iPhone vs. Motorola Droid comparisons: why does the iPhone seem to win all of them?

[hondamx525]

You discredited his statement even though the narrower width means that the virtual keyboard in portrait mode will still be worse than the iphones regardless of pixel density? Size is still important.

[Hands0n]

Just to set the credentials.
I've had the iPhone since day one.
The T-Mobile G1 left me cold from day one (more on that in a moment) so I abstained until the HTC Magic arrived on Vodafone in the UK earlier in 2009.

Since then I have carried both the iPhone and the Magic with me daily and tried my absolute best to use them as interchangeably as possible. It has been fairly easy to do this because I've been able to link up MobileMe and Google Mail, Calendar and Contacts seamlessly across the two mobile devices as well as the Mac computers that I use. The integration across all of the platforms and the two clouds is perfect (for me).

So with all of that going on, how has the experience been?

I have to say that in all honesty the iPhone experience just pips the Android one. And let me say that Android is close, closer than any other product currently on the market, or that may be very near to release.

Focussing on the experience is, I believe, a more reasonable marker to compare the two broad products than individual hardware. And in Apple-land the experience is across more than just the handset. For example, with MobileMe not only are you able to sync the usual Mail, Contacts and Calendar but also other vital essentials such as Bookmarks. Perhaps seemingly unimportant - but how often have you wanted to visit a site bookmarked on the desktop/laptop only for it not to be there on the handset? It is the "silly little things" like this that add to the experience. With the iPhone, physical size notwithstanding, the desktop/laptop paradigm is carried across almost perfectly.

Now I know that much of the above can be done on Android, and no doubt with various apps and cloud-based plug-ins. But, and this is the critical point, with the iPhone the whole thing is much more natural and intuitive to do.

Someone said it earlier in this thread - the iPhone has a mass appeal. That is through its sheer intuitiveness to use. What other smartphone comes in a box without a manual, nor needing one? People tend to pick up an iPhone and just get on using it.

Perhaps it is that simpleness and intuitiveness that quickly bores the more technically adept of us. We generally like to fiddle and tinker, to make and to break, and to make again. Android caters wonderfully for the technically curious.

Briefly, on handsets, I despair at the lag that is apparent across all Android I've used to date. Even on the ROMs like Cyanogens it is apparent. Clearly this is not simply a software issue in the OS. That Droid is reported to exhibit some slight lag is disappointing, although it wouldn't put me off getting one when they finally arrive in the UK.

Back to the G1 - I didn't like it at the outset. But a few weeks back I picked up a mint condition one from eBay for my youngest lad (15) and he's like a dog with the proverbial two wotsits Having spent a bit of time getting it unlocked, then setting it up on Vodafone for him my interest was tickled. I had also previously helped eldest with his G1 - he'd put a Hero ROM on it that didn't work too well - and of course hadn't backed up the G1 first. So with a lot of searching around the Interwebs I finally got him back to factory condition. The result is I went back to eBay and picked up a G1 for myself to play with. I'm happier with the Magic, but have a greater respect for the G1 these days. It is industrial strength

[qItor]

You discredited his statement even though the narrower width means that the virtual keyboard in portrait mode will still be worse than the iphones regardless of pixel density? Size is still important.

in landscape mode (yes, despite the slide-out keyboard, the Droid also has a virtual keyboard that works in landscape mode) it isn't worse - it's better. Apart from that: do you know how much 3mm is? Get yourself a metric ruler and check it for yourself.

the HTC Hero has a massively smaller screen and the virtual keyboard is still very good. The reviews I've seen also say that the Droid's VK is very good.

The 3mm (which you wouldn't even notice) won't make any difference whatsoever. If the virtual keyboard were worse (which it apparently isn't), it would be because of other factors (auto-correction etc.)

[embrace LB]

Can't really compare the two, thats just my take. Both the phones are great I will admit. Always will love android & i'll always enjoy the stability of apps and vibrant looks of the iPhone. But android isn't at the OS level nor are the apps quite there yet to be compared to the iPhone. The race is close but the iPhone's been out longer and it's only the beginning for us. We're catching up quick and with the functionality and customization of our android phones, it makes all the difference. I believe in soon time when we make a comparison of a certain android device vs the iPhone, android will obviously win. In soon time Android OS will soon surpass apple (:

just my 2 cents.

PS. It's always about preference, not so much which phone is better I see it as which phone works more for you. *cough* android...

[qItor]

But android isn't at the OS level nor are the apps quite there yet to be compared to the iPhone.

that's what I keep hearing - could you elaborate on that? I simply fail to see where Android is inferior to iPhone OS. Apart from the speed (although some reviews say the Droid is very fast, so won't know which version's true there until I have my Milestone) - what's supposed to be worse on Android? Android has all the functionality (including multi-touch and pinch-to-zoom, which was disabled for the US version for whatever reason but is present and active in the Milestone) and then some more (multi-tasking, unified message notifications, much greater customizability, browser with visual bookmarks, a plugin interface for Adobe Flash, integrated navigation etc.)

If you look at the features, iPhone OS is limited. Stability? Not sure - for some people (like my wife), iPhone OS is very stable. My iPhone 3Gs is still suffering from the occasional force-closed application, so I can't say it's very stable. I've had the HTC Hero which was much more stable than my iPhone. But the Hero was limited by its antiquated processor and the small screen-size.

