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Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

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Re: Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

#221

Post by unconed »

vacri wrote: post #213
degusta wrote: post #2

I wrote the piece / did the research. Happy to answer any questions or comments people might have.

It's an apple fanboy piece, presenting heavily skewed data, be it from either straight-out falsity or improper definitions: 1) Original iphone can't run iOS 4, but it gets green all the way through. Similar issues with 3G and iOS5. EDIT: I see now that the way you've done the timelines makes it confusing, and seems to be done intentionally to make your point rather than clarify what's going on. 2) 2.1 to 2.2 is a min…

I was surprised at the iOS 4 omission, but for the love of god, please don't argue based on the version numbers alone. They never tell the whole story, and it depends on both software maturity and industry whether an upgrade is major or minor. There's also the fact that enough minor upgrades with a feature here and there over time can definitely accumulate into what would otherwise have been a major release.

For example, Android 2.2 added huge performance gains, which definitely makes a difference for what app developers can do and what you can run. It also added very useful new features like wifi hotspot that make the device much more useful.

Meanwhile 2.3 had a streamlined UI theme and added a new keyboard, NFC, gyros, WebM/AAC, multiple cameras, etc. Is that just minor?

As an Android user, I feel the graph is pretty representative of the ecosystem and how my experience compares to iPhone users around me.

Re: Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

#222

Post by unconed »

martey wrote: post #21
estel wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why is iOS vs. Android only useful for people in the US?

It isn't. I was referring to the fact that the chart: - only compares iOS and Android phones, and - only compares updates from American carriers.

At the same time, the US is one of the biggest markets around, so it provides a reasonable case study and it tends to be the first to get any upgrade. It would be a nightmare to try to do the same for Europe for example because of the fragmentation.

Re: Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

#223

Post by Tyrannosaurs »

guelo wrote: post #170
technoslut wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>And don't forget the mandatory "crapware" that carriers pre-install. ICS supposedly solves this problem but one has to wonder how many low-end Android phones will be sold in the next year (or even two?) that won't support ICS since the N1 won't be getting it.

The other point is that iOS is chockfull of crapware, though for some reason people ignore crapware if it comes straight from Apple. iOS 5 even prevents you from hiding some of the crap inside folders, I noticed this with the Newsstand app.

The reason you can't hide Newsstand in a folder is that it IS a folder.

Limiting yes but it's not "preventing" you, it's just a constraint.

I do agree that it's irritating that you can't uninstall certain stuff though. Stocks is the main example which I think a majority of users have little or no interest in and up until iOS5 the Apple weather app was decidedly meh.

Re: Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

#224

Post by rodh257 »

unconed wrote: post #222
martey wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It isn't. I was referring to the fact that the chart: - only compares iOS and Android phones, and - only compares updates from American carriers.

At the same time, the US is one of the biggest markets around, so it provides a reasonable case study and it tends to be the first to get any upgrade. It would be a nightmare to try to do the same for Europe for example because of the fragmentation.

is the US really the first to get an upgrade? Most of Samsungs phones are launched first elsewhere, and US versions later come with their own carrier specific versions. The plain Galaxy S is not on that chart, and it would have received the upgrade before all the US variants.

Re: Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

#225

Post by weaselspice »

Hang on, iPhone 3G was released July 11, 2008 and iOS4 was released 710 days later (Jun 21, 2010).

Many people found the 3G to be completely unusable with iOS4 installed and had to rollback to a previous version. On top of this, the 3G didn't receive the FULL iOS4 update, apple left out Multitasking, homescreen backgrounds, etc.

You really need to update your diagram to show that iPhone 3G WAS NOT on the current major release after 2 years due to the fact that it didn't have many of the features of that release and that it couldn't handle what it WAS given properly anyway.

Re: Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

#226

Post by vacri »

unconed wrote: post #221
vacri wrote: post #213

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's an apple fanboy piece, presenting heavily skewed data, be it from either straight-out falsity or improper definitions: 1) Original iphone can't run iOS 4, but it gets green all the way through. Similar issues with 3G and iOS5. EDIT: I see now that the way you've done the timelines makes it confusing, and seems to be done intentionally to make your point rather than clarify what's going on. 2) 2.1 to 2.2 is a min…

I was surprised at the iOS 4 omission, but for the love of god, please don't argue based on the version numbers alone. They never tell the whole story, and it depends on both software maturity and industry whether an upgrade is major or minor. There's also the fact that enough minor upgrades with a feature here and there over time can definitely accumulate into what would otherwise have been a major release. For exam…

For example, Android 2.2 added huge performance gains ... It also added very useful new features like wifi hotspot that make the device much more useful. ... Is that just minor?

Yes, I think so.

