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Ask HN: What do you do on an Android phone that cannot be done on an iPhone?

news.ycombinator.com

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Re: Ask HN: What do you do on an Android phone that cannot be done on an iPhone?

#121

Post by mjlee »

obarthelemy wrote: post #105
obarthelemy wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On the flip side, mu iBrother made the transisiton to Android about a year ago. His major pain points were: - no iMessage. It's not particularly good or different compared to whatsapp, Skype, Messenger... but it's not available on Android and people are used to it. - in case of an issue, the solution is brand+model-specific. For some reasons he wanted a Notifications widgets, you get that differently for a Samsung or…

where did my line breaks go ?

https://news.ycombinator.com/formatdoc

You need to leave a blank line to get a new paragraph.

Re: Ask HN: What do you do on an Android phone that cannot be done on an iPhone?

#122

Post by mstaoru »

mrunseen wrote: post #117
mstaoru wrote: post #92

By far the best feature for me is DUAL APPS: separate copy of an app that runs absolutely separated from the parent app. This way you can have e.g. two Slacks or two Facebooks or LinkedIns logged into two profiles without endless switching. Other sweet things: support for WireGuard VPN, customizable keyboards (I'm a big fan of "finger slide" typing pioneered by, I think, Swipe), giant Google Calendar widget on the ma…

iOS supports Wireguard [1] [1] https://apps.apple.com/us/app/wireguard/id1441195209?ls=1

That's another big issue: as a user in China, AppStore doesn't have a lot of apps, mainly VPNs and some other apps. On Android I can always just sideload or use APKPure or whatever. On iOS I have to jump through a lot of hoops to get a working VPN app in China.

Re: Ask HN: What do you do on an Android phone that cannot be done on an iPhone?

#123

Post by sametmax »

Fradow wrote: post #116

- the big one is to have SMS on my computer (with Airdroid). On iOS, you are limited to Apple ecosystem with iMessage. Keep in mind iMessage is way better than Airdroid, but the convenience of being able to receive and send SMS from my Windows desktop trumps the ease of use of iMessage. - direct file access is useful to transfer things in and out of my Android devices, compared to the dreaded iTunes blackbox. - there…

pulsesms is a good alternative to airdroid for the desktop sms experience. Still not on par with iMessage, but way better. Also, kde-connect has a better integration for remote desktop/phone control.

In the end, I only keep airdroid for sharing files and contacts.

Re: Ask HN: What do you do on an Android phone that cannot be done on an iPhone?

#124

Post by willmacdonald »

ToFab123 wrote: post #101

After many years with Android and windows phone i got my first iPhone a couple of weeks ago. The biggest ( and almost only) complain is that you cannot configure a different browser to be your default. You are stuck with safari which lags an incredible amount of features. Safari is so bad that my next phone will not be an iPhone Edit : my desktop os is Windows and now my browser on the phone and on the pc is not in s…

You can have chrome be in sync if you login. (Chrome on iOS is basically Safari, but you can sync all the stuff in your profile like bookmarks.)

Re: Ask HN: What do you do on an Android phone that cannot be done on an iPhone?

#128

Post by sametmax »

obarthelemy wrote: post #91

- Widgets on the actual home screen, no swiping required. Every app has widgets (except Skype !), so you can have whichever info you need most right there - true browser, true addons. Unlike iOS, Android doesn't limit 3rd-party browsers to reskins of the OS' Web engine, but allows desktop-like from-the-ground-up browsers. You can get Firefow and put uBlock Origin and Privacy Badger on it. - sideloading w/o rooting. E…

That's the comment I wanted to write.

I'd add:

- kde-connect. It's awesome to be able to control my computer for my phone, especially while watching a movie.

- alternative stores. Being able to use aptoid and f-droid let me use the full potential of the phone without tying it to an email account.

- productivity concepts arrive first on android. We had wifi hot spot. Quick wifi/bt/3G switch first. Etc. With apple, you only have what Apple though about, or could copy later. With Android, the community can implement many things.

- USB-C charger. I don't want yet another charger/adapter

- my phone will still work in 5 years. No "oh the home button is broken" scandal.

Re: Ask HN: What do you do on an Android phone that cannot be done on an iPhone?

#129

Post by AnthonBerg »

slezyr wrote: post #126

USB Tethering. Internet is down in the office? No problem, just connect the phone and share internet access. It's a killer feature when there is something wrong with WiFi drivers on laptop/router/internet cable.

This is possible on an iPhone: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204023

Re: Ask HN: What do you do on an Android phone that cannot be done on an iPhone?

#130

Post by wikibob »

slezyr wrote: post #126

USB Tethering. Internet is down in the office? No problem, just connect the phone and share internet access. It's a killer feature when there is something wrong with WiFi drivers on laptop/router/internet cable.

iPhones work as a cellular modem and can be tethered by USB, WiFi, and Bluetooth.

It works especially seamlessly when tethering your Mac because the Mac can signal the iPhone to enabling tethering mode.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204023

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