-bit 720p files with no stutter or lag. For audio formats, the difference is even more stark. Go ahead, try playing an .ogg music file (much less .ogm video) on that iDevice. Have fun tearing out your hair!

4) I can simply d/l whatever BBC programs I like, avoiding the BBC app completely, in better resolution, with better sound, and so on. The internet is great for that ^^ . Hell, if I want to be a goof, and actually torrent files from my phone itself; there are quite a few Android BitTorrent clients. While generally the inferior method (to using a PC), sometimes it's the only way, if you want your content now.

6) iTunes is a horrible boondoggle and waste of PC space, and ugly to boot.

7) Being able to run a fully-featured desktop OS isn't useful, but watching sports on your phone is, eh? I'd say that, while I can understand your position, your idea of what is actually "useful" is decidedly skewed.

9) It is free to developers to release free apps on the Google Play Market, unlike the iOS App Store, which charges a membership fee, even for free apps.

10) I don't need to use a warranty-breaking method ("jailbreaking") to add unofficial/unapproved apps to my 3vo, unlike iOS. Android simply has you toggle an easily-accessible user setting to enable this.

11) My 3vo, and in fact every Android phone I know of, doesn't have an easy-to-shatter glass back. Go ahead, drop your iPhone (especially any of the older versions) from 5 feet up on a tile floor a few times, sans case, I DARE you. The online videos of people testing exactly this are a laugh riot; it's a fun drinking game to bet on how many different fragments the iPhone's front and back panels shatter into =3 . Even with Gorilla Glass (which many phones have), that was a foolish design choice.

I could go on much longer, but grinding you underneath the millstone of facts is already a bit too easy, I'm afraid.

Apple lost me as a customer years ago when they nuked the Commodore 64 emulator from the app store because it let you run code (C64 software) that Apple didn't approve. I knew right then and there I wanted nothing to do with an iOS device.

I don't like being told what I can do with my device. I have yet to have to jailbreak my Android to run something I wanted to...that day may come, but it hasn't come yet.

Can't wait for Android based car stereos to start appearing.

Thanks to those of you have responded to my question in good spirit. From my perspective, given my priorities, the advantages of an Android phone are -

Replacable battery
Expandable, and interchangeable storage
Supports a wider range of audio and video formats
Price

I shall give serious consideration to the huwai G300 that was mentioned. Incredible phone for the price. A free Iphone4 on contract is also a great deal. whatever If I do, I see no reason to hate people who make a different choice or to brand them as idiots who don't understand technology.

My CEO came in and asked me to help him with his iPhone/iPad the other day ... he wanted to send an email to a bunch of people with a couple of attachments in it ...

Upon investigation I found that once you have started typing an email, it is impossible to attach a document to it! And at best (without purchasing an expensive app), you cannot send multiple attachments with an email?!!?

As a business productivity tool the iPhone and iPad are useless ... my Android far outshines any of the iOS devices we have on site basically because the apps arent "sandboxed" and actually work "together" ... I will be pushing for more and more of our staff to get Android phones in the future, with the ultimate goal of moving across to a Win8 infrastructure in the future (perhaps within 2 years) :)

Thats my personal opinion after owning a company iPhone for many years, and "upgrading" recently to my Galaxy S3.

Originally posted by SeventhSon:

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Originally posted by Interestx:

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@ SeventhSon

The thing is, as much as Apple try to position themselves as the top-end of the market they arent really.

The top-end Android phones easily match the spec - and manage to do it while beating the iPhone on price too.

The most common thing Ive seen about the new iPhone 5 is disappointing.
The Galaxy S3, the HTC One X, the new Windows 8 Nokias and the latest Motorola Razors are all better specd phones.

Apple will keep their fans of course but the thinking consumer more interested in the best specs - as well as those going for the best price/spec equation - will go Android everytime.

---

Specs shmecs,

I said the iPhone is the best in terms of what you can do with it. That is how we judge most consumer products. I have no idea what processor my blu ray player has. Picture quality is great.

So. Im going to give my old Nokia to a street beggar. Im thinking of getting an iPhone 4 which I assume will be free (on contract) in a couple of weeks. I shall be able to make Skype video calls, watch premier league football on Sky Go and download Bbc programs for watching later offline. The first two of these are possible on some android phones, the third one is not available on android at all.

Ignoring the fact that apple are supposedly evil, somebody please tell me why I should go for an Andoid phone instead. Regardless of specs, what Is it that I can do with an android phone that I cant do with the iPhone?

Im happy to pay for content and have no interest in porn.

---

How about sending or receiving mp3 files via Bluetooth?

Originally posted by SeventhSon:

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Originally posted by Interestx:

---

@ SeventhSon

The thing is, as much as Apple try to position themselves as 'the top-end of the market' they aren't really.

The top-end Android phones easily match the spec - and manage to do it while beating the iPhone on price too.

The most common thing I've seen about the new iPhone 5 is 'disappointing'.
The Galaxy S3, the HTC One X, the new Windows 8 Nokias and the latest Motorola Razors are all better spec'd phones.

Apple will keep their fans of course but the thinking consumer more interested in the best specs - as well as those going for the best price/spec equation - will go Android everytime.

---

Specs shmecs,

I said the iPhone is the best in terms of what you can do with it. That is how we judge most consumer products. I have no idea what processor my blu ray player has. Picture quality is great.

So. I'm going to give my old Nokia to a street beggar. I'm thinking of getting an iPhone 4 which I assume will be free (on contract) in a couple of weeks. I shall be able to make Skype video calls, watch premier league football on Sky Go and download Bbc programs for watching later offline. The first two of these are possible on some android phones, the third one is not available on android at all.

Ignoring the fact that apple are supposedly evil, somebody please tell me why I should go for an Andoid phone instead. Regardless of specs, what Is it that I can do with an android phone that I can't do with the iPhone?

I'm happy to pay for content and have no interest in porn.

---

On an Android handset you can add your own ring tones FREE!!!!!
Apple charge on average 69 to 99p for a "snippet" of a full track.

i know someone online that plays multiplayer games on her smartphone.the site she plays on has people posting in the forum daily asking how to play on ipad and iphones or when there will be an app available.basically its a java game,im not sure what specific phone she uses but it runs java.

also i dont know much about smartphones as i dont own 1 but i do know flash games which i play for free on my pc (running windows 7) cant run on iphones or ipads.You can get the games from the app store and pay money for them if you really want them.

basically the point im making is apple doesnt run flash or java.

Originally posted by SeventhSon:

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I shall give serious consideration to the huwai G300 that was mentioned. Incredible phone for the price.

---

Keep watching what Huwai are producing, they are soon to start making dual & quad core phones.
I'm betting that the price/spec of them will be every bit as outstanding as the G300.

(although it has to be remembered that the vast majority of apps are designed to run well on single core devices - inevitably as the vast majority are, and will be for some time, single core.)

Originally posted by TrinUK:

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On an Android handset you can add your own ring tones FREE!!!!!
Apple charge on average 69 to 99p for a "snippet" of a full track.

---

Real men make their own, regardless of OS.

:¬D

Whoa guys! Android can do this and Apple can do that. I left Apple a long time ago.
I jailbreak or root every phone and tablet I have. You can do almost the same things on each phone but Android does have the advantage. Android does more bc Apple restricts so many things. Apple is.....is....is overpriced PERIOD. Cheaper Android devices outperform the iPhone doing things faster, and better. The only thing a IPhone does better that Android has not been able to match is the web browsing. Apple is superior with the smoothness and buttery scrolling and pinch to zoom. But then again Android usually loads things faster. Good debate but still you pay more on Apple for everything. I have 3 batteries for my android. Love making my own ringtones right on the phone for FREE! Love downloading any full song before albums are out straight to my android for FREE! It's kinda like most Apple users are just taking what Apple gives you even when they are lubing and greasing you up before they screw over you. I choose Android any day until Apple shows something new an innovative as they did when they originally launch the iPhone.

CNET and other reviews say the iPhone 5 didn't bring anything new to the table to upgrade or put them ahead of the top end Android phones and guess what.....they are plenty of new phones to be released right after the iPhone 5 with higher end specs. At least Apple releases updates without having to worry about 100 diff devices. The official ICS has not even been released for my Thunderbolt though I already have it thanks to a leak. Still other phones have Jelly Bean so go figure.

Damn, they STILL haven't released ICS for the Thunderbolt? Yeesh.

My problem was with:

Quote:

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You can't download BBC program's on the android Iplayer app to watch later - you can only stream. No good for traveling etc.

But you said I can do more on android. What?

---

which was just silly tripe. In fact, I immediately downloaded a Dr. Who episode directly to my 3vo with BT, - just to amuse myself - as soon as I read that. And "Iplayer app"..? Someone has no idea how Android works at all.

There's nothing particularly wrong with iPhones, if you like 'em, beyond the drastically inflated cost, and they definitely have some good features. Your taste is, of course, your own, and they ARE pretty well-designed, especially from an aesthetic point of view. But claiming iPhones are somehow more capable than the equivalent Android devices is just so much twaddle, nothing more. I guess folks feel the need to justify paying 30-50% more than the equivalent non-Apple device to themselves somehow.

Originally posted by Bozobub:

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Damn, they STILL haven't released ICS for the Thunderbolt? Yeesh.

My problem was with:

Quote:

---

You can't download BBC program's on the android Iplayer app to watch later - you can only stream. No good for traveling etc.

But you said I can do more on android. What?

---

which was just silly tripe. In fact, I immediately downloaded a Dr. Who episode directly to my 3vo with BT, - just to amuse myself - as soon as I read that. And "Iplayer app"..? Someone has no idea how Android works at all.

There's nothing particularly wrong with iPhones, if you like 'em, beyond the drastically inflated cost, and they definitely have some good features. Your taste is, of course, your own, and they ARE pretty well-designed, especially from an aesthetic point of view. But claiming iPhones are somehow more capable than the equivalent Android devices is just so much twaddle, nothing more. I guess folks feel the need to justify paying 30-50% more than the equivalent non-Apple device to themselves somehow.

---

You can hardly compare using BT to a fully supported, legit app. You won't find every single BBC programme broadcast in the last thirty days on TPB in perfect quality.

But you are missing the point. iOS users know that any new service will support their device from day 1. Android users always come second - BBC, Sky Go, Skype Video, Netflix, Love Film, Spotify, - the pattern is always the same. I'm not sure if we'll ever see MS Office for iPad, but I do know that we will NEVER see it on Android. This Christmas will see a load of toys designed to work with iOS devices. Will they also support Android? Not a chance. It may not be fair, but it is a fact.

If you are not bothered about these issues Android is a good option. It is an option for me because I want my phone to be a phone and not much else. Unless you are interested in piracy or porn, the often repeated statement that you can 'do more' with Android is a myth.

So, in other words, you like to have your hand held by the ghost of Steve Jobs, nothing more =3 . Your definition of "what you can do with it", point of fact, ONLY includes officially "blessed" activities. How unsurprising. Unfortunately for your argument, your statement was that you could do more with an iDevice, which isn't quite the same thing. Furthermore, if you want "your phone to be a phone", WTF are you buying a smartphone for in the 1st place? Make some sense, please.

First, your claim that Android is less capable started this debate.

Second, yes, you CAN do more with Android. All of your examples are only ways to tie yourself to the corporate tit even tighter. Unless you jailbreak an iDevice, you're stuck with what APPLE thinks is best for you, even when it patently isn't. A couple of examples off the cuff:
- iOS doesn't have support for many common audio/video codecs, and they're fantastically difficult to add.
- iOS doesn't support native Flash (only needed rarely, but when you need it, essential, buggy or not).

iDevices lock you lock you exclusively into their version of "how things should be". Want to use your phone to run a desktop OS, or different version of iOS? Forget it. Want to use some other method besides iTunes to transfer data between your iDevice and desktop? No dice. Want to completely avoid the "cloud"? Not gonna happen. Want to emulate another programmable device (such as a Commodore 64 or other legacy desktop)? Piss off. The list is quite long.

I'll reiterate: At the same price point (US $649 for an unlocked iPhone 5!), Android devices are often far more capable than the iDevices. The fact that Apple customers are willing to shell out such a high premium ()again, 30-50%) for their hardware is also a good explanation of why marketers are often so eager to release tie-in applications for iOS first.

Once more, I'll say it: iDevices are not crap. But, just like the Mac, they're also overpriced and underpowered for that price. If the Apple design aesthetic is really that important to you, fine. If your iPhone is the only device that will interface with that "smart" teddy bear, whoopty-doo. But you're not going to be running Linux on it, getting real work done.

Oh, and BTW, MS office is currently believed to be slated for release to both iOS and Android =) . Smack some Google on that.

I would reply but I'm about to watch Sunderland v Liverpool on my iPad. Have fun with Linux.

Originally posted by SeventhSon:

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I would reply but I'm about to watch Sunderland v Liverpool on my iPad. Have fun with Linux.

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And you replied. Have fun with logic =3 .

SeventhSon wrote:

Quote:

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You can hardly compare using BT to a fully supported, legit app. You won't find every single BBC programme broadcast in the last thirty days on TPB in perfect quality.

But you are missing the point. iOS users know that any new service will support their device from day 1. Android users always come second - BBC, Sky Go, Skype Video, Netflix, Love Film, Spotify, - the pattern is always the same. I'm not sure if we'll ever see MS Office for iPad, but I do know that we will NEVER see it on Android. This Christmas will see a load of toys designed to work with iOS devices. Will they also support Android? Not a chance. It may not be fair, but it is a fact.

If you are not bothered about these issues Android is a good option. It is an option for me because I want my phone to be a phone and not much else. Unless you are interested in piracy or porn, the often repeated statement that you can 'do more' with Android is a myth.

---

Why can't I add multiple attachments to my emails on my iOS device? :( Seems strange that a "more capable" device can't be used for one of the most basic business functions ...

I got fed up with my Apple device not being able to do basic things ... ever tried clicking on a video link from inside an Excel spreadsheet on your iOS?

My conclusion after being an IT professional for the past 10 years and owning both devices?!

iOS = toy
Android = tool

But bring on the Win8 surface tablet :)

I'm interested to see if the Surface Pro is all it's cracked up to be, myself.

Originally posted by Interestx:

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Originally posted by TrinUK:

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On an Android handset you can add your own ring tones FREE!!!!!
Apple charge on average 69 to 99p for a "snippet" of a full track.

---

Real men make their own, regardless of OS.

:¬D

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That I agree with. Try telling Apple you want to add your own Reason or Cubase tracks to your handset. LOL