Compare to this snippet: March 9, 2011 – iOS 4.3 arrived, delivering hotspot functionality, faster browsing, lock switch settings and improvements to AirPlay and Home Sharing. [1]

iOS gets to call hotspot and faster browsing a minor version, why not the same for Android? It's comparing apples and oranges. Similarly, the cycle for Android 2.0 to 2.3 was around a year (well... 14 months) which is equivalent to the cycles for iOS major revs, which are about a year each [2]

I'm currently trying to upgrade a bit of software at the moment at work that's a few minor points out... but those minor points contain some delicious features. Doesn't mean it's not a minor revision upgrade.

[1]http://www.gottabemobile.com/2011/06/03/ios-and-iphone-timel... [2]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IOS_version_history#Versions

edit: clarifications

Re: Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

#227

Post by methodin »

mambodog wrote: post #214
guelo wrote: post #170

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The other point is that iOS is chockfull of crapware, though for some reason people ignore crapware if it comes straight from Apple. iOS 5 even prevents you from hiding some of the crap inside folders, I noticed this with the Newsstand app.

I think you're kind of missing the point of why the carrier crapware is bad. It isn't solely because you can't hide it or remove it, it's because in addition to that it is generally really poorly written software that has a terrible user experience and often only exists as an advertisement to some other product or service (ie. NASCAR app). Additionally in the case of some manufacturers and carriers, the standard UI i…

Why is that even significant? Do you have 5 iphones you use in your every day life that jumping between them would be painful if they had slightly different OSs? Doubtful. Phones have had inconsistent UIs for almost a decade before iphone, and all the iphone did was become the most popular. Razrs had consistent UIs right? But compared with a generic flip phone they were different. I don't see why all of the sudden this fragmentation and inconsistent UI is a such an evil thing or even a noteworthy subject. The manufacturers settings have no effect on apps unless they block the market place entirely. Then again I suppose the people writing articles about this subject are apple-enthusiasts and/or techies. I rarely see Jane Doe writing about fragmentation - and there is a good reason for that.

Re: Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

#228

Post by jcromartie »

guelo wrote: post #170
technoslut wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>And don't forget the mandatory "crapware" that carriers pre-install. ICS supposedly solves this problem but one has to wonder how many low-end Android phones will be sold in the next year (or even two?) that won't support ICS since the N1 won't be getting it.

The other point is that iOS is chockfull of crapware, though for some reason people ignore crapware if it comes straight from Apple. iOS 5 even prevents you from hiding some of the crap inside folders, I noticed this with the Newsstand app.

Pre-installed Apple applications are a whole different league from, for example, a pre-loaded unremovable trailer video for Confessions of a Shopaholic, which actually came on the last phone I had before the 3GS.

Re: Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

#229

Post by RexRollman »

angryasian wrote: post #152
RexRollman wrote: post #147

To me, Android is a fragmented soup sandwich. I like the idea of having choices for hardware, but under Android: - You can't assume what's going to be on the phone, software wise. Each maker evidently messes with it, sometimes even changing the interface itself. I've also read stories of bloatware being added. - You can't be sure how software updates are going to be handled, because that varies depending on maker and…

the interfaces and multiple app stores are strengths of Android. If I don't like the default launcheror the default lockscreen or the keyboard, I can change it. Customization is a strength. It might be hard for IOS users to understand. Also multiple appstores is a strength because, competition is always good for the consumer. If you are afraid of the relaxed rules of the google market use amazon. If you want huge use…

Customization is fine, when end users do it, but companies should not be messing with Android like they do (or at least, they shouldn't be able to refer to their Frankenstein creation as "Android").

Re: Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

#230

Post by mschaef »

jsz0 wrote: post #151
cbracken wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Though to be honest, for the iPhone 3G, the longer green bar is easily misinterpreted as a positive thing, when for the most part, iOS4 rendered the phone very painful to use. 15-30s wait times for camera shutter, frequent hangs, constant crashes in Maps, being the main pain points with the two that my wife and I owned. If they'd have continued security and minor app updates for iOS3 on the 3G, I'd have been much hap…

The first releases of iOS4 for the 3G were pretty bad but the subsequent releases greatly improved things. I recently sold my old 3GS so I updated it to the latest 4.x version and it was totally usable. Slower than iOS2 but for a 3.5 year old device I thought it was completely acceptable performance. In the rush to release iOS4 I think Apple didn't have time to optimize the 3G release. They seem to have learned their…

There is an enormous difference between a 3G and a 3GS. My wife and I have one of each, both running 4.2.1. Her 3GS is usable, my 3G really isn't. The 3H suffers from lots of OOM-killed applications, and a huge number of 30-40 second pauses that freeze the entire UI. (Although AT&T seems to be equally good at dropping calls placed from either.)

I hear you on the 'Apple didn't have time to get the 3G release right'. That's fine. I have no problem with being stuck on iOS 3.x. Good iOS 4.x would be best... Good iOS 3.x would be almost as good... but bad iOS 4.x is awful. They either should have invested the time to do the release correctly, or just not ship the update to the 3G.

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