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US smartphone shipments fall sharply, but Android more than iPhone

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Re: US smartphone shipments fall sharply, but Android more than iPhone

#101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Long support (5+ years), physical first-party stores for support every 100ish miles in the USA, compatibility with Apple's proprietary iMessage and FaceTime protocols. An OS that's generally considered easier to use, with more walls in place to protect users from malware. A simple $400ish price point. Not a huge difference from Samsung's cheaper offerings on paper, but a lot of little things that add up to a better e…

My limited experience with the Apple store seem a reason to stay AWAY from Apple. They wouldn't look at the phone. They made me stand in line to make an appointment to come back , all the while their team of "experts" stood around chatting. It came across to me as horribly elitist, and one of the worst retail experiences I can recall.

To you, that’s elitist.

To the average person, that’s just… how things work.

Re: US smartphone shipments fall sharply, but Android more than iPhone

#103

Android’s problem is Pixel is the only good one, and it has not been flagship quality since the Pixel 2. The 3 had odd issues, the 4 had a laughable battery life, and 5-7 are a weird mix of midrange and flagship capability (trending towards flagship, but not in the club yet). All other Android vendors are on a continuum of crap, between these points: 1. loaded with bloat and customizations that aren’t better than wha…

Just got an S23U 2 weeks ago. Its an impressive device both hardware and software. I was expecting a lot of bloat but looks like only MS Office apps where Non-Samsung apps pre-installed and I was going to install them myself either way.

Re: US smartphone shipments fall sharply, but Android more than iPhone

#104
post #92
post #16

Apple messaging lockin is having the desired impact. Combine that with Google's mess of a strategy and it is easy to see why this is happening. It is why it is so critical to hire the right people in leadership to avoid squandering key, already successful, strategic positions.

Its annoying as hell, because iMessage isn't really useful when most of the people I write to don't have an iPhone. 100% I blame Google though, they need to get their ass together and make their own. It needs to work with everbody who already have a google account and they need to commit to it for 10 year minimum. Then it is reasonable for Apple to create a system so they can talk together.

> It needs to work with everbody who already have a google account and they need to commit to it for 10 year minimum

This already exists. 10 years ago, Google Hangouts was separated from Google+. It is currently accessible through the Gmail web interface, Gmail app, and "Chat" app.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.and...

Re: US smartphone shipments fall sharply, but Android more than iPhone

#105
post #84

I'm a long time Android user but boy, Google is trying hard to make me switch. Android Auto is a mess, not a lot of good phone options with compact footprint, poor update policies and basically the feeling of always being 2-3 years behind Apple.

I don't get "Android Auto" and "Android Automotive" They aren't open source, and when they don't work, your car is left with a weird system that can't be substituted. They make it less likely that I'll want to buy a car with them. What's so good about it versus just using bluetooth and a phone mount? Could be crazy, but figure buggy software should be something I can swap out, not integrated into a car many times mor…

Android Auto is able to show your current route/map to the car's screen. Android can do that reasonably successfully, so it's worth the price of admission for this reason alone. This said, there are a few usability annoyances and other failures elsewhere in the overall experience. But this particular feature works pretty well.

Re: US smartphone shipments fall sharply, but Android more than iPhone

#106

> Despite inflation numbers falling through the quarter and ongoing strength in the job market, consumers hesitated to upgrade their devices amid market uncertainty.” > Apple’s resilience was driven by strong promotions across postpaid and prepaid. Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile continued to offer $800+ promo credits for the iPhone 14 while old-generation iPhones were also steeply discounted across prepaid. We are seeing…

I have a love/hate relationship with Verizon. Okay, more often hate/hate, but still. They have the best network in this area when we're out in the sticks. But their pricing is pretty high. They'll offer $800 on a new iPhone, and then the credit comes one month at a time over 36 months. Meanwhile, you're paying $70-80 per phone. You might as well take the upgrade when available, if you're going to stick with them, bec…

Who else has cheap data sims? Is this still a killer feature of GoogleFi alone (one time $5 fee for a data sim)?

I really wish companies would be happy to sell data. Making a bunch of addon charges to get me to he point where I can consume data is such a defiance of what these companies best utility should be: carrying data.

The one other thing that almost wholly shapes who I'd go with for an MVNO is what speed I get after soft cap. Everyone has unlimited & everyone will eventually slow you down to much slower speeds: what life is like after that threshold is why I cling to my absurdly expensive very grandfathered Verizon Unlimited, which they won't even let me bump my SMS allowance on.

Re: US smartphone shipments fall sharply, but Android more than iPhone

#107
post #92
post #16

Apple messaging lockin is having the desired impact. Combine that with Google's mess of a strategy and it is easy to see why this is happening. It is why it is so critical to hire the right people in leadership to avoid squandering key, already successful, strategic positions.

Its annoying as hell, because iMessage isn't really useful when most of the people I write to don't have an iPhone. 100% I blame Google though, they need to get their ass together and make their own. It needs to work with everbody who already have a google account and they need to commit to it for 10 year minimum. Then it is reasonable for Apple to create a system so they can talk together.

I don't understand -- are Android users not able to receive your iPhone text messages? I've never had that problem.

Re: US smartphone shipments fall sharply, but Android more than iPhone

#108
post #16

Apple messaging lockin is having the desired impact. Combine that with Google's mess of a strategy and it is easy to see why this is happening. It is why it is so critical to hire the right people in leadership to avoid squandering key, already successful, strategic positions.

What is the messaging lock-in? I have lots of text threads with mixed Android+iPhone users, and never have any problem.

Re: US smartphone shipments fall sharply, but Android more than iPhone

#109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FaceTime and iMessage always work very well and out of the box. No installation/configuration required. This, in my mind, is the biggest selling feature for iPhones to baby boomers. Locks them in forever as well.

WhatsApp takes about two clicks to setup. My 60 year old and generally technophobic mum and all her friends have managed to set it up and use it themselves (including group chats and profile pictures)

> mum

This is perhaps a giveaway that you're not in the US, where WhatsApp is generally not something people use to communicate. (Anecdotally, I have seen it primarily used among people who have families outside the US.) FaceTime, on the other hand, is widely used here.

Re: US smartphone shipments fall sharply, but Android more than iPhone

#110
post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Its annoying as hell, because iMessage isn't really useful when most of the people I write to don't have an iPhone. 100% I blame Google though, they need to get their ass together and make their own. It needs to work with everbody who already have a google account and they need to commit to it for 10 year minimum. Then it is reasonable for Apple to create a system so they can talk together.

> It needs to work with everbody who already have a google account and they need to commit to it for 10 year minimum This already exists. 10 years ago, Google Hangouts was separated from Google+. It is currently accessible through the Gmail web interface, Gmail app, and "Chat" app. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.and...

> It is currently accessible through the Gmail web interface, Gmail app, and "Chat" app.

None of these are a good substitute for messaging like SMS or iMessage.

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