Usability? Now that's a different story. I personally much prefer Android's UI but I can see that other people like the simpler and more limited interface of the iPhone better - less choice isn't always a bad thing. But that's a matter of taste and can't really be the basis of an objective comparison.

Peter

[clarence3000]

Motorola Android Launch bright and early Friday November 6th at 7am at the Verizon Wireless store in South San Francisco (next to the San Mateo Credit Union on El Camino Real):

150B El Camino Real
South San Francisco Ca. 94080
650-624-0370

Beat the rest of the crowd and stop in, doors open at 7am!!!!!!!!
This phone is AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[embrace LB]

that's what I keep hearing - could you elaborate on that? I simply fail to see where Android is inferior to iPhone OS. Apart from the speed (although some reviews say the Droid is very fast, so won't know which version's true there until I have my Milestone) - what's supposed to be worse on Android? Android has all the functionality (including multi-touch and pinch-to-zoom, which was disabled for the US version for whatever reason but is present and active in the Milestone) and then some more (multi-tasking, unified message notifications, much greater customizability, browser with visual bookmarks, a plugin interface for Adobe Flash, integrated navigation etc.)

If you look at the features, iPhone OS is limited. Stability? Not sure - for some people (like my wife), iPhone OS is very stable. My iPhone 3Gs is still suffering from the occasional force-closed application, so I can't say it's very stable. I've had the HTC Hero which was much more stable than my iPhone. But the Hero was limited by its antiquated processor and the small screen-size.

Usability? Now that's a different story. I personally much prefer Android's UI but I can see that other people like the simpler and more limited interface of the iPhone better - less choice isn't always a bad thing. But that's a matter of taste and can't really be the basis of an objective comparison.

Peter

Apple's been in the game longer, they're at what 3.0? and we aren't even at 2.0 yet, by the time we catch up and meet eye-to-eye we'll obviously have a better OS. I never said we dont' have the potential to have a better OS than apple cause by far i think we do and thats coming soon. As far as pinch to zoom and all that browser multi-touch, that all goes along with apple's patents which we have yet to re-create on our own for android, that'll come soon. I know what we have and what apple doesnt. And in my opinion, our apps are good, i like the creativity and all the more stuff we can do with it, but as far as UI and stability not so much. Theres a lot of clutter in the app market, makes sense since mostly anyone can post up an app which accounts with being open market and what not. We do have that over apple, but they still have a lot more nicer apps than we do. We have a lot of apps just not that many amazing ones. We're at two different levels. I've had way more force closes on my android device then i ever had with an iPhone. And im not saying our OS is inferior to apple's im saying its not exactly quite there to compare. When we reach the same build OS i think it's only more natural to then compare.

PS. I love my g1, one of thee many who first pre-ordered.

[qItor]

Apple's been in the game longer, they're at what 3.0? and we aren't even at 2.0 yet, by the time we catch up and meet eye-to-eye we'll obviously have a better OS. I never said we dont' have the potential to have a better OS than apple cause by far i think we do and thats coming soon. As far as pinch to zoom and all that browser multi-touch, that all goes along with apple's patents which we have yet to re-create on our own for android, that'll come soon.

Please excuse my ignorance - but I fail to see what a version number says about the quality of the OS? Some companies get it right the first time, you know. Saying that Android is worse than iPhone OS just because Android is at version 2.0 and iPhone OS at version 3.x is absurd.
I maintain my stance: Android 2.0 is every bit as good as iPhone OS and in many respect it's massively better. It's different to use and iPhone OS is more novice-oriented but Android is definitely not worse.

Also: pinch-to-zoom and multi-touch in the browser etc. ALREADY EXISTS in Android. Verizon apparently chose to have it disabled for the Droid but it WORKS PERFECTLY FINE in the Motorola Milestone. Also, while Apple has a patent for multi-touch (which nobody really cares about - HTC and Palm included multi-touch support in their handsets and Apple did nothing about it), they don't apparently have a patent for pinch-to-zoom. Of course, one could argue that one doesn't work without the other, but since the HTC Hero, the Palm Pre and also the Motorola Milestone have the feature, I believe Apple isn't very confident they could win in court against any of these companies.

[hondamx525]

When people say that the iphone is better, it often just has to do with apps. The apps for the iphone are far and above android apps, which i have been saying is because we havent had the hardware to keep up.

Now that the droid is out, i believe we will catch up, however i also believe that alot of the 3d games written for the droid, and fancy UI apps wont run well on other android phones, which could cause a problem.

[bmcclure937]

in landscape mode (yes, despite the slide-out keyboard, the Droid also has a virtual keyboard that works in landscape mode) it isn't worse - it's better. Apart from that: do you know how much 3mm is? Get yourself a metric ruler and check it for yourself.

the HTC Hero has a massively smaller screen and the virtual keyboard is still very good. The reviews I've seen also say that the Droid's VK is very good.

The 3mm (which you wouldn't even notice) won't make any difference whatsoever. If the virtual keyboard were worse (which it apparently isn't), it would be because of other factors (auto-correction etc.)

Exactly my point!! I was not saying that the physical size of a screen never matters, but in this context (iPhone vs Droid) is definitely does not

I would much rather have the Droid screen, sacrificing 3mm of physical size and gaining so much more because of pixel density and high resolution

If it was a different case, like Eris vs iPhone... then it would obviously go to the iPhone (both size and resolution). You have to take things in